REGIONAL VIEW northern virginia


Even in digital hub Loudoun County, internet service lags by Stephenie Overman


Loudoun County is an inter- national hub for data centers. But, “west of Leesburg, you roll back to the Eisenhower administration,” says the chairman of the county’s communications commission, Timothy Dennis.


A Dennis Despite


the eastern part of the county having “more fiber per square inch than anywhere in the


universe,” slow and unreliable internet service plagues western Loudoun, says Dennis, who represents the Catoctin District on the commission and is president of wireless tower builder Invisible Towers. But that situation may soon change. To increase broadband and cellular access in western Loudoun, the board of super- visors’ finance committee in July recommended a partner- ship with a company to install


FOR THE RECORD


Even before Amazon.com Inc. com- pletes its Northern Virginia office hub, the e-commerce giant has helped make the area the most com- petitive housing market in the U.S. It’s hardest for buyers to win a home in Alexandria and Arlington, cities near Washington’s Reagan National Airport and close to where Amazon is building its East Coast headquar- ters, according to a study by Redfin Corp. The brokerage’s analysis factored in bidding wars, waived contingencies, above-list-price offers and how fast properties went under contract. (Bloomberg News)


Citizens for Responsible Solar, a group of Culpeper residents who voiced opposition to a utility-scale solar plant proposed near the Rapidan River, notched a victory in


Photo by Stephen Gosling


fiber-optic cable at county facilities. The plan would con- nect 60 facilities in western Loudoun, at a cost of about $16.1 million over 10 years. It would then be up to internet service providers to decide whether they want to connect customers from that fiber. The recommenda-


tion was based on a study by consultant Columbia Telecommunications Corp. (CTC) after county supervi-


late August as Cricket Solar LLC withdrew its application. The group cited concerns about natural and historic resources in the area and asked for the county’s Planning Com- mission and Board of Supervisors to delay their votes to allow the public more time to review the plan, which called for an 80-megawatt facility. The California company said it will continue to respond to community concerns. (Culpeper Star Exponent)


Inova Health System is launch- ing a campaign to help combat addiction and substance abuse — funded in part by a $16 million donation from the Hitt family, who own the construction company Hitt Contracting. The Act on Addiction campaign will target people in Northern Virginia suffering from addiction, as well as family members and others who could


sors approved a broadband strategic plan last year. The cable project is a small step in what Dennis describes as the commission’s eight-year- long journey to remedy the problem, although some say that the plan won’t do enough to provide broadband access to the west. However, options are limited because internet provid- ers profit more where their customer base is concentrated, not in rural areas.


benefit from learning the signs of addictions and where to go for help. (Washington Business Journal)


Interstate Hotels & Resorts, a hotel management company based in Arlington, will merge with Plano, Texas-based Aimbridge Hospital- ity. The deal will create a company managing a hotel-operating portfolio of more than 1,400 properties. Terms of the deal, which is expected to close by the end of the year, were not disclosed. Interstate currently manages about 600 properties and Aimbridge, which says it is North America’s largest third-party hotel management company, about 800. (Washington Business Journal)


Overcoming its initial reservations, Leesburg Town Council approved Church + Market, a development that will bring 116 apartments, about


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shburn is known as the center of the internet, and eastern


The ideal, Dennis says,


Unlike the international digital hub in Ashburn, the western areas of Loudoun County are plagued by slow and unreliable internet service.


would be a “fiber/wireless hybrid solution. The [consul- tant’s] report validated that strategy. But the bottom line is it doesn’t work. It’s a losing proposition,” he says. CTC estimates it would cost about $130 million to run fiber all the way to individual residential properties on the more sparsely populated side of the county, nearly 10 times the cost of the current plan. “The focus for me is edu-


cation,” Dennis says. “My son’s friends were showing up to do their homework because they had no broadband at home.” And while the county


wants to preserve rural areas, “there’s got to be the ability to work remotely, for home- based businesses to upload and download,” he says. “Wineries and breweries


are the energy drivers for the rural west. But when you go to a winery, you’re struggling to use your credit card,” Den- nis adds, because of the poor internet service.


33,000 square feet of commercial space and a parking garage to the downtown area. “This is going to be a game-changer,” Mayor Kelly Burk said. “We need to respect the charm and attractiveness that we have. ... I believe that this project will do that. I believe it will help the economic development in the town.” (Loudoun Times-Mirror)


The University of Maryland has reached a deal to plant its flag in Crystal City, opening the door to potential collaborations with Amazon.com Inc. as it establishes its second headquarters in the area. The state’s flagship university plans to open a Discovery Center at 241 18th St. South, the same building where JBG Smith Properties has established a National Landing marketing center and where Amazon also plans to lease space. U.Md. will


lease its 8,000 square feet from JBG Smith, and it hopes to offer program- ming by fall 2020, if not sooner. (Washington Business Journal)


PEOPLE


Mike Salvino has been named presi- dent and CEO of Tysons-based DXC Technology, a For- tune 500 IT services company. Salvino succeeds Mike


Lawrie, who has served as DXC’s chairman, president and CEO since the company’s formation in 2017. Lawrie will retire as DXC’s board chair on Dec. 31. Salvino most recently served as a managing director at Carrick Capital Partners, a private equity firm focused on the technology sector. (VirginiaBusiness.com)


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