Newsletter: Rahall Report - Exciting Things are Happening in Southern West Virginia

Statement

While recently visiting the Heartland Intermodal Gateway that is under construction in Prichard, I noted that our State is making history in Wayne County.

The Prichard intermodal facility, a planned cargo-transfer station along the Norfolk Southern rail line, for which I have been working over many years and announced a $12 million construction grant, will be a first-of-its kind facility in the State, facilitating the efficient transfer of American-made cargo from rail to roadway to river. By linking our State to more than 100 ports in the global marketplace, we will be stimulating private investment in warehousing and distribution centers in the area, giving industries more efficient freight container service, and creating jobs.

That's great news for the future of our region and it is all part of the larger plan I have been advocating for years to advance our State's economy through investments in transportation and other infrastructure.

In the Huntington area, the intermodal parking facility at Pullman Square, for which I secured $27 million in Federal transit investments, was an economic development initiative long sought by local leaders to help spur the revitalization of the downtown area -- and it has been remarkably successful.

In Logan County, we are nearing completion of Route 10, and recently dedicated the Island Creek Flood Protection Project -- two economic development initiatives a long time in the making that I helped to complete by securing Federal funding and support through my position on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

I recently joined Governor Earl Ray Tomblin in announcing a public-private partnership to continue construction of the Coalfields Expressway into Wyoming County -- a model agreement that could help advance other highway projects in our State. Also, I am excited that, at my urging, the State will be adding a portion of the King Coal Highway to the State's six-year plan of proposed highway construction projects.

In Summers County, I recently announced a $10 million Federal grant to build another five miles of the New River Parkway, which will open access to the area's recreational resources, linking the New River Gorge National River to the Bluestone National Scenic River, as well as providing access to Bluestone and Pipestem State Parks.

The New River Gorge area, which I established as a unit of the National Park System, has become as key destination for high adventure tourism. The new Boy Scouts national facility there has rightly been called a game-changer for the investment it is bringing into the region.

Likewise, travelers are coming from all over to visit our Coal Heritage sites and ride our ATV trails -- something I am pleased to have had a big hand in advancing by sponsoring legislation established the National Coal Heritage Area.

All of that means more visitors spending time and money in our area, at hotels, and restaurants, and cultural attractions -- all of which is contributing to expanding opportunities in the Greenbrier Valley.

Investments to attract new businesses, such as modernizing and expanding our water and sanitation infrastructure, are also happening at a quickening pace.

In Wyoming County, I recently participated in the signing of a project agreement between the Army Corps of Engineers and the Eastern Wyoming County Public Service District to ensure quality drinking water for an estimated 170 residential and commercial customers in the communities of Bud and Alpoca.

This economic development initiative was made possible by a $520,000 grant awarded through the Army Corps of Engineers Sec. 340 Southern West Virginia Infrastructure Program, which I created and have steadily worked to fully fund. The Section 340 Program has provided residents across southern West Virginia with modern water and wastewater systems -- in Fayette, Raleigh, Boone, Mercer, and McDowell Counties and beyond.

I could go on and on. But all of this is to say that exciting things are happening to move our State forward and I intend to keep right on using my leadership and experience to help make it happen.

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