JOSIAH OLIVIER BELFON-VALENTINE

Virginia's Top Highway Project is Looking for Small Businesses

Josiah Belfon-Valentine - Hampton, Scripps Howard School of Communications - 12/14/2021

The largest highway construction project in Virginia's history, the expansion of I-64, is inviting small businesses to help complete the estimated $3,965,451,641 (I-64 HRBT Expansion Project, Annual Financial Plan Update, Page 3) project through participation in government programs; Small Women and Minority (SWaM) and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE).

SWaM is a Virginia-specific program that stands for Small, Women and Minority-Owned Business. To qualify, the businesses must have a 51% Stake by a Woman or minority and as a business has grossed less than $10 million within the last 3 years.

DBE is a Federal program with the US Department of Transportation. The DBE acronym stands for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise. To qualify, a firm must have grossed less than $23.98 million over the past three years and have no owner with a net worth of over $1.32 million dollars.

Firms that have joined DBE and SWaM can expect support and exclusive contracting opportunities with the expansion of I-64, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) (Page 12 / Slide 13)

"The Design-Builder [Hampton Roads Connecting Partners] continues to demonstrate good faith efforts, toward achieving the assigned project goals of 12% Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and 20% Small Women & Minority-Owned Business (SWaM)."

This means an estimated total of $1,268,944,525.12 set aside strictly for SWaM and DBE firms on the expansion of I-64 alone.

Recently, Hampton Roads Connector Partners Compliance Manager, Malcolm Kates updated the current status of SWaM and DBE funding distribution on the podcast HRBT Tunnel Talk.

"We are doing very well. So far to date as of this morning we have 260 executed DBE and SWaM agreements for over $356 million in contracts awarded in less than three years to mostly locally owned businesses, 82 percent of those are located right here in Virginia" (HRBT Tunnel Talk DBE/SWaM Resources 10:47-11:09)

"To put things in perspective $356 million in awards is more than most construction projects in and of themselves. It's more than a lot of states do in a year in terms of small business participation." (HRBT Tunnel Talk: DBE/SWaM resources. 11:19 -11:34) said Malcolm.

Virginia's cooperation with small businesses has been further validated through VA Code §2.2-40071.1 and gubernatorial Executive Order 35 (EO35). VA Code §2.2-40071.1 requires regulatory flexibility for small businesses that larger businesses would otherwise have to follow. EO35 is a direct federal call to action for onboarding small, woman, minority, and disabled veteran-owned businesses into government contracts.

Hampton Roads VDOT Civil Rights Manager, Queen Criterdon, explained how the Business Opportunity and Workforce Development Center (BOWD) helps prepare DBE firms to participate in the expansion of I-64.

"Sometimes we talk about some of the challenges that small businesses are having, and what we talk about first is access to capital, right? So one of the things the center does is network. Malcolm's been networking, going to banks. We are trying to have this partnership with the financial institutions right here in our community, to help those who are seeking financial assistance. So we have partnered with those, But the BOWD provides resources in various areas, project management, safety, and human resources is a strong area that firms may need to strengthen their backhouse operations" said Queen. (HRBT Tunnel Talk 17:42 - 18:40)

Virginia is expecting a minimum of $9.8456 billion as part of Biden's $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal. Virginia's trend of seeking small business support for infrastructure projects continues, this will mean more opportunities set aside for Virginia's qualified small businesses. All Virginia contract and grant opportunities are placed on the eVA portal, with 241,380 open opportunities for public review.

By Josiah Belfon-Valentine, Hampton University Scripps Howard School of Communications 12/14/2021

The Start Peninsula 9-month Micro-Pitch competition came to an end on November 3rd with 12 finalists out of 40 applicants competing for the grand prize of $5,000 plus networking opportunities.

Start Peninsula helps entrepreneurs located in Virginia expand their businesses by providing mentors, networking, and funding through annual competitions.

This year, the top prize included $5,000 of seed funding, 1 seat to Growth University from Patent Portfolio Builders, a 6-month community membership at the Launchpad, 1-year membership to Virginia Peninsula Chamber, 1-year membership to Greater Williamsburg Business Alliance, 1-year membership to York County Chamber, 1-year membership to Retail Alliance and 20-hours of consulting from the HR SBDC and CrimDell Small Business Network.

In a pitch competition, companies prepare a "Pitch Deck" that includes what makes the company special, and worthy of investment. A panel of judges assess the company's viability based on a rubric or vote. For the 2021 Start Peninsula Competition, criteria: clear articulation of a significant market problem or opportunity, a feasible and profitable solution, identification of the target market, and confidence in their presentation.

This year's Pitch Competition judges included Old Dominion University Executive Director for Innovation Initiatives and Entrepreneurship Marty Kaszubowski, Tech Center Research Park Director, Jeff Johnson, Patent Portfolio Partners Managing Partner Steve duBois, 757 Accelerate Executive Director Evans McMillion and Launchpad Associate director Rachel Frazier.

Of the 12 finalists, three winners were selected: Pocket Properties App, Bonilla Pet Studio, and EWedded.

Ewedded CEO, Mayah Holihan displayed her ability to find creative solutions in tough times when her 13,000 square foot Norfolk bridal store "House of Maya" went into bankruptcy, forcing her to liquidate her entire Inventory. Mayah then pivoted her sales model to relaunch into the bridal industry with Ewedded. EWedded acts as the inventory facilitator and not the direct seller of the products. This business model is similar to that of Amazon and AliExpress that have innovated the former consignment store business model to support an online-based, global audience.

The other winning tech company, Pocket Properties App, has developed an alternative way to invest in real estate by selling shares of tokenized homes on a blockchain. The token home shares can be bought, sold, and traded for cryptocurrency.

"Pocket properties currently has over 550 waitlist members, and that list is growing by 40 to 50 users every single day. This growth has allowed us to reach a 1-million-dollar valuation in just 3 short months with less than $1000 dollars of Ad spend," said Pocket Properties Co-Founder Chris Romper on the March 18th Micro-Pitch qualifying round.

Since then, Pocket Properties Chief Executive Officer, Josh Ruffalo announced on November 3rd

"The app has continued to gain traction to announce an additional 2,500 members to their waitlist growing rapidly every month at the steady rate of 35%."

The Pocket Properties WeFunder account, to date, has a valuation cap at $15 million dollars with an app that has not launched yet. Still, Pocket Properties App invites retail investors to sign a Simple Agree for Future Equity (SAFE) agreement at their $15 million valuation at a 20% discount.

The third winner, Bonilla Pet Studio runs a business structure focused on building a pet photography experience. Currently, Bonilla Pet Studios operates out of their 2 locations in Norfolk, Virginia and Williamsburg, Virginia. When asked what Bonilla Pet Studio's biggest barrier to scale Erin Bonilla said,

"If we had the capital we could scale, we have a 50% gross [profit] margin."

Though the $5,000 and consultations may not appear to be much to a business, 2019 micro-pitch competition winner Vestalyze received a $250,000 investment from the business incubator, Nex3, just months after completing its consultation bundle. Start Peninsula has not announced the official start date of its next competition, but invites entrepreneurs to apply to their next pitch competition titled "Pitch Perfect."

2021 Finalists

C.A.S.S.I.E | Greenlight | Pocket Properties App | EWedded, eZverifi, Spellcross | Bonilla Pet Studio | LetsVidya | NerdFlex | Care Concierge | Khitech and True-Rep, all of which are hyperlinked to review their companies.

2021 Pitch Competition Judges

Techhstars Executive Director Aaz Mickens-Dessaso | Ferguson Ventures Senior Director Blake Luse and Wells Fargo Senior Vice President Will Turner | Techhstars Executive Director Aaz Mickens-Dessaso | Old Dominion University Executive Director for Innovation Initiatives and Entrepreneurship Marty Kaszubowski | Patent Portfolio Partners Managing Partner Steve duBois | 757 Accelerate Executive Director Evans McMillion | Launchpad Associate director Rachel Frazier.

The Virginia Department of Transportation has decided to acquire citizen property to expand the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel and the I-64 highway.

Eminent Domain is when the government can claim your personal property and repurpose it for public use. In such proceedings, citizens whose property is being acquired are entitled to Fair Market value for the property and in some cases relocation assistance services.

The cost of the project is carrying a $3.8 Billion dollar price tag. That makes this the largest infrastructure project in the commonwealth history.

This project's unique nature has led to it having its own to public page where you can receive updates on the project at https://i64widening.org.

The acquisition of property by the government, for the

Hampton University was amongst the list of property owners that almost lost their property in connection to the widening.

Hampton University, increased their investment in the Widening of I-64 began when there was speculation that the

VDOT would pay property owners fair market value for the property and in some cases provide relocation assistance, according to a VDOT document

Hampton University's own Doretha Spells, the Vice President for Business Affairs and University Treasurer, and Bill Thomas, Hampton University's current Associate Vice President for governmental relations are currently listed on the stakeholders committee for the expansion of I-64

According to the Virginia Department of Transportation, "These leaders will serve as advisors to the HRBT Expansion team, keeping them abreast of challenges, suggesting solutions, and serving as public ambassadors for the project. The stakeholders committee meets on a quarterly basis."

According to the Virginia Department of Transportation the project's timeline, the project is set for completion by November 2025.

Attribution

I-64 Widening Information

http://i64widening.org/

HRBT Expansion

https://hrbtexpansion.org/

Hampton University vs Vdot

http://news.hamptonu.edu/release/Kerry-Dougherty%3A-Protecting-America%27s-history-from-VDOT-at-Hampton-University

VDOT Guide to Eminent Domain

https://www.virginiadot.org/business/resources/Right_of_way/Appraisal_guide.pdf

Josiah Belfon-Valentine - 9/10/2021

The Virginia Department of Transportation hosted two town halls to provide a public update on the Hampton Segment titled Hampton Segment 4C. The town hall took place in two different segments; the September 23rd town hall was virtual, the September 24th town hall, in person.

During the two Town Halls, a panel of Hampton county officials announced updates on the I-64 Expansion project. The purpose plan is to create a hybrid lane that will act as a High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane and tolled lane. The express lane will cover 2.4 Miles from LaSalle Avenue (265B) to Settlers Landing Road (267) on the I-64 interstate.

During the 9/23 virtual town hall, the speakers displayed the purpose of Hampton Segment 4C the top two of which were:

"Provide a safe and more reliable travel option for motorists across the region and relieve congestion at key locations along interstate 64."

"Express lanes can improve travel time and reliability by providing single-occupancy vehicles an option during peak travel times when congestion is highest."

During the 9/24 townhall live session, attendees had the opportunity to speak with members of the government and contractors working on various parts of the project.

Virginia Division Administrator of tolling David Claudill explained his portion of the project.

David said "Thanks to our TranModeler software, we are confident that this is the best approach. We will be experimenting with some new technology as well within the lanes, this new E-Z Pass where with the movement with the slider here it will activate an alternative mode with your E-Z pass, 'HOV Mode'. The E-Z Pass adaptation, when placed in HOV Mode, will trigger an overhead terminal to take a photo taken of your vehicle that will be sent to traffic operators for later approval."

With this expected increase in the flow of traffic, Noise Specialist, Ross Hundall addressed how VDOT came to the conclusion on what will solve the potential increase in traffic noise. Already, this stretch of I-64 "Carries more than 100,00 vehicles a day during tourist season"

Ross said,

"We use Traffic-Noise-Modeling (TNM) software in order to build our sound model of the local environment. We try to build with two major design goals in mind, first, that the wall will be at maximum 66 decibels to those behind it and with a building duration to last as long as 2045. We're using two different design solutions for this project, one's a Transparent Acrylic fiber material the other is a concrete barrier filled with wood pulp."

When looking at the HRBT expansion maps you will begin to notice that a lot of the sound barriers are being placed within property acquired in government Right of Way.

Right-of-way expert, Kevin Owens provided information on how homeowners can prepare themselves for their property being acquired in the able to give an explanation, for those that don't know a booklet titled "A Guide for Property Owners and Tenants"

Within the introduction of the booklet, VDOT provides a very simple explanation for right-of-way.

"The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is responsible for building and maintaining the Commonwealth's transportation system. Transportation improvements bring many advantages to the area - ranging from shorter commutes to increased business activity. To accomplish this, it is often necessary to acquire land from private property owners."

Kevin explained further,

"The goal is to come out of the area better than how it would have been if we were not there at all. Most usually it is providing the homeowner with the adequate information needed to know of how this project would affect their property, the only other case would be if there was a dispute in the value of the property. Only in situations where the Right of Way property intersects a home would we purchase it, in most cases, we are only buying a piece of the land."

To find more information on the most common Right-of-Way acquisition, navigate to the "Partial Acquisition" portion of the VDOT Booklet "A Guide for Property Owners and Tenants."

Second on the list of Right-of-Way needs are the need for drainage ditches to the highway increasing the amount of impervious surfaces. This is due to water mitigation being a major issue for the Hampton Area.

Senior Hydrology Engineer Kevin S. Hurt explained how due to the extremity of the water within the area, they look to a diverse network of products used to address the problem.

"Anyone interested in submitting their product for approval should take a look at the approved Virginia Department of transportation list for approved products, we need access to as much innovative solutions as possible to address this issue."

Briefly, the Hampton City Mayor, Donnie Tuck, went over the different projects that Hampton residents may not be privy to that are combating the Flooding problems that Hampton City is having.

"The area of New Market Creek is going to see some big changes soon."

Josiah Belfon-Valentine - Scripps Howard - 12/14/21

Popular journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones visited Hampton University on 11/12 to speak about her experience in recent times since releasing The 1619 Project.

The 1619 Project, released August 18th, 2019, was a special edition New York Times magazine to commemorate the 400th Anniversary of the beginning of slavery in the United States. The 1619 project detailed the trials of African Slaves brought to the United States and documented the generational struggle of those slaves' descendants centuries thereafter.

In her interview Nikole said,

"Most people assume based on a track record that this would be a very hard project for me to pitch. But it wasn't, by the time I pitched the 1619 project I had already built up a track record of historically accurate, in-depth stories."

Articles Nikole had written prior to the release of the 1619 Project include "The End of the Postracial Myth", "The Grief That White Americans Can't Share", "The Continuing Reality of Segregated Schools" and many more that provide contextual background to the United States Racial history.

The 1619 Project has sparked some controversy since its release. Nikole Hannah-Jones said,

"A sitting senator is trying to pass legislation against the project and now the project is banned by state legislature in several states and many more considering it. This state [Virginia] just elected a republican who ran to some degree on anti-critical race theory which is really responded by the 1619 project in many ways, none of that could've been expected."

Critical Race Theory as described by the NAACP:

"recognizes that racism is more than the result of individual bias and prejudice. It [racism] is embedded in laws, policies and institutions that uphold and reproduce racial inequalities."

Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, New Hampshire, Oklahoma and Tennessee have banned the education of Critical Race Theory in their schools' curriculum. Florida's school board has outright banned the discussion of The 1619 Project in public schools, bills have been submitted in multiple states seeking a ban of The 1619 Project as well. Public scrutiny was published in the Gazette by her home State Representative, Skyler Wheeler, who said;

"It [The 1619 Project] viciously attacks our founding in a way we have never seen. And it does so not for a conversation on history but rather to make a case for why we need to pass all the Marxist garbage the radical left is pushing around the country."

The 1619 project observably had effects on her career. She was previously a professor at her Alma Mater, the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. She was reportedly rejected tenure soon after the email of a prominent donor halted her application.

"After what happened with the University of North Carolina I got a lot of reaching out from prestigious elite white universities who were saying you know, come here instead and I knew immediately, that if I was not going to go to my alma mater I was going to come to a historically black college. And not only was I going to come to a historically black college, but I was going to raise a lot of money and bring it with me. I was going to use the power I had accrued through succeeding through white institutions and I was going to bring those resources back to a black university" said Nikole

These resources include a $20 Million dollar donation and the formation of Howard University's "Center for Journalism and Democracy" of which the 2021-2022 academic school year will be its first year.

Josiah Belfon-Valentine

Singapore has taken a tentative precautionary stance against the development of crypto within their country. Monday, The Monetary Authority of Singapore issued a statement restricting cryptocurrency trading services from advertising their services to the public and have restricted ATM services involving the exchange of crypto currency.

This announcement comes soon after the Singapore-based exchange Crypto.com was the victim of a cyber attack affecting 483 users and resulted in the loss of nearly $34 million dollars worth of digital assets.

Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Assistant Managing Director, Ms Loo Siew Yee said Monday, "MAS strongly encourages the development of blockchain technology and innovative application of crypto tokens in value-adding use cases. But the trading of cryptocurrencies is highly risky and not suitable for the general public. Digital Payment Token (DPT) service providers should therefore not portray the trading of DPTs in a manner that trivializes the high risks of trading in DPTs, nor engage in marketing activities that target the general public."

This follows a trend of Singapore's mindfulness of the risks of the developing crypto environment since allowing Binance.com, the largest crypto exchange in the world to operate under strict guidelines that ban the use of digital fiat Singapore currency, Project Ubin (named after the island Pulau Ubin), while the completion of Phase 5 is still underway.

MAS announced the 5th and final phase of Project Ubin's development November 11th 2019. Phase 5 is what prepares the project for "Broad Ecosystem Collaboration." J.P. Morgan and Singapore-owned holding company, Temasek, are the firms collaborating with MAS to complete the project outline and have announced in the project whitepaper that the country's new digital currency will include a bevy of features including the currencies ability to carry out programmable functions.

"The technology also enables the use of smart contracts, or self-executing and self-enforcing contracts, where pre-defined codified contractual terms are executed fairly and faithfully" (Project Ubin: Phase 5, Page 21)

Significant, due to ally China, taking a high uptake strategy toward the development of crypto currency. The Chinese central bank recognized E-CNY, hybridizes the Yuan into a ledger backed fiat currency as well and has already released the E-CNY for public use with similar features that allow for the currencies programmability (Progress of Research and Development, Page 8, 3.2.7)

Sources

MAS Issues Guidelines to Discourage Cryptocurrency Trading by General Public - January 17, 2022. Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Crypto.com Hack: 483 Users Affected, $34 Million Stolen - January 20, 2022.

Project Ubin: Phase 5 - Enabling Broad Ecosystem Opportunities - November 11, 2019. Monetary Authority of Singapore, J.P. Morgan, Temasek.

Progress of Research & Development of E-CNY in China - July 2021. People's Bank of China.