Commission to Pony up for Palatine Park

Marion to spend $10K on waterfront facelift


Morgantown Dominion Post
22 May 2009
By Jim Bissett

FAIRMONT -  Ten thousand dollars makes a pretty big splash.

That's how much money on Wednesday the Marion County Commission floated to the ongoing waterfront revitalization project at Fairmont's Palatine Park.

Palatine Park is an expanse of green space and trees that sits below bustling Merchant Street on the city's East Side. It humps up against the banks of the Monongahela River; which runs through the middle of town.

The $10,000 donation will be used to build boat docks at the park, which is undergoing a major revitalization through the Fairmont Parks Commission.

In recent years, Palatine Park has been home to the Three Rivers Festival and annual summertime concerts honoring the memory of musician Johnnie Johnson, the Rock `n' Roll Hall of Fame member and long-time Chuck Berry collaborator who was from Fairmont.

It was easy to sing along with the request from the parks commission, said Randy Elliott, Marion County Commission president.

Citing waterfront parks in neighboring Morgantown and Clarksburg, Elliott said there's no reason why Fairmont couldn't have the same thing. "I think over the years we've missed a lot of opportunities to develop our river-front," he said. "This is a chance for us to help turn Palatine Park into a real showcase for Fairmont and Marion County."

That's precisely what former Fairmont mayor Scott Sears was thinking when he first launched the idea two years ago, he said.

Gov. Joe Manchin and West Virginia First - Lady Gayle Manchin were featured guests at a fundraiser shortly thereafter that netted close to $250,000 for the project.

Other gifts of money and material totaling more than $100,000 from Allegheny Energy and 84 Lumber are being used to build a pavilion at the park, said Sears, who is now president of the parks commission.

"Palatine Park was underutilized for years," he said.

"I think we can make something really spectacular here," Sears said. "I think we can use the park and the river as a springboard for pedestrian-only shopping, restaurants. It's got real possibilities for nice residential space."

Space was the place Wednesday for Fairmont barber Al Henderson, who has operated his Al's Styles shop on Merchant Street over the park for more than 30 years.

In-between customers in his shop, its walls lined with original album covers from classic rock LPs, he looked out the door-way at the extensive construction on Merchant Street - the swirl of access ramps and off-ramps will make the boulevard a key hub in the city's Gateway Connector highway project.

"That's bringing the highway right clown to the river when you think about it," Henderson said. "I'm glad they finally started doing something with Palatine. You've got the river and trees. It's a great location."

And a great opportunity to show potential investors that the city and county mean business, Sears said.

"We can't thank the county commission enough for the donation today," he said,

"We can show developers what we're doing here, and we can say, `Hey, we're serious about this.' "