Visit to Omega Protein
17 July 2006
The Northern Neck-Chesapeake Bay Region Partnership (NNCBRP) launched its "Existing Industry and Business Visitation Program" on Monday, July 17, 2006, with a visit from the Partnership’s members---plus several guests interested in the strategic economic development of the Northern Neck---to Omega Protein Corporation’s largest processing facility, located in Fleeton, Virginia.
The Partnership's Visitation Committee and guests arrived at Omega Protein's Health and Science Center on a Bay Transit trolley.Existing business visitation programs are an excellent way for state and local economic-development officials to have direct contact with business owners, creating opportunities to work together on planned development and industry needs, particularly the very important issue of workforce training.
National research shows that 3 out of 4 new jobs created in a locality emerge from an already established local business. As a result, several Virginia counties have implemented visitation programs, notably Hanover County, which has successfully used the program to convey to county officials how critical local businesses are to the local economy, and how everyone wins when a county gets involved in solving service and regulatory issues that business owners wouldn’t mention otherwise. Other counties with established visitation programs include Chesterfield, Nelson, Winchester, and Patrick, as well as the City of Roanoke.
The Partnership’s visitation initiative is a regional effort for Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Westmoreland Counties. Jerry W. Davis, Executive Director of the Northern Neck Planning District Commission, which serves as administrative staff for the Partnership, said that the Visitation Committee intends to call on a number of existing, large, private employers in the region over the next six months.
Jane Crowther, Senior Director at Omega Protein’s Health and Science Center in Fleeton, walks the visiting group through Omega’s oil-refining process. The tour launched the Northern Neck-Chesapeake Bay Region Partnership’s Existing Industry and Business Visitation Program.
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About the Program: Studies have shown that three out of four new jobs are usually created by existing local businesses. For that reason, the Northern Neck Business Visitation Program was launched in 2006 to assist established local firms with their growth efforts, expansion plans, workforce-training needs, and general day-to-day operations.
