Gov. Jim Justice today awarded 19 grants worth $13,734,817 for parks, broadband, demolition, and water-sewer to communities in 14 counties across the state.
The Federal Community Development Block Grant funds are a pleasure to provide, said Justice, who was joined for a virtual ceremony by local officials representing many of the communities receiving these grants.
“It’s always exciting when we’re able to give away money to different cities and different communities across our state,” Justice said. “We congratulate you on the great work that you’re doing in your communities."
The governor waxed philosophically about the wealth of the state's small communities.
“You know, that’s what it’s all about," he said. "West Virginia is an absolute collage of a lot of small communities, but boy! are we good people.
"That’s why people are wanting to come to West Virginia. We have finally broken out and told the world just how great West Virginia truly is.”
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provides block grant funds to West Virginia annually. The Community Advancement and Development Division of the West Virginia Development Office manages the funds.
More than $11.3 million is being put toward eight water-sewer line improvement projects that will benefit more than 1,480 customers.
Nearly $800,000 is being put toward two broadband enhancement projects that will benefit more than 5,000 West Virginians.
In previous program years, funding has been awarded only for water-sewer and broadband improvement projects. However, this year is the first to include funding for demolition and park improvement projects.
More than $1.4 million is being put toward demolition projects in eight communities that will clear unsafe and unsightly dilapidated structures and provide opportunities for future economic revitalization.
The remaining $150,000 is being put toward one park improvement project, supporting the State’s efforts to expand tourism, outdoor recreation, and downtown revitalization in West Virginia communities.
WATER/SEWER LINE IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS
City of Bluefield (Mercer County)
Amount: $1,000,000
Title: Midway Sewer Replacement Project
Purpose: The project will replace the existing sewer collection system that serves 129 customers for the community of Midway in the City of Bluefield, eliminating a source of pollution and mitigating potential health hazards.
Hampshire County Commission (Hampshire County)
Amount: $2,000,000
Title: Hampshire County Commission’s Southwestern Water Extension Project
Purpose: The project will extend water service along US Route 220 from Hardy County line north, including Old Mountain Road, Huffman Road, and Phillip Vincent Road in Hampshire County. Currently, customers experience a poor-quality and unreliable quantity of drinking water. The project will serve 80 new customers.
Lewis County Commission (Lewis County)
Amount: $2,000,000
Title: Lewis County Phase I Water Extension Project
Purpose: This project will extend the distribution system to provide potable water to approximately 167 new customers that do not currently have a clean and reliable source of drinking water in the Oil Creek Road and surrounding areas of Lewis County.
City of Parsons (Tucker County)
Amount: $676,000
Title: Parsons Emergency Water Preparedness and Resiliency Project
Purpose: This project will link the City of Parson’s water distribution system to Hamric PSD’s water distribution system in an effort to provide a secondary back-up source for both systems serving approximately 4,200 people.
Putnam County Commission (Putnam County)
Amount: $1,500,000
Title: Jim Ridge Phase II Waterline Extension
Purpose: This project will provide potable water to the residents of Jim Ridge from the Jim Bee extension that was completed in 2010 to the Jackson County line along Jim Ridge.
Summers County Commission (Summers County)
Amount: $1,663,158
Title: Broomstraw Road/Mark Meador Road Waterline Extension Project
Purpose: The project will extend water service to approximately 53 new customers in west-central Summers County who rely upon wells that provide poor quality and insufficient quantity of water. In addition, the project will allow for fire protection service in the Robins Roost area of the county.
Taylor County Commission (Taylor County)
Amount: $965,000
Title: Pruntytown Sewer Extension Project
Purpose: This project is a sewer extension that will service approximately 25 customers. Pruntytown currently has no sanitary sewer collection system or wastewater treatment facility.
Wirt County Commission (Wirt County)
Amount: $1,500,000
Title: Spring Valley Sewer Collection System
Purpose: The project will replace the existing sewer collection system in the Spring Valley area of Wirt County to address inflow and infiltration issues that will serve 105 customers.
BROADBAND ENHANCEMENT PROJECTS
Greenbrier County Commission (Greenbrier County)
Amount: $668,227
Title: Quinwood Area Broadband Development Project
Purpose: This project will enable the Greenbrier County Commission to complete a fiber infrastructure project in Quinwood and the surrounding area. Work will include the installation of an estimated 84,500 linear feet of fiber and fixed wireless service. Local connections plan to be made to AML funded towers.
Taylor County Commission (Taylor County)
Amount: $131,382
Title: Broadband Expansion Project
Purpose: This project is located in the southwestern corner of Taylor County and will provide approximately 15.3 miles of aerial fiber to serve residential and business customers. The recently completed County Strategic Broadband Plan identified the project areas that are unserved and underserved. This project is serving 770 residents.
DEMOLITION PROJECTS
City of Bluefield (Mercer County)
Amount: $250,000
Title: City of Bluefield Spot Demolition Project
Purpose: This phase of the downtown redevelopment process includes demolishing two structures known as the Communication Workers of America Building and the Bland Ferri Building. This project directly ties to a Federal Brownfields Grant and further strengthens the downtown redevelopment strategy of Bluefield.
City of Cameron (Marshall County)
Amount: $100,000
Title: City of Cameron Demolition Project
Purpose: This project will demolish five vacant, dilapidated structures throughout the city that pose health and safety threats to surrounding citizens.
Town of Gassaway (Braxton County)
Amount: $225,000
Title: Town of Gassaway Demolition Project
Purpose: This project proposes to demolish the former Williams Drug Store Building situated on the main thoroughfare through Gassaway. Due to the poor condition of the structure, rehabilitation of the structure is not feasible.
Town of Grantsville (Calhoun County)
Amount: $200,000
Title: Rainbow Hotel Demolition
Purpose: This project will demolish and remove the former Rainbow Hotel building, a dilapidated three-story building sitting on 1,227 acres which the Office of the State Fire Marshal has found to be in need of removal due to fire threat and threat of collapse into public roads.
Hampshire County Commission (Hampshire County)
Amount: $374,000
Title: Former Hampshire Memorial Hospital Demolition and Brownfield Abatement Project
Purpose: This project will consist of demolition and brownfield abatement of the former Hampshire Memorial Hospital. The structure is no longer feasible for rehabilitation due to the structure’s current state of deterioration and environmental contamination.
Town of Hillsboro (Pocahontas County)
Amount: $150,000
Title: Town of Hillsboro Bank Demolition Project
Purpose: This project will consist of the demolition of the former Bank of Hillsboro building located in the Town of Hillsboro.
City of Moundsville (Marshall County)
Amount: $112,200
Title: City of Moundsville Demolition Project
Purpose: This project will demolish eight abandoned structures which will greatly benefit the surrounding neighborhood and the entire community. Demolition of these structures will increase safety for the neighborhood lowering crime rates, increase property values for neighborhood homes, and provide a higher acreage of developable land.
Town of West Liberty (Ohio County)
Amount: $69,850
Title: Town of West Liberty Demolition Project
Purpose: This project will demolish four vacant, dilapidated structures in the Town of West Liberty to address safety concern and create new real-estate that can be put back on the market for beneficial use.
PARK IMPROVEMENT PROJECT
Calhoun County Commission (Calhoun County)
Amount: $150,000
Title: Calhoun County Park Improvements Project
Purpose: This project will complete Phase I of the Calhoun County Park Master Plan which includes the installation of an ADA-accessible bathhouse/restroom situated between the existing and proposed new campground areas.
