The MARC Train, or Maryland Area Regional Commuter, serves about 250 West Virginians who live in Berkeley and Jefferson Counties.
The train has been serving the area for more than 30 years, but Maryland has always paid the bills. West Virginia was only responsible for upkeep of its three West Virginia stations.
Recently, that changed.
For the last two years, Maryland has requested a little more than $3 million in funding – otherwise, they’d end the service into West Virginia.
Below is an extended version of this interview:
In 2018, the West Virginia Legislature secured $1.5 million, and Maryland accepted it. This year, lawmakers successfully put $1.1 million in the budget, but it’s unclear if Maryland will accept the offer.
West Virginia Public Broadcasting spoke with Del. Paul Espinosa, R-Jefferson, the House Majority Whip and member of the House Finance Committee, to discuss the future of MARC in West Virginia.
A board of high-ranking Maryland officials on Wednesday rejected a proposed pipeline across the western part of the state that would carry natural gas produced in Pennsylvania to West Virginia.
The Board of Public Works voted 3-0 against an easement for TransCanada’s pipeline. It would run under the Potomac River near Hanover, Maryland, and extend 3 miles (4.83 kilometers) from Columbia Gas’ network in Pennsylvania to Mountaineer Gas’ distribution system in West Virginia.
Comptroller Peter Franchot, a Democrat, cited testimony that the pipeline could bring Maryland environmental problems without economic benefits. The board also includes Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, and Treasurer Nancy Kopp, a Democrat.
Environmentalists and residents have been vocal in opposing the pipeline.
“Marylanders and many of their leaders have consistently opposed the threats fracked gas pipelines pose to our health, water, climate, and communities,” said Josh Tulkin, Sierra Club Maryland chapter director.
The board’s vote came after more than 60 lawmakers sent a letter urging board members to reject the proposal. The lawmakers noted that Maryland approved a law, which Hogan signed in 2017, to ban the hydraulic fracturing drilling process known as fracking in Maryland. The process is used to extract natural gas. Maryland was the first state where a legislature voted to bar the practice that actually has natural gas reserves.
“Given that Maryland has banned fracking, it defies our state’s existing energy policy to bring the same public health risks to our residents by way of a pipeline,” the letter said. “Moreover, enabling fossil fuel production runs counter to our state’s goals of increasing renewable energy production.”
The letter, which was sent this week, also noted that the pipeline would affect at least 10 wetlands and 19 streams, in addition to the Potomac River.
While the board delayed a vote on the easement at its last meeting, Hogan said the unanimous vote would have happened without the letter from lawmakers.
“It had nothing to do with any letter from the legislature,” Hogan said at Wednesday’s board meeting.
Anne Havemann, an attorney for Chesapeake Climate Action Network, said she hopes the board’s vote marks an end to the proposal.
“We’ll see if (the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) gets involved or the courts get involved, but for now it’s a welcome delay and we hope a permanent end to this pipeline,” Havemann said shortly after the vote.
Gov. Jim Justice’s office made two announcements Friday all related to infrastructure in the Eastern Panhandle.
Gov. Justice was in Morgan County for a ground-breaking ceremony for major improvements at Cacapon Resort State Park.
The project will receive more than $25 million and is expected to bring upgrades to Cacapon Resort and provide additional attractions for visitors in the Eastern Panhandle, according to a news release.
Justice said awards like these for West Virginia’s parks will boost tourism and attract vacationers.
“Our parks are some of the most beautiful places in the world you’ll ever see, and I am following through on my promise to update and improve our parks to make them more attractive,” said Justice. “These improvements will make Cacapon an even more attractive vacation destination in the Eastern Panhandle and bring more tourism dollars to West Virginia.”
Projects include 78 additional guest rooms, a dining room, a lounge, a spa and an indoor pool at Cacapon Lodge. Existing facilities will also receive major upgrades, including remodeling each existing guest room, creating new conference space, renovating the lobby and upgrading utility and electrical equipment.
Construction is already underway and is being performed by Paramount Builders of Saint Albans. Work is expected to be completed by 2020. The project is being funded by bonds financed with excess lottery revenue.
Also, on Friday, Justice announced state and federal grants to improve transportation alternatives and recreational trails in the Eastern Panhandle region.
Corporation of Harpers Ferry: Harpers Ferry High Street Improvement Project is being recommended for $320,000 in federal funding. This is for the construction of two blocks of replacement sidewalk within the business district of Harpers Ferry. The total project cost is $400,000.
Appalachian Trail Conservancy: Loudoun Heights A.T. Relocation is being recommended for $40,000 in federal funding. This is to construct approximately 1,540 linear feet of new trail along the Appalachian National Scenic Trail outside the Town of Harpers Ferry. The total project cost is $50,000.
Town of Bath: Town of Bath/Berkeley Springs Streetscape is being recommended for $380,000 in federal funding. This is for the construction of a walkable complete streetscape plan including sidewalks, curbs, landscaping elements, lighting and pedestrian amenities within the main 6 block core business area in the Town of Bath. The total project cost is $475,000.
Town of Bath: Berkeley Springs State Park Improvements is being recommended for $300,800 in federal funds. This is for the construction of walkways and bridges in the Town of Bath within the Berkeley Springs State Park. The total project cost is $376,000.
The West Virginia Transportation Alternatives and Recreational Trails Program is administered by the West Virginia Department of Transportation and funded by the Federal Highway Administration.
In 2017, West Virginia Public Broadcasting featured one of West Virginia’s last remaining broom makers; Kanawha County resident Jim Shaffer. The story ended with a question: would this dwindling art continue once Shaffer retired? Well, it turns out, a whole family in Hampshire County makes brooms together, and they were inspired by Shaffer himself.
Meet Wanda Hott – Broom Maker
Just about 20 miles from Romney, West Virginia is a little town called Kirby. Kirby is home to Wanda Hott and her family. She owns a big farm which has been in her family since the 1930s.
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
Wanda Hott ties the broom corn while using the machine she purchased from Jim Shaffer.
Hott works as a professional school bus driver for Hampshire County Schools during a normal workday, but for more than a decade she’s also been a broom maker.
“I got into broom making, because my sister wanted to know what I wanted for Christmas one year,” Hott said. “I needed a broom; I wanted a practical broom, and she got me a broom from Jim Shaffer.”
Hott fell in love with that broom, and she remembered her great-great grandmother used to make brooms. She wanted to learn how to make them too and started teaching herself. For some help, she reached out to Jim Shaffer and began buying his broom-making supplies. Soon, they became friends.
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
Wanda and her husband Steve work on the broom making machine they purchased from Jim Shaffer.
Passing on a Legacy
Hott has been making brooms for the past thirteen years now. And then, last year, Jim Shaffer called her and told her he had decided he was not able to continue making brooms. Hoping to pass on his craft to the right person, he offered to sell her his broom making equipment. She accepted.
Hott hopes her broom making business will be her main source of income once she retires from school bus driving.
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
And, as it turns out, two of Hott’s teenage granddaughters, Shelby and Kierra Westfall, have taken a particular interest in the broom making craft as well.
“It sparks my interest,” Shelby said. “It’s something that I’m actually able to sit down and do, and it doesn’t lose my interest.”
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
And her younger sister, Kierra feels the same way.
“I’m a really hands on person, so I really like to be able to feel something and have it in my hands, and broom making’s a really good way to do that,” Kierra explained. “And I like spending family time, cause I think family time [is] really important, so it’s kind of a way to do both for me.”
Clay Lick Brooms & The W.Va. Broom Barn
Shelby and Kierra often work alongside their grandma. Hott’s taught them to make a variety of multi-purpose or decorative brooms by hand, but she isn’t really sure how the craft became such a big part of her family.
“It just evolved,” Hott said. “I learned to make the broom to start with, and then I would teach my sister and our friend, and when family members came, they would jump in and it was a big thing. Anybody that wanted to see, we’d teach ‘em how to make brooms.”
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
Hott has two separate broom shops on her farm. One is the W.Va. Broom Barn and the other is the Clay Lick Broom Shop. The brooms she makes with Jim Shaffer’s equipment are made in the W.Va. Broom Barn and take about 25 minutes to finish. They sell for about $17. Hott sells them to local Lions Clubs, just like Shaffer did.
But the brooms made in the Clay Lick Broom Shop are made entirely by hand without the machine. Since they take longer to make, Hott sells these for up to $50.
A Family Tradition
Hott hopes broom making continues to spark interest for her family. For Shelby and Kierra, they want to continue the tradition too.
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
“I think it’s a really great thing that there are still people around [who] still want to make brooms, because it is a really neat and wonderful thing to learn,” Kierra said.
“It’s something that I think should be passed on; people should know how to do it, cause you’re not always gonna have plastic, and you’re not gonna always have machines,” Shelby said. “The broom corn is something you can grow and make yourself; you don’t have to go and buy it.”
Credit Daniel Walker / West Virginia Public Broadcasting
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Photo credit: Daniel Walker/WVPB
Shelby sits with her family’s collie, Sadie.
Wanda Hott’s brooms have been getting noticed. She’s even had customers as far away as California and Illinois. And with her entire family also interested in making brooms, for now, it looks like this artform won’t be disappearing in West Virginia anytime soon.
Both the Northern and Eastern Panhandles are experiencing flooding this week as rain continues to fall on the two regions. Preparations are also being made across the state to respond to possible heavy rainfall from Hurricane Florence at the end of the week.
Northern Panhandle Flooding
Emergency management officials are expecting the Ohio River in the Northern Panhandle to crest Tuesday afternoon at 39 feet – which is lower than previously anticipated, and one foot lower than what’s considered the “moderate flood” level.
Some low-lying areas surrounding the river are expected to take water nonetheless, and cleanup plans are in place to help pump water out of basements and remove any mud and debris.
Officials have been managing minor flooding around swollen creeks in the region, but report that those creeks are now back within their banks.
Eastern Panhandle Flooding
In the Eastern Panhandle, the National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for Berkeley, Jefferson and Morgan Counties. The Opequon Creek near Martinsburg and the Potomac River are in flood stage and are expected to remain so for 24 to 48 hours.
The National Weather Service has also issued a hazardous weather outlook for Berkeley, Jefferson, Morgan, Hampshire, Hardy, Grant, Mineral and Pendleton counties. It will remain in effect through Sunday.
Officials with Jefferson County Emergency Management report that despite high water throughout the region, no major issues have been reported.
Hurricane Florence Approaches
Both panhandles and the entire state are preparing for what’s coming at the end of the week – heavy rainfall from Hurricane Florence.
Lora Lipscomb, the Public Information Officer for West Virginia Homeland Security and Emergency Management, said Hurricane Florence is expected to hit southern West Virginia at the end of this week. She said officials are expecting rainfall from the storm to begin possibly Thursday or Friday.
WV DHSEM officials are also stationing switfwater rescue teams and National Guardsmen in the region and is making resource preparations before the storm lands.
Lipscomb said they do not know yet how bad the storm could be, but the WV DHSEM is in contact with the National Weather Service and statewide emergency officials.
A stone wool insulation producer has broken ground on a $150 million manufacturing facility in West Virginia.
Rockwool North America held a ceremony Tuesday in Ranson. The company says in a news release the 460,000-square-foot facility will employ about 150 people. Production is expected to start in early 2020.
Rockwool has production facilities in Byhalia, Mississippi; Milton, Ontario, and Grand Forks, British Columbia. Stone wool is a fiber-based insulation produced from natural stone and recycled content.
