Virginia Main Street (VMS) remains one of the best community and economic development investments in state government, leveraging an average of $123 in private funds for every dollar of state funding. In 2021 staff worked with communities across the Commonwealth to employ the Main Street Approach™ to create qualitative and quantitative outcomes through targeted design, economic, … More DHCD Releases 2021 Virginia Main Street Annual Report

What does it mean to be a “Development Ready” community? The final webinar of our three-part series helped localities begin to answer that thought-provoking question. Guest speakers Sandy Ratliff, Vice President of Community Innovation at Virginia Community Capital, and Cathy Lowe, Executive Director at the Virginia Highlands Small Business Incubator, walked participants through tips and … More Development Ready Webinar Series (Part 3): Supporting Small Business Development

On November 26, 2022, communities across the country will rally around local businesses during this year’s Small Business Saturday, a day dedicated to supporting small businesses. You might not realize it, but every time you pick up a cup of coffee from your favorite neighborhood cafe or buy a gift from a local artist’s online … More Rally Your Community for Small Business Saturday!

Would your community like to incentivize a new craft beverage business to fill a vacant storefront, much like what Westmoreland County did to recruit a new brewery and pub to downtown Montross? Or how about investing in needed improvements to your farmers market, like the City of Martinsville’s upgrades to the Uptown Martinsville Farmers Market, … More Strengthen Local Food Systems: AFID Infrastructure Grant Program

What does it mean to be a “Development Ready” community? The second webinar of our three-part series helped localities begin to answer that thought-provoking question. Guest speaker Joe Borgstrom, Principal at Place + Main Advisors, LLC, showed participants how to find and market to experienced developers who will help the community meet their vision. Here … More Development Ready Webinar Series (Part 2): Marketing and Promotion for Attracting Developers

Governor Glenn Youngkin announced Virginia Main Street (VMS) grants for 16 communities, totaling more than $257,000, and $180,000 in Community Business Launch (CBL) grants for three communities. These awards will help to revitalize historic commercial districts, expand small businesses, train entrepreneurs and bolster local economies across the Commonwealth. “For over 30 years, the Virginia Main … More BREAKING NEWS! 2023 Virginia Main Street and Community Business Launch Grants Announced

The Made in Bristol brand encompasses all small-scale production and manufacturing businesses in Bristol, Virginia and Tennessee. It has helped put Bristol on the map and made it easier for local producers and manufactures to thrive and promote their products outside of the local community. The City of Bristol, in partnership with Believe in Bristol … More “Made in Bristol” Supports Small-Scale Producers

In September, I had the opportunity to take my first trip to Oklahoma City – the OKC. In town for about four days for the International Economic Development Council’s (IEDC) annual conference, I knew that to balance the great conference content and my desire to see and experience the city I would have to be … More Oklahoma City Inspires

What does it mean to be a “Development Ready” community? The first webinar of our three-part series helped localities begin to answer that thought-provoking question. Guest speakers Elizabeth Williams and Neil Heller, both of whom are faculty members at the Incremental Development Alliance (IDA), walked participants through the what, why and where of incremental development, … More Development Ready Webinar Series (Part 1): Small-Scale Incremental Development Recap

Governor Glenn Youngkin ceremonially signed House Bill 884 and Senate Bill 195 on June 1, 2022. This new state law aims to create benefits consortiums for Virginia’s small businesses, in addition to nonprofits. According to the governor’s news release, these consortiums allows these entities to come together as a single large pool to offer employees … More Removing Barriers: Expanded Health Care Coverage for Small Businesses and Nonprofits