Donnie Kern joined the CSPDC Team as Finance Director on January 16, 2024. Donnie’s scholastic background spans earning an undergraduate degree in Business Administration at Radford University and a Master of Science in Accounting degree at Liberty University. Donnie also earned his Enrolled Agent credential with the United States Department of the Treasury allowing him unlimited representation before the Internal Revenue Service. Donnie is a commissioned Notary Public.

Soon after graduation he was employed with Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) holding the position of Lead Accountant and Lead Senior Accountant at its LewisGale Alleghany hospital facility in Low Moor, VA. Donnie’s role during the past eight years would be best described as having fiscal management of approximately $40 million dollars and ensuring compliance with GAAP and the insurmountable expansive Sarbanes-Oxley Act. One major achievement during his first tri-annual audit with Ernst & Young was to improve the facility over all audit areas from the previous year with no memo comments being issued. HCA’s Division Controller Scott Weatherford stated regarding the facility’s financial desk reviews were the “cleanest” out of all the hospitals he reviewed.

Donnie is married to Kelly. Donnie and Kelly share the same birthday (July 1) as well as two children Christian (14) and Caylin (12). When not inundated with work or side hustles Donnie advocates for the civil rights of children with specific needs. Donnie volunteers his time to charitable causes assisting organizations with incorporating and filing for 501(c)3 non-profit status. Donnie also enjoys the great outdoors and is a habitual swimmer.

In December 2023, the Afton Express bus service completed its second full-year of service. The commuter route has seen great success in this short amount of time. To ensure that we continue to meet the needs of current and prospective riders, Afton Express staff here at the CSPDC and at BRITE Transit collect and analyze different types of data throughout the year.

Route operators record performance data on their daily driver sheets, such as when and where riders are boarding and alighting, and through monthly service reports, which tell us the number of times that routes are delayed significantly or cannot operate. This information is helpful, but it cannot help us fully understand the customer experience. To get the full picture, we also collect qualitative data directly from the public.

The annual survey was first completed at the end of 2022 and asked a few basic questions to help us understand who our riders are and how they interact with the service. The roughly 30 responses collected provided context to the trends we saw in the performance data. For example, on-off counts conducted by the drivers can tell us at which stops the passengers are boarding and alighting, but they cannot tell us where they go once they step off the bus.

The information gathered through the survey was so helpful to our service planning that this type of survey will be collected each year.

The 2023 survey was available online from November 13^th to December 15^th, 2023, and included a mixture of structured and open-ended questions. As we continue to grow the Afton Express, we, as transit planners, are better able to identify what pieces of information will help us make decisions about the service. As such, this year’s survey will include questions about the respondent (demographics), how they interact with the service (do they ride regularly, periodically, or not at all?), and their overall customer experience.

We are pleased to report that we doubled our response rate from 2022, recording 67 legitimate responses for the one month the survey was available. We received responses from current riders, prospective riders, and individuals that had never heard of the service but were eager to learn more. CSPDC staff is in the process of reviewing the data and a full summary of the responses from both the survey and the performance metrics will be presented in the Afton Express 2023 Annual Report.

The report will be published and made available to our stakeholders and the public by the end of January 2024.

Rockbridge County leadership submitted three grant applications for the 2024 Virginia Telecommunication Initiative (VATI) program on December 19, 2023. The main focus of the VATI grants is to provide financial assistance towards service provider construction costs for projects that extend broadband to areas presently identified as unserved or underserved. These broadband expansion projects are done in partnership with local units of government.

To gain optimal value and economies of scale on their planned efforts, Rockbridge County teamed with BARC Connects (electric co-op), Brightspeed (broadband provider), and Verizon (broadband provider) to submit grant applications for the current round of VATI funding. This synchronized approach to effectively connect the region’s residents and businesses to broadband will provide for an efficient and cost-effective deployment of fiber-to-the-premises in remote and hard-to-reach areas in Rockbridge County. A concise summary of each project application is provided below.

The Rockbridge County and BARC Connects application consists of three projects providing high-speed internet to 404 premises located in remote areas with difficult topography in central and western portions of the county. The total estimated project budget is $2,988,568. Rockbridge County is requesting $1,255,199 (42%) in VATI funding with BARC and Rockbridge County providing $1,733,369 (58%)in matching funds.

The Rockbridge County and Brightspeed grant submission consists of one project providing high-speed internet to 1,734 premises located in isolated stretches with challenging geography in central, northwestern, and southeastern areas of the county. The anticipated project cost is $5,914,332. Rockbridge County is seeking $975,865 (17%) through the VATI program. Brightspeed and Rockbridge County plan to provide a combined $4,938,467 (83%) in matching funds.

The Rockbridge County and Verizon application consists of one project providing broadband to 85 locations/101 premises in a rural area of northeastern Rockbridge County with particularly difficult topography. The total estimated budget is $2,429,768. Rockbridge County is requesting $896,587 (37%) in grant funding. Verizon and Rockbridge County plan to provide $1,533,183 (63%) in matching funds.

The total combined 2024 VATI funding requested for the three projects equals $3,127,651. The CSPDC will provide grant administrative services for Rockbridge County should they garner funding awards on these VATI grant applications. Rockbridge County also plans to support applications for the upcoming Broadband, Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program funds and Line Extension Customer Assistance Program (LECAP) opportunities in 2024 to achieve universal broadband coverage in the County.

Don’t miss the next online sessions of the VAPDC Winter Series, February 9, 2024 & March 1, 2024. Each session will run from 12:00 – 1:00 PM.

FEBRUARY 9, 2024, 12:00-1:00 PM

Housing as an Economic Development Strategy

Virginia Housing recently released a study that explores linkages between housing and economic development. It identifies housing as an increasingly central factor in decisions that businesses make about relocation, expansion, and formation. Join us for an overview of the findings and recommendations for integrating housing and economic development strategies.

Presenter: Fabrizio Fasulo,
Director of Policy and Planning
Virginia Housing

March 1 topic to be announced.

REGISTER HERE

The Commonwealth Center for Advanced Logistics Systems (CCALS), in collaboration with the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), the State Chamber of Commerce, and the Port of Virginia, has launched a survey of the Commonwealth’s Supply Chain and Logistics ecosystem.  The survey seeks input (opportunities/challenges) from BOTH providers of logistics (rail, truck, air, water, etc.) and those who rely on logistics (retailers, hospitals, manufacturers, energy, broadband, agriculture, etc.). Survey results will inform VEDP’s new logistics and supply chain programs/strategies, help guide policy initiatives, establish funding priorities, and advance projects along the way.

The initial survey is intended to be a high-level overview to inform and enhance logistics and supply chain conversations in Virginia. Follow-on analyses will likely be conducted to go deeper into regional results and industry-specific assessments, therefore statewide participation is strongly encouraged. The survey is being conducted by a multi-university team of five students – one from each of the CCALS’ member universities – VSU, VCU, ODU, UVA, and Longwood University.

More information and access to the survey can be found at: https://www.ccals.com/news/virginia-logistics-capabilities-survey/

The 2023 Virigina Farm to Table Conference is set for December 12 and 13 at Blue Ridge Community College’s Plecker Workforce Center. This year’s theme is “Nourishing and (Re)Imagining Collaboration, Conservation, and Community.”

Speakers and panelists will address and discuss regenerative agriculture, safety trauma, emotional ecology, drought resilience, managing pasture, the power of land and agency, community food webs and clusters, connections between soil health and human health, diversifying and stacking complementary enterprises, value chain connections, market development, local and regional food system development.

Learn more and register at https://tinyurl.com/2023VAF2TConfReg

DOWNLOAD CONFERENCE SCHEDULE & FLYER