SPVAQ42021 - 49

S
ince its inception in 1934,
Virginia ABC has made its home
in Richmond, the Commonwealth's
capital city. ABC originally occupied
several floors in the Central National
Bank building at 219 East Broad Street.
In 1944, the agency moved to new
quarters at 4th and Grace streets and
then, in June 1976, to 2901 Hermitage
Road, near property that in 1985 would
become Metro Richmond's Minor
League Baseball stadium known as " The
Diamond. "
Virginia ABC continued to grow,
in service to consumers and to the
Commonwealth of Virginia. And it once
again outgrew its home.
" Virginia ABC occupied the
distribution center and administration
buildings on Hermitage Road in
Richmond from the 1970s, when there
were approximately 250 stores across
the commonwealth, " says Travis Hill,
Chief Executive Officer of Virginia ABC.
" Fast forward to 2021-ABC's
distribution center is operating at
100% capacity and there are [at press
time] 395 stores. To continue to provide
enhanced service and selection for
customers and increase revenues to
support the commonwealth, ABC
needed facilities that would allow for
growth as a modern retailer. "
The new headquarters
and distribution center
were completed in the
summer of 2021. The new
facility allows Virginia
ABC to increase the
number and variety of
products it carries. This in
turn enables it to supply
sufficient stock levels to
ABC retail stores, to open
new stores and to offer a
greater variety of products
to the consumer.
The increased space
matters, but there's
The new Hanover headquarters was designed with
employee input throughout the process, including the
idea for this outdoor eating and relaxation area
between the two buildings.
more to this move: The
headquarter offices and
the distribution center are
both new and improved.
The Build-up to a Bigger and
Better Space
Besides needing additional functional
space, the existing facility needed
expensive repairs to its electrical
system and air circulation as well as
updated material handling equipment
and distribution center management
software. In 2017, at the direction of the
General Assembly, Virginia ABC began
working with the Virginia Department
of General Services (DGS) to determine
the most cost-effective and efficient
means of securing much-needed new
distribution center and administrative
offices.
DGS issued Requests for Proposals
in June 2017. In March 2018, ABC and
DGS announced the choice to work
with H&M Company, an engineering
and construction firm that specializes
in design, construction,and financing
of distribution centers, manufacturing
facilities, industrial buildings and office
locations.
The project team also decided upon a
location, near I-295 in Hanover County,
land that was cost-effective while
meeting ABC's needs. Considerations
included employee drive-time, nearby
amenities, crime statistics, freight
costs, proximity to nearby interstate
highways and ease of accessibility for
truck traffic.
In 2019, the General Assembly
authorized ABC and DGS to proceed
with the project and authorized bonds
to fund it. Ground officially broke in
February 2020 and work continued
with rigid protocols in place as the
COVID-19 pandemic arrived the next
month. Work continued on schedule
throughout 2020 with both buildings
under construction simultaneously. The
headquarters welcomed employees in
June 2021 and the distribution center
began loading outbound trucks in
August. "
" The success of this project is a direct
result of professionalism, hard work
and determination put forth by both
H&M and the ABC project team, " says
SPIRITED VIRGINIA | OCTOBER | NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2021 49
SPVAQ42021

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