Every year at the BRCA Annual Meeting, the organization honors the people and organizations who have helped move the Corridor forward with their commitment to excellence. These businesses and individuals exhibit the best in customer service, performance, and a lifetime commitment to the success of the Raleigh Community. Listed below are our winners for the 2022 calendar year.
Small Business of the Year
Chubby’s Tacos
Our Small Business of the Year award is one given to a business in our community in honor of its years of outstanding service and contributions to the greater Blue Ridge Corridor.
With a focus on real food and real flavor, Chubby’s Tacos has become a favorite place to grab delicious tacos every day of the week. Tucked into the Lake Boone Shopping Center, it was voted the Number One Tacos in RDU in the WRAL Voters Choice Awards thanks to their fresh ingredients and their salsa bar.
Previous Winners:
2021 | Backyard Bistro
2019 | Burn Boot Camp – West Raleigh
2018 | Burke Brothers Hardware
Development Project of the Year
UNC REX Cancer Center
Each year, we honor a visionary development project that supports the Blue Ridge Corridor Plan and makes a significant impact on the local economy and community.
The UNC REX Cancer Center officially opened in early 2022 as a state-of-the-art four story building at the intersection of Blue Ridge Road and Hopeful Drive. The new facility includes more services, programs and easy parking in one convenient location to facilitate comprehensive cancer care in our community.
In addition, many murals and lounge areas were included to help with the holistic care of cancer patients and their loved ones.
Previous Winners:
2021 | Lake Boone Shopping Center
2019 | 751 Corporate Center Drive
2018 | NC Heart & Vascular Hospital – UNC REX Healthcare
Government Employee Partner of the Year
Will Johnson
Our Government Employee of the Year award is given to a local leader in appreciation for leadership displayed and continued efforts to make the Greater Blue Ridge Corridor community a distinct destination in Raleigh.
With eight years of public service to the state of North Carolina and more than three decades as an architect, Will currently serves in the North Carolina Department of Administration’s State Construction Office as the Assistant Director of the Capital Project Management Unit. He is managing the DHHS Campus Phase I to relocate 2,400 DHHS staff from the current location on Dorothea Dix Park and is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2025.
The DHHS Campus Phase I represents the single largest capital project in the history of the State of North Carolina and is the vanguard project of the State Capital and Infrastructure Fund that has identified over $6 Billion in capital investment across the State of North Carolina.
Previous Winners:
2021 | Dhanya Sandeep – Senior Urban Designer, City of Raleigh
2019 | Dr. Larry Wheeler – NCMA
2018 | Joey Hopkins – NC Dept. of Transportation; Wesley Wyatt – N.C. State Fair
Hero Award
Mignon Tucker
Our BRCA Hero award is given to a member of the Greater Blue Ridge Area community that has demonstrated a strong commitment to making the area a vibrant and economically sustainable destination in Raleigh.
Mignon is a Raleigh native and local artist. A member of the Blue Ridge community, she began picking up litter around her neighborhood while walking her dog. She has continued to do so every day, walking different routes to clean up different parts of her neighborhood.
Through sharing her actions on social media, she has inspired others throughout the community to pitch in and help clean up their own neighborhoods. She has created a movement that allows all Raleigh residents to take an active role in taking care of Raleigh, our home.
Lifetime Achievement Award
William A. Allen III
Our Lifetime Achievement Award is given to a person in appreciation for years of outstanding service and contributions to the vitality of the Greater Blue Ridge Community.
A graduate of North Carolina State University, Will boasts a career spanning five decades, with a particular expertise in rail, commercial aviation and intermodal logistics. He has been engaged since 2008 in appointed and elected service on behalf of the Triangle region, Wake County, and the Raleigh City Council on several fronts, including passenger and freight rail issues impacting the area and its community affairs, land use, and economic development.
Mr. Allen was appointed by the Raleigh City Council to serve on the GoTriangle Board of Trustees in 2013 and has been reappointed twice since. He is also the voting member to the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization from the GoTriangle Board, and he chairs the Blue Ridge Corridor Alliance (BRCA) Transportation Committee.