Edmee CR Hasler
Contributing writer
The Salem-Roanoke County Chamber of Commerce hosted its 90th Annual Meeting and Economic Outlook Update on Jan. 19. Toni McLawhorn, board member and committee chair, welcomed dignitaries and members, recognizing local leaders from the city of Salem and the County of Roanoke, and highlighting the economic achievements of 2023.
A significant accomplishment highlighted in the LewisGale Medical Center 2024 economic update was the $2.5 million construction of the Level II NICU. This project, with over 10 years of planning, brings critical services closer to the community, attracting businesses, investors and developers. The Level II Trauma Center, a $5 million construction completed in 2023, further contributed to the LewisGale Medical Center’s total community impact of $270 million, while the LewisGale Regional Health System’s impact reached $420 million.
The event also featured an Economic Outlook Panel, made up of four panelists: Landon Howard, from Visit Virginia’s Blue Ridge, Megan Baker, from Roanoke County Economic Development, John Hull, with Roanoke Regional Partnership, and Tommy Miller with Salem Economic Development. It was moderated by Gene Marrano, an award-winning local journalist and the editor of Valley Business Front magazine. He is also the host of and producer of “Business Matters” on Blue Ridge PBS, and a senior reporter and anchor for WFIR News Talk radio.
The conversation highlighted initiatives such as streetscape improvements, downtown successes and the positive impact of new restaurants and retailers on Salem’s quality of life and tourism appeal. When asked about the economy, Tommy Miller is optimistic of the future, ”I feel really good, obviously we are in a tough financial market with the higher interest rates, but we have a lot of unique initiatives taking place with the continuation of the streetscape improvements and the great successes downtown.” New and revamped downtown restaurants like Stave and Cork, Brewed, and other retailers have upped the quality of life and the attraction to Salem as a tourism spot. Boyer Park’s Spring expected Spring opening, is expected to boost sports tourism and impact future sport activity developments and businesses.
The Greenway expansion and other investments around the city and parks are also signs of a good future. John Hull shared insights into upcoming projects, forecasting a strong year with an active project pipeline. “There are some successes on the way, the activity level is hot, so I think we’re going to see a strong year,” Hull said, “we developed five projects already this year”.
Megan Baker echoed her fellow panelists’ points and highlighted the positive collaboration between Salem and Roanoke, emphasizing the appeal that draws people to the region. Landon Howard said, “2024 is going to be another record year. In the last six months, we’ve outcompeted in every market.” Landon Howard emphasized the area’s popularity as a destination, “We are becoming more and more popular as a destination, and hopefully, the more popular we become, the easier it will be to do more economic development,” he said.
