Although winter heat, spring freezes and too much late spring/early summer rain combined to make 2016 a challenging year for Virginia’s apple growers, the state is on track to have a good crop. Growers having been picking Gala apples since August and are now picking Red and Golden Delicious apples, with Ginger Gold, Pink Lady, McIntosh, Honey Crisp, Stayman and more to follow.

With the adoption of the budget, Manassas City Council approved expanding its incentives to include two pilot incentive programs; a Façade Improvement Grant Program and a Landscape Improvement Grant Program.

Virginia Tech Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership and Project Wing, the aviation division of X, will deliver food using unmanned aerial vehicles during research flights this fall at Virginia Tech.

Virginia Tourism Corporation announced Sept. 9 that the Commonwealth's tourism revenues topped $23 billion in 2015, a 2.4 percent increase over 2014.

Juan Carlos Pinzón, Colombian Ambassador to the United States, invited Governor McAuliffe earlier this year to lead an agricultural trade and marketing mission to Colombia to grow the relationship between Virginia and Colombia and capitalize on the benefits of the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, which came into effect in 2012.

Governor Terry McAuliffe announced Aug. 16 that KO Distilling will expand its operations in the City of Manassas. The company will create six new jobs in the city and source 100 percent of its corn, wheat, and rye needs from Virginia agricultural producers.

Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) recently redesigned the Virginia Farm Link website and database at http://www.vafarmlink.org to include additional features to better facilitate connections between farm owners and those interested in farming.

Uptown Alley entertainment and restaurant venue at Manassas Mall has announced it plans to open at 8300 Sudley Road, Manassas, Va, on Tuesday, Aug. 23, at 11 a.m.