MORGANTOWN – The West Virginia Division of Highways and the U.S. Federal Highway Administration have scheduled a public input session on the second phase of the Green Bag Road widening project.
The meeting will take place from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Mountainview Elementary School.
It should be noted the meeting is not focused on the Phase I project, which includes the construction of roundabouts at two intersections – one at the intersection of Green Bag Road, Kingwood Pike and Dorsey Avenue, and one at the intersection of Green Bag Road and Mississippi Street.
That project is already designed and funded. It was awarded to Mountaineer Contractors in December 2024 for just over $18.3 million. However, the start date for that work is currently on hold as a number of parcels are tied up in the right-of-way acquisition process. According to the DOH, eight parcels have been recommended for condemnation proceedings, but that process had not been initiated in court as of Nov. 5.
Next week’s meeting will open public involvement on the second phase of widening work, which will essentially address the remaining portions of Green Bag Road – from just beyond Mississippi Street down to, and including, the Green Bag intersection with Don Knotts Boulevard on one end, and from Deckers Creek Boulevard to Luckey Lane on the other end.
The Phase II project, which was the recipient of a $4.2 million federal RAISE Grant for engineering and design in 2022, also contemplates pedestrian improvements.
According to the DOH announcement, no formal presentation will be given during the meeting. The drop-in style gathering will include representatives from the DOH and the project team who will be on hand to share project maps and information, answer questions and collect community feedback.
According to the state, Green Bag Road was originally designed and constructed as a locally utilized rural road to provide trucks access to cement batching plant. Today, the minor arterial road provides access to large commercial and industrial areas, businesses, residential subdivisions and community spaces, and the road has been identified as having operational and safety deficiencies because of substandard lane widths, inadequate shoulder widths and a lack of multi-modal accommodations.
Following the meeting, comments can be submitted at go.wv.gov/dotcomment or via email to douglas.w.kirk@wv.gov. Comments can also be mailed to DOH Technical Support Division Director Doug Kirk at 1900 Kanawha Blvd. East, Building 5, Room 820, Charleston, WV 25305.
The DOH will accept comments on the Phase II project until Dec. 19.
