Moving to Mecklenburg County?
Whether it is for eight months on a data center build or for good, here is what you need to know about the area.
If you just took a job out here, you probably arrived knowing the name of the job site and not much else. This page is the orientation nobody hands you: where to buy groceries, where to do laundry, where to eat when you are tired of cooking in the rig, and how far everything actually is.
Morris RV Park sits on Cedar Grove Road, six miles from South Hill and nine miles from I-85.
Working here
Where the job sites are
Mecklenburg County has become one of the densest data center corridors in Virginia. Microsoft owns sites in Boydton, South Hill, and Chase City, with two more in Clarksville. The Hillcrest site sits on Tunstall Road just north of South Hill.
Most people renting here are trades on those builds. Others are travel nurses at the hospital in South Hill, or families who took a job in the area and want somewhere settled while they look for a house.
Distances from the park
- Lake Gaston — 3 miles
- Boat ramp at Steel Bridge — 3 miles
- Convenience center — 4 miles
- South Hill — 6 miles
- Kerr Lake — 8 miles
- I-85 — 9 miles
- Boydton — 12 miles
- Clarksville — 20 miles
- Chase City — 21 miles
- Henderson, NC — 27 miles
- Raleigh-Durham airport — 78 miles
- Richmond airport — 96 miles
Your first week
The practical list
South Hill starts about six miles out. Most of these sit on the far side of town, so figure nine to twelve miles door to door.
| Where | What for | Street | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food Lion | Closest full grocery. Open early and late, seven days. | 715 E Atlantic St | 9 mi |
| Walmart Supercenter | Groceries, household goods, and a pharmacy in one trip. | 315 Furr St | 10 mi |
| Graham Hardware | Independent hardware downtown. Better for odd fittings and honest advice. Closed Sundays. | 106 S Mecklenburg Ave | 9 mi |
| The Home Depot | Opens at six. Also where you swap a propane tank without a second stop. | 250 Frank D Harris Dr | 9 mi |
| Harbor Freight | Cheap tools when you left yours at home. Electrical and towing odds and ends. | 908 E Atlantic St | 9 mi |
| South Hill Laundry Land | Card or quarters, open seven days. Parking that fits a truck. | 614 W Danville St | 9 mi |
| Napa Auto Parts | Excellent service. First call for fuses, bulbs, and trailer wiring. | 620 Plank Rd | 9 mi |
| The Medicine Shoppe | Independent pharmacy if you would rather skip a chain counter. Weekdays only. | 605 E Atlantic St | 9 mi |
| VCU Health Community Memorial Hospital | The county hospital. Emergency room is open around the clock. | 1755 N Mecklenburg Ave | 12 mi |
| South Hill Family Medicine | Opens at seven on weekdays and Saturday mornings. The practical option for something that is not an emergency. | 516 W Atlantic St | 9 mi |
Trash and recycling
Four miles to drop it off, and someone there to help
Mecklenburg County runs staffed convenience centers that take household waste, cardboard, cans, appliances, furniture, metal, and brush. An attendant on site points you to the right container. Drop it and go.
Wayside on Highway One is four miles from the park and on the way to South Hill, so it fits into a grocery run. The others are worth knowing if you are already headed that direction.
Wayside
South Hill · 4 miles
11690 Highway One. The closest site by a wide margin and the one you will actually use.
Bracey
Bracey · 12 miles
7724 Hwy 903. Worth knowing if you are already heading toward Lake Gaston.
The Trading Post
Clarksville · 24 miles
1200 Rock Church Road. Closed Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Jonbil
Chase City · 21 miles
394 Jonbil Road.
Pen Road
Buffalo Junction · 27 miles
77 Pen Road. The furthest of the five.
Hours
All sites
Monday through Saturday, 6:30am to 8:00pm, closing at 7:00pm in winter. Sunday, 1:00pm to 6:00pm.
Anything the centers cannot take
Southside Regional Landfill · 17 miles
For heavier things such as building materials, carpet, tires, or a load from a project, the regional landfill is at 4803 Highway 92 in Chase City. Weekdays, business hours. Worth a call first on 434-738-6210.
Before your first trip
County guidance
The county publishes what each site takes and any seasonal changes to hours. If you are unsure where something belongs, check the Mecklenburg County waste page.
Internet and phone
Plan on Starlink
There is no park wifi, and that is not an oversight. Most people staying here run their own Starlink, which works well on an open lot with sky overhead. If you are coming for a few months, order it before you arrive rather than after.
Cell service on Cedar Grove Road is strong. Hotspotting works fine for email and calls, less so for streaming an evening.
Eating
Worth the drive
You will cook in the rig less than you think you will. These are the places people out here actually go, sorted roughly by how far you have to drive.
The Backyard Brews & Bites
South Hill · 7 miles
Closest food to the park. Craft beer, wings, and sandwiches, with an outdoor area, lawn games, and a stage for live music.
Wilson's BBQ on West Danville
South Hill · 8 miles
The local barbecue institution. Sells barbecue and sauce by the quart, which is the move if you want three dinners out of one stop.
Bringleton's Coffee House
South Hill · 9 miles
Real coffee, sandwiches and salads, and free wifi. The place to go when you need an hour off the lot and a table to work at.
Debbie's Drive-In
South Hill · 9 miles
An old-school drive-in with homemade burgers, fried chicken, and hand-dipped Hershey's milkshakes. Picnic tables under a big shade tree on the side of the building, and plenty of room to park a truck.
El Samalayuca
South Hill · 9 miles
Family run and small. Asada fries, tacos al pastor, and breakfast burritos.
El Saucito
South Hill · 9 miles
Small, family run, and open until ten most nights, which makes it one of the few places worth knowing if you finish late. Closed Tuesdays.
Luca's Italian
South Hill · 9 miles
Out by the truck stop on Cycle Lane. Big menu, big portions, and easy to get in and out of with a truck.
Marino's Pizza
South Hill · 9 miles
Pizza and subs, and they deliver, which is the short answer to the question everybody asks first. Open later on Friday and Saturday.
Star Buffet and Sushi Bar
South Hill · 9 miles
Open seven days a week, which almost nothing else out here is. Buffet plus a sushi bar. New China on East Atlantic is the takeout alternative.
The Donut Shop
South Hill · 9 miles
Open at 5:30 in the morning and closed by noon, six days a week. Built entirely around people going to work early. Breakfast sandwiches made to order.
313 Franklin
South Hill · 10 miles
A bar and kitchen in a remodeled downtown schoolhouse. Cocktails made to order, Virginia drafts and wine, and plates like crab cakes and shrimp and grits.
Island Soul Kitchen
South Hill · 10 miles
Jamaican cooking, and the widest hours in the county by a mile. Curry chicken, brown stew, beef patties, plantains. Newer spot, so they sometimes sell out.
Kahill's Restaurant and Pub
South Hill · 12 miles
The one everybody names when you ask where to eat. Lunch and dinner with a proper bar, live music some evenings, and a room that stays busy midweek.
Holly Grove Honey Hole
Bracey · 14 miles
Marina, store, and grill in one. Handy if you are already out on the lake.
Shady Shack Bar and Grill
Bracey · 14 miles
Busy, loud, and right on the water. Come by truck or by boat. Packed on a summer weekend.
Bridgewater Bar & Grill
Clarksville · 23 miles
Proper sit-down dinner near the water. This is the one to pick when family comes to visit.
Buggs Island Brewing
Clarksville · 23 miles
Brewery with a patio looking out over Kerr Lake. Burgers, wings, and something cold. An easy end to a Saturday.
Lake Country Tavern
Clarksville · 23 miles
Open later than most places out here on Friday and Saturday, with pool tables in the back.
Weekends
Two lakes, both close
Lake Gaston is three miles down the road, with the boat ramp at Steel Bridge the closest way onto the water. Kerr Lake, which everyone here calls Buggs Island, is eight miles the other direction and is the bigger and quieter of the two.
You do not need a boat to make use of either. There is bank fishing, there are places to swim, and there are a handful of restaurants you can tie up to.
Getting oriented
Where each place fits
South Hill
6 miles
The largest town in the county and where nearly all of your errands happen. Groceries, hardware, laundry, pharmacy, restaurants, and the hospital.
Bracey
12 miles
The Lake Gaston side of the county. Marinas, boat ramps, and waterfront bars you can pull up to by boat. Where the weekend goes when the weather is good.
Boydton
12 miles
County seat, and the original Microsoft campus.
Chase City
21 miles
West of the park, with data center sites of its own and the regional landfill.
Clarksville
23 miles
On the water at Kerr Lake. Where you go for a real dinner out or a weekend afternoon.
Henderson, NC
31 miles
Just over the state line. Bigger box stores and more chain options if South Hill does not have what you need.
Ready to look?
See which lots are open.
Nine lots on Cedar Grove Road, each with its own street address, plus three more on Morris Drive. Monthly is the norm, but shorter stays can sometimes be arranged.