Officials laud Southern W.Va.’s potential during visit

By GREG JORDAN

Bluefield Daily Telegraph

NORTHFORK, W.Va.  — Southern West Virginia’s potential as a setting for tourism, ecological tourism and economic diversification were topics Tuesday when one of the state’s representatives in Congress and a new member of the Appalachian Regional Commission’s administration visited the region.

U.S. Rep. Evan Jenkins, R-W.Va. and Tim Thomas, co-chair of the Federal Appalachian Regional Commission made stops in Mercer County and neighboring McDowell County to see local examples of tourism and economic development. Stops were made at Mercer Street in Princeton and locations such as Ashland Resort near the McDowell County town of Northfork. Jenkins and Thomas toured the resorts cabins along with Jeffrey Lusk of the Hatfield-McCoy Trail Authority.

“We’re just talking about economic development, job creation, tourism, diversified economy,” Jenkins said while visiting one of the larger cabins. “And it is such an honor to have the new lead of the ARC, four months on the job, coming to West Virginia and coming to McDowell County.”

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