by Ann Marie | Thoughts on Thriving
If you are having trouble recruiting qualified staff in Northern Virginia, you are not alone. This place is on fire. Virginia’s unemployment rate for September (2.7%) is the lowest it’s been in 18 years, the Governor’s office reported. The state also tied with...
by Ann Marie | Thoughts on Thriving
The word “alley” conjures up images of secrecy, maybe something mysterious, forbidden or illegal. Sneakin’ Sally through the Alley just doesn’t work with “street” or “lane”, would it? Alleys are an integral part of the landscape for cities like Old Town but don’t...
by Ann Marie | Thoughts on Thriving
Streetsense Marketing Director Heather Arnold gave developers and others a choice at a recent meeting in Alexandria: the hard brutal truth or continually high retail vacancies over the next 50 years. No one at the Southeast Fairfax EDC breakfast summit complained...
by Ann Marie | Thoughts on Thriving
Roanoke’s Rebirth is On Tap (And Brewery Zoning Issues for You to Consider) “In 2000, you were considered a pioneer if you lived in downtown Roanoke,” recalls city tour guide Larry Landolt, founder of Tour Roanoke. It wasn’t a stretch to call it a ghost town,...
by Ann Marie | Thoughts on Thriving
Psst. President Trump, if you’re not happy with your approval ratings, maybe it’s time to turn your focus to roads and bridges and other infrastructure stuff. Crumbling river dam versus health care? This is a no-brainer. Well, not exactly but the odds of getting...
by Ann Marie | Thoughts on Thriving
The angry electorate that presidential candidate Donald Trump has attracted during his campaign mystified me for a while. The unemployment rate (4.9% for August) has remained virtually unchanged this year, 2 million new jobs were created in both 2014 and 2015, and...