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‘Make it more environmentally sound’: Citizen group takes on popular Southwest Va. trail network
A network of popular off-roading trails through Southwest Virginia has been wracked by two years of contentious fights over drainage problems between state regulators, trail officials and citizen activists. The Spearhead Trails are four months into new leadership, and a little more than half a year into a binding agreement that outlines its responsibilities to […]
Another 38 special: inside the intense battle for a reliably red Virginia senate seat
What was expected to be a pretty predictable special election in Southwest Virginia has turned into a surprisingly intense fight in its closing days. Voters in Virginia’s 38th Senate District will elect a new state senator through 2023 on Tuesday. Incumbent Ben Chafin died on Jan. 1 from complications related to COVID-19. The district includes […]
Even before COVID-19, tele-health was becoming a big part of rural Virginia health care
HARRISONBURG — Meagan Thurston wasn’t sure what to expect when she walked into Strength in Peers in December of 2019 for her first tele-psychiatry session, but she was willing to do whatever it took to get her children back. The previous summer, Virginia’s Child Protective Services had taken her five children, between the ages of […]
Why Floyd County burned bright for Bernie
FLOYD — On Super Tuesday, only three Virginia localities voted for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders over former Vice President Joe Biden in Virginia’s Democratic presidential primary: Charlottesville, Harrisonburg and Floyd County. For observers, the first two make sense: Charlottesville and Harrisonburg are home to the University of Virginia and James Madison University, respectively, and Sanders […]
Hemp growers face processing bottleneck, uncertain regulatory landscape
CHRISTIANSBURG — As the second year of commercial hemp begins in Virginia, growers face regulatory uncertainty and a rapidly evolving market. Farmers are still processing the hemp they grew in the 2019 season, which marked the first year that people could legally grow hemp in the United States. Plenty of farmers added hemp to their […]
‘Raging granny’ faces music for pipeline protest: ‘Happy that I did it’
CHRISTIANSBURG — Activist and self-identified “raging granny” Glenna “Duff” Benjamin traveled to Montgomery County in September to lock herself to a sideboom pipelayer and block construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline for five hours. On Monday, she returned to face the consequences of her act of non-violent civil disobedience. The 76-year-old Benjamin pleaded not guilty […]
Rural school districts face tough discussions on consolidation
CLIFTON FORGE — Alleghany County Sheriff Dale Muterspaugh went on a crusade in 2004, pledging his department’s resources to find the primary victim of a massive vandalism case at the high school. In July, dive teams searching the bottom of Pike Pond found what they were looking for: the Brackman Cup, symbol of the fierce […]
Do Democrats have a rural future?
Rural Virginia has swung hard for Republicans over the last decade, driven by backlash to President Barack Obama, an emigration of more educated residents to urban and suburban areas, and a realignment in culture and voting patterns. So why is a Democrat in exurban Northern Virginia running on the campaign slogan, “The Future is Rural”? […]
Amazon embarks on listening tours across Virginia
ST. PAUL — Amazon officials got a tour of southwestern Virginia on Monday, conducting a listening session with Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, regional lawmakers, and local community leaders before mounting ATVs to explore the nearby Spearhead Trails off-road network. Ardine Williams, Amazon’s vice president of workforce development, said the listening session is just one of […]
In Southwest Virginia, a ‘Trump Republican’ seeks a local office
CHRISTIANSBURG — The stark black-and-white sign stands out, even amid the campaign cavalcade of color that, along with the changing leaves, marks October in Virginia. It’s not the absence of the traditional red or blue that grabs the eye so much as the wording: “Elect Dr. Mark J. Matney — Trump Republican for Commissioner of […]
Remote health clinic returns to Lee as hospital prepares to reopen
Lee County’s first Remote Area Medical (RAM) clinic took place in 2014, one year after the county’s community hospital closed down. Now, even as the shuttered hospital prepares to reopen its doors as an urgent care center, RAM is gearing up to once again deliver free dental, vision and medical care to underserved and uninsured […]
Seeking ‘quick wins’ for a distressed region: New economic initiative aimed at Southwest Va.
Southwestern Virginia lawmakers are taking another swing at creating new economic growth in a part of the commonwealth that has lagged far behind Northern Virginia, metro Richmond and Hampton Roads in job creation. They were in Abingdon last week to announce InvestSWVA, a public-private partnership that Will Payne, the project lead and managing partner of […]