By Lewis Loflin
On the weekend of July 26, 2008, thousands of individuals were expected to attend the ninth annual Remote Area Medical (RAM) Clinic at the Wise County Fairgrounds, potentially setting a new attendance record. Organized by Remote Area Medical, the free clinic provides critical healthcare services to many residents who lack regular access to medical care. The event was described as resembling "the sort of medical charity work performed in Third World countries," highlighting the severe healthcare disparities in the region.
Meanwhile, nearby public investments included a call center receiving millions in subsidies and a $30 million convocation and recreation center planned by the University of Virginia's College at Wise (UVa-Wise). The new facility, with seating for up to 4,000 people, was promoted as an economic boost for the community, though it would serve fewer people than the 6,000+ expected at the RAM clinic. The clinic’s location was moved from the Wise airport—previously criticized as an embarrassment due to its lack of a control tower, airline service, and adjacency to a costly industrial park—to the fairgrounds, reflecting ongoing debates about public spending priorities.
During the same weekend, Bristol, Virginia, hosted a two-day event on July 26–27 to rename Randall Street Expressway and part of Edgemont Avenue in honor of Martin Luther King Jr., aiming to promote community unity. The event featured Let the Trumpet Sound, a parade, and a documentary screening. For more information, contact Wilhelmina S. Banks, curator of the NYUMBA YA TAUSI-Peacock Museum, at (276) 669-4596. On Sunday, July 27, the YWCA of Bristol screened At the River I Stand, a documentary about the final months of Dr. King’s life, followed by a public discussion starting at 3 p.m. A reception was also held at John Wesley United Methodist Church, 311 Lee St., from 1–3 p.m.
However, the areas along the newly named Martin Luther King Blvd. reflect ongoing challenges. The route passes through crime-ridden public housing, where police presence was reduced after a grant expired in 2007, and Edgemont Towers, the site of a violent incident earlier in 2008 where a man killed several relatives of his girlfriend. It also runs by a $6 million refurbished train station with no active train service and a public housing project where a man committed suicide by jumping from a sixth-floor balcony. Nearby, the $9 million Anderson Street Bridge, constructed largely by outside contractors, was criticized for its cost and limited utility, as it primarily replaced access to another nearby bridge over train tracks.
Concurrently, the Virginia Highlands Festival (July 26–August 10) took place in Abingdon, Virginia, the region’s wealthiest community, which has received significant public funding for tourism and retirement-focused projects. At Emory & Henry College near Abingdon, a 2003 Bristol Herald Courier article quoted Professor Steve Fisher, director of the Appalachian Center for Community Services:
...two groups of children were left out of the boom times of the 1990s. The robust economy did little to help children in the inner cities and in rural communities like those of far Southwest Virginia...A local political science professor believes he knows the reason for the discrepancy. "It all comes back to jobs," said Steve Fisher... "With the decline of the coal industry, a lot of the good-paying jobs have disappeared." A string of factory closings has affected the economy in counties along the Interstate 81 corridor, particularly Smyth County, Fisher said. And, many of the jobs that have replaced the ones in the coal mines and factories generally have been lower-paying and less likely to include benefits, he said. "Even two minimum-wage jobs together won't take a family above the poverty line," Fisher said.
These disparities are evident across the region. The Measure of America report from Columbia University (2008) ranked Tennessee’s 1st Congressional District 421st out of 436 districts and Virginia’s 9th District 400th, based on health, education, and economic conditions. Key statistics include:
The report noted that low-ranking districts are often rural, poor, and, in some cases, predominantly minority, though the 1st and 9th Districts are over 90% white, suggesting deeper systemic issues beyond race.
Despite these challenges, public spending in the region often focused on projects with questionable economic benefits. In Bristol, the city council voted to give a developer $2.5 million in subsidies for a project that resulted in a single restaurant, while rejecting a private affordable housing proposal that required no public funds. Washington County Supervisors allocated $10 million for a strip mall development, part of the controversial "Highlands" project, which was later put up for sale in 2008 for $25.2 million, potentially netting the developer a significant profit. The project, which includes stores like Bed Bath & Beyond and Best Buy, was criticized for its high cost compared to a similar development in Sullivan County, Tennessee, which spent only $2.5 million in subsidies.
In another instance, Washington County and the Town of Abingdon agreed to purchase land for a ballpark, a project that grew from 40 acres at $25,000 per acre to 60 acres at $40,000 per acre, costing an estimated $6–$8 million. Supervisor Dulcie Mumpower, who oversaw the eviction of 50 residents from a trailer park to make way for the related strip mall, admitted the project lacked proper planning. The press described it as a "fishy land deal," noting that supporters used misleading arguments about Little League rules to justify the purchase (BHC, May 23, 25, and July 12, 2008).
Bristol, Virginia, also faced financial strain, with a $110 million debt as of 2008. Despite this, the city council spent $204,500 on a 2,800-square-foot home and 4.03 acres near Sugar Hollow Park to address a mold issue in existing office space, selling 2.6 acres back to Washington County for $45,000 (BHC, July 8, 2008). Additionally, the $6 million Bristol Train Station, refurbished as a "transportation enhancement," continued to draw criticism for its lack of active train service and economic value (see more details).
Washington County’s Board of Supervisors faced criticism for limiting public input, requiring advance permission to speak and conducting much business in closed sessions. Supervisor Odell Owens noted, "We get into these long discussions before the motion is made, and many times the discussion becomes meaningless," reflecting a desire to shorten public meetings (BHC, July 22, 2008). By 2014, public comments were reinstated, and Mark Reeter, the county administrator, was no longer in his position.
The region also saw incidents of crime and corruption. In St. Paul, Virginia, four individuals were indicted for voter fraud related to a town council election, joining a list of Southwest Virginia communities like Gate City and Buchanan County with similar issues (Kingsport Times-News, July 22, 2008). A lighter but telling incident involved a 20-year-old Virginia Beach resident arrested for driving a stolen golf cart on I-81, highlighting local law enforcement challenges (BHC, July 9, 2008).
The Virginia Tobacco Commission’s investments were a focal point of regional economic discussions. According to the Blue Ribbon Review Panel (April 17, 2008), the Commission had spent $432 million on over 900 revitalization projects since 2000. The report highlighted ongoing challenges:
An area of great concern with regards to the ability to revitalize the economy is education for young people and adults...(for)...Congressional District 9 (a proxy for Southwest) have much higher percentages of population over age 25 with no high school degree, and much lower percentages of people with bachelor's degrees or higher than either the rest of the state or the nation...
an analysis of Virginia Department of Education annual school enrollment data by grade shows that a number of localities in the region have much larger numbers of students in the ninth grade than in the twelfth grade three years later...The largest drop in numbers of students is occurring between the ninth and tenth grade...it is likely that most of these students are dropping out of high school and will not graduate.
Out-migration was cited as a factor, leaving behind a population with lower income and motivation. The report further noted:
As in the rest of Virginia, economic growth in Southside and Southwest Virginia is occurring in the services industries, including professional, technical, administrative support, healthcare, educational, repair, personal services, and "Other" employment categories including utilities, transportation, communication, information, finance, insurance, and real estate. However in the Southside/Southwest regions, the percentage of overall wages in these "information age" industries is still substantially below the rest of the State.
Low wage scales were identified as a driver of out-migration among educated residents:
Given the existing state of the Southside and Southwest economies, it is fair to ask whether the expenditure of over $400 million by the TICR since the year 2000 on "regional transformation" projects has had the desired transformative effect on the regions...Despite this spending, population in the region continues to decline, wage rates still lag behind the rest of the state, there is persistent high unemployment and poor educational attainment is still endemic.
James A. Bacon at Bacon's Rebellion added:
Not only has the Commission failed to "transform" the Southside/Southwest Virginia economy, it has squandered many of its resources. By keeping the old economy on life support, it has failed to steer sufficient resources into the new economy. For all intents, the economies of Southside and Southwest Virginia look very much like they did 10 years ago...
Projects like tourism development in Abingdon and the Barter Theatre were cited as examples of the Commission’s spending, raising questions about their effectiveness in addressing regional poverty and job scarcity.
The Virginia Tobacco Commission has claimed to have created 14,000 jobs since 2008, but there is no verifiable evidence to support this figure. Rather than creating new, sustainable jobs, the Commission’s role has largely been to distribute funds to projects that often retain or rehire existing workers. A clear example is the Commission’s funding of Hitachi Energy in South Boston, Virginia.
The South Boston facility, operational since 1968 under ABB, was acquired by Hitachi in 2020 and rebranded as Hitachi Energy in 2021. At the time of its 2022 expansion, the facility employed 320 workers, who were retained from ABB’s operations rather than newly created by Hitachi Energy or the Tobacco Commission. The 2022 expansion, a $37 million investment supported by a $220,000 grant from the Tobacco Commission, a $511,500 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund, and a $175,000 rail grant in 2025 from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, was claimed to support 165 jobs. A 2024 expansion, with a $26 million investment, was associated with another 100 jobs. However, these positions are primarily rehires or retained workers, not net-new jobs, as the facility’s employment levels (450–500 workers as of 2024) reflect continuity rather than significant growth.Ref: Cardinal News Ref: Halifax Virginia Ref: Virginia Business Ref: YourGV
Moreover, Hitachi Energy laid off 113 workers in South Boston in late 2024, following the 2017 closure of an ABB transformer factory in the same location due to inconsistent demand. Ref: Transformers Magazine Additionally, in December 2017, GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, a related entity, laid off 113 workers at its Wilmington, North Carolina, facility, citing a global downturn in the nuclear industry and a strategic shift to transfer nuclear fuel operations to Ontario, Canada. Ref: WFMY News 2 These layoffs highlight the lack of sustainable job growth, as any reported job increases are offset by workforce reductions, further evidencing that the Tobacco Commission’s funding does not translate into net-new jobs.
Reports from the Commission and related studies, such as the 2011 Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) report, detail spending but lack specific job creation metrics. The employment decline in Southwest Virginia, with 16,774 jobs lost between 2010–2020 across key sectors, further contradicts claims of significant job creation. The Commission’s claim of 14,000 jobs created since 2008 remains unsubstantiated as of April 2025, as its investments appear to support existing workers rather than create new, sustainable employment opportunities.
| Sector | SWVA (% Decline) | USA (% Change) |
|---|---|---|
| Arts, Ent., & Rec. | -20% | 6% |
| Wholesale | -25% | 3% |
| Construction | -35% | 24% |
| Information | -45% | 2% |
| Mining | -50% | -11% |
Notes: Excluding mining, SWVA experienced the greatest declines in sectors that grew nationally. The region's mining sector decline exceeded the national average. A total of 10,451 jobs were eliminated across these five sectors, with 16,774 jobs lost when including national mining sector declines between 2010-2020. The 45% decline in the information sector persists despite an estimated $200 million in public investment, likely exceeding $300-$400 million, with significant data withheld.
Ref: Zach Jackson, Virginia Tech
Letter to the Bristol Herald Courier:
Re: Do The Right Thing With Tobacco Funds. I've said both here and on my website for years just what this report has stated. It has proven me right about the fraud and waste surrounding the Tobacco grants.
With deep respect, the Herald Courier can't seem to connect the dots. Remember the Measure of America on July 20th that ranked SW VA at 400 and E. TN at 421, the bottom 10% in the nation? Bacon's Rebellion is correct in regards to more education. We already have a vast education system in Tri-Cities with lots of college graduates, and they leave in droves for the exact reason he states. So why would doing something that lower-ranked E. TN already does expect to change anything?
Please spare me the Lebanon hype (see Northrop Grumman and AMS-CGI: More jobs or more hype?) and look at reality. Those are government contractor jobs and get tens of millions in corporate welfare, and aren't paying anywhere near what we were told. In addition, there's no public oversight.
Where's the zillions of jobs Bristol was supposed to get from fiber optic that has cost BVU $60 million in debt plus an additional $10 million in Tobacco grants? Their failure is the inability to get the state to shift more taxpayer jobs out to Bristol. Everybody in SW VA can't work for the government! It's already 30% of the workforce in many areas as it is.
The changes they suggest still ignores the endemic political corruption and social apartheid that poisons this region. Will somebody explain how the Barter Theatre, tourism development, etc. qualify as anything less than pork-barrel waste? Look again to lower ranked E. TN with its poverty-wage tourism industry.
The report makes it clear that the $432 million has produced virtually nothing. We better deal with reality!
Acknowledgment: I'd like to thank Grok, an AI by xAI, for assisting in drafting and refining this article. The final content and perspective are my own.
