Star City Council Meeting August 18th
Morgantown Dominion Post
19 August 2015
By Conor Griffith
Kayakers in Monongalia County may one day have another spot to get
in and out of the water.
Ella Belling, the executive director of the nonprofit Mon River
Trails Conservancy, spoke before the Star City Council during its
Tuesday night meeting asking it to consider supporting the
building of a boat launch at the Van Voorhis Trailhead.
“This was the former Quality Glass site and it was run down and
there were some shacks in the area. It’s now a nice green space
that’s a popular trailhead,” Belling explained, adding that the
area also has a parking lot, restroom and connecting path.
She said the group would like to install a small launch for
non-motorized boats such as canoes, kayaks and row boats. A
gangway would connect the launch to the extended walkway to avoid
the deep muck on the river bank.
The planned launch would also be portable, so it can be taken out
of the water during winter. Belling said the total cost of the
project would be about $32,000. The Mon River Trails Conservancy
has already raised about $10,000 by working with the Hazel Ruby
McQuain Charitable Trust, Upper Monongahela River Association and
others.
Belling asked for council to support the project since the
property is owned by Star City and the town would also be
responsible for maintaining the launch.
Mayor Herman Reid said the town would have to take a look at its
insurance policies and any inherited responsibilities associated
with the launch before a decision is made.
“We’re definitely interested, it’s a great thing for Star City,”
he said, adding that putting a launch in at the end of Van Voorhis
Road would allow boaters easy access to docks in Star City and
Morgantown.
In other business, the council voted to approve the lease-purchase
of a new all-wheel drive Ford SUV for the Star City Police at a
state bid for $28,618. This is to replace one of the department’s
SUV that’s 8 years old.
Star City Treasurer Amy Cobalsky said the lease agreement would be
for three years and the town would assume ownership of the Ford at
the end of that term because state bids are not permitted to
indebt future councils for small municipalities.