This has been a year of many changes in leadership positions within Buena Vista’s city government. The latest looming change was announced at City Council’s meeting this past Thursday when Kristina Ramsey, the city’s economic development director since 2019, said she would be leaving June 23 to become the director of engagement and external affairs for the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation.
The revolving door of changing leadership began Jan. 1 when newly elected Mayor Jesse Lineberry took his seat at the helm of City Council, replacing Tyson Cooper, the incumbent he defeated in November. City Manager Jason Tyree shortly thereafter announced his resignation. He was replaced in March by interim City Manager Wayne Handley, who had earlier announced his intention to retire as police chief.
Veteran police officer David Clements succeeded Handley as police chief, first in an interim capacity and then as the permanent new chief. Two other department heads have been hired recently – Ryan Groah as the director of parks and recreation and Michael Loudermilk as director of public works.
City Council went into closed session Thursday to discuss candidates who have applied to be the city’s next city manager. Finalists for the position are to be interviewed by Council in a closed special session on June 25, with the expectation that a new city manager will be hired shortly thereafter and begin work in late July or early August.
This whirlwind of changing leadership will culminate with the hiring of a new director of economic development later this year. A timetable for filling this position has not yet been announced. Ally Haney, Ramsey’s assistant, will handle the responsibilities of the office until a new director is hired.
As we contemplate these numerous changes, we want to focus today on Ramsey’s tenure, which has been pretty substantial. There has been a lot of positive economic development in Buena Vista since Ramsey, a Buena Vista native who graduated from Parry McCluer High School in 2015, began her job nearly seven years ago.
Two national retail chains chose to come to Buena Vista – Tractor Supply most recently and Dollar Tree a couple of years ago. Lots of businesses have opened downtown. Among these are Asunder Coffee Roasters, the BeeVe Sweet Souvenirs, Straws Drinks & Eats, Coiner Country Store and Bub-Bub’s Subs. A restoration of the old newspaper building as Rooftop Terrace, a mixed use development, recently broke ground in downtown.
Mountain Gateway Community College’s Wilson Workforce Center opened this past year in the former Courtesy Ford building. It’s drawing lots of pedestrian traffic to downtown, with hopes of plenty more to come. The Rockbridge Innovation Accelerator, an incubator for entrepreneurs with fledgling businesses, opened in the former Mundet-Hermetite factory building, along with the Junction 245 Retail Marketplace and Taproom. Buena Vista’s visitor center is relocating into this complex.
Ramsey has worked well with Buena Vista’s other community leaders in helping to make this positive economic development news transpire. “Economic development is often really misunderstood,” Ramsey noted in her report to City Council last week. “People see a project completed, a ribbon cutting, a new business opening or [making improvements] and assumed it happened because of one person or a city initiative. The core function of this role [of economic development director], very generally speaking, is to build relationships, facilitate conversations, solve problems, coordinate projects and bring people together around a shared vision. That is what this position is for and it is an extremely important one. And the truth is that every success story in BV and elsewhere has involved dozens, if not hundreds.”
This is true but Ramsey played a critical role in making these successes happen. We commend her for a job well done.
