Second Entertainment Park Planned In West Virginia

The Water Works LLC and American Resort Management LLC has announced it will develop an $87 million indoor water park and family resort on a 25-acre site along the Monongahela River near I-79 in Marion County. The destination tourism project that is expected to infuse millions of dollars into the local economy and create as many as 475 new jobs.

Developed by The Water Works LLC and designed by Omni & Associates, the Volcano Island Resort is a unique all-inclusive resort. The resort will feature: the 50,000-square-foot Volcano Island Indoor Water Park; a 30,000-square-foot conference center; a five-acre outdoor water park; marina and recreational lake with paddle boats; RV park; multiple restaurants; a full-service day spa and 300 attractively appointed suites overlooking the Monongahela River. The project is the largest private development project in Marion County history, and one of the largest in state history.

More than 300 temporary construction jobs will be created as a result of the project, with as many as 350 permanent positions and as many as 125 seasonal positions created with the opening of the resort in mid-2008.

InfoCision Expansion To Add 120 New Jobs

A Huntington call center will be expanding and adding 120 new jobs. InfoCision has announced that it will spend $1.2 million to add 9,800 square feet of space onto the company's existing 13,000-square-foot building. Based in Akron, Ohio, InfoCision calls on behalf of national charities, asking people to become volunteers. The company also assists nonprofit organizations and political organizations with fundraising. The Huntington call center employs about 300. Construction on the expansion will begin in April 2007.

Columbia Gas Transmission Expanding Again

Columbia Gas Transmission Corp. is planning another major expansion of its natural gas transportation and storage infrastructure in West Virginia. The Charleston-based unit of Nisource Co. has filed papers with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to drill and enlarge storage wells in Ohio and West Virginia and to lay more than 15 miles of transmission lines in West Virginia and Virginia. The expansion project will allow Columbia to transport an extra 97,000 dekatherms of gas per day, or 3.2 percent more natural gas than it now transports.

Industrial Park New Home To Steel Distributor

Harbor Steel is the latest – and final – business to establish operations in the Prichard Industrial Park in Wayne County, W.Va. The Michigan-based company fabricates and distributes steel products to various industries. The company will occupy a 40,000-square-foot shell building and employ up to 50 people. The Wayne County facility is the company’s sixth, and the first in West Virginia. The company will use the shell building as a stocking facility from which it will distribute products to some of its 3,000-plus customers across the country.

The addition of Harbor Steel brings the industrial park to capacity. Other tenants in the park include Aplicare, Inc., Okuno International, Allevard Springs USA Inc., Persinger Supply Co., Riverside Uniform Rental and Wayne Welding.

Hydro Plants Purchased By Canadian Company

Two hydroelectric power generation facilities in West Virginia have been purchased by Brookfield Power. Brookfield now owns the Hawks Nest and Glen Ferris generating stations that Alloy Power and West Virginia Alloy had owned. Hawks News is located on the New River and Glen Ferris is located on the Kanawha River. Information from the Governor's Office indicates that both stations produce an average of 526 gigawatt hours. The Manchin Administration says the purchase will help preserve 200 jobs. Brookfield Power, which is based in Canada, will operate the plants and sell the power to West Virginia Alloy as part of a 15-year contract.

New Federal Anti-Terrorism Training Center Coming To Harpers Ferry

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility in the eastern panhandle region will be receiving $47 million in added federal funding for a new anti-terrorism training center. The funds will be used to pay for firing ranges and other expansions at the Harpers Ferry center. The 104-acre center, which opened in August 2005, includes a simulated border crossing, a mock airport setting, a warehouse setting and a four-acre lake where up to 12,000 agents undergo anti-terrorism training each year.

Mountain State Blue Cross To Build New Headquarters

Mountain State Blue Cross Blue Shield has announced plans to build a new downtown headquarters in Parkersburg. The new building will involve an investment of as much as $27 million. The planned five-story, 125,000-to-150,000 square-foot building will be constructed on the United Bank parking lot at Seventh and Market streets, across from the company's current facility. The new headquarters will accommodate Mountain State’s growing roster of workers, said Gregory K. Smith, president and CEO of the company. When Mountain State arrived in Parkersburg in 1991, it employed 91 people. Today more than 550 people work there and the company expects to hire 170 more in the next 12-15 months.

U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Center Will Be Built In Martinsburg

Martinsburg will soon be home to the new U.S. Coast Guard National Maritime Center. The U.S. General Services Administration has awarded a more than $30 million contract to construct the new facility. The facility will centralize licensing and documentation program functions at 17 regional examination centers throughout the country and at a National Maritime Center in Arlington, Va. The center will bring 250 additional jobs to the area.