Major Residential Development Project Proposed For Putnam County

A Virginia company has unveiled a proposal for an 844-unit residential community in Scott Depot in Putnam County, W.Va. The 109.7-acre proposal by Cathcart Properties Inc. calls for upscale apartments, townhouses, condominiums, single-family lots, clubhouse with pool, fitness center, theater and other amenities unlike anything in the county. The company is seeking approval to develop the property over 12 to 18 years as a "planned development district." Such a district is described in the county zoning ordinance to encourage creative design with a variety of housing choices, convenient services and amenities and open space.

The plan includes construction of 518 luxury apartments, from 675 to 1,300 square feet each, erected in three phases over a 10-year period, and 102 condominiums similar to the apartments but with upgraded materials to be built over an eight-year period starting in 2009. The 184 townhouses in six- to 10-unit buildings also to be built over an eight-year period will range in size from 1,600 to 1,800 square feet with basements or garages. The company plans to sell 40 to 45 single-family lots to local homebuilders.

About 54 percent of the development will be open space with trails, sport courts, picnic areas and land designated for a second clubhouse.

New Upscale Development In Greenbrier County

Charlotte, N.C.-based Develop Vision Inc. has announced plans for a new, upscale residential community in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. The luxury gated community will have more than 200 housing sites on a 720-acre tract bordering the Oakhurst Golf Links. The plans feature a Jack Nicklaus-designed, 18-hole golf course, a downhill ski slope, an equestrian center, pool, ice rink and several gathering centers. Project coordinators hope to have the golf course and other amenities complete within a year of the development opening.

Greenbrier Resort To Undergo $50 Million Renovation

The famed Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., will undergo a $50 million renovation project. The project will involve major renovations to the resort's dining facilities and certain guest rooms. Included on the list of projects are the Main Dining Room, the Tavern Room, the Old White Lounge, the Main Kitchen and guest rooms in the center section of the main building. The Main Dining Room will become two separate restaurants, with new décor and menus, Swann said. The Old White Lounge will be turned into a signature five-star restaurant and the Tavern Room will close, making way for a nighttime entertainment venue. The main hotel guest room renovations include new marble bathrooms with steeping tubs, separate walk-in showers and marble and granite vanities. The work is scheduled to be completed in the Spring of 2007.

Federal Grant Will Make Nicholas County Business Park A Reality

The Nicholas County Building Commission has been awarded $1.8 million from the U.S. Economic Development Administration for the development of Glade Creek Business Park, which will create 400 jobs and generate more than $20 million in private investment. The grant will allow for necessary property acquisitions and the construction of water, sewer and access road infrastructure at the 182-acre Glade Creek Business Park.

Glade Business Park will be located approximately two miles north of Summersville, W.Va., and US Route 19 (Appalachian Corridor L) and is immediately accessible from WV Route 41. Corridor L is considered one of the three primary Corridor's within the mission of the Connection Technology Corridors Program, which Rahall helped establish.

AEP Completes Construction Of Major Electric Transmission Line

American Electric Power Co. has completed construction of a major interstate electric transmission line that will increase the electricity available to customers in West Virginia and Virginia. The 765-kilovolt transmission line runs 90 miles through the mountains of Appalachia, cost $306 million and took 16 years to complete. The line will go live by the end of June. The new line will close what the U.S. Department of Energy has called the weakest link in the nation’s energy transmission grid. The Wyoming-Jackson Ferry project reinforces a system that delivers electricity to southern West Virginia, Virginia and eastern Kentucky.

Trucking Firm To Open Facility In Preston County

GNH Trucking Inc. of Farmington, Pa., will invest $2 million in a 12,000-square-foot service center on several acres of the Northpointe Business and Industry Park in Hazelton, according to a press release from Gov. Joe Manchin’s office. The investment will create 75 new jobs. The facility will serve the company’s trucking business with Gabriel Brothers, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Kingsford Charcoal, Clorox Co., the wood-pellets maker Lignetics Inc., and Chemtura Corp., a chemicals manufacturer, throughout the tri-state area. It will also sell repair services to the industry park’s other tenants. The company has been in business nearly 30 years and transports goods in 48 states.