MORGANTOWN, W.Va. Incumbent Morgantown Seventh Ward councilor Brian Butcher is seeking a second term in the 2023 Morgantown municipal election.
On WAJR’s “Talk of the Town,” Butcher said he hasn’t always agreed with all ideas, but it has been important to him to seek consensus with stakeholders to meet the expectations of his constituents.
“I think I’ve been a good cooperative representative on council,” Butcher said. “I’ve enjoyed it, I’ve enjoyed the people I’ve worked with, and I’d like to do it again.”
Butcher said the problems downtown related to drugs and crime are foundational problems with people that will require time to address. In addition to supporting council initiatives to fund efforts to help the homeless, he has done much of that work on his own time.
“We understand, and I have had those conversations with business owners; I understand their frustrations,” Butcher said. “But, we all need to work together to make sure those problems can be addressed.”
Through his hands-on work, he has found that communication is a major disconnect with people receiving services. When the Monongalia County Warming Shelter closed this year, 23 people thought they had valid housing vouchers and were prepared to move into apartments. However, many of those had expired, and others could not be delivered by mail. In the end, only one person of the group of 23 had a valid voucher; the others had to restart the process.
“The best place to start is coordinated and consistent street outreach,” Butcher said. “You’re constantly having points of contact with people so they understand where they are in the process.”
Butcher said one way to encourage affordable housing is to transfer city-owned land to developers for projects. Providing land for the project could allow developers to lower the cost of rentals and ownership while updating housing stock in the city.
“The idea then is to support them in several projects that they can do by making sure they have the land,” Butcher said. “They have a higher bank, and they can go out and subsidize housing in a better way, and thats how you can get affordable home ownership.”
Improved communications internally and externally are a priority. Butcher said in many instances, there is not enough time allotted by the city administration to review important, complex issues and have time for questions. The result is that decisions are made based on what information is available, which may not be the most complete set of facts available.
“I’ve had it since Thursday, and then I get to vote on it on Tuesday, and some of these things are long, complex issues,” Butcher said. “I think that’s being worked on, but there are miles to go.”