The Southern Virginia Megasite at Berry Hill is in line to receive $1.3 million for lot grading.
The money is part of $7 million for 11 sites through the Virginia Business Site Ready Program announced Thursday by Gov. Ralph Northam. The funds will be used to grade two lots at the site in Pittsylvania County.
“Companies want to invest in the Commonwealth, and this program is critical to making it easier for businesses to do business here,” said Northam said in a news release. “Virginia has been named the best state in which to do business in for three years, and investments like these are part of the reason why.”
Northam came to Danville last mouth to announce $150 million for business-ready industrial sites across the state in his proposed budget. That included nearly $100 million for places like the Southern Virginia Megasite.
People are also reading…
The Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority owns the 3,500-acre mega site, which is the largest in the state and the fifth largest on the East Coast.
The city and county have been working to develop the site at Berry Hill, which is targeted toward a large end-user that can help rebuild the population base within the community and add tax revenue, Danville Economic Development Director Corrie T. Bobe said in December.
“The Virginia Business Ready Sites Program is a powerful economic development tool that gives localities the resources they need to assess and develop sites for economic development opportunities,” Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball said in a release. “These projects across the Commonwealth will strengthen Virginia’s business portfolio and our overall competitiveness.”
There are two parts to the Virginia Business Site Ready Program. First, site characterization assess and designates a site’s level of development, according to the news release. Then there's site development to further develop a pool of potential sites across the commonwealth.
Localities can apply for grants to assist with the costs associated with the initial assessment and the development required to upgrade a particular site, the release stated.
