EDA reviews $1 million IRF application for proposed Shenandoah meat‑processing site

The Page County Economic Development Authority on July 27 reviewed an Industrial Revitalization Fund application prepared to support SVF Development’s proposed meat‑processing facility at the Shenandoah site.

Dennis Fleming, speaking for the EDA’s farming and agriculture subcommittee, said the Northern Shenandoah Valley Regional Commission’s Economic Development Program Coordinator, Ashley Shickle, was finalizing the application and that it would be submitted by the end of the month. If awarded, the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development IRF program would provide $1 million in grant‑to‑loan funds to the EDA, which the EDA would in turn loan to SVF Development. Fleming said SVF expects to provide about $2.4 million in eligible matching funds, of which approximately $650,000 has already been documented.

Fleming detailed the request’s construction categories and cost estimates: two metal buildings connected to the existing structure to add 5,000 square feet for a carcass cooler, retail food space and employee area ($750,000); a roof overlay to replace failing roof structure ($150,000); a concrete overlay with proper drainage slope ($20,000); and a full electrical upgrade with isolation step‑down transformers ($80,000).

Sara Levinson, the EDA treasurer, praised the application and noted the IRF program’s competitiveness. "The IRF program is ‘highly competitive,’" Levinson said, adding the submission was "written well, hitting all the points they asked for." Fleming told the board SVF does not plan to wait on an IRF award to begin work and will proceed with plans at the Shenandoah site even if the grant is denied.

Next steps: the application will be submitted to the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development by the end of the month; the EDA and SVF may reapply in a future cycle if the request is not funded.