Pulaski County announces launch of new small business development program

PULASKI, Va. (WFXR) – Pulaski County has officially launched a small business development program focusing on providing assistance and support to the County’s small businesses and local entrepreneurs looking to start or grow their business.

The rollout of the program coincides with the acquirement of the NRV Business Center, a mixed-use business incubator in Fairlawn, VA.

The County recently received ownership of the facility and will run its Small Business Solutions’ services from within the business center which will soon be officially renamed the “Pulaski County Innovation Center.”

“Small business development has been a priority of the EDA ever since we transitioned from
an Industrial Development Authority in April of 2018, and broadened our focus to include
small business and entrepreneurial support services, tourism and marketing, workforce
development, community engagement, retail and commercial development, economic
diversification and residential development. It is exciting to see the EDA’s business plan reaching its goals of supporting small businesses with professional services, having a new tourism department in place to market the County, and to be aggressively advancing many of the EDA’s other strategic targets during these challenging times.”

Jon Wyatt, Chair of the EDA

This endeavor is a partnership between the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors and the Economic Development Authority (EDA).

This new program in a strategic objective identified within the County’s recently adopted Comprehensive Plan and will serve to help attain the County’s 40-by-30 goal of having 40,000 people call Pulaski County home by the year 2030.

A new Small Business Solutions Manager will be hired to manage the Innovation Center and run its Small Business Solutions Center.

The Pulaski County EDA will be funding the entirety of the new position from rental income revenues generated from within the newly-acquired Innovation Center.

The new position will be responsible for managing the overall operations of the Innovation Center and working directly with its tenants on both their business and office needs.

The position will also comprehensively assist small businesses and entrepreneurs with their individual and unique business needs and be a one-stop in connecting businesses with whatever assistance or resources are needed.

For additional information on the soon-to-be-named Pulaski County Innovation Center, click here.