Back in January, I wrote in these pages that Virginia had all the ingredients for a thriving outdoor recreation economy except one: the statewide commitment to fully capitalize on it. I argued that we needed dedicated leadership in Richmond, a statewide strategy, stronger investment in outdoor infrastructure and, perhaps most importantly, a willingness to listen to the people already doing this work in communities across Virginia.
On September 29, 2026, the commonwealth took a meaningful step in that direction. Governor Abigail Spanberger announced the hiring of Heather Barrar as Virginia’s first-ever full-time Director of Outdoor Recreation, along with a statewide process aimed at developing a more coordinated strategy for the broader outdoor recreation economy. Barrar will travel across Virginia’s 10 tourism regions on a listening tour, and a new stakeholder advisory group will bring together voices from business, conservation, economic development, tourism, workforce development, health and local government. I was fortunate enough to be chosen as one of those stakeholders.
I can’t stress enough how significant this development is. In January, I wrote that Virginia didn’t need to invent a new model and that other states had already demonstrated what could happen when outdoor recreation was treated seriously as an economic sector. All we needed to do was make the decision to start competing. Creating this position and putting someone in it is a concrete move toward building that capacity.
Barrar also comes to the job with experience that should serve the commonwealth well. Her background includes local government planning and regional trail development, two worlds that will be important to connect as Virginia determines what comes next. She is a trained arborist and forester understanding the balance between conservation and economic development.
A lot has changed for me personally since I wrote that first column. After several years working primarily as a consultant, I recently returned to local government as assistant county administrator in Franklin County. That move has given me another vantage point on the same issue. I can tell you with confidence that the view from Franklin County only reinforces what I believed in earlier this year.
Here, outdoor recreation is woven throughout a remarkable collection of assets: Smith Mountain Lake, Philpott Lake, the Blue Ridge Mountains, trails, rivers, public lands and rural landscapes. There is enormous potential to connect those assets more deliberately with entrepreneurship, tourism, workforce attraction, community development and overall livability.
There are communities just like Franklin County all over Virginia. Some have already established mature outdoor recreation economies. Others have incredible resources but lack infrastructure, businesses, organizational capacity or investment. Some need trails, while others need river access. Many places need outfitters, guides, lodging, restaurants or places for outdoor businesses to get started. Others simply need help connecting people and projects that are already there. That’s really what makes the listening tour so incredibly important.
While the creation of a statewide position is an important structural change, what ultimately comes from it will depend heavily on what Barrar hears as she travels Virginia. With that in mind, we all have to collectively show up. This means everyone. I’m talking outdoor businesses, local governments, hoteliers, restauranteurs, brewers/distillers, trail builders, outfitters, conservation organizations, economic developers and residents like me and you who hike, hunt, fish, paddle, ride, climb, camp and otherwise spend their time outdoors.
This is an opportunity to talk about what’s working, but it’s equally important to talk candidly about what’s getting in the way, and the most useful comments will be specific. We need to know where the gaps are in infrastructure and public access: the trail that stops a mile short of town, the boat launch with not enough parking or the popular destination with no campground nearby. We need to know where businesses are struggling to get established or grow: the outfitter who can’t find lodging for clients, the guide who can’t get approval to operate on public land or the brewery that wants to open near a trailhead and can’t get through local zoning. We need to know which state and local policies make good projects unnecessarily difficult. Those answers will look different in Danville than they do in Franklin County, Roanoke, Richmond, the Eastern Shore or Southwest Virginia. That’s exactly why a statewide conversation is worth having.
The dates and corresponding tourism regions of the listening tour are as follows:
- October 14: Blue Ridge Highlands and Heart of Appalachia
- October 26: Northern Virginia
- October 28: Chesapeake Bay
- November 2: Central Virginia
- November 4: Coastal Virginia Eastern Shore
- November 5: Coastal Virginia Hampton Roads
- November 9: Virtual Session
- November 10: Shenandoah Valley
- November 11: Virginia Mountains
- November 16: Southern Virginia
More specific information about the listening tour can be found here.
Virginia’s outdoor recreation economy is already substantial. At the governor’s announcement, administrators cited federal data putting the sector at $14.4 billion and more than 126,000 jobs. While impressive, there’s room to build on that foundation, particularly in rural communities where mountains, rivers, lakes, forests and trails can become part of a broader economic development strategy.
That growth, however, needs to be intentional. We should be thinking about the entrepreneurs who can build businesses around these places. We should be thinking about the workers who want to live somewhere that gives them access to the outdoors after work. We should be thinking about young people deciding whether they can build a life in the communities where they grew up. We should be thinking about how increased use can support long-term stewardship of the lands and waters that make all of this possible.
In January, I ended my column by asking readers to imagine what could happen if the commonwealth aligned behind outdoor recreation with the same kind of intentionality we have seen in parts of the Roanoke region. Fortunately for us, we now have an opportunity to begin finding out. The commonwealth did its part by creating the position and giving the assignment. The next part belongs to us. When that tour reaches your community, fill the room.
Michael Clark is owner and principal consultant, Oxbow Strategies; founder and executive director, VA MTNS Outdoor Collective; 2026 president, Virginia Recreation and Park Society.
