Acquisition
Commonwealth Senior Living added Commonwealth Senior Living at the Devonshire to its family. The community at 2220 Executive Drive in Hampton offers 156 independent and assisted living apartments. This will be Commonwealth’s second senior living community in Hampton and its 10th in Hampton Roads. A full renovation of interior and exterior spaces are planned and the company plans to add its award-winning Sweet Memories memory care neighborhood, which is expected to open in 2025.
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Appointed/elected
Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced additional key board appointments. Retired Army Col. Brian Hallberg of Chesapeake was appointed to the Virginia Land Conservation Foundation board of trustees. Edward C. Maulbeck of Newport News, chief executive manager-member of Southeastern Virginia Powersports LLC (doing business as Indian Motorcycle of Southeastern Virginia), was appointed to the Motor Vehicle Dealer Board. Retired Army Master Sgt. George Corbet of Williamsburg and former Navy civil service aircraft mechanic Sha’ron D. Martin of Virginia Beach were appointed to the Joint Leadership Council of Veterans Service Organizations. LaMont Henry of Virginia Beach, president and CEO of Henry Wealth Management, was appointed to the board of directors of the Assistive Technology Loan Fund Authority. Arjun Kainth of Virginia Beach, project manager for buildings at Woolpert, was appointed to the Board for Architects, Professionals Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects.
Jeffrey S. Heller joined Virginia Wesleyan University‘s board of trustees. He brings a wealth of expertise in marketing, sales and operations. Before his retirement at Norfolk Southern Corp., Heller served as vice president for intermodal and automotive where he was responsible for more than $4 billion in revenue.
The Chrysler Museum of Art proudly announced that Julia Rogers, higher education and outreach coordinator at the museum’s Perry Glass Studio, has been elected to serve on the 2025 Glass Art Society board. Rogers will join 11 other new board members in bringing their expertise and innovative perspectives to the global glass community. Rogers is an accomplished glass artist specializing in installation and performance art.
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Awards and honors
The York-Poquoson Department of Social Services was awarded with Achievement Awards from both the National Association of Counties and Virginia Association of Counties for its Friendly Visitors Program, which utilizes citizen volunteers to assist senior citizens involved in the Adult Services program of YPDSS.
Tammy Gweedo McGee received the distinguished 2024 Peter K. O’Rourke Special Achievement Award in Indianapolis on Sept. 10 from the Governors Highway Safety Association. This award recognizes the significant contributions to preventing traffic crashes and making our roads safer. Her only son, Conner, died at 16 in York County in 2019 after hopping in the passenger seat of a car leaving his homecoming dance. The young, unlicensed driver was speeding at the time of the crash and three teenagers lost their lives that night. Since then, McGee has become a passionate advocate for teen safe driving education in Virginia and nationwide through the Gweedo Memorial Foundation.
Margaret Sewell was named Volunteer of the Year 2024 by the Virginia Health Care Association at the VHCA-VCAL Awards Banquet held in Norfolk in September. For over 26 years and more than 6,000 in-house volunteer hours, she’s done every volunteer assignment at Lake Taylor Transitional Care Hospital from transporting residents to writing letters on their behalf. Lake Taylor residents have benefitted from her daily acts of kindness, patience, and compassion, which often turn a bad day to a good day for those she encounters. She is a role model for other volunteers and has recruited other volunteers to join in her passionate service. Since 1997, her favorite mission has been ensuring all patients and residents receive a card and gift on their birthday while at Lake Taylor.
Virginia Beach-based Lago Bar, hand-built by owner and retired Navy fighter pilot Patrick Dyer and his family after he repurposed wood from a fort he built for his triplets, was one of five finalists in the International Backyard Bar Awards, presented by brewing tech experts Pinter. The remarkable space features squadron insignias and memorabilia while it has played host to Navy and neonatal ICU reunions, where the owner’s wife worked.
The Hampton Roads Workforce Council celebrated 50 years as the regional convener of workforce development. Formerly Opportunity, Inc., the Workforce Council oversees federally funded workforce development programs for all localities in the Hampton Roads region. At its annual Workforce Innovation Awards on Sept. 12. it recognized these honorees: Community-Based Organization, Neighborhood; Business, Dominion Energy; Education, Tidewater Community College Skilled Trades Academy; Workforce Champion, Dr. Joel English of Aviation Institute of Maintenance, Centura and Tidewater Tech; Military Innovator of the Year, Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth; and Innovator of the Year, Virginia Secretary of Labor Bryan Slater.
The Virginia Restaurant, Lodging & Travel Association celebrated the best of the hospitality and tourism industry during the 2024 Ordinary Awards dinner on Sept. 12. Winners included: Bartender of the Year, Chandler Lacerte of Vintage Tavern in Suffolk; Brewery of the Year, Coastal Fermentory in Newport News; Campground of the Year, Anvil Campground in the Williamsburg area; Chef of the Year, Antonio Caruana of Luce in Norfolk and Luce Secondo in Chesapeake; Distillery of the Year, Waterman Spirits in Virginia Beach; Golden Pineapple Lifetime Achievement Award to the late Williamsburg chef Marcel Desaulniers; Hospitality Hero – Individual, Margaret Wilson of Aberdeen Gardens Historic Museum in Hampton; Restaurant Employee of the Year, Enrique Linares of Second Street Bistro in Newport News; and Restaurant Manager of the Year, Nitesh Arora of Amiraj: Modern Indian Kitchen in Williamsburg.
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Contract
In partnership with New York Power Authority and Guth DeConzo Construction Management, Chesapeake-based INIT will supply a cloud-based charge management solution using CarMedialab technologies to New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority. This smart charging project will support MTA’s electrification plans in one of the world’s largest cities.
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Economic development
Virginia Beach Department of Economic Development and Maxbyte Technologies, an Abu Dhabi-based technology firm, celebrated the opening of Maxbyte’s Industry 4.0 Centre of Excellence on on Sept. 12. Hosted at the Virginia Beach Workforce Training Center in the Advanced Technology Center at Tidewater Community College, the new center will support and accelerate smart manufacturing initiatives, technological evolution and global industrial empowerment. Industry 4.0, synonymous with smart manufacturing, is the realization of the digital transformation of the field, delivering real-time decision making, enhanced productivity, flexibility and agility to revolutionize the way companies manufacture, improve and distribute their products.
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Exhibition
G Marie Luxuries, an artisan designer jewelry and fine art shop in Virginia Beach, is showing an art glass exhibition featuring the internationally acclaimed artist Susan Gott in its showroom through Dec. 13. Gott’s extraordinary glass sculptures are celebrated for their intricate beauty and profound storytelling. Her sculptures are not merely decorative pieces but embody her deep connection with the natural world and ancient cultures. Admission is free.
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Grants/donations
TowneBank pledged $1 million to Christopher Newport University to support academic scholarships, athletic facilities and programs, and the arts. The gift reaffirmed TowneBank’s long-standing partnership with the university and ensures that its name will continue to headline TowneBank Stadium, home to the Captains football and track and field teams. The gift will directly benefit students through the TowneBank Leadership Scholarships. It will also enhance Christopher Newport Athletics as well as the Ferguson Center for the Arts.
The Mariners’ Museum and Park in Newport News received a $15,000 grant from Sentara Health to support the Mariners’ Lake Stewards program during the 2024-25 school year. The award will fund student transportation, the purchase of supplies, teacher professional development and staff time. This school year, 2,000 ninth-grade students will participate in the immersive program, empowering them to become environmental stewards as they gain knowledge of Mariners’ Lake and its ecosystem.
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Marketing campaign
Virginia Beach-based Groundworks, a foundation and water management solutions company, announced its first-ever spokesperson collaboration with notable trades activist Mike Rowe, former host of the hit series “Dirty Jobs” on the Discovery Channel, as well as “Somebody’s Gotta Do It” on CNN. The recently launched “Go Below with Rowe” marketing campaign focuses on showcasing the skills and unique stories of blue-collar workers, while also following real home repair projects to inform local homeowners on the basics of foundation repair, basement waterproofing and crawl space encapsulation. The videos detail the warning signs and solutions for foundation repair projects and how Groundworks employees can help. Groundworks founder and CEO Matt Malone will also be featured on Rowe’s podcast, “The Way I Heard It,” this year.
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New management
The Outer Banks Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Rundown Cafe on Sept. 16. The beloved local restaurant is under new ownership. For more information, visit rundowncafe.com.
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Opening
The first new Panera Bread bakery-cafe in 10 years in Hampton Roads opened at 7701 Tidewater Drive in Southern Shopping Center in Norfolk on Sept. 18. It has Panera’s first drive-thru in Norfolk. This location will sell the items customers love most — soups, salads, sandwiches and signature mac and cheese. Hampton Roads is home to 15 Panera locations and the latest one is expected to create more than 50 jobs.
Autobell Car Wash recently added two Hampton Roads stores offering exterior and interior car cleaning services, bringing its total wash locations in the region to 17. The newest wash is located at 4573 S. Plaza Trail in Virginia Beach, at the Brenneman Farms Shopping Center near the intersection with Princess Anne Road. This debut follows closely on the heels of an Autobell opening this spring at 1470 Mount Pleasant Road in Chesapeake, in the Mount Pleasant Marketplace development at the corner of Centerville Turnpike South. Led by store manager Sebastian Murphy and district manager Justin Hardee, the new Virginia Beach Autobell will employ about 25 workers. At the helm of the newest Chesapeake location is store manager Michael McGowan and district manager Mike Hulburt, an Autobell veteran of 20 years.
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Retirement
After 11 years at the helm of the state’s largest trade association, Virginia Realtors CEO Terrie L. Suit announced her retirement. Suit was appointed chief executive in 2013. Her background in real estate began in 1985 as a Realtor and later transitioned into a 20-year career in mortgage lending. In 1996, Suit received a gubernatorial appointment to the Virginia Real Estate Board. Several years later, she was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates, where she served the 81st District for nearly a decade. In April of 2011, she was appointed as Virginia’s first secretary of veterans affairs and homeland security.
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