2020 Annual Report

A Letter from the Executive Director

The great Duke Ellington once said, “A problem is a chance to do your best.” 2020 presented all of us with an opportunity to rise to the problems presented by the pandemic, and I’m happy to report that Loudoun County has once again demonstrated the resilience and grit that has become core to our community. The response to COVID-19 from our Board of Supervisors, County Administration and countless members of our government has been inspiring. We can’t begin to appropriately thank the front line workers who responded so unselfishly and we salute the many individuals who support our work through volunteer roles on boards, commissions, committees and other community. Finally, we celebrate the amazing group of businesses, partners and community groups who have had to pivot in response to these uncertain times.

Over the past 15 years, Loudoun has built a solid economic base that has served us well during this time of uncertainty. Our economy is built on a diverse base of businesses from thriving rural enterprises in Western Loudoun to the successful commercial companies throughout the Dulles Technology Corridor. Remarkably, our economy continued to grow this year, which is a testament to our business leaders and our talented workforce. In 2020, Loudoun attracted more than $6.75 billion in new investment and added more than 3,500 new jobs.

I could not be prouder of our economic development team. As the pandemic hit our community, our department pivoted to focus on supporting the resilience of our community. We did outreach to over 4,000 businesses and used that feedback to create a slate of new programs to help our companies and our workforce, which included a new Loudoun Jobs Portal, the expansion of the “Take Loudoun Home” program and the establishment of the Loudoun Made, Loudoun Grown Marketplace.

Our Board of Supervisors invested almost $12 million for the Business Interruption Fund and the Outdoor Seating Grant program to provide critical financial support to more than 2,000 Loudoun businesses. Our homegrown entrepreneurs responded to the pandemic with the creation of new innovative solutions and businesses in our “touch” economy showed remarkable resilience and creativity to shift business models. More than 735 companies took the “Loudoun is Ready” challenge to show their commitment to the health and safety of their customers and employees.

We will never forget those who perished this year, nor will we ever forget the impact the pandemic has had on so many of our neighbors, colleagues and businesses. As we go forward, we will honor them through our commitment to supporting everything #LoudounPossible in our community, growing opportunity for all citizens and incorporating inclusive and sustainable practices into all of our programs. Thank you for the opportunity to serve this great community.

Board of Supervisors