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Mineral group may take look at cities, towns through fresh set of eyes
KEYSER, W.Va. - When a visitor drives into your community for the first time, what does he or she see?
That is the question for which the leaders of Mineral County's five municipalities are considering finding an answer.
Mineral County Commissioner Wayne Spiggle and West Virginia University Extension Agent Stacey Hamric told the leaders of Carpendale, Elk Garden, Keyser and Ridgeley recently about the First Impressions program, sponsored by the university as a way of helping people see their communities through a fresh set of eyes.
No representatives of Piedmont were able to attend the April 21 city/county meeting.
"The Extension Service will send community development experts to visit the city and look at it through the eyes of a new person coming in to settle there," Spiggle said.
"The program is meant not to be critical, but as a wake-up call for the leadership."
"It's sort of like having a house inspection," Hamric added. "The program will tell you what's good and what's bad about your city."
The program points out, she said, a number of things that the residents and leadership of the town may be taking for granted.
"Sometimes, when you've lived in a city all your life, you have just kind of zoned things out and don't see them," she said.
Spiggle noted that the information gathered through the program would be a useful economic development tool.
"It has been very helpful on many occasions for communities to develop their plan of action with the idea of making the community more welcoming," he said.
"There are two things a prospective employer usually looks at when he's considering coming into an area: An educated work force and an attractive community to live in."
According to Hamric, the two- to three-month program costs approximately $750, which the leaders of some of the smaller municipalities felt was out of their price range.
Hamric told them, however, she would look into the possibility of a joint effort for communities such as Ridgeley and Carpendale, which are located so close together.
The community leaders also expressed interest in learning more about the Main Street West Virginia program.
Additional information from both the First Impressions and Main Street programs will be made available at the next Mineral County City/County meeting, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. July 21.
Contact Liz Beavers at lizbeavers@yahoo.com.
