ARKAY PACKAGING CONTINUES TO ADD EMPLOYEES                            
Arkay Packaging Corp (www.arkay.com) recently announced it is expanding its Botetourt County facility, creating 25 new jobs and investing $7.5 million. This is the third expansion for Arkay since it was recruited by the Roanoke Regional Partnership and Botetourt County to EastPark Commerce Center in 1996. 

The 25 new jobs will be in press operations, quality control, finishing, and gluing. The investment includes a state-of-the-art Heidelberg XL105 printing press, as well as a new Bobst die-cutting press. 

"This expansion enables Arkay to increase capacity and continue to be the leader in innovative packaging solutions," said Mitchell Kaneff, Chairman/CEO of Arkay Packaging. 

The VA Department of Business Assistance's VA Jobs Investment Program will provide assistance to help offset initial hiring and training expenses. These new hires will bring the total number of full-time employees of Arkay's Botetourt facility to 175. 

PARTNERSHIP GETS OUTDOOR INDUSTRY EXPOSURE                 
The Roanoke Regional Partnership's unique outdoor approach to economic development was featured in the June issue of Outdoor Magazine, an outdoor industry trade magazine with a readership of 56,000. 

"For average citizens and outdoor industry insiders alike, names like Boulder, Tahoe and Asheville evoke images of the wilderness and the strong outdoor culture that plays therein. Quickly making headway into this well-regarded group is Roanoke, one of the East Coast's premier destinations for all things outdoors." The article explains the Partnership's unique outdoor approach to economic development and helps raise awareness about all that the Roanoke Region has to offer. 

"These stories, and others like it, are helping spread the message about Roanoke's thriving outdoors, and the growing outdoor business sector," said Pete Eshelman, director of outdoor branding. "It's much more than just attracting tourists interested in the outdoors to the region, it's about attracting companies and creating jobs." 

Read the full story, "Roanoke, VA is for (Outdoor) Lovers".

VIRGINIA NAMED AMERICA'S "TOP STATE FOR BUSINESS" BY CNBC                 
CNBC Release: "With an unprecedented fiscal crisis at the state level, never has it been tougher to stay competitive. But Virginia met the challenge on every level...." Virginia has been named America's "Top State for Business" by CNBC. The Commonwealth took the top spot in the extremely competitive yearly study, receiving the highest point total in the history of the rankings. Virginia finished in the top-half of every category ranked. The number one ranking comes on the heels of Virginia receiving the highest ranking of any state east of the Mississippi in the American Legislative Exchange Council's economic competitiveness ranking of the states, which was released last week. 

Speaking about Virginia's top ranking, Governor McDonnell stated, "Every Virginian deserves a quality job in the community that they call home. Our focus, from day one of this administration, has been to put in place the policies that will help private sector businesses create those jobs in the Commonwealth and get our economy back on track. We've done that by keeping taxes low, getting government spending under control, having a strong Right to Work law, and making smart investments in transportation, economic development and higher education. And we are telling the Virginia story to job-creators from Beijing to Boston." 

In their official release announcing the top ranking, CNBC noted, "With an unprecedented fiscal crisis at the state level, never has it been tougher to stay competitive. But Virginia met the challenge on every level, achieving the highest point total in the history of our study, and finishing in the top half of every category." Click here to read the full release from Governor Bob McDonnell. 

To read the rest of the story, Click Here>>>

The second annual National College Blue Ridge Marathon and half marathon made a lasting impact on runners as well as the region's economy. The April 16, 2011 race drew 1,069 registered runners who created an economic impact of $339,079, according to a post-race survey and the IMPLAN software. 

"We continue to see that outdoor-oriented events have tangible economic benefits," says Pete Eshelman, director of outdoor branding for the Roanoke Regional Partnership. "It's particularly impressive when you consider the figures focus only on those race participants classified as visitors to the region. This doesn't include money that local runners, 325 local volunteers, or the more than 1,000 spectators likely spent the day of the events." 

Runners represented 39 states, with 83 percent from the southeastern United States. "There was an increase in the proportion of participants traveling more than 200 miles to the event," Eshelman says. 

The races and visitors served to heighten awareness of the region's outdoor offerings and activities, and reaffirmed the continually growing interest in the Roanoke Region as an outdoor destination.