Above: Virginia Governor Ralph Northam and Tennessee Governor Bill Lee The governors of Tennessee and Virginia are both making the case for increased funding for agribusiness. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam last week announced GO Virginia funding in the amount of more than $310,000 for an effort in Lee, Scott and Wise counties is far Southwest Virginia. Under the auspices of the Smart Farming at the Center ...

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Photo courtesy Eastman by Scott Robertson Despite a challenging fourth quarter of 2018, Eastman Chairman and CEO Mark Costa has doubled down on a year-old statement that the company plans to have $500 million in new revenue growth from innovation in 2020. The 2018 figure was $360 million. “Three-hundred-sixty million dollars in new revenue growth from innovation for our portfolio is actually pretty good,” C ...

Two of the region's oldest and best known architecture and civil engineering firms have merged. Thompson & Litton (T&L) has announced the acquisition of Beeson Lusk & Street (BLS). Both firms have been in existence for more than 60 years. BLS employees have joined Thompson & Litton’s employee-owned operation, which is now doing business as BLS Thompson & Litton. The firm will retain its ...

Above: Jeff Bedard, Crown Laboratories president and CEO Crown Laboratories, Inc. announced this week it will be embarking on a three-year capital improvement plan aimed at upgrading and enhancing its manufacturing capabilities in Johnson City, Tenn. Crown, which is headquartered in Johnson City, is investing in new capital equipment to accommodate current and future expansion opportunities, including a sta ...

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Tuesday announced his plans to repeal the amusement tax on gym memberships in his upcoming budget. “I’m pleased to be able to include a tax cut in my first budget,” said Lee. “Repealing the gym tax is an important step in reducing the burdens on small businesses in our state.” The nearly 10 percent amusement tax is placed on memberships to gyms, fitness centers and health club ...

By Dave Ongie A grand jury in Greeneville, Tenn., recently returned an indictment against a Chinese-born scientist formerly employed by Coca-Cola and Eastman for conspiracy to steal trade secrets related to formulations for BPA-free coatings. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Xiaorong You, aka Shannon You, 56, of Lansing, Mich., and Liu Xiangchen, 61, of Shandong Province, China, were named in th ...

Representatives from Ballad Health, the United Way of Southwest Virginia and Healthy Kingsport led a meeting at Bristol Regional Medical Center Tuesday, including the 24-member leadership council of a new accountable care community in Northeast Tennessee and Southwest Virginia. The Appalachian Highlands community will be the first accountable care community in the U.S. to encompass areas of two states. “Thi ...

By Dave Ongie From a school library in Gate City, Virginia, to the infield of Bristol Motor Speedway to a letter of support for Ballad Health penned by chambers of commerce from around the region, one phrase kept popping up last week: Accountable Care Community. The phrase itself is not new, but according to Ballad Health CEO Allan Levine, the emphasis now being placed on the phrase in our region is packed ...

Above: Governor Bill Lee and Business Journal Managing Editor Scott Robertson at the MeadowView Conference Resort & Convention Center. Photo courtesy State of Tennessee During his 2018 campaign for governor, Bill Lee repeatedly made the point that Tennessee had done great things to improve college accessibility and graduation rates, but that he was interested in creating new pathways to prosperity for n ...