I was on City Council when Clarksburg purchased its comprehensive plan for $67,000. I remember the community meetings. I remember residents taking time out of their evenings to attend, speak, and offer ideas. I also remember the public surveys that were conducted downtown, with people working First Fridays, the Italian Heritage Festival, and other community events, walking up to residents and business owners to collect input. The city asked for that participation in multiple ways, and people showed up.
That is why it was off putting to watch the current council laugh and dismiss the comprehensive plan at a recent meeting like it was a big joke, with one councilman on the record suggesting we pull “where is that dusty document we paid 67k for. or something close to that, as if it were meaningless and a joke.
A comprehensive plan is not just a dusty document to be joked about. It is a promise. It is the city saying, “We want your input, and we intend to use it.” It costs real money, time, and public trust to create one. When elected officials later joke about it or brush it aside, they are not mocking paperwork. They are mocking the citizens who were told their voices mattered. Next time they ask for your opinion how likely are you to want to give it?
There is also a legal framework behind these plans. Under West Virginia Code Chapter 8A, a comprehensive plan is intended to guide the governing body and planning commission toward coordinated and compatible development, and to promote the health, safety, convenience, prosperity, and general welfare of residents. After adoption, the plan is meant to be followed and reviewed, not ignored.
A Facebook post by an educated involved individual I will not name yesterday stated, “When a comprehensive plan is created, adopted, and then largely forgotten until the state requires it to be updated again, it raises a basic governance question. Who is actually responsible for making sure the city is using it to guide priorities. If that answer is unclear, it is no surprise that long term goals give way to short term reaction.”
A very valid question and conclusion.
I am not suggesting the plan is set in stone. It means it was meant to be part of the ongoing decision making process. It was developed with public input, adopted by the governing body, and intended to inform planning decisions going forward. When a city abandons that framework, whether openly or through neglect, it replaces long term thinking with short term reaction. Sometimes when you are on council it is hard to see the big picture and not be distracted by the problem right in front of you. We have to learn to be proactive instead of only reactive.
That is why I would encourage anyone currently running for office to actually read the city’s comprehensive plan. Not skim it. Not assume someone else will handle it. Read it. If you are asking voters to trust you with the future of the city, you should already know what the city committed itself to just a few years ago. Don’t make empty promises without reviewing how realistic they are in this document.
I would also encourage citizens to read it for themselves. It is a public document, and it belongs to the people who helped shape it and payed for it. I will include a link to the comprehensive plan with this article so anyone who is interested can review what the city promised and decide for themselves how seriously it has been treated. If you want to be a serious voter and judge what the people running for reelection are talking about and what the newcomers are talking about this is where you can get ahead of them if they are too lazy to read it.
Reading the plan does not mean being bound by it forever. It means respecting the work that was already done and the people who contributed to it. If changes are needed, they should be made deliberately and in public, not through quiet abandonment.
With an election approaching, voters should pay attention not just to what candidates promise, but how seriously they take the job they are running for. Governance is not only about new ideas and promises. It is about honoring the process that led us here and taking the time to learn what our goals are for the future.
Clarksburg City Council is considering a one time $4,200 grant to downtown businesses impacted by prolonged construction tied to water, sewer, and gas line work downtown. I support this plan. In fact, I wish the amount could be higher.
Downtown businesses were hurt through no fault of their own, and they deserve relief. Many have already faced months of uncertainty, reduced access, and lost customers, and that uncertainty has not fully ended. Helping them now is the right thing to do.
What troubles me is not the grant itself, but why it is necessary.
This is not economic development in the traditional sense. It is damage control. The city is being asked to use economic development funds to repair harm caused by project failures tied to water, sewer, and gas infrastructure work. Those funds are meant to grow the local economy, not to backfill losses created by poor planning and oversight elsewhere.
I will note that months ago, in public comments and media discussions, I suggested that if this disruption continued, the city might eventually have to consider direct financial relief for affected businesses. I do not know whether that idea influenced this proposal, but I would like to think that public pressure and open discussion played some role in bringing it forward.
Businesses did not suffer because of market forces or a natural downturn. They suffered because streets were torn up for extended periods, timelines slipped, communication was unclear, and the disruption has lasted far longer than anyone was led to believe. Customers have stayed away because they do not know where they can drive, where they can park, or whether their vehicles may be damaged navigating unfinished roads.
What is harder to measure is the psychological damage. I use the word PTSD intentionally, not in a medical sense, but to describe how many customers now experience downtown. In economics and urban planning this is often called habit breakage or learned avoidance. When people spend months dealing with torn up streets, confusing detours, and constant uncertainty, they do not simply reset once the cones are gone. Downtown becomes mentally coded as stressful and unpredictable. Even after the work is finished, that hesitation lingers. Some customers will slowly return. Others will not, because they already found alternatives and rebuilt their routines elsewhere.
There is another uncomfortable reality layered on top of this. Younger drivers already tend to avoid traditional downtowns. They do not like one way streets. They do not like parallel parking. They do not like parking far away and walking, especially when easier options exist nearby. That was true before this project ever began.
Now add the trauma of the last year on top of that.
I was downtown recently and every crossover street between West Pike and Main, right in the heart of downtown, was closed. All the parking on Main Street was closed. It was striking, and not in a good way. The streets were quiet because there was no practical way to get there.
For businesses like the Bluebird and the Looking Glass, that was not an inconvenience. It was another lost day of business.
People often underestimate what one day of sales means to a small business. It is payroll. It is rent. It is inventory. It is the difference between keeping the lights on and falling further behind. Small businesses do not absorb losses easily, and they do not get those days back later.
I also want to raise a concern about how narrowly this program is drawn. I recently saw a Facebook post from Dustin Stanley, the owner of Quick Split Car Detailing, located just across from Kopal Towers. His business sits roughly two hundred yards outside the proposed boundary of this grant program, yet he has suffered the same access issues, the same customer avoidance, and the same disruption as businesses inside the selected zone.
The current proposal says it will end at Subway at the West End of town. What about the pawn shop on the corner I bet they have had their business blocked for at least 20-30 days during this project. Who decided to leave them out? I am sure similar other stories exist at the other boundaries of the proposal. Lines on a map do not always reflect real world impact. I hope someone on council sees posts like his and considers amending the proposal so that businesses clearly harmed by this project are not excluded simply because they fall just outside an arbitrary border.
This leads to a hard question that deserves an honest answer. Will our downtown ever be the same? It was already weak. After this project, it is hard to deny that we have choked a good bit more life out of it.
We are now being told that relief is needed, yet there is still no confidence that the underlying infrastructure work is truly nearing completion. I do not believe this project will be finished in the spring as suggested. Based on past delays and shifting timelines, that expectation feels optimistic at best.
That matters, because if the disruption continues, this grant may not be the end of the damage. Businesses may face another season of uncertainty, and the city may once again be asked to step in after the fact.
A $4,200 grant will not make anyone whole. It will not undo months of lost foot traffic or retrain customers who broke old habits. But it may help businesses stay afloat, and that matters. That is why I support it.
Still, the larger issue remains. When major infrastructure projects are mismanaged, the cost does not disappear. It gets shifted. Downtown businesses paid first. Now the city and its taxpayers are being asked to cover the rest.
Every dollar spent repairing preventable damage is a dollar that cannot be used for true development, revitalization, or long term growth. Clarksburg does not have an endless supply of these funds. Using them this way should be the exception, not the norm.
I am glad the city is stepping up to help. I just wish it did not have to, and I worry that without real accountability, better coordination, and realistic timelines, this will not be the last time economic development funds are used to clean up avoidable harm.
I hope this program is approved by council and we start treating our businesses better.
With the auction of the former North View Elementary School and Washington Irving Middle School now complete, a long and frustrating chapter in Harrison County has come to an end. But an ending is not the same thing as closure, especially when public assets, neighborhood stability, and long-term consequences are involved.
There are two very different outcomes here. One deserves genuine relief. The other warrants real concern.
North View: A Good Outcome, Even If It Was Not the Goal
It should be said plainly. North View ended up in the right hands. Emmanuel Christian School acquiring the building is a positive outcome for the surrounding neighborhood. A former school will remain a place of learning and daily activity, rather than becoming another sealed structure waiting for its next problem.
That result is worth celebrating.
What it does not justify is pretending this outcome was the product of careful planning. The Harrison County Board of Education did not present a clear reuse strategy. It did not articulate preferred outcomes. It did not show urgency or stewardship over how this building might best serve the community once it closed.
North View landed well because a capable buyer stepped forward, not because the process guided it there.
Sometimes things work out despite the system, not because of it.
Washington Irving: Sold, But Still an Open Question
Washington Irving Middle School is a different matter entirely.
The building was sold to an anonymous buyer. That fact alone is not an accusation, but it is not reassuring either. Washington Irving is not a small structure that can be casually repurposed. It is a large, aging institutional building that was designed to be operated by a publicly funded school system with dedicated maintenance resources and a broad tax base.
That distinction matters.
What the Records Show About the Cost of Keeping Washington Irving Open
The operating reality of Washington Irving is not speculative. It is documented in the Board of Education’s own closure and consolidation materials, which detail the recurring costs required simply to keep the building functional.
Based on those figures for utilities and maintenance alone, Washington Irving carried an estimated building operating cost in the range of $130,000 to $170,000 per year, excluding staffing, programming, and any major capital repairs.
Utilities represented the largest share of that burden. Heating, electricity, and basic building services for a large, older structure consistently pushed annual utility costs into the six-figure range. These were recurring expenses driven by the size and design of the building, not by how it was used.
Maintenance added tens of thousands of dollars annually on top of utilities. These were not optional upgrades or cosmetic improvements. They covered mechanical systems, structural upkeep, and routine facility needs required to keep the building safe and operational.
This estimated operating range reflects what it took simply to keep the lights on, the heat running, and the building from deteriorating further. It does not include staffing, renovations, code upgrades, or deferred capital work.
This is the context that should give any observer pause.
Why This Matters to the Community
A private owner does not inherit just a building. They inherit the same utility demands, the same aging systems, and the same ongoing maintenance obligations. Heating alone in a structure of this size can overwhelm an unprepared buyer. Roofs, boilers, electrical systems, fire protection, and code compliance do not become cheaper simply because ownership changes.
If the new owner is capable, well-capitalized, and experienced, Washington Irving could still find a productive second life. That outcome is possible, and it should be hoped for.
But if the buyer underestimated the cost, overestimated resale potential, or lacked a realistic plan, the risk does not stay confined to a balance sheet. Deferred maintenance, partial occupancy, or long-term vacancy affect the surrounding neighborhood just as much as the owner.
Clarksburg has seen this pattern before. Large institutional buildings do not fail quickly. They fail slowly, then all at once.
The Missed Opportunity
What makes this outcome frustrating is not that the buildings were sold. It is that there was no publicly articulated strategy guiding their disposition.
For months, residents were told to wait. Appraisals were cited. Options were “being considered.” Meanwhile, neighborhoods lived next to sealed buildings with no timeline and no clarity.
In the end, the process defaulted to auction. An auction is not a plan. It is an exit.
A Split Verdict
Both of these things can be true at the same time.
North View’s outcome is a win, and the community should be genuinely glad for it.
Washington Irving’s future remains uncertain, and that uncertainty is not academic. The risks are real, documented, and rooted in the building’s history and cost structure.
Public institutions do not owe the public optimism. They owe them diligence, foresight, and accountability.
The buildings are gone now. What happens next will determine whether this chapter closes cleanly, or whether it becomes another long lesson in how expensive inaction can be.
A Clarksburg family says the city ignored repeated warnings about a problem property on North 24th Street in the months before a Thanksgiving weekend fire destroyed the home they had lived in for more than twenty years.
The early morning fire on November 28 damaged one home at the intersection of North 24th Street and Williams Avenue and forced the evacuation of a neighboring house, according to reports from WVNews and WKMZ radio. No injuries were reported, and emergency crews also dealt with live electrical lines down near the scene. WV News+2103.3 FM | WKMZ News+2
Local television outlet WBOY also reported that a Clarksburg home was “heavily damaged” in an overnight fire in that same area and aired video of the damage. Yahoo+2NewsBreak Local+2
According to Camden Cutlip, that house was his parents’ home at 1116 North 24th Street, where they have lived for about 21 years. In a detailed public statement, he says the fire began at a vacant house next door that his parents had been reporting to the city for months.
Family describes vacant house as long-running hazard
The Cutlips say conditions at the neighboring property had been deteriorating. They describe unlicensed vehicles, tall grass and a new roach problem that they believe was tied to the vacant structure next door.
According to Camden, his mother called Clarksburg Code Enforcement on October 14, 17 and 20 and left messages about the property. His father followed with a detailed email on October 21 outlining the issues.
The family says they never received a return call or a visit that addressed their specific concerns.
City media reports on the November 28 fire confirm the basic incident details but do not mention any prior complaints, inspection history or cause of the fire. NewsBreak Local+3WV News+3103.3 FM | WKMZ News+3
Early morning fire on day after Thanksgiving
WVNews reported that a residence near the intersection of North 24th Street and Williams Avenue caught fire around 1:30 a.m. on the day after Thanksgiving. Firefighters from the Clarksburg Fire Department responded, with mutual aid from other agencies, and were photographed securing the scene. WV News+1
WKMZ’s story states that one home was damaged and an adjacent home had to be evacuated, with less significant damage to the second structure. WKMZ also notes that no injuries were reported. 103.3 FM | WKMZ News+2103.3 FM | WKMZ News+2
The short WBOY piece, visible through syndicated listings and video platforms, describes the incident as an overnight fire that left a home heavily damaged but likewise does not discuss prior code issues or a specific cause. Yahoo+2NewsBreak Local+2
Camden says he arrived that night to find the house he grew up in burning while his parents watched from their car as firefighters worked. He credits the Clarksburg Fire Department and Sgt. McGlone of the Clarksburg Police Department with getting his family out and protecting the scene quickly.
FOIA records raise questions about enforcement
After the fire, the family filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the city to find out what had been done about the neighboring vacant house before the fire.
According to Camden’s summary of the records the family has received so far:
City documents show that code violations at the neighboring property were noted as far back as August.
An inspection was opened but not completed as a full, thorough review of the property.
The backyard, where the family says some of the specific hazards were located, was never entered or checked.
There is no record in the materials they received of a fire hazard assessment at the vacant house.
Camden says the city’s FOIA response included some call logs that confirm calls were made, but did not include notes describing the content of those calls or the substance of any follow up. He says the only inspection detail they were given was a brief summary with photos from one visit, and that the code officer in that visit did not enter the portion of the property where his parents had reported problems.
The family argues that under Clarksburg’s property maintenance standards and West Virginia law, the city had a legal obligation to investigate and address unsafe conditions at the vacant house before they turned into a threat to neighboring homes. cityofclarksburgwv.com+2West Virginia Code+2
Municipalities in West Virginia are expressly authorized by state code to adopt and enforce ordinances for unsafe, unsanitary and dangerous structures, including repair, closure or demolition when needed to protect public safety. West Virginia Code+2West Virginia Code+2
City side not yet reflected in public reporting
In the local media coverage reviewed by the News & Observer, there is no public response from Clarksburg officials addressing the family’s specific allegations about inspections, enforcement decisions or call handling prior to the fire. NewsBreak Local+3WV News+3103.3 FM | WKMZ News+3
The family says they are still waiting for the city to provide a complete response to their FOIA request, including any additional records of inspections, notes from calls and internal communications about the vacant house.
City records and any official response will be important to confirm exactly what was done between the first documented violations in August and the fire in late November, and whether the city followed its own policies and timelines for dealing with potentially hazardous properties.
Broader concerns for neighbors of problem properties
Beyond their own loss, the Cutlips say they are speaking out because many other residents live next to properties they believe are unsafe or neglected.
They argue that their experience shows why neighbors should document every call and email about a problem property, keep copies, and push for written responses and clear timelines instead of assuming the system is working in the background.
Their view is that they did what residents are asked to do. They reported the problems. They used the city’s process. They waited. The outcome, in their case, was a burned home and displacement rather than a resolved code case.
About the Facebook post
Much of the detailed timeline in this article comes from a public Facebook post by Camden Cutlip.
In that post, he:
Identifies his parents’ house as 1116 North 24th Street and says they lived there for more than 21 years.
Lists the dates his mother called Code Enforcement and the date his father emailed about conditions at the vacant house next door.
Describes what the family says they learned from their FOIA request about prior violations and incomplete inspections.
Thanks the Clarksburg Fire Department and Sgt. McGlone of the Clarksburg Police Department for their actions on the night of the fire.
Urges other residents not to assume that following the process guarantees action and calls for the city to be held accountable.
City officials have not yet publicly answered those specific allegations in the news reports currently available, and the family says they intend to keep pressing for answers in future council meetings and public forums.
There are some closings a community shrugs off. A restaurant shuts its doors, a new one shows up a few months later. A retail shop leaves, another version of the same thing takes its place. You lose the sign, but you do not really lose the service.
Then there are the closings that feel final.
Hartland Planing Mill announcing its retirement after more than a hundred years is one of those. This is not just another store downtown. This is a skilled, high skill business that has shaped homes, projects, and history in Clarksburg for generations. You do not just put a “for lease” sign on a place like that and expect someone else to stroll in and pick up where they left off.
The Turner family has earned every bit of respect and appreciation they are getting right now. They have given this community more than most businesses ever will. I am not interested in second guessing or speculating on their reasons for closing. That is their business and their right.
What I am interested in is what their closing says about us.
For more than a decade now, we have watched long term, locally owned, highly skilled businesses disappear from Clarksburg. The kind that train people, pay taxes, support churches and ball teams, and quietly keep the place running. And every time it happens, you can feel the same quiet thought pass through people’s minds.
This one is not coming back.
You cannot easily replace a century of expertise and equipment. You cannot snap your fingers and create another shop that knows how to do that work at that scale. Businesses like Hartland are built over generations, not grant cycles.
There is something I need to say directly. I am not going to point out the reasons exactly why we have not helped keep a business like this from closing. I have talked about those reasons until I am blue in the face. You know the reasons. Everyone in this city knows the reasons. You feel them every time you drive through downtown, hit another detour, sit in another mess that has dragged on for years, or watch another empty building sit with no plan in sight.
Hartland did its part. For more than a century.
The real question is whether we are doing ours.
Here is where I want to give some credit and apply some pressure at the same time. Council member Jerry Riffle has been talking about the need for a serious business retention program, something real that focuses on keeping the employers we already have, not just cutting ribbons when something new shows up.
That conversation needs to move from talk to action.
A city that can let cornerstone businesses fade out without a fight, without a plan, is a city that is telling every other long term business, “You are on your own.” A real business retention program would mean regular contact with owners, help navigating permits and utilities, coordination when big projects are going to rip up streets and access, and a clear message that the city understands what these employers mean to our future.
We cannot control when a family decides it is time to retire. We can control whether the environment around them makes it easier to keep going, sell, or transition, instead of just lock the door and walk away.
Hartland’s retirement should be a turning point moment for Clarksburg. Not because they did anything wrong, but because they did everything right for more than a hundred years and we are still losing them. That should bother us.
If we keep treating each of these closures as an isolated event, we will keep getting the same result. More “for sale” signs. More dark windows. More buildings that quietly slide from “temporary vacancy” to “permanent landmark of decline.”
The Turner family deserves our thanks, our congratulations, and a peaceful retirement. The rest of us need to look in the mirror and ask what we are doing to make sure the next generation of long term businesses still believes downtown Clarksburg is a place worth betting their lives on.
That is where a real business retention program comes in. Jerry Riffle is right to bring it up. Council needs to back it up, fund it, and treat it as a priority, not a talking point.
We cannot bring back Hartland. We can decide whether they are the last of their kind, or just the latest warning we finally chose to listen to.
Drive through Clarksburg right now and it feels less like a city and more like an obstacle course. Steel plates clatter under your tires, patches rise four or six inches higher than the pavement beside them, and the humps on Main and Pike will toss your coffee out the cupholder if you’re not careful. Every turn is a reminder that somebody somewhere signed off on this mess and called it progress.
For months we’ve been told to “be patient.” The city blames the DOH. The DOH points at the Water Board and sewer project. The Water Board shrugs at Hope Gas. A Thrasher Engineering employee tries to tell me in the comments to this article they are not even involved, yet the water board website quotes Bobby Tenney as the “senior project manager” 6 days ago, a Thrasher employee obviously just trying to pass blame because he didn’t like my choice of the word “contractor.” Every one of them has a reason, an explanation, a timeline, or a promise. What none of them have is a finished road. The planning has been so poor it borders on neglect. It’s unbearable to drive through our city on a normal day, let alone in the snow that’s about to hit.
According to WBOY, the West Virginia Division of Highways will fully close Route 50 east and westbound overnight between the Joyce Street and Chestnut Street exits from November 14–16, rerouting all traffic through downtown Clarksburg. The official detour? Pike Street and Main Street — the very roads already broken, patched, and scarred from endless utility projects.
So as the DOH shuts down the main highway, we’ll be giving visitors a full guided tour of what’s left of our “historic downtown.” Nothing says “welcome to Clarksburg” like bouncing over a half-dozen steel plates and dodging orange cones in front of boarded-up storefronts. Travelers have never seen anything quite like this before — and that’s not a compliment.
Add to that the latest weather forecast from the National Weather Service. Starting Sunday night, temperatures will plunge into the 20s with the season’s first measurable snow expected across much of the state. While it’s not predicted to be a major storm, even a dusting could turn those uneven streets into a plowman’s nightmare. Many spots can’t even be scraped clean because of loose plates, open cuts, and temporary asphalt lips that will tear a plow blade to pieces.
And just to put it all in perspective, another WBOY report cites a national study ranking West Virginia as the second most dangerous state in the country for driving in rain or snow — 1.92 crashes per 100,000 people. The study says it plain: our “mountainous terrain and twisting backroads make even light rain risky, and when snow or ice hits, the danger multiplies.” It’s not just the mountains anymore. It’s our cities, too.
When that detour starts next weekend, downtown is going to be jammed with diverted highway traffic trying to dodge potholes and half-paved trenches while the temperature drops and the salt trucks roll. If even a couple inches fall, the plows won’t stand a chance of clearing these streets properly. And when the first car slides into one of those deep ruts or steel plates, every agency involved will claim it wasn’t their section of the road, not their responsibility, not their fault.
But it is their fault. All of them. This didn’t happen overnight. It’s the product of bad coordination and worse oversight — projects launched without completion plans, contractors tripping over each other, and city officials too timid to demand accountability from the alphabet soup of agencies tearing the town apart.
And now we learn the final paving of these roads isn’t even planned until the end of summer 2026. That’s right — another full year of this. Not a mistake, not a delay. This was the plan. Amazing. Many people need firing.
Clarksburg finally has a show that says what everyone’s thinking — without the filters, press releases, or political double-speak. Observer Live, the newest project from The Clarksburg News & Observer, is a local talk show built on real conversation, straight talk, and community accountability.
Hosted by Gary Keith II — founder of The Clarksburg News & Observer — the show brings the same no-nonsense energy that made the Observer’s Facebook page a go-to spot for honest discussion about what’s happening in Harrison County. Each episode tackles the stories and questions that shape daily life here: city government, development, ethics, transparency, and the characters who make this area what it is.
The debut episode, “The Intro,” features Gary joined by Shannon Welsh, setting the tone for what’s to come. It’s not polished — and that’s the point. The conversation is raw, funny, and unapologetically local, with both hosts talking openly about why they started the show, what’s gone wrong in Clarksburg’s leadership, and how they plan to keep people informed without falling into the usual political traps.
“There’s too much national noise and not enough local honesty,” Gary says in the episode. “We’re not here to talk about Washington. We’re here to talk about what’s happening right here at home — the things nobody else wants to bring up.”
Future episodes will keep that same energy: open mics, open minds, and open records. Expect interviews with community figures, watchdog deep dives into public issues, and maybe a little good-natured chaos along the way.
Clarksburg is on the verge of something extraordinary. After decades of watching our most iconic buildings sit silent, there is now real momentum behind breathing new life into the Waldo Hotel and the Goff Building.
At Thursday’s City Council meeting, members will consider measures that could bring both projects closer to reality — and they deserve applause for their willingness to think creatively. By opening the door to tax increment financing (TIF) reimbursements for the Waldo and negotiating a pathway for AP Development to acquire the Goff Building’s parking lots, council is sending a clear message: saving downtown is worth it.
These aren’t small projects. The Goff Building alone represents a $20 million investment to create new apartments and housing opportunities in the heart of the city. And while the Waldo Hotel will be at least that much or larger, and longer-term challenge, granting flexibility through TIF incentives gives its developers the runway needed to pursue a restoration that could transform it from a long-forgotten landmark into a beacon of progress.
What makes these steps so encouraging is that council didn’t simply say “yes” or “no” to the developers’ requests. They found outside-the-box solutions to fuel the development. They worked through property transfers, creative financing tools, and inter-agency cooperation to ensure these projects can move forward. That kind of problem-solving is exactly what downtown Clarksburg needs.
Revitalization doesn’t happen overnight, and it doesn’t happen without leadership. By supporting these efforts, City Council is laying the foundation for a more vibrant future — one where historic architecture is preserved, new residents are drawn downtown, and businesses can grow alongside them. I for one want to show my support for these efforts and encourage council to keep looking at every creative idea possible to make these projects move smoothly. Public has to help push private in projects like these. Every idea and every tool in the toolbox should be on the table when deals this big are happening. Don’t stop looking for ways to help.
Our city’s story has always been tied to the Waldo and the Goff. Now, thanks to forward-thinking action, the next chapter can finally begin. To our city manager, council members and staff: thank you for believing in downtown Clarksburg. Keep the fresh ideas coming — our community is ready to support you.
I am most critical when council is not making big moves, this is the opposite of that. They are making huge moves. I am hyped to see what they come up with next. The momentum feels unbelievable.
The Harrison County Board of Education met again to “discuss” the City of Clarksburg’s request to take ownership of three now-closed public properties: Washington Irving Middle School, North View Elementary, and Hite Field.
And again—they kicked the can.
Superintendent Dora Stutler says the board is still “weighing options” and awaiting property appraisals. That might sound reasonable, until you remember these conversations have been happening for months, and the city is ready to move forward.
Let’s be clear: the buildings have already been closed. They areno longer serving students or the publicin any capacity. They’re inactive. Hite Field sits unused. The schools are sealed. Every day the board stalls, the risk of disrepair and vandalism increases—and the neighborhoods around them sit in limbo.
Meanwhile, Clarksburg has put forward thoughtful, community-based plans for reuse: public parks, community development, parking, green space, and yes—keeping the gymnasium accessible for RCB students if needed.
So why the hold-up?
It’s starting to feel less like caution and more like obstruction. If the Board of Education isn’t going to use these properties and won’t work with the city to return them to productive use, then maybe it’s time we stop asking nicely.
Under West Virginia law, once a property is no longer serving its public purpose, it becomes a candidate for eminent domain. That includes one government agency taking from another—when it’s in the public interest.
The taxpayers already paid for these properties once. They shouldn’t have to buy them again. If the BOE refuses to act, the City of Clarksburg should.
Going to auction is too big a risk to the future of our neighborhoods. If I were currently on the city council, we’d be getting aggressive and pushing the BOE with a much heavier tone—so I guess they’re lucky I’m just writing articles now and don’t hold any real power.
Superintendent Dora Stutler says, “We want what’s best for the community.” That sounds nice—but it doesn’t match the BOE’s actions. How could you make ANY argument that an auction benefits the community in any way? It is a reckless crime against the community.
The City Council needs to speak in a deeper voice and stop asking softly. What’s best for Clarksburg is transferring these properties for public reuse. It is the duty of those elected to the Clarksburg City Council to stand up for the voters and now is their moment to do their job. Define who you are now or be ready to pay for it in the next election.
If the board of education truly wanted what was best for the community, they’d be acting on it already.
Let’s call this what it is: the Exponent Telegram doesn’t report on Clarksburg anymore—it heckles it.
Let’s call this what it is: the Exponent Telegram doesn’t report on Clarksburg anymore—it heckles it.
Their recent unsigned editorial, “Harrison County Board of Education Should Prioritize Auctioning Surplus Properties,” wasn’t just bad policy advice. It was a condescending, out-of-touch attack on a city working hard to rebuild.
Rather than support local redevelopment or acknowledge the city’s thoughtful efforts, the Exponent Telegram chose to dismiss it all. They ignored neighborhood needs, smeared practical ideas, and—unsurprisingly—failed to contact the city for comment before publishing.
Councilman Jerry Riffle confirmed that. Zero outreach. No due diligence. Just anonymous judgment from a keyboard.
At this point, it’s fair to ask: are they rooting for Clarksburg to fail?
🧱 This Is About More Than a Building
Washington Irving Middle School isn’t just “surplus property.” It’s a vital structure in a part of neighborhood that is teetering on the edge of decline. The neighborhood surrounding WI is filled with aging housing, tight parking, and long-time residents barely hanging on as the cost of upkeep rises and population falls. Dump a massive vacant structure into the middle of it and you tip the whole area into blight.
North View is a neighborhood built around its community school.
Hite field is historical and important to the city.
That’s not opinion—it’s history.
🧨 Let’s Talk About What Actually Happens
We’ve seen what happens when we hand these buildings off to private speculators:
Broadway School: Sold to a doctor who turned it into a personal junk warehouse. He filled the entire building with junk from auctions and yard sales, he filled the basement with tires. Eventually, it caught fire—creating an environmental nightmare. Firefighters risked their lives battling the blaze, and the surrounding neighborhood was endangered for days.
Central Junior High: Sat empty beside the city parking garage for years. Became a magnet for drug activity, trespassing, and danger. Eventually demolished at public expense.
Genesis Youth Center: Not a school, but close enough. Shut down, abandoned, and quickly became one of Clarksburg’s biggest headaches for over a decade.
You know what we’ve never seen? A private buyer swooping in to renovate one of these buildings and create a community success story. Never.
The only example of a school successfully reused is Adamston Elementary, which stayed a school. That’s it.
💰 “These properties are worth millions.” According to who?
The Exponent Telegram throws around that line like it’s fact, but the numbers just don’t add up. The Goff Building—one of the tallest, most visible structures downtown—sold for $75,000. The Empire Bank Building, a true architectural landmark, went for just over $230,000.
And yet somehow we’re expected to believe that Washington Irving, North View Elementary, and Hite Field are untapped gold mines?
Let’s be serious. These buildings aren’t some jackpot waiting to be cashed in—they’re massive, aging, purpose-built facilities that require enormous investment to repurpose. And outside of serving as schools again, nobody has successfully pulled that off around here.
If someone thinks they’re worth millions, they’re welcome to open their checkbook. Otherwise, let’s stop pretending these are cash cows instead of complicated, expensive liabilities.
And let’s address the Exponent Telegram’s claim that the city’s plan is “vague.” Sure—it’s not a blueprint with bulldozers already on standby. But that’s the whole point: we need a public body guiding the next use of these properties, not some flipper with a dream and a demo crew. If a developer wants to repurpose an old school, they should have to submit a plan, prove it’s viable, show financing, and earn the public’s trust—not grab it at auction like they’re bidding on a storage unit full of mystery boxes.
🙄 A Private Christian School Is Not “Competition”
Another baffling claim in the editorial is that allowing a religious school to operate in a former public building somehow constitutes “competition” with public education.
That’s a fundamental misunderstanding of how people choose schools.
Parents who enroll their children in Christian schools aren’t deciding based on the address or the building condition. That decision is driven by faith, or deep dissatisfaction with the public system. They’ve already made up their minds—this isn’t a swing vote.
The idea that a city helping a private Christian school use an old building somehow undercuts the public system? It’s not a turf war. It’s called reality.
🤝 The WI Gym Argument Is a Self-Own
Ironically, the one point in the Exponent Telegram piece that makes sense is that the RCB basketball team may want continued access to the Washington Irving gym.
And they’re right—it’s a great gym. And the school should be welcomed to use it.
But they then argue in the same breath to sell the building—which would almost certainly result in losing that access.
If the city owns it, the school board can negotiate and put gym access into the deed. If a private buyer owns it, good luck. They’ll charge whatever they want or lock the doors.
So which is it, Exponent Telegram? Do we preserve the gym or do we put it on the auction block?
You’re arguing against yourself—and you don’t even seem to notice.
🎯 Pay It Forward: The Hope Gas Building
The Harrison County Board of Education was gifted one of the most valuable properties in the city: the Hope Gas Building. Prime downtown real estate. Multiple stories. Fully developed. Millions in value.
They didn’t sell it. They didn’t auction it. They used it.
Now they’re being asked to pay that blessing forward by donating old, outdated, difficult-to-use school buildings to the city—not for profit, but for the good of the community.
Seems like a fair ask.
🧾 Let’s Not Forget: We Already Paid
Taxpayers funded these buildings once already. We’re not asking for a gift—we’re asking for a responsible second use.
Dumping them at auction with no plan, no oversight, and no public input is how neighborhoods collapse. It’s how fires happen. It’s how cities fall apart.
The city’s offer to take over the properties, invest in them, and pursue community-focused redevelopment is the only option that’s ever worked—and the only one that makes sense.
If there is money to be made in the long run? Fine. Put it in writing. Let the city make the investment and the school board get a cut of any future sale or profit.
But pretending these are “valuable assets” just waiting for private rescue? That’s fiction. And bad fiction at that.
And here’s the real risk: by refusing to work with the city, the Board of Education isn’t just acting short-sighted—they’re jeopardizing long-standing support. Clarksburg voters have consistently backed school levies, trusting that their tax dollars are being used with purpose. But when the BOE tries to double-charge the same taxpayers for public property they already funded, that trust starts to crack. Keep pushing, and you might find city voters less willing to say “yes” the next time you come asking for a levy for example.
😏 Of Course, There’s Another Option…
Let’s say—strictly as a thought experiment—that Clarksburg didn’t want to play nice.
The city could, if it wanted to, make sure any private buyer understood exactly what they were getting into:
Rigorous code enforcement
Detailed zoning inspections
Scrutiny on Building Permits
Careful historic district restrictions
Surprise fire marshal visits
And maybe a gentle reminder that eminent domain is always an option
Not that I’m suggesting anything. Heaven forbid the city use all the tools at its disposal to protect its neighborhoods.
But if someone were trying to send a message that Clarksburg is done being used and dumped by absentee landlords and dreamers with no budgets?
I’d say that message would come through loud and clear.
📰 Journalism? Or Just Jeering?
What’s most frustrating about all this is that the Exponent Telegram didn’t even bother signing the editorial. No author. No accountability. No one to respond to.
That’s not journalism. That’s a drive-by opinion.
I sign mine. I always will.
If I thought anyone still bought the Exponent Telegram, I’d be calling for a full boycott by Clarksburg residents. But I don’t need to—the public already figured out what I have. They’re done listening to a paper that doesn’t speak for them.
I care about this city. I served it. I still do. And I’ll continue to say what others are afraid to say: This editorial wasn’t helpful. It was hostile.
And it’s time someone pushed back.
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Gary Keith Publisher, Clarksburg News and Observer
