Lynchburg Business

Businesses Breaking Ground: What’s Developing Where

Issue: May 2010 by Amanda Sullivan in Inside The Magazine, Real Estate

The economy is bad. The economy is getting better. Now it’s getting worse again. Whereas the economic status of the country may be a little elusive, one thing is for certain, business is still growing in our area—if only because new business owners are taking this time to exercise their entrepreneurial insights and make Central Virginia their new stomping grounds.

The increased capitalist interests in Lynchburg and the surrounding areas has caused a some-what small town to grow substantially, causing the small-town charm to take on some of the glitz that bigger cities are known for –if more than one of the same restaurant in a town counts as glamorous.

It’s true, though, Region 2000 is growing. Bedford County alone has several new businesses in the works, with a special concentration in the Forest area. Currently, there are talks underway to put a new restaurant near the Jefferson Crossing area on Route 221, according to President and Chief Executive Officer of the Bedford Chamber of Commerce Susan Martin.

“There is a new restaurant that will contain a micro-brewery,” Martin said. “Construction hasn’t started on it yet.”

Forest is also in the process of welcoming a new McDonald’s restaurant at the Forest Square Shopping Center, right next to the new Kroger on 221, which had a record-setting opening in April.

“McDonald’s is honored to have a presence in Forest,” owner, Troy Cooper, said. “We believe that it is the right time to break ground here, and look forward to serving the people who live in this quickly-growing area.”

Another part of Bedford County that is experiencing growth is Moneta. The new Food Lion opened last month in Downtown Moneta, while a local, family-owned Japanese Steak House is set to open at the end of May, Martin said.

While the county as a whole is welcoming new businesses left and right, what they are not experiencing is a lot of new commercial construction. In fact, Martin says many new businesses are opting to inhabit already standing locations.

“There aren’t a lot of new buildings, but there’s a good occupancy rate—about 85 to 90 percent,” Martin said.

Bedford County is not the only area experiencing growth and giving new use to existing buildings. The City of Lynchburg’s recent growth is the product of much hard work and well-organized plans, Director for the Office of Economic Development Marjette Upshur said.

“My primary focus has been to grow and expand existing businesses,” Upshur said. “If I do that well, I will be doing what is necessary to attract new business to the city.”

Upshur divulged that her plans for growing businesses in Lynchburg have changed recently. She now realizes that in order to attract businesses of different genres and variations, she needs to also attract the consumers.

“In the past, the thought was, ‘If the businesses come, the people will follow.’ Now, the reverse is true—if the people come, the businesses follow,” Upshur said. “Therefore, our focus is to keep improving Lynchburg as a great city to live, work, play and do business.”

So far, Upshur’s new realization has been met with success as the City of Lynchburg has been busy issuing new business licenses in the 2010 year. The success is also coupled with the creative and unique ideas the potential business owners are bringing to the table.

“New businesses are now more entrepreneurial in nature,” Upshur said. “The City of Lynchburg issued 245 new business licenses from January 1 through today [mid-April]. We, like all cities, would like to attract companies with high paying jobs. Technology, energy, Telco/wireless communications, pharmaceuticals, advanced manufacturing, just to name a few, would be desired economic sectors.”

The people and unique business ventures available are just some of the qualities that set the Lynchburg area apart from the majority of the cities in the United States. In fact, Lynchburg was recently ranked 28^th among the “Best Places for Business and Careers” by Forbes magazine. As Upshur pointed out, the people here are attracting the businesses and the businesses are also attracting the people. Together, these two factors are combining to create a place of economic success.

“Award-winning health care, nationally ranked public schools, great parks and recreational activities, numerous arts and cultural venues, five colleges, a vibrant downtown and the list goes on,” Upshur said. “These are just a few of the reasons why businesses and individuals thinking of relocating and/or starting a business should look at Lynchburg—a city of opportunities.”