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.' "