Barry Biggar, president and CEO of Visit Fairfax, has been honored with the Tower of Dulles award, following in the footsteps of notable figures like Steven F. Udvar-Hazy and senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.
Presented annually by the Committee for Dulles, the award honors individuals or organizations that significantly enhance Dulles International Airport and its surrounding economic corridor.
Since Biggar took the helm in 2008, Fairfax County’s tourism sector has doubled, adding more than $3 billion annually to the local economy, Visit Fairfax said in a press release.
“Mr. Biggar has remained a fierce advocate and steadfast supporter of the Dulles Economic Corridor as the gateway to international tourism and overall visitation for the Washington, D.C. metro area, continually working to bring awareness to Virginia and Dulles International as an entry point to the United States,” the release stated.
One of Biggar’s standout achievements was getting Fairfax County to host the 2015 World Police and Fire Games, the world’s largest multi-sport amateur athletic event outside of the Summer Olympics. According to the release, the 10-day event brought in over $86 million for local businesses.
In addition to his work for Visit Fairfax, Biggar has served on the boards of Destinations International, the Virginia Association of Destination Marketing Organizations, the Virginia Restaurant Lodging and Travel Association, the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce and the Workhouse Arts Center.
He is currently a board director for ArtsFairfax and the treasurer of the Northern Virginia Tourism Partnership.
Introduced in 1994, the Tower of Dulles Award is the highest recognition offered by the Committee of Dulles, a nonprofit created in 1966 to advocate for the economic interests of Dulles Airport and the surrounding community.
“I am profoundly honored and humbled to have received such a prestigious recognition from the Committee for Dulles,” Biggar told FFXnow. “I am deeply passionate about our great tourism industry here in Fairfax County and proud of all we have accomplished so far.”
In addition to Kaine, Warner and Udvar-Hazy, the billionaire who funded the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum’s annex in Chantilly, previous recipients include Dulles Airport architect Eero Saarine, former Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority president Jack Potter, and former Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe.
“Washington Dulles International Airport and, indeed, the entirety of the Dulles Corridor is an incredibly vital artery to not just the Washington, D.C. region but also the United States of America,” Biggar said. “With all the innovative progress and work that continues to shape this area, I have no doubt we will see continued growth as years go by. It is truly with the utmost gratitude that I thank the Committee for Dulles for this incredible honor.”
