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| NEWS RELEASES |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JAN. 11, 2001
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Contact: Development Office
(304) 558-4010 |
GOVERNOR APPROVES WEST VIRGINIA'S
APPALACHIAN REGIONAL COMMISSION INVESTMENT PACKAGE
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Gov. Cecil H. Underwood today announced his recommendation of 22 projects using more than $7.7 million in grants from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) Investment Program for fiscal year 2001.
"These projects will provide basic infrastructure to the residents of West Virginia and
provide entrepreneurial, leadership, telecommunications and educational programs to
residents around the state," Gov. Underwood said.
Total project funds requested exceed the $6.6 million allocated to the state. Because of
the recommendation of additional projects, West Virginia will be eligible to receive any
additional funds that may become available during fiscal 2001.
The West Virginia Development Office administers the state's ARC program, which is a
partnership of federal, state and local participants providing financial and technical
assistance for economic development and infrastructure projects.
Projects recommended for ARC funding include:
AREA DEVELOPMENT:
STATEWIDE
State of West Virginia $250,000
Assist the West Virginia Development Office with the competitive improvement program,
which provides support to businesses facing competitiveness issues. It includes
businesses that need to make dramatic improvements to basic operations; increase their
abilities to compete in regional and national economies; develop an advanced model of
competitive improvements to share among other businesses; and increase the basic skills of entry level employees.
State of West Virginia $350,000
Continue the Consolidated Technical Assistance program. The West Virginia Development Office will employ staff to provide technical assistance to ARC applicants and grantees, monitor and administer ongoing projects, update the West Virginia Development Plan and maintain a project information system.
STATEWIDE
State of West Virginia $200,000
Assist with development of "West Virginia Works," an educational outreach program
initiated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History. The program will provide
opportunities for students to enhance basic skills outside the traditional classroom
environment. The West Virginia State Museum will use interactive, state-of-the-art
technology and large working models to engage students and other visitors in the learning
process. The project builds on the Department of Education's instructional goals and
objectives through pre- and post-museum visit exercises, tests and research projects,
which are accessible by teachers and students via the Internet.
CABELL COUNTY
Unlimited Future Inc. - Community Kitchen Initiative $750,000
Construct a 16,000-square-foot automated commercial kitchen for community use. This
project will enable low-income entrepreneurs to become viably self-employed or obtain
higher paying jobs in the specialty foods sector.
HAMPSHIRE COUNTY
Capon Bridge Industrial Park $663,100
Create new job opportunities through the construction of a 90-acre technology
industrial park. The project involves development of a water source and construction of a
sewage treatment plant and sewer/water lines.
KANAWHA COUNTY
Business and Industrial Development Corporation (BIDCO) $136,850
Create an additional 7,000 square feet of work space in the Charleston Enterprise Center, BIDCO's small business incubator. Major project activities will include finishing the fourth floor to include a multi-purpose training area and a modern HVAC system and
installation of high-speed telecommunications lines to upgrade infrastructure and provide
affordable Internet access to tenants.
Cabin Creek Health Clinic $100,000
Assist with the expansion of services by creating a health care clinic at Riverside High
School. The school-based clinic will serve both the school and the general public.
MULTI-COUNTY
WV Governor’s Cabinet on Children and Families $500,000
Assist the WV Governor’s Cabinet on Children and Families in implementing the West Virginia Educare Initiative by expanding pilot Educare programs to three more communities. Educare provides quality standards and financial resources to coordinate existing programs and funding streams to better serve children and families in the community. The program strives to maximize the development of all children, infancy through preschool, and link families to services they need. Part of the initiative includes a Professional Development System for Early Care and Education.
DISTRESSED COUNTY:
MULTI-COUNTY
Marshall University Research Corporation $275,577
Assist with the Year II - Integrating Chronic Disease Management program in West Virginia Rural Health Care centers, an expansion of a system of chronic disease management developed by Ebenezer Medial Outreach Inc. for five distressed counties. Medical management will be addressed by expanding an existing Center for Rural Health diabetes project. The chronic diseases targeted include diabetes, hypertension, obesity
and hyperlipidemia. To address the issue of disparities among minority populations, the
Fayette and Raleigh branch chapters of the NAACP will be added to the project.
Tug Valley Chamber of Commerce $60,000
Assist the Corridor G Tourism Enhancement Project in providing continued support for
new and existing tourism business development projects and other ongoing tourism-related marketing and support efforts. Marketing efforts will be concentrated on development of a Web site, advertisements, trade shows, training, public information materials, tourism packages and scenic byways designation programs.
Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Planning and Development Council $500,000
Assist the council in its efforts to recapitalize its four-county revolving loan fund to improve access to capital for entrepreneurs willing to seek opportunities in a
distressed area. In the first two years of operation, eight loans have been made from the fund, leveraging an additional $230,000 from private sources.
FAYETTE COUNTY
New Haven Public Service District $1,008,457
Provide 102 households with safe and reliable sources of potable water. The project
proposes to extend water service to the residential customers in the Edmond area.
Upper Kanawha Valley Economic Development Corporation $1,000,000
Assist with the Montgomery Technology Community Project Phase I, which consists of the
demolition of the G.C. Murphy Building, the construction of a 35,000-square-foot,
three-story, technology-ready office building with turn-of-the-century façade,
and the acquisition of three smaller buildings for future development. A strategic
plan set forth the concept of a technology community with three vital components: the housing of high-tech jobs and related industry; the creation of high-technology training and development center for industries related to the expertise of WVU Tech; and the servicing of government and private research and development contracts in the same selected areas of expertise.
McDOWELL COUNTY
Office of Community and Rural Health Services $96,032
Assist the Office of Rural Health Policy, a division within the Office of Community and
Rural Health Services, and coordinate efforts for the McDowell County Health Advisory
Council staff and physician leadership/coordination project. The goal is to support the
communities of McDowell County to advance collaboration and primary care system development that will integrate and enhance services.
RANDOLPH COUNTY
Randolph County Development Authority $212,000
West Virginia Wood Technology Center
Establish a distance learning classroom and install video conferencing equipment at the
West Virginia Wood Technology Center in Elkins. The state-of-the-art video conferencing
system would be accessible to local schools, businesses and community colleges. Wood
industry specific classes would be offered via this medium, as well as college classes
and business workshops. Funds would be used to develop and test a prototype database-driven interactive training module using DVD multi-media technology.
SUMMERS COUNTY
Summers County Commission $500,000
Assist the Oakvale Road Public Service District in extending service from the terminus of
the existing line at the Summers County High School to include the remainder of Barksdale and the Brooks area, which abuts the city of Hinton on its north side along Route 20. The provision of safe, potable drinking water will open up economically developable areas to industry and tourism development.
UPSHUR COUNTY
Upshur County Development Authority $757,500
Help the Upshur County Development Authority construct a new distribution facility that will bring 25 additional jobs to the area.
BUILDING ENTREPRENEURIAL ECONOMIES IN APPALACHIA INITIATIVE:
MULTI-COUNTY
Center for Economic Options $100,000
Enable the Center for Economic Options to continue its research and supporting development of microbusiness through direct services and entrepreneurial infrastructure
initiatives. The center will target specific microbusiness geographical labs, sectoral
networks and complementary features such as an expanded entrepreneurial Web site, a
statewide microbusiness directory and a statewide rural microbusiness conference.
MULTI-COUNTY
The Freshwater Institute Investment Fund $250,000
Assist the Conservation Fund in launching the Freshwater Institute's Natural Capital
Investment Fund (NCIF) of West Virginia. The NCIF is a loan and equity investment fund
that will provide financing to high-potential, emerging natural resource-based
businesses and will advance sustainable economic development in the state's economically
distressed counties. The Investment Fund is designed to provide flexible financing and
investment capital to new and expanding locally owned businesses.
Greenbrier Community College Center of Bluefield State College $6,000
Center for Workforce and Business Development
Assist with the "Building Entrepreneurial Success" program that will assess
and plan for implementation of a multi-stage entrepreneurial education and support program for adults based upon the nationally acclaimed NxLevel™ Program, a comprehensive,
hands-on entrepreneurial education program. The NxLevel Program for Entrepreneurs
36-hour course would be offered to 20 adults through Greenbrier Community College
Center. The project also would include a special focus on development of entrepreneurial
education for youth, to be incorporated into the high school education programs within
Greenbrier, Monroe and Pocahontas counties. In addition, a pilot Youth Enterprise
Academy program will be offered with a goal of serving 20 high school students.
Marshall University Research Corporation $27,825
Assist the E-Commerce Consortium to develop an entrepreneurial e-commerce training
program that would provide technical knowledge and assistance in the growth and
development of an e-commerce work environment. Courses would be designed to be held in different modules over a multi-week period. The modules would use a variety of formats such as hands-on computer training and web-based training designed to fit scheduling needs of participants, as well as some classroom teaching.
Ohio-West Virginia YMCA $39,923
Assist the West Virginia High School Entrepreneurship Camp, which will train West
Virginia high school students through experiential learning methods in entrepreneurship,
civic leadership and educational opportunities. The funds will allow 40 students from
distressed counties to attend this six-day camp at YMCA Camp Horseshoe in St. George. Total camp enrollment will be 150 students, with at least 75 from distressed counties.
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