Patrick County gets new Director of Economic Development with plans for growth

PATRICK COUNTY, Va. (WDBJ) - Patrick County is seeing a change in leadership and plans for economic development.

Patrick Cooper started his new position as Director of Economic Development last week. Cooper says his main focus is to bring a mobile healthcare unit to the county.

“I’ve been working with the Department of Public Safety for the county to really define what that is and what kind of support we can provide from a medical standpoint to the residents of Patrick County, in addition to what is already available for the county,” said Cooper.

Another one of his goals is to begin renovating the Business Development Center in Stuart. They plan for the center to become a workspace for local entrepreneurs who have little to no internet access.

“Patrick County is very rural and, in some cases, difficult to get internet connection. So, it would augment current businesses that need a little bit more internet access,” added Cooper.

The Office of Tourism and Marketing also has new plans for Patrick county.

They are working toward bringing more outdoor recreation, festivals, and events to the community to assist in the economic development of the county.

“The more people that we can get coming into the county the more it will help drive economic development for the sheer fact that if they spend a few dollars here, a few dollars there or if they stay overnight, that helps the impact,” said James Houchins, Director of Tourism and Marketing for Patrick County.

“So, we really are working towards bringing in other things to help feed the need for our citizens and mostly for the tourists right now.”

There are several festivals and events coming up in the area for Labor Day that can be found on their Facebook.

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