Updates from Tourism and the Chamber of Commerce

Patrick County Tourism is proud to present the 2023 Spring edition of the Patrick County Magazine. We couldn’t be happier with the magazine’s success, and we thank everyone who dropped in to grab a copy. This issue of the magazine is themed around breaking ground on new projects. Spring is a great time to start new projects, and we hope this issue of the magazine inspires you to break ground on something new. The magazine aims to highlight the people and businesses that make Patrick County a premier tourism destination and an amazing place to live. Small business owners, event organizers, and volunteer groups all play an important part in helping Patrick County grow and change. From community gardens to the widening of Highway 58, volunteer groups and businesses are breaking ground on new projects and ushering Patrick County into a new season of growth. We hope this issue of the magazine inspires readers to break ground on their projects, big or small.

We invite everyone, whether lifelong residents or tourists, to come by the Patrick County Visitors Center located at 126 North Main Street, Stuart, VA. The Visitors Center has information on local attractions, events, and lodging. The Patrick County Visitors Center can help with accommodations, directions, and trip planning, no matter the occasion or season.

James Houchins Tourism and Marketing Director for Patrick County

Welcome to volume two of the Patrick County Magazine. We survived year one and are pressing forward with this year’s editions. Everyone has been complimentary of our magazine about “li’l ole Patrick County.” And we are excited to share even more hidden gems with you.

Spring is always a busy planning time as we pull out the calendar and start working on programming, projects, and events for the coming year. The process is very similar to how gardeners go about pouring over seed catalogs and planning the garden for the year. This issue, we are digging in more to our gardening ways with articles focusing on the Master Gardeners and their wonderful work, as well as our hidden gems of several greenhouses that are open to the public.

The featured article is the large digging that is taking place on the mountain along Hwy 58. This investment by VDOT to widen and make the highway safer is a massive undertaking. While this project is extremely visible and literally moving mountains, several other projects are sprouting up throughout the county. Economic announcements of investment for a small business development center are happening. The Town of Stuart’s downtown revitalization planning grant is coming to completion which will move into grant submissions for implementation. The long standing textile factory in Woolwine has changed ownership, continuing to produce fabric from that facility. Several buildings along Main Street have changed hands and are going through a metamorphosis into new businesses and services.

Due to all these moving parts, the Chamber of Commerce has branded 2023 as the reinvestment in Patrick County. By reinvesting in ourselves and our communities, we can recommit to moving forward, thus redefine who we are and help us all to rethink how we live and work in Patrick County. So if you visited us last year, or its been a few years, we invite you to come back, dig in and see what Patrick County is all about and what all we have to offer. You might decide to stay and put down roots.

Rebecca Adcock Chamber of Commerce Director

We are so glad to hear so many great things said about our new magazine. Patrick County is full of beautiful scenery and wonderful people. We are honored to be able to share these stories with the world. We also hope that you will visit our advertisers and thank them for helping us publish this magazine. We couldn’t put this out without them. If you have story ideas, please reach out to any of us. You are an important part of this publication also.

David Stanley SilverLining Design