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Youngkin: Global firm to open headquarters in Sterling
Gov. Glenn Youngkin has announced that ORBCOMM Inc., a global firm producing internet-connected devices, will establish its global headquarters in Sterling, according to a news release. ORBCOMM will invest up to $3 million in job creation and will expand into 22,000 square feet of office space. The project, pending Loudoun County Board of Supervisors approval on July 15, is estimated to create as many as 51 jobs or more.
DNC launches $1.5M investment in Virginia
The Democratic National Committee announced an initial $1.5 million investment in Virginia on Tuesday in an effort to help candidates up and down the ballot in November’s off-year elections. The investment in the state is one of the largest and earliest investments the committee has made to the Virginia Democratic Coordinated Campaign during an off election year, according to the DNC.
Subramanyam Warns of Federal Budget Impacts in Town Hall
Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA-10) on Thursday warned constituents of the coming impacts of the recently signed federal budget bill during a town hall at John Champe High School. The legislation has been touted by Republicans and the White House as the “largest tax cut in history for middle- and working-class Americans” including no taxes on tips, overtime and social security. The bill is also expected to fund the completion of a wall along the southern border, the hiring of thousands more Immigration and Customs Enforcement and border patrol officers and modernize air traffic control systems across the country.
After Hopewell water plant released raw sewage, state officials outline health, environmental impact
Public officials are advising locals to avoid the James River in Hopewell and Richmond, after a weekend water treatment plant malfunction released raw sewage into the waterway. They also said the region’s recent heavy rains play a part in pollution in the river but don’t expect long-term effects. ... The Department of Environmental Quality is investigating the incident. They visited the facility on Saturday and will be working with the plant to find solutions to ensure another leak won’t happen again.
Hopewell facility fully operational after Friday’s million-gallon sewage spill
A spill that caused more than a million gallons of untreated sewage to affect waterways in Hopewell has been contained. The city of Hopewell released a statement saying that the Hopewell Water Renewal facility on 231 Hummel Ross Road was back to full operational capacity as of Saturday afternoon. Around 11:50 p.m. Friday, HWR experienced a power failure due to faulty wiring, resulting in sewage overflow. HWR staff responded immediately and brought in contractors to restore the affected systems.
New recovery programs in Southwest Virginia will help mothers stay with their children during addiction treatment
Two new residential addiction treatment facilities for pregnant and parenting women are coming to Southwest Virginia, addressing a critical gap in care in a region hard-hit by the opioid crisis. Strong Futures, which will be located in Norton, and Four Truths, in Roanoke, received funding from the Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority to launch and expand residential treatment options that allow women to keep their children with them in the facility while they go through treatment for substance use disorder.
National Democrats to send $1.5 million for Virginia races
The Democratic National Committee is pledging $1.5 million to the party in Virginia to boost Democratic candidates in elections this year — from races for statewide offices to every seat in the House of Delegates. The national committee called the pledge “one of the largest and earliest initial investments the DNC has ever made to the Virginia Democratic Coordinated Campaign in an off-year election cycle.”
Hanover leads state in removing books from school libraries
Hanover County Public Schools has removed twice as many books from its school libraries as any other school division in the state and accounts for more than one-third of removed books over the past five years, according to a new report from the state legislature’s watchdog commission. The Monday report from the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission shows that the Hanover school division has removed 125 book titles from its school libraries between July 2020 and March 2025.
Norfolk cleared to start construction on first phase of floodwall
People passing through the eastern edge of downtown Norfolk will soon see construction for the first phase of the city’s massive floodwall project with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Norfolk Planning Commission recently approved designs for Phase 1A of the more than $2.6 billion project, which the city calls Resilient Norfolk. The effort aims to protect the city from catastrophic flooding during major storms and is part of the Army Corps’ wider Coastal Storm Risk Management program developed after 2012’s Hurricane Sandy. Virginia Beach and the Peninsula are working on CSRM projects but are still in the study phase.
State report: Hanover County leads Virginia with most removed books
The question of what books should be in a school library has been a lightning rod for controversy recently. A report released Monday morning by a state watchdog agency revealed details on what’s been removed and where it’s happening. About two-thirds of the over 90 Virginia school divisions that responded to the survey did not remove any books from their school libraries. Among those that did, Hanover County led the pack with 125 titles removed. That’s according to a new report from the state’s non-partisan research group the Joint Legislative Audit & Review Commission, or JLARC.