Forest is a census-designated place (CDP) in eastern Bedford County, Virginia, United States. The population was 11,709 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Lynchburg Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

Forest is located at (37.370723, −79.266801).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.89%, is water.

Economy

Forest is a suburban part of metropolitan Lynchburg, containing many subdivided properties carved from and around surrounding farms and woodlands. The Ivy Hill community is the largest development and is built around the Ivy Hill Golf Course. The community has been experiencing rapid growth and development over the past 20 years, especially after U.S. Route 221 (Forest Road) was widened to four lanes in 2009. The growth of commercial businesses and housing, which slowed during the Great Recession, is expected to continue into the near future.

Forest has no real town center since the original one was torn down without a trace, but the area along Forest Road from the post office to the Forest Library is generally regarded as the central part of the community; however, the community extends all the way along Forest Road from the middle school to Graves Mill Shopping Center. The political attitudes of the majority of the population are conservative. There are a few older homes along a loop behind the library and two churches that would have been in close proximity to the former Norfolk & Western rail station, which was torn down in the late 2010s. This might have been considered the main stop for Forest prior to sub-urbanization and commercial development along Forest Road.

Liberty University's Center for Engineering Research and Education (CERE) in the New London Business & Technology Center park on U.S. Route 460 in New London is a small but increasingly significant engineering center developed with partnerships by private industry, regional governments, the Tobacco Commission, in addition to the university. Existing businesses in the park include Simplimatic Automation, NanoSeptic Technologies, and a 40,000 square foot shell building is available for sale or lease.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Forest had a population of 11,709. The median age was 41.7 years. 20.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 89.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 85.6 males age 18 and over.

95.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 5.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 4,792 households in Forest, of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 54.9% were married-couple households, 14.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 27.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

  • Cynthia Dunbar, Republican National Committeewoman for Virginia; law professor at Liberty University School of Law, former member of the Texas State Board of Education.
  • Rashad Jennings, NFL running back formerly for the New York Giants, the Oakland Raiders, and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

References

  • Photos of Forest