U.S. Senator Kaine tours Lynchburg to discuss economic development

LYNCHBURG (WSLS 10) - United States Senator Tim Kaine is touring through Central, Southern and Southwest Virginia to discuss several issues impacting local communities.

He kicked off his five-day tour talking about economic development, jobs and budget cuts.

Kaine joined Lynchburg Mayor Joan Foster and other city officials, focusing on the role of federal and state funds, as President Trump's budget calls for eliminating Community Development Block Grants.

The program that provides states and local governments the flexibility to work on neighborhood revitalization and economic development.

“So I'm going around the state to a lot of different communities to talk about the budget and to hear their priorities,” said Kaine.

After meeting with city officials at City Hall, he said he heard a lot of priority involving economic issues.

“It's good to kind of hear from the ground, on how is this money used and what will be the impact of it going away,” explained Kaine.

Lynchburg's Economic Development Director Marjette Upshure shared highlights of developments happening around the city.

“All of the changes happening in Lynchburg, it's remarkable what has happened downtown,” said Upshure.

She said she was pleased the senator toured through Blouff Walk.

After touring the downtown area, Kaine met with leaders in the African-American community to discuss civil rights and education issues.

Kaine said his goal this week is to get as much input from Virginians about what their priorities are.

“I'll be able to be a better advocate with my colleague on the budget committee,” says senator Kaine.

He will head to Danville for day two of his tour, and to Roanoke on day three.