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In Southern West Virginia, Small Business Recruitment the Key to Bringing New Life to Abandoned Buildings

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Hinton, West Virginia. Photo by OZinOH/FlickrCC

Our HubCAP program helps communities in West Virginia redevelop abandoned or underused buildings, and to identify, recruit and support sustainable enterprises to occupy those structures.

The Hub is on the third installment of HubCAP, the Communities of Achievement Program that has already partnered with many communities across West Virginia.

Supporting efforts in Hinton, Matewan, Princeton, Richwood, and Whitesville to build vibrant downtown business areas.

Over the next 18 months, HubCAP III will see The Hub and our partners supporting efforts in Hinton, Matewan, Princeton, Richwood, and Whitesville to build vibrant downtown business areas.

HubCAP III meets communities where they are at in their work addressing an abandoned property process, and emphasizes community capacity building.

Each community is provided with a community coach, who works with teams to grow their already-existing networks to increase community engagement in downtown redevelopment. The coach connects the teams with service providers, subject experts, funders, and developers who have experience in downtown building redevelopment. The team works toward their goal of recruiting and securing businesses to set up shop in the rehabilitated space.

The team works toward their goal of recruiting and securing businesses to set up shop in the rehabilitated space.

Many of these communities in HubCAP III have already identified buildings to focus on for this effort through the Northern Brownfield’s Assistance Center’s Downtown Appalachia Program.

The Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation funds this program, which invests in studying economically feasible opportunities, and also provides appraisals, artistic renderings, and site assessments for possible future building uses, in order to promote business. HubCAP III is also funded by a USDA Rural Community Development Initiative (RCDI) Grant.

The communities of HubCAP programs I and II are Mullens, Martinsburg, Chester/Weirton, Belington, Fairmont, Shinnston, Belington, Buckhannon, Ansted, Mullens, Williamson, Clay, Lincoln/Logan, Wayne, McDowell and Doddridge counties.

WFPL: In Butchertown, Colorful Mural a Key Part of Neighborhood Revitalization

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Photo by Butchertown Neighborhood Association

By Ashlie Stevens/WFPL

For Butchertown residents and business owners, a newly-completed Story Avenue mural isn’t just for decoration — it’s a way to get people to stop and take notice of a neighborhood that’s been steadily transitioning for the past several years.

“Butchertown, we feel, is really turning a corner,” says Nick Johnson, president of the Butchertown Neighborhood Association. “In the past it’s been a bit of a forgotten, maybe neglected, neighborhood — a little abused and unloved. But with new development, more people want to live here and be part of it.”

This development is alluded to in the 5,000 square-foot mural, which was commissioned by JBS Louisville Pork Plant and created by artists Tara Remington and Aron Conaway. From design to completion, the project took about two years.

The mural is called “The Story on Story Avenue” and features eclectic images gleaned from historical and present-day photos of Butchertown activities, people and landmarks…

Read the full story at wfpl.org

Next City: What Attracts Aging Baby Boomers Also Attracts Millennials, Too

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A recent book reading at Taylor Books in downtown Charleston. Photo by Taylor Books.

By Jenn Stanley/Next City

When cities make an effort to accommodate “aging in place,” they typically end up with designs that benefit younger residents too.

Last summer, Next City contributor Jessica Kourkounis asked Philadelphia seniors, “How can your city change to accommodate older residents?” Unsurprisingly, their answers reflected concerns of urbanites of all ages, covering everything from affordable housing to improved social services.

“Aging baby boomers want many of the same things as millennials. They want to be mobile and social, with easy access to bus stops, grocery stores, parks, pharmacies and hospitals.”

After all, as writer Ted McClelland reported in “The All-Ages City,” “aging baby boomers want many of the same things as millennials. They want to be mobile and social, with easy access to bus stops, grocery stores, parks, pharmacies and hospitals,” noting, “that means cities and suburbs must adapt.”

Cities do need to prepare for an older citizenry. A new report called “Ageing in Cities,” from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), a membership group of 30-plus countries that focuses on the global economy, notes:

In OECD countries, the population share of those over 65 years old reached 17.8 percent in 2010, up from 7.7 percent in 1950, and is expected to climb to 25.1 percent in 2050. Cities are home to 43.2 percent of this older population.

Examining nine OECD cities specifically, from Philadelphia to Toyama, Japan, the report defines sustainable development trends and suggests policies — and points out that while there are challenges to adapting, there’s also opportunity…

Read the full story at nextcity.org

What You Need to Know For New Story: Food & Coffee

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Photo by Wayne Stadler/FlickrCC

We’re less than 24 hours away from the kick off to New Story 17, and so we wanted to keep you up-to-date about the key things you’ll need to know to roll up, get stuck in and have good time.

Like coffee.

The coffee places that are usually open in the Evansdale Crossings building are closed for the summer holidays.

But never fear. The good people at Tutto Gelato Cafe over on Chestnut Ridge Rd. have come to the rescue and will be selling 12 & 16 oz cups of hot coffee (no decaf I’m afraid) at the entrance to the Media Innovation Center on Friday and Saturday morning.

They’ll be able to take credit cards, but cash is appreciated to keep things moving.

And food.

At New Story, we don’t take a break for lunch like most conferences. So please go and grab some food whenever you’d like – or bring some with you – and get back to the action.

On Friday, there will be two restaurants open on the ground floor of the Evansdale Crossings building – Tazikis and Two Birds Chicken – from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. And the Juice Bar will be open on the top floor from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

In order to provide you with as many options as possible we’ve brought a couple of local food trucks in for later in the day.

From 4:30 – 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Hash Browns and New Grounds, and My Little Cupcake (also serving pepperoni rolls, cookies and some gluten free options) will be parked outside New Story

On Saturday, there won’t be any restaurants open in the center. With sessions starting at 9 a.m., you’re advised to grab some breakfast before you come.

For lunch, we’ll have another couple of great local food trucks. Heavenly Hoagies and Pyles of Pasta will be parked outside New Story from 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

In the area.

From the Media Innovation Center at Evansdale Crossings, you are a short walk from a number of options to get food. If you need to, please take a moment to look at a map of the area and make your tucker strategy.

See you tomorrow! Here’s the schedule – be there and ready to roll at 9:30!

(And keep an eye on our facebook and twitter feeds for more last minute updates.)

The Right Idea, the Right Person, and the One Event That Could Really Change Your Future.

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Photo: Hannah_K/FlickrCC

This guy forgot to register for New Story last year. Don’t be this guy.

With sessions planned this Friday and Saturday around tech and media innovation, film and photography, creative place-making, rabble-rousing, upsetting the apple cart and generally having a good time, New Story has been specially designed to bring together hundreds of the region’s most creative, hardworking and dynamic people to Morgantown to share ideas, network, celebrate and hatch new plans.

It’s free and it’s a blast. Here’s where you can learn more about what’s going on: newstory17.splashthat.com

We’ve had more than 300 people register, and so we’re going to have to shut the doors soon.

Registration will close at midnight tonight. Register now. Get involved.

(The other option is sad and lonely. Just ask our mate up there.)

Gazette-Mail: Coal River Becoming Stronger Recreation Tourism Draw

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Photo by Coal River Group

By Rick Steelhammer/Charleston Gazette-Mail

While barely three dozen paddlers turned out for the first Tour De Coal community float event in 2005, more than 1,000 people made the 11-mile drift from the base of Upper Falls of the Coal River at Meadowood Park near Tornado to the Gateway Shopping Center in St. Albans last year, with a like amount expected during this year’s Tour, set to begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

“Back in the beginning, we only had about 40 people join us for the Tour De Coal,” said Kris Radford, president of the Coal River Group, the event’s founder, organizer and principal beneficiary. “The event was experimental at that time. We didn’t know if anyone would even come out.”

The experiment turned out to be a success, gradually becoming the state’s biggest non-whitewater paddling event.

“It’s not a race, but rather a community’s celebration of its most important natural resource — its rivers,” said Bill Currey, co-founder of the Coal River Group…

Read the full story at www.wvgazettemail.com

The Clock is Ticking, West Virginia. Are You Registered and Ready?

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If you are one of the more than 300 people that have already registered for New Story this Friday and Saturday, kudos to you. Put your feet up.

(Of course, if you’re not one of the more than 300 people already registered for New Story, you better get on that.)

Here’s some last minute info about parking, food and directions etc, to make sure you’re good to go.

WHERE TO GO

WVU’s Reed College of Media Innovation Center is on the 4th Floor of the Evansdale Crossings building, next to the Rec’ Center off Patteson Drive. Here’s the link to google maps directions to the building.

PARKING

There’s a few options.

Parking at the Coliseum (basketball stadium) at 3450 Monongahela Blvd is free. It is about a 400 meter walk from the Coliseum parking lot to the Evansdale Crossings building.

Parking in the 2 Short Term (ST) lots closest to the Evansdale Crossings building (ST 4 and ST 9) is $1.25/hour.

Parking in ST 1, about 100 yards closer to Patteson Drive, is 50c/hour.

Here’s WVU’s map of parking options.

And here’s information about accessibility parking at WVU.

FOOD

You’re responsible for keeping yourself sufficiently fed and happy in the belly during New Story.

The restaurants on the ground floor of Evansdale Crossings will be open from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Friday, and will be closed on Saturday.

So we’re bringing in some local mobile food businesses to give you some options before and during the Happy Hour.

On Friday from 4:30 – 7:30, Cody Thrasher’s Hash Browns & New Grounds and Clarksburg’s own My Little Cupcake (also serving pepperoni rolls, cookies and some gluten-free options) will be parked outside the center.

We are working on bringing in other food trucks for Saturday lunch. Stay tuned to our facebook and twitter feeds between now and Friday for updates.

From Evansdale Crossings you are a short walk (or very short drive) from a number of food options including Black Bear Burritos (yay!), Beanery American Grill and the standard chain options (booo!).

Repeating the key point: we won’t be feeding you at New Story, but we will provide some options to buy food on site. Please plan your tucker accordingly.

UPDATES

We’ll be emailing everyone who has registered tomorrow morning with this info.

But we’ll also be using The Hub’s facebook and twitter feeds to share New Story info in the next few days. So make sure you like and follow us (links in previous sentence) so you don’t miss any important updates.

If you haven’t registered yet, time is running out. We’ll have to close the (virtual) doors on Wednesday night.

New Story is free.

For more information about the sessions, and to register now, visit: newstory17.splashthat.com/

In Southern West Virginia, Abandoned Rail Lines Emerge As New Tourism Opportunity

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Photo: www.facebook.com/railstotrails/

Hey southern West Virginia! Does your community have abandoned rail lines?

Well, now might be the time to look at convert those unused rails into valuable recreation and tourism assets.

And, if you are already pursuing a rail-trail plan, now is also the perfect time to connect with other people in southern West Virginia to share ideas and information, and explore the possibility of a connected rail-trail network.

Rail-trails are an available and affordable way to diversify the local economy, build communities and improve health.

A new working group is looking to see if there is interest in forming a southern West Virginia rail-trail organization, and they have a survey that you need to take. Here’s the survey link: https://goo.gl/forms/Ta4gvrVzRcbC3uTv1

They are looking for partners across the more than 13 counties of southern West Virginia that are interested in building a vibrant network of folks who care about trails, are building trails, and will advocate for trails.

Rail-trails are an available and affordable way to diversify the local economy,  build communities and improve health.

The decline of coal will result in the discontinued use of numerous railroad corridors in southern West Virginia, providing a great opportunity to preserve our railroading and coal mining heritage.

The Industrial Heartland Trail Coalition, which extends into northern West Virginia, illustrates how building extensive networks can enhance trail acquisition, development, and promotion. Working collaboratively, rather than competitively, across southern West Virginia will be more productive and will encourage shared resources and collective marketing.

Please take this simple first step by filling out the short survey: https://goo.gl/forms/Ta4gvrVzRcbC3uTv1

In Eastern Kentucky, a Whole New Take On Being Young in Appalachia

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Photos by Mountain Tech Media

In West Virginia we’ve been hearing for awhile now about how many young people are leaving the state and how hard it is for them to stay.

Turns out, there’s a totally different way to think about being a young person in Appalachia.

That’s what the It’s Good To Be Young in The Mountains conference in Harlan County, Kentucky is all about. Originated by the community arts group, Higher Ground, they get together once a year to celebrate what it means to be a young person in Appalachia while providing workshops on essential life skills and hobbies.

Alexia Ault, a VISTA serving with Berea College and a coordinator of the 2017 Conference, said the need for this conference became evident after Higher Grounds original play, “Find a Way.”

“What we don’t want to happen is to have a bunch of established leaders to come in and take over. We want these young people to have their voice heard.”

The play featured a family of characters that represented different concepts, including a character that represents the coal industry. This character dies halfway through the play, leaving the family to deal with his loss.

Ault said the play was written through real conversations with students in the Harlan area. She said it made evident that there was a need to teach basic life skills, such as finances and sex education, as well as the ability to find jobs and realize what options existed in the mountains for young people.

The first IGTBYITM featured loads of panels, not just concerning basic life skills. They also taught fun things, such as t-shirt screen printing. Ault said they used social media to ask what people wanted to teach and let anyone that wanted to create a panel.

“People would say, ‘I know how to do pottery, can I lead a pottery workshop?’  I don’t think we turned anyone away,” Ault said.

The the name of IGTBYITM implies that it is primarily for young people, Ault said there is no strict age requirements.

“Our demographic is very fluid, there’s no set rule.  We ask participants to interpret young however they feel comfortable,” Ault said.

However, she also said it is important that the conversations happen with local young people.  Without letting young people express their concerns, IGTBYITM loses its purpose.

“What we don’t want to happen is to have a bunch of established leaders to come in and take over. We want these young people to have their voice heard,” Ault said.

The 2017 conference was buzzing with positivity and it helped remind me that it really is good to be young in the mountains. It reminded me how beautiful Appalachia is and just how much young people are capable of.