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The Board of Directors, staff and members of the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce would like to welcome you to our beautiful and historic region. This region is bursting with energy and opportunity, and we at the Chamber work every day to help this dynamic economy grow smartly. Location is one of the keys to the region’s dynamism. Our community sits exactly between Washington, D.C. and Richmond, VA. As a result, Fredericksburg-based businesses can easily serve customers in two thriving metropolises. Local governments strive to keep taxes reasonable, and work closely with the Chamber to nurture a business-friendly atmosphere. Interstate 95 and abundant rail and air services ensure easy transport of people and goods both regionally and internationally. Despite the fast pace of life in the Fredericksburg Region, local leaders work hard to balance new development with preservation of cultural and historic institutions such as George Washington’s Ferry Farm and the Civil War battlefield of Chancellorsville. Excellent medical care is available at two area hospitals, with a third scheduled to open by the end of 2010. Residents and visitors alike can enjoy a wide array of cultural and recreational opportunities. Fredericksburg is the home of the University of Mary Washington, one of the best colleges for its size in the nation. For four decades, Germanna Community College has provided a solid educational and training foundation for our workers. Our public schools rival any in Virginia and, indeed, the nation. The Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce is proud to offer this publication to you. Thank you for letting us introduce you to the Fredericksburg Region. We look forward to serving you. The Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce has earned a reputation as a dynamic, resourceful institution that gets things done for the area business community. We provide a variety of services to our diverse membership, all aimed at strengthening the local business climate. Businesses that join our Chamber do so to promote their interests and to network with other area entrepreneurs. Our distinct membership includes a mix of small and large service-oriented businesses, national and international firms, licensed professionals, manufacturers and retailers. Other members are in finance, technology, education, healthcare, tourism and media. Small businesses are the heart of our membership. By offering countless opportunities to members, the Chamber helps them to succeed. We work diligently to accommodate members’ current needs, anticipate future challenges and address regional and public policy issues affecting the business community. As a result, the Chamber is the Fredericksburg Region’s leading business organization and the voice of the business community. The Chamber actively pursues partnerships with other organizations to improve our region’s quality of life. Individuals, businesses and schools unite with us to create unique workforce-development programs and provide programs that directly benefit members. Partnerships with the Rappahannock Region Small Business Development Center, the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance and the George Washington Planning District fuel the area’s pro- business environment. MISSION The mission of the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce is to facilitate healthy economic growth. VISION Our vision is to be the leader for the business community, assuring that the Fredericksburg Region is a major economic center in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Chamber Trailblazers Sponsorship Program finances Chamber- endorsed regional development initiatives in economic sectors such as defense, healthcare, transportation, education, workforce development and technology. This innovative annual program allows businesses to help fund these projects and to support a variety of Chamber events and services throughout the year. This financial support allows the Chamber to devote time and resources to serving its members and achieving its annual goals. Close your eyes and try to picture the ideal community in which to live and work. What kind of place would you imagine? Undoubtedly, it would have great primary schools and colleges with top-notch faculty and administrators–like the University of Mary Washington and Germanna Community College, a wide array of cultural and recreational activities to stimulate the mind and body, a variety of beautiful housing options, easy access to other areas and loads of shopping choices would also be necessities. You’d want a job close to home to allow for more time with the family, and friendly neighbors ready to strike up a conversation at the end of a sunny summer day. You’d probably also imagine good stewards of the area’s quality of life– prudent community leaders who care about both preservation and the economy, and a powerful, progressive business community. If you conjured all of that, and then added the beauty of a scenic river and historic treasurers such as Civil War battlefields and George Washington’s boyhood home, you’d have created your own slice of paradise. Fortunately, such a place isn’t just a dream. It exists right in the middle of the Washington, D.C.-Richmond Corridor. Its name–“The Fredericksburg Region.” The Fredericksburg Region sits in the center of Virginia’s primary commercial hub. The City of Fredericksburg and the surrounding counties of Stafford, Spotsylvania, Caroline and King George straddle Virginia’s high-tech corridor of Interstate 95–halfway between Richmond and Washington, D.C. Interstate 95 provides north-south connections to 12 additional interstates, including the Capitol Beltway and Interstate 64. With easy access to these major transportation corridors, the Fredericksburg Region is a natural distribution center. It is the midpoint of the area, known as the “Golden Crescent,” running from Baltimore to Norfolk, and is also the center of the Eastern Seaboard. Major truck lines and CSX Transportation provide commercial freight and rail services. World markets can be reached through river ports and deep-water ports, one to two hours away. It is a short ride to the three major airports located in Washington, D.C. and Richmond. Shannon Airport, on the edge of Fredericksburg, is a private airport with a 3,000-foot runway that offers charter and hangar service. The Stafford Regional Airport, located minutes from I-95, is a general aviation-reliever airport with a (5,000 x 100 ft.) runway that accommodates privately owned aircraft and corporate jets. The airport is designed to handle 75,000 annual operations. Mass-transit options for commuters include established van pools, bus lines, Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express. Local residents ride the award-winning FREDericksburg Regional Transit to reach major points in the area. FRED has also expanded its local bus service in the region to include the surrounding counties of Stafford, Spotsylvania, King George and Caroline. Candles flicker in the windows of many area homes–a throwback to years gone by–and a sight that still offers a warm welcome to evening travelers. Residents of the Fredericksburg Region treasure their history. Throughout the city and the surrounding counties are reminders of time spent here by America’s Founding Fathers. George Washington grew up on Ferry Farm in Stafford County–just a stone’s throw across the Rappahannock River from the city of Fredericksburg. James Madison, the father of the U.S. Constitution, was born here. James Monroe, diplomat, statesman and the last of the Revolutionary generation to be elected president, began his law career in the city. While visiting Fredericksburg in 1777, Thomas Jefferson penned Virginia’s Statute of Religious Freedom, which inspired the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Captain John Smith explored the Rappahannock and Potomac rivers, making contact with the area’s Powhatan Indians. Colonel Giles Brent brought his family to Fredericksburg from Maryland, making them among the area’s first English settlers. Stafford County (named after Staffordshire, England) was formed in 1664, followed by Spotsylvania, Caroline and King George in the 1720s. Fredericksburg was established in 1728 as a frontier river port near the falls of the Rappahannock. The 50-acre town took its name from Crown Prince Frederick. Fredericksburg became a regional commercial center, receiving manufactured goods from England and exporting agricultural products and gold. Early business ventures in the region included Governor Alexander Spotswood’s Tubal Furnace, James Hunter’s Ironworks and a variety of commercial mills. The Civil War wreaked havoc upon the region when both the Union and Confederate armies occupied the city and its outlying areas. The battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Spotsylvania Courthouse and Wilderness cost 100,000 American lives. Decades passed before the region fully recovered from the devastation. Today, visitors and residents relive the area’s history by visiting 6,000 acres of battlefields, historic sites and museums, homes of the Washington family and a 40-block National Historic District filled with specialty shops and restaurants. Once a primarily rural area, this is now one of the fastest-growing regions in the U.S., generating unprecedented prosperity in the last few decades. In 1970, about 77,000 people lived in the region. Today, that number has grown to nearly 300,000. The growth continues, yet Fredericksburg is still a comfortable place to raise a family and get involved with the community. Few areas offer the