SPDC Data Book 2015 Southside Planning District Commission Brunswick County - Halifax County - Mecklenburg County Town of South Boston - Town of South Hill NNING LA DI P ST E R ID IC S T H T X U I O I I S 19 69 C O A I M N M I G O R NW VI EALTH OF ii Table of Contents Executive Summary 1 Demographics 5 Income and Wages 11 Retail Markets 15 Wholesale Trade 19 Employment 23 Labor Market Characteristics 27 Agriculture 31 Forestry 33 Tourism and Recreation 35 Education 45 Housing 53 Physical Resources 57 Infrastructure 67 Solid Waste Management 73 District Transportation Systems 75 Industrial and Commerce Parks 83 Broadband Connectivity 85 List of Changes 87 INTERACTIVE DATA SOURCES: Some figures display a plus sign icon in the upper-right corner. If you are using this book in PDF format, clicking on this icon will open a browser to a spreadsheet in Google Drive where you are able to copy, download, or work with the source data. Some of the linked spreadsheets only include source data, while others include historical data or related information. If you are using this book in print format, you can find the figures (as well as the PDF format for download) by going to www.southsidepdc.org and choosing “Data/Census”, then “SPDC Data Book” iii iv Executive Summary The Southside Planning District has embarked on a journey to formulate fundamental decisions that will shape growth and development in the region. These decisions are being made with deliberation and care in view of the fact that the District’s economic role, the character of its environment, and its quality of life will be determined, in major part, by these choices. The Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy provides a basic foundation for making choices wisely. Strategies and decisions are evaluat- ed and adjusted on a continuous basis as unknown and unexpected factors are encountered. This data resource provides a foundation for the goals, objectives, and reccomendations set forth in the CEDS. Southside Planning District, located in the Piedmont region of Virginia along the North Carolina border, encompasses more than 2,000 square miles and three counties—Brunswick, Mecklenburg and Halifax. Much of Lake Gaston and John H. Kerr Reservoir are located within these counties and therefore the area is often called “Lake Country.” Figure 1: The Southside Planning District RICHMOND I¥ BUCKINGHAM COUNTY ± Ir CUMBER- LAND LYNCHBURG COUNTY Kß KÕ Appomattox AMELIA CHESTERFIELD COUNTY COUNTY APPOMATTOX COLONIAL Kâ COUNTY Kâ HEIGHTS PRINCE Farmville IÌ EDWARD COUNTY NOTTOWAY CAMPBELL COUNTY COUNTY Burkeville Crewe Kâ PETERSBURG Altavista CHARLOTTE Blackstone COUNTY DINWIDDIE !"d$ Phenix COUNTY Brookneal Io Hurt Keysville I¥ Charlotte CH Kß Victoria McKenney Gretna IÌ Drakes Branch Kenbridge HALIFAX LUNENBURG COUNTY COUNTY Iq Alberta Chatham Chase !"d$ Kß City Jarratt PITTSYLVANIA Halifax I« COUNTY South EMPORIA Scottsburg MECKLENBURG Hill La Crosse Lawrenceville South COUNTY Boston Ix Boydton I« Brodnax BRUNSWICK I« COUNTY GREENSVILLE Clarksville COUNTY DANVILLE Iq VA VA Virgilina Lake Gaston NC Gaston Milton NC Ir Buggs Island Lake Seaboard PERSON ROANOKE COUNTY RAPIDS IÌ VANCE Norlina Stovall COUNTY !"d$ Macon K² Yanceyville K² Garysburg Roxboro Middleburg Littleton Weldon NORTH- K² GRANVILLE Warrenton AMPTON COUNTY HENDERSON COUNTY CASWELL WARREN HALIFAX Halifax COUNTY COUNTY COUNTY Oxford KÆ KÂ Stem Kittrell !"d$ Centerville Enfield ORANGE Ir FRANKLIN Mebane COUNTY COUNTY IÌ Franklinton Louisburg NASH CO. I§ Hillsborough Red Whitakers Creedmoor Io Oak !"_$ DURHAM !"d$ Castalia Dortches SPDC Map #10672 Rocky Mount Source: Southside Planning District Commission !"d$ Dortches Rocky Mount 1 Executive Summary While the Planning Area counties are rural, they are in excellent proximity to large regional markets and have an outstanding transportation system, which includes an Interstate, U.S. highways, several municipal airports, and one regional airport. The region has an abundance of resources including edu- cational facilities, industrial and residential sites, medical services, outdoor recreational facilities and six lakes: Banister Lake, Gordon Lake, Great Creek Reservoir, Kerr Reservoir/Buggs Island Lake, Lake Connor, and Lake Gaston These resources enhance the area’s competitive advantage as an attractor of people and business. In 2010, 86,402 persons were residing in Southside Planning District, which was a decrease of 2 percent since the 2000 Census. The estimated July 2013 total population is 83,800 (from Census Bureau). The population centers are the twelve incorporated towns and the housing developments around the lakes. The 2010 Decennial Census indicated that 24% of the region’s residents lived within the incorporated limits of a town (unchanged compared to 2000). Throughout the District per capita personal income levels continue to remain below state and federal levels (and slightly decreasing over the past several years). While we find lower income and wages in Southside it is also evident that the lower cost of living increases local spending power. An assessment of the labor market in the Planning District revealed disparity in the employment sectors. The VEC Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages indicates the region is underrepresented in most service-providing sectors with the exception of Education and Health Services, both of which ex- ceeded the state’s relative share. The Agricultural sector and Goods Producing Sector is also higher than the state average.. The PDC’s employment percentage exceeded the state’s in Agriculture, Utili- ties, Construction, Manufacturing, Retail Trade, Transportation/Warehousing, Educational Services, and Healthcare/Social Assistance. Figure 2: Second Quarter 2014 Employment by Industrial Sector, as a percentage of overall employment (SPDC vs Va.) 20% Retail Trade Mining Utilities Services & Social Assistance Information Educational Professional Construction Warehousing 15% & Enterprises Manufacturing Food Services Other Services, Waste Services Waste & Entertainment Administrative & Accomodation & Transportation & Transportation Arts, Recreation, Wholesale Trade exc. Public Admin. Finance & Insurance & Technical Services & Technical Public Administration SPDC Healthcare 10% Virginia Management of Companies Real Estate, Rentals, & Leasing Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, Hunting Agriculture, Forestry, 5% Source: Virginia Employment Commission, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. Downloaded 2/23/15 For decades, even centuries, the economic structure of the District has revolved around agriculture with tobacco being the principal crop. However, in 2004 Congress approved the Tobacco Buyout Bill, which eliminates tobacco market quotas and price supports. The buyout payments, over a period of 10 years, provide an infusion of capital into state and local economies, which are intended to assist farmers and other affected parties to move away from tobacco crops as a source of income. As a result many of the region’s small operators shifted away from tobacco in favor of other crops or retirement from farming. In Virginia, an economic model projects that over the 10 years; the buyout will have had a total economic activity impact of $605 million. After an initial reduction, the acres of tobacco grown in Southside have increased steadily. 2 Executive Summary Other factors have been affecting the number of small farms, which have been steadily decreasing. During the fifties, sixties and seventies, many textile manufacturers built businesses in Southside Vir- ginia, benefiting from readily available labor exiting the farms. As the textile sector grew, the area’s economy developed a dependence upon this industry. With the passing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994, the region began experiencing another severe economic blow. In- dustries have been attracted by the cheap labor in Mexico and overseas, and thousands of jobs have been lost. Between 1999 and 2013, the available labor force has shrunk by over 6,500 workers. Over that time, approximately 4,000 jobs have been lost; of these approximately1,600 were in the textile/ apparel sector, thus presenting another challenge to the economic stability of the region. These losses were counteracted by 2,000 new jobs in a variety of employment sectors. Figure 3: 1990 - 2013 SPDC Annual Unemployment Rate and Civilian Labor Force 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 20082009 2010 20112012 2013 12.2% 41,099 L AB 10.9% 41,064 11.5% 40,584 O R FORCE 40,579 40,252 40,142 40,064 9.8% 9.5% 9.5% 9.8% 41,047 39,376 9.2% 9.6% 8.8% T 39,670 N E M 8.1% Y O L P M 7.4% 37,841 37,971 7.2% NE 7.0% 6.8% U 37,068 6.4% 37,233 6.7% 36,760 37,594 5.9% 6.4% 36,131 5.6% 35,225 35,958 5.4% 5.6% 36,315 35,788 35,573 5.4% 35,748 34,517 4.1% Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (delivered through VEC), Obtained 2/20/15 After the employment picture began to finally stabilize in the mid 2000’s, the 2007-10 recession pushed the numbers of the unemployed up to historic levels. In February of 2010, the Planning District’s un- employment rate was 13.1%. The most recent unemployment rate is 7.3%, from December 2014. This was the highest rate of any Planning District in the state of Virginia. (The next highest rate is 7.2% from Cumberland Plateau PDC.) As traditional manufacturing and agricultural jobs disappear, new types of industries are expanding. Steps need to be taken to ensure the Planning District’s plentiful labor force is properly trained to take advantage of these new opportunities. The infrastructure necessary to attract these industries must also be available. In this age of new technology, industrial parks must now offer high-speed commu- nications capabilities in addition to water, sewer, natural gas and a good road network. Additionally, tourism, or marketing to “get the word out” about the region figures prominently in any economic devel- opment strategy.