Broadband for Culpeper

Culpeper Star Exponent

Business Monday

June 30, 2014

Jim Charapich

The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) presented a workshop on the status of broadband in the region in Culpeper last Tuesday. The program was initiated by the Culpeper Chamber of Commerce in addressing the challenges and opportunities in relation to broadband access throughout the region.

Culpeper was described as under-served regarding broadband access. This makes sense considering the topography and rural settings characteristic of our community. Nonetheless, there are good reasons to enhance our broadband infrastructure. Through the workshop, CIT shared resources that the state has developed to assist communities to expand broadband access, increase adoption, and ultimately utilization for improved quality of community life.

It is important that our students have access to broadband at home in order to be competitive with other areas of Virginia. We need to give our students every opportunity to succeed and internet access for homework and research are critical. In addition, internet access to grow business opportunities is vital to our economic prosperity. Many of today’s large businesses began in a garage. In order to encourage and facilitate entrepreneurship and business growth, access to the internet via broadband is important. This includes the traditional business base in our rural areas - agribusiness. Today’s agribusiness is reliant on internet access to conduct business.

The Cisco website describes the internet ecosystem well “Cisco defines the Internet of Everything (IoE) as bringing together people, process, data, and things to make networked connections more relevant and valuable than ever before-turning information into actions that create new capabilities, richer experiences, and unprecedented economic opportunity for businesses, individuals, and countries.”

Internet access is also described as a “Utility”, much like power and water. When we describe our infrastructure, we include internet access with roads, power lines, water, and sewer. Thus, the workshop was an update in a continuing discussion about how to advance access to broadband internet in Culpeper and the surrounding region. Broadband touches everything including economic development, education, healthcare, public safety, innovation, and citizen engagement.

To join the conversation and find out more about advancing this important issue in our community, go to http://www.wired.virginia.gov/toolkit . Virginia’s Broadband Map (http://gismaps.vita.virginia.gov/broadband/) includes all provider reported coverage areas and supports search by address to view what providers report serving your specific address.  You can check your broadband speed by going to the Virginia Tech website http://acceleratevirginia.org/speedtest . In addition, Virginia Tech offers an Advanced Planning and Analysis Toolbox that includes various tools to assist with planning broadband deployments at http://www.cgit.vt.edu/broadband .

Thank you to the Center for Innovative Technology  and Virginia Tech for investing time and resources to advance our community. Also, thank you to Steve Walker, Chairman of the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors, and Jeff Walker, Director, Rappahannock Rapidan Regional Commission for their support in bringing the workshop to the region. Thank you to the Town of Culpeper for the use of the community room at the Culpeper Police Station.

                                               

“Disability & Employment - Navigating OFCCP 503/VEVRAA Compliance”

Culpeper Star Exponent

Business Monday

June 23, 2014

Jim Charapich

Free online webinar tomorrow, June 24, “Disability & Employment - Navigating OFCCP 503/VEVRAA Compliance” at 9 a.m. for pre-registered guests. Register online at www.CulpeperChamber.com  and click on the webinar link.

The Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) has issued new regulations relating to affirmative action for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities, which have made noteworthy changes to the affirmative action programs for these groups.  The new regulations became effective March 24, 2014. The new regulations broaden affirmative action coverage and add new requirements.

If you are a federal government contractor, are you ready for the changes?  What have you done so far to prepare and what must you do going forward?

This presentation will focus on what these and other changes mean for federal contractors and best practices for complying with the new rules.  It will explore what OFCCP expects with respect to outreach and recruitment of individuals with disabilities and protected veterans’ programs.  It will review a number of critical factors, including: What must be done, and when, to help contractors establish a timeline for implementation. A review of important internal and external notices, clauses and taglines, and record-keeping changes. It will also discuss system changes that need to be made and the key staff involved in these changes - e.g. procurement to assure the necessary EEO clause in included in contracts/subcontracts and recruiting to assure outreach efforts are in place.

Panelists for the program are Cornelia Gamlem, SPHR, President, GEMS Group Ltd. and Co-Author of “The Big Book of HR” www.bigbookofhr.com; and Cynthia Roberts, known for her passion of DARS, who has trained staff and employers across the state.  She regularly conducts Disability/Awareness Trainings in her region and is known for making the trainings both entertaining, as well as informative.

This program has been approved for 1 (HR (General)) recertification credit hours toward PHR, SPHR and GPHR recertification through the HR Certification Institute. For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HR Certification Institute website at www.hrci.org.

The webinar is sponsored by the Piedmont Workforce Network in cooperation with the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services, Germanna Community College Center for Workforce and Community Education, and the Culpeper Chamber of Commerce as a part of an ongoing series of workforce webinars. Additional webinar recordings can be found at http://www.ccrc-jobs.com/employers.cfm and http://www.centralvirginia.org/workforce-solutions/for-businesses/employer-services-/ . Other subjects have included Career Readiness Certificate - Finding the right person for the job, and the Virginia Employment Commission Workforce Connection.

This presentation is intended to provide a broad overview of detailed regulations and to give practical information. Obtain and read copies of the regulations if you have not already done so.

Nothing is a substitute for reading the source documents directly. Don’t rely on “sound bites”.

Nothing in this presentation should be considered as legal or consultative advice.

Local Arts, Culture and Tourism Stay-cations

Culpeper Star Exponent

Business Monday

June 16, 2014

Jim Charapich

The Lead Culpeper Class of 2014 met on Wednesday for a “Fam Tour” of Culpeper. Lori Sorrentino, Director of Tourism, organized this busy day for our Lead participants. Tourism is an important economic engine in our community. The day's activities gave the group a glimpse of our tourism assets and how these work to enhance our quality of life. What is a Fam tour? ”Fam” is tourism-speak for familiarization.

We often hear of stay-cations in thinking about summer plans. The Lead Culpeper group took time to get ahead of the summer crowds in touring some of Culpeper’s highlights. The session began with a presentation by Kelsey Carlson, Culpeper Renaissance, Inc. Board President. This was followed by the first tour of the day, given by Lee Langston-Harrison.

The tour of the Museum of Culpeper History is simply amazing. Ms. Langston-Harrison offers a depth of knowledge about the history of Culpeper that is unmatched. Her announcement that Culpeper is the largest repository of dinosaur tracks in the USA (with a real track in the museum), to the Early Native Americans’ use of displayed whalebone found along the Rapidan River basin, were just the beginning. Her ability to drop names that have been a part of Culpeper are a who's who of historic figures, a great place to begin the day for our new leaders.

The group departed from the Depot on the trolley for more adventure. The next stop was Belmont Farm Distillery, where they observed the process for making legal moonshine. Thanks to Mr. Chuck Miller for his Virginia hospitality. The group then headed up to the Mt. Pony Signal Station. Thanks to Zann Nelson for the wonderful history of Mt. Pony's role in the Civil War. This was followed by a tour of the Library of Congress. The story of Packard Foundation donation of this facility to the nation is significant. Media preservation is a skilled and unique talent that is largely centered right here in Culpeper. What a great opportunity to see the technicians in action. We all have the benefit of seeing the results of their work on any given weekend with shows in the state of the art theater on Mt. Pony and occasionally at the State Theatre in Downtown Culpeper.

After a mobile lunch on the trolley to the next stop - the group was treated to a visit to Saddle Ridge Farm. The farm is an example of the exciting growth of 'farm to table' agriculture. Culpeper has long been known for our agricultural strength. Saddle Ridge Farm is an example of the new Agri-tourism movement for the general public to purchase products directly from the farm. Products from Saddle Ridge Farm may also be found in stores and restaurants throughout Culpeper and the region.

The final tour of the day is one of the best. The tour of the State Theatre of Culpeper is a story of vision and investment in a community, by Greg & Liz Yates. Their donation of the Theatre to the State Theatre Foundation is much like that of the Packard Foundation’s donation of the Library of Congress - a catalyst for the arts in our community. The State Theatre Foundation has worked with great vision to provide world class shows to Culpeper and the region. The benefit to the community to have such a hub of the arts is dramatic. Creativity is at the heart of entrepreneurship. What a great way to inspire new leaders and support creative thinking to move our community forward. Thank you, Mr. & Mrs. Yates, and the State Theatre Foundation, for your contribution to our community.

The Arts, Culture, and Tourism day for our Lead Culpeper is just one of the many interesting sessions in the Lead Culpeper program. Take time this summer for your own stay-cation. Visit the Depot in downtown Culpeper to find the latest information about Culpeper's Arts, Culture, and Tourism.

Thank You, Culpeper!

Culpeper Star Exponent

Business Monday

June 9, 2014

Jim Charapich

Amazing Day. When the weather is good, it is really good. Last Thursday June 5th was by many accounts the best CulpeperFest yet. The atmosphere was vibrant with activities, outdoor highlights, and the traditional business displays under the big tents.

I had the opportunity to help a few of the businesses that had never been to CulpeperFest before, with their booth location. As we discussed CulpeperFest, I was able to share with them that we do not have a large convention center to host such events indoors. Rather, we celebrate our rural environment by hosting the event in the fields of Germanna Community College. I could see the light go off in their eyes as they replied “Cool.”

Indeed, the day was cool with temps in the low 80’s, light humidity, and a steady breeze. The crowd was close to record attendance with ticket sales soaring on Tuesday and Wednesday. We had tickets purchased on Wednesday for busloads of attendees from Richmond. Nice for a Thursday evening in Culpeper. They may have heard that we were serving the famous Shawn’s Smokehouse BBQ.

There is no better place for a business to be on a Thursday evening in June. Where else would one be able to connect with nearly 2000 prospects in four hours on a Thursday afternoon? Attendees were treated to the bright colored T-Shirts, water bottles, and beach balls given away to set the stage for summer fun. Most attendees left with large bags full of assorted treasures.

Our DJ - Mark Harman - Harmany DJs, accompanied by Sophie Hudson of Kash Design, and Ian Chini - I & L’s DJing, held hourly giveaways. We gave away more than 30 items by ticket drawings during the event. Giveaway items varied from Pro Sports tickets to Hi-Tech Gear. This drew special attention to the center tent where we had a special feature performance. This was further showcased by the first annual Running of the Mascots. Congratulations to Tech Box for crossing the finish line first. They will hold the coveted trophy for 2014.

Most importantly, we are ever thankful for the support of our sponsors and volunteers. They have been the signature of our success for the past 33 years. There are many civic groups, including the P.I.G. Legacy, The Red Hat Ladies, and Gladys Williams & The Senior Center, that were especially helpful in bringing large numbers of volunteers. The roadway and tents were outlined with banners recognizing the many generous sponsors. Thank you to Domino’s Pizza and Chick-Fil-A for taking care of the set up volunteers. A big Thanks also to Sheriff Jenkins and the Culpeper County Sheriff's Department for helping to make CulpeperFest the safe event that we all love. In addition, it was great to have the Culpeper Volunteer Fire Department show off the new ladder truck. What a great asset to the community.

Thank you Culpeper for your continued support for the vital mission of the Culpeper Chamber of Commerce.

Come Celebrate!

Culpeper Star Exponent

Business Monday

June 2, 2014

Jim Charapich

The Culpeper Chamber of Commerce has had the benefit of very stable leadership over the past two decades. With the 15 year tenure of Norma Dunwody prior to my 6 year tenure, there has been no gap in leadership at the Chamber. This combined with the quality of business leaders that have committed years of service to the mission of the Chamber; the organization is a dedicated contributor to the local economy with solid respect across the state for our contributions to our Commonwealth.

This was evident in the visit from Governor McAuliffe to Culpeper last week. The Culpeper Chamber combined with Chambers in the Region welcomed the Governor to discuss strategic opportunities in working together to grow our economy in Virginia. The Culpeper Chamber has supported the Private Option for Medicaid Expansion promoted by the Virginia Chamber. We applaud Governor McAuliffe for his effort to develop bipartisan support to advance the issue. The purely economic impact of the issue serves our Commonwealth with vital revenues as we face the headwinds of defense and federal spending reductions in Virginia.  We also applaud the leadership shown by Senator Hanger for his initiative to move the budget stalemate forward in Richmond.

 

One of the signature events for the Culpeper Business Community is CulpeperFest. The celebration of business and community is like no other. There are few in the commonwealth that have sustained their relevancy for over 30 years like ours. The stories are unique from the various locations that the event has been held to those rare events that occur on occasional spring afternoons. Through the years the event has transitioned with the times. We have limited adult beverages, streamlined the food, and added a variety of entertainment. However, there has been one consistent highlight, the businesses that come and showcase what they do.

 

We celebrate almost everything in Culpeper. The calendar is very busy supporting one cause or another. However, there is one underlying force that produces the jobs, the wealth, the goods, and services that make our community the vibrant place that we are all proud of. This is an opportunity for the community to connect year after year, while supporting the businesses in our community.

 

Join us at CulpeperFest on June 5th from 4 PM - 8:00 PM to celebrate business. We do celebrate in style - Shawn’s Barbecue is the official caterer for the event. Your ticket allows you a world class Shawn’s Barbecue meal, entertainment, and a few trips around the business tents for abundant surprises. Go to www.CulpeperFest.com to purchase your tickets or visit the Depot, Shawn’s Barbecue, and Culpeper Farmer’s Coop for your tickets.