Here’s a roundup of news briefs from around Southwest and Southside. Send yours for possible inclusion to news@cardinalnews.org.
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Appalachian Power plans new Buchanan County substation after 2022 flooding
Appalachian Power said Tuesday it plans to build a new electric substation in Buchanan County after severe flooding a year and a half ago caused power outages there.
Southwest Virginia’s largest electric utility said it will construct the new Levisa Substation at the former American Legion Post 164 property off Riverside Drive.
The site would be outside the floodplain where the Dismal River Substation was impacted during the flooding that also damaged or destroyed dozens of homes in Buchanan and Tazewell counties in July 2022.
“Since the flood in 2022, the Buchanan community has been served by a temporary power source,” Appalachian spokesperson George Porter said in a news release. “This project allows us to put the new substation in a better location to increase reliability and allows us to retire a majority of the out-of-service equipment at the existing Dismal River Substation.”
Appalachian expects to begin construction early next year and finish by late next year.
The new substation is part of a larger planned project that also includes building 2 miles of 69-kilovolt transmission line to connect the new substation to the grid and retiring some equipment at the Dismal River Substation site. Appalachian said the transmission line route is being evaluated but is “expected to be located across industrial and commercial properties just west of Vansant.”
Appalachian Power will hold an open house from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. March 5 at the Appalachian College of Pharmacy at 1060 Dragon Road in Oakwood. Community members will be able to talk to project representatives and view detailed maps. No formal presentation is planned, and attendees are invited to come and go at any time.
Nearby landowners will receive additional information in the mail, Appalachian said. The company has created a project website at AppalachianPower.com/Levisa.
— Matt Busse
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Three Southwest Virginia planning districts receive federal grants
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration has awarded $70,000 grants for economic development planning in the Cumberland Plateau, Mount Rogers and Lenowisco planning districts.
According to a news release from the office of Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem, the grants will support the continued development and implementation of a comprehensive economic development strategy for each of the planning districts.
The Cumberland Plateau Planning District includes the counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell and Tazewell. The Lenowisco Planning District covers the counties of Lee, Scott and Wise and the city of Norton. The Mount Rogers Planning District includes the counties of Bland, Carroll, Grayson, Smyth, Washington and Wythe and the cities of Bristol and Galax.
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Worrell donation will support Cumberland Forest Community Fund
The Anne and Gene Worrell Foundation is making a three-year, $375,000 funding commitment to The Nature Conservancy in support of the Cumberland Forest Community Fund.
[Disclosure: The Anne and Gene Worrell Foundation is one of our donors, but donors have no say in news decisions; see our policy.]
The fund supports nature-based economic and community development projects in Southwest Virginia, according to a news release announcing the gift. It is managed through a partnership between the conservancy, the Cumberland Forest Limited Partnership and the University of Virginia’s College at Wise.
The gift aims to honor the Worrells’ legacy by promoting economic and community development in the region where they met and spent many years together, the release said.
The Cumberland Forest Community Fund was established in 2022 as part of TNC’s 253,000-acre Cumberland Forest project that spans Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. Virginia projects are selected through a competitive grant process led by UVA Wise. The fund also works with nonprofits in Tennessee and Kentucky.
Over two years of grants, the Community Fund has assisted 20 projects, including outdoor education classrooms, a solar array installation, wildlife restoration projects and a trail network expansion.
The application period for round three of the Cumberland Forest Community Fund will open this spring. More information is at www.oxbowcenter.com/communityfund.