MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – On the east side, Mountaineers and the West Virginia Black Bears play baseball in the spring and summer. On the west side, there is a vision of development that could create an estimated 9,900 jobs by 2025.
In between, along Interstate 79, is a lasting nod to a West Virginian and beloved WVU football coach.
“As fans travel from near and far, the Coach Bill Stewart Exit will pay tribute to his legacy as a proud Mountaineer through and through,” said Governor Earl Ray Tomblin at Thursday’s ribbon cutting ceremony and official opening of exit 153 along I-79.
See photo gallery of the ribbon cutting ceremony on the WAJR facebook page.
The governor, Monongalia County Commission President Eldon Callen and former WVU athletic director Oliver Luck were among those to speak to a crowd of dignitaries just minutes before the interchange opened to traffic.
“I applaud, Senators, you all for naming this interchange after Coach Stewart. It’s entirely appropriate,” Luck said.
Luck recalled working with Callen combining public-private partnership efforts and tax increment financing (TIF) to turn former mine land into something more including the home of an athletic stadium.
“Him being an old coal miner and a union organizer, you know he’s stubborn and won’t take no for an answer. He refused to back down and he had a vision for developing the western part of Monongalia County. And, what we see today is in large part due to that incredible vision. He was unyielding.”
The Monongalia County Ball Park, WVU’s home baseball field, is part of the University Town Centre TIF district that ultimately spread across the interstate to the developing West Ridge Business Park.
In April 2013, Governor Earl Ray Tomblin signed legislation, following its passing in a special session that year, which allowed revenues in the district to be used to finance projects and infrastructure.
Paul Mattox, the Secretary of the WV Department of Transportation and Commissioner of Highways, said tax increment financing is essential for the success of projects with a waning Division of Highways budget.
“This is the way that we can make the investment up front, but on the back end, over a period of time, we get the money reimbursed to us. So, it allows us to build the facilities now and get paid for them over time,” he explained. “It’s a very good model to be used elsewhere in the state of West Virginia.”
The interchange, that includes a roundabout on the west side of the interstate, took a little over a year to construct. The financing method allows the selection of a developer that works with a contractor and engineering company on construction, explained Mattox.
“They design it and construct it in about the same time period as it would normally take us to just design it in house. So, it saves time, it saves money. It truly is a very efficient way to construct large highway projects.”
The bid for the project, $22,382,461.75, was awarded at the beginning of December 3, 2014. Construction began January 20, 2015 leading to the opening date just 20 months later.