Sunday Gazette-Mail
November 09, 2003
By Mandy Rorrer
Billy Coffindaffer became famous around Morgantown a few years
ago for his slide projector.
Coffindaffer, then director of the Vision 2000/2020 plan through
Morgantown's Chamber of Commerce, thought the trail systems and
nearby business districts he'd seen along riverfronts in other
cities could work in Morgantown.
Coffindaffer put together a slide presentation and started
showing it to anybody who would watch - community groups, city
officials, business professionals: The slides included examples
of what he'd seen on trips to Europe and cities like Savannah,
Ga.; Tucson, Ariz.; Salt Lake City; and Baltimore.
"People thought this was a bluesky plan at first. They never
thought it would work in Morgantown," said Coffindaffer, who
is now executive director of the Greater Morgantown Community
Trust.
Morgantown City Manager Dan Boroff said it started to fall into
place when philanthropist Hazel Ruby McQuain donated $200,000 to
the city to purchase some railroad property. Morgantown used that
money to leverage $1 million in grants and bought 50 miles of
abandoned railroad along the Monongahela River.
Eight miles of the rail line were paved and turned into the
Caperton Trail. Caperton connects to the Deckers Creek Trail,
which extends for 18 miles into Reedsville, Boroff said.
Businesses started to move closer to the riverfront trail
beginning in the mid-1990s. Morgantown's riverfront now has about
$150 million in development from city projects, nonprofits and
private businesses, Boroff said.
West Virginia University's decision in 1998 to move its
administration building to the riverfront attracted other large
office buildings, said Terri Cutright, executive director of Main
Street Morgantown.
"They could have put that building anywhere. They considered
what effect it would have on the city," Boroff said.
Local developers recently completed a 17-story Radisson Hotel and
Conference Center. Numerous small businesses and housing have
filled in. The riverfront's success has also filtered over to
rehabilitate historic buildings in Morgantown's wharf district.
Investment on Morgantown's riverfront could soon climb to $200
million, Boroff said. Morgantown was awarded a $13.9 million
grant from the state Economic Development Grant Committee to
build a marina and public theater. The city also plans to build a
parking garage and combined station for the campus rail and bus
systems.
"From a personal standpoint, it's far exceeded my
expectations," Coffindaffer said.
Coffindaffer will bring his slide show and experience in
Morgantown to Charleston on Friday to lead a discussion on
riverfront development in Charleston. The discussion is sponsored
by Charleston Renaissance Corp.
Coffindaffer worked at the Statehouse in the 1970s, and said
Charleston's best bet is to use the riverfront for recreation.
"The Kanawha River has tremendous, potential. As the capital
City, they need to take some pride in their appearance and just
plain beautify.it,"- he said.
Charleston Renaissance has booked a variety of speakers over the
years, but the riverfront discussion has set the record for early
reservations, said Susie Salisbury, executive director.
Charleston officials have never written a serious plan to
increase recreation along the Kanawha and Elk rivers, said
Councilman Charlie Loeb. "From a recreation standpoint, we
have not maximized the two rivers that run through our
city."
The West Side Neighborhood Association and West Virginia Trails
Coalition recently approached City Council with a plan to turn
the old CSX railroad trestle into a rail-trail system. That
project could become part of a larger plan by the West Virginia
Land Trust to connect several trails and parks around the city,
Loeb said.
Renaissance's Central plan encourages the creation of parks and
green spaces. "But it could be housing, it could be private
businesses, it could be green space. It's wide open right
now," Salisbury said.
Plans could also include more uses for Haddad Riverfront Park
similar to the July Fourth celebration, said Rod Blackstone,
mayoral aide. "We're open to every way to make the city more
attractive," Blackstone said. "I think we'll learn what
was done in Morgantown and see what will fit here."
To contact staff writer Mandy Rower, use e-mail or call 348-5163.