Document Type

Report

Publication Date

2024

DOI

10.25776/ryty-bc04

Pages

178 pp.

Abstract

This is Old Dominion University’s 25th annual State of the Region Report. While it represents the work of many people connected in various ways to the university, the report does not constitute an official viewpoint of Old Dominion, its president, Brian Hemphill, Ph.D., the Board of Visitors, the Strome College of Business, or the generous donors who support the activities of the Dragas Center for Economic Analysis and Policy.

The news, especially when compared to the previous decade, is mostly good. The region’s economy grew in 2023 and will likely grow for a fourth consecutive year in 2024. Even after accounting for inflation, average wages in Hampton Roads were higher than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we also cannot ignore the data that our region’s economic performance continues to lag its peer and aspirant metropolitan areas. We are running faster than before, but still not as fast as we need to win the economic race.

Since its inception in 1999, the State of the Region Report has sought to inform without minimizing the challenges facing the region or downplaying the opportunities that could spur economic growth. Leveraging opportunities and surmounting challenge will require us to lean into regional solutions. We applaud the progress made so far and commend efforts to build one region out of the many localities that call Hampton Roads home.

Download

Share

COinS