From the monthly archives:

March 2010

Grant funds Web help for small businesses

March 31, 2010

NORFOLK—The Small Business Development Center of Hampton Roads Inc., an affiliate of the Hampton Roads Chamber of Commerce, was awarded a $23,000 grant from the Verizon Foundation on Tuesday to help small businesses hurt by the closure of Franklin’s paper mill.

The grant will help the SBDC assist the small-business community in Franklin and Southampton and Isle of Wight counties.

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Recovery task force to brief community next week

March 29, 2010

Published Monday, March 29, 2010

FRANKLIN—The Economic Recovery Task Force’s Executive Committee will hold a community briefing at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 6, at the Paul D. Camp Community College Regional Workforce Development Center.

According to Lisa Peterson — business services director for Opportunity Inc. of Hampton Roads, a regional workforce organization based in Norfolk — the meeting “is intended to provide information to the community on workforce development efforts, economic development strategies, status of the forestry industry and small business development and assistance activities.”

Peterson said a question-and-answer session would also take place at the event.

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Would converting Franklin’s mill to a wood-burning power plant be a green deal?

March 23, 2010

Call it biomass. Call it an “alternative energy source.” Think of trees as a “renewable resource” and their life cycle from seedling to log as “sustainable.” Presto. The world’s oldest energy-producing technology — burning wood — sounds new again.

And it’s catching on: Across the nation, plants are being built to burn wood to make electricity. Terry McAuliffe thinks that a “biomass wood-burning facility” would be a good use for the paper mill in Franklin, and he and a partner have put in a bid to buy it. (If McAuliffe’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he was a contender in Virginia Democrats’ 2009 gubernatorial primary and is a longtime player in Democratic politics on the national scene.)

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New Smithfield campus open for business

March 15, 2010

After a January snowstorm delayed its open house, the new Sentara St. Luke’s Healthcare Campus in Smithfield, with greatly expanded urgent care hours, held its eagerly awaited official welcoming late last month.

The occasion turned out to be an added bonus for patients and guests who were awarded one day of free basic health care.

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IOW won’t be added to enterprise zone until at least 2011

March 8, 2010

By Charlie Passut | Tidewater News

Published Saturday, March 6, 2010

Photo by Charlie Passut
FRANKLIN—A portion of Isle of Wight County will not be added to the enterprise zone in neighboring Franklin and Southampton County until at least 2011.

Isle of Wight County Supervisor Phillip Bradshaw said Gov. Bob McDonnell and unspecified legal counsel advised him that the best way for getting a 6.37-square mile area of southern Isle of Wight, which includes the International Paper Co. mill, added to the Franklin-Southampton zone would be through legislation.

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Hundreds turn out for resource, education fair

March 8, 2010

FRANKLIN—A few hundred people, many of them employees of International Paper Co. and their families, turned out for the “Community Resource and Education Fair” on Wednesday.

“I think all in all it’s been a positive day,” said Beth Reavis, director of Franklin Department of Social Services and chairwoman of the Western Tidewater Coalition. She estimated that about 200 people attended the fair, which was held at the Paul D. Camp Community College Regional Workforce Development Center. Opportunity Inc. of Hampton Roads, a regional workforce organization based in Norfolk, organized the event.

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A joint statement on IP closure

March 5, 2010

Phillip Bradshaw, Jim Councill, Mike Johnson

Published Friday, March 5, 2010

Everyone is concerned about the Franklin mill closure and interested in what Franklin and Southampton and Isle of Wight County are doing to address the significant impacts this closure will have on employment, reuse of the mill site, tax structures and our local economy. While each of these areas deserves individual attention, let us briefly give you an overview of the regional effort being expended on your behalf.

On Oct. 22 when we were first informed of the closure, Franklin Mayor Jim Councill, Phillip Bradshaw, chairman of the Isle of Wight Board of Supervisors and Mike Johnson, administrator of Southampton County, met within the hour to formulate a response and plan of action to strengthen our region collectively.

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McAuliffe shows interest in IP

March 5, 2010

FRANKLIN — Former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe met privately in Richmond with Gov. Bob McDonnell this week to discuss a proposal to purchase facilities at the International Paper Co. mill.

“It was a good, positive meeting,” McDonnell press secretary Stacey Johnson said in a written statement Thursday. “The governor thought he had some good ideas and enjoyed hearing them.”

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IP plans April 15 shutdown

March 5, 2010

FRANKLIN — International Paper Co. will permanently shut down the two remaining paper machines at the Franklin mill on April 15.

“It is possible for that date to change, but barring something unforeseen, April 15 will be the final day of operation for the No. 4 and No. 5 paper machines,” said Franklin Mill Manager Ted Lewellyn.

According to Mill Communications Manager Desmond Stills, the majority of the workforce at the mill will be released sometime between April 15 and June 30.

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