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Editorial

With lawsuits, hold govt. accountable, but leave art alone

In early July, shortly after the new murals in the Capitol Rotunda were revealed, two presuit notices were filed contesting the artwork and the process leading to its installation. The murals went from being a run-of-the-mill improvement project to a media sensation and lightning rod for controversy when it appeared one of the four murals — “Shivaree of Seneca Rock” — depicted Babydog. In the painting, an English bulldog that bears a strong resemblance to Gov. Jim Justice’s beloved pet sits in the grass between a painter and a mandolin player. Under the raucous ...

Another ‘bad apple’

If you haven’t already heard about the traffic stop gone wrong in Monongah, you likely will soon. The widely shared video starts near the end of the interaction, which began with a traffic stop about 30 yards away near Shaver Street and Lambert Avenue. The accounts of the initial traffic stop given by Sarah Beth Delloma, the driver of the vehicle, and by Nathan Lanham, now-former Monongah Chief of Police, differ. (Read Erin Cleavenger’s coverage for full details.) Delloma, through her lawyer, said she repeatedly asked to see Lanham’s badge. When he refused, she told him her ...

Finally — headway on UTC traffic light project

The good news: The much-needed traffic lights at the University Town Centre seem to be on track to be installed where University Town Centre Drive passes between Sesame Drive and Granville Square and between WVU Medicine and Walmart. The bad news: The project is looking at a 2025 completion date. Once the notice to proceed is given (which it hasn’t yet, but hopefully soon), the 60-day site prep starts and the actual light poles can be ordered, which are expected to take four to five months to come in. Assuming the right permissions come this week, the poles won’t arrive until ...

We can’t take our local businesses for granted

To quote Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” — “Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” In the last couple weeks, two of Morgantown’s locally owned institutions closed their doors: Ruby & Ketchy’s after 66 years in business, and Sellaro’s Overhead Door Service after 38. Ruby & Ketchy’s was a family-owned restaurant in Cheat Lake named for its original proprietors: Ruby Nicholson ran the kitchen, whipping up meals and desserts using her own recipes, and her husband Wilbur “Ketchy” gathered her ingredients ...

Bring out your hazardous waste

Cans of paint collecting dust in the back corner of the garage? Dozens of dead batteries and lightbulbs in your junk drawer? Swimming pool chemicals for the pool  you haven’t had in three years in the shed? Anti-freeze and freon you’ve been hanging onto because you know you can’t throw it in the trash? Saturday will be your day to finally get rid of it safely. The Morgantown Utility Board, in partnership with local governments and services, is hosting its annual Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. at MUB’s office at 278 Green Bag Road. (If ...

Put Preston school levy on Nov. ballot

Recently, members of the Preston County Board of Education mused whether it would be worth putting the failed school levy back on the ballot for November. The short answer: Yes. The long answer: There’s no harm in putting the levy back in front of voters. It was defeated in May by fewer than 600 votes — a decent but not insurmountable margin. If the BOE makes the decision to put the levy on the November ballot now, that gives them roughly three months to educate voters on its importance. That’s 90 days to help voters understand that school levies mean better teacher ...