WAYNESBORO, VA (Rocktown Now) — Governor Abigail Spanberger today awarded an Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development Fund Planning Grant to the City of Waynesboro.

The 14-thousand-dollar grant will help the Waynesboro Economic Development Authority evaluate the feasibility of a local community kitchen located within Vector Industries, a nonprofit organization that trains and employs people with various disabilities.

The effort builds on a 2021 study by the Central Shenandoah Planning District Commission that indicated the need for a commercial, shared-use agricultural enterprise center in the central Shenandoah Valley.

Vector Industries has expressed interest in expanding commercial kitchen operations within its large facility to support local entrepreneurs and strengthen the region’s food economy.