Fairmont State University Library: Walkability: Community Resources

A meeting held in mid-December by the Fairmont City Council has successfully started planning for completing an important portion of a major rail trail. The completion of the Fairmont section of the rail trail will allow citizens to be connected with the Parkersburg-to-Pittsburgh rail trail. The trail itself spans 200 miles with only a few miles left to connect with one the other. The article also states that 800,00 0 people traverse use this trail each year which also brings in approximately $40 million that can help a community continue to better themselves. The grant will garner socio-economic growth with tourism/travel of citizens and outsiders.

The City of Fairmont Comprehensive Plan ( 2018)

Prepared for the City by Mackin Engineering Company With assistance from:Duane Morris Government Strategies and WVU College of Law Land Use and Sustainable Development Law Clinic (p.58-61)

https://www.fairmontwv.gov/DocumentCenter/View/2197/FairmontCompPlanOfficial

On pages 58-61, the Fairmont government has outlined problems and solutions that citizens and visitors have addressed using crowdsourced feedback.

The Fairmont Comprehensive Plan talks about how attraction and diversity go hand in hand when planning what is in a city. The plan talks about how the city of Fairmont wants to embrace diversity and that Fairmont is a place that its citizens can see as a place of inclusion.

One major point in this is ensuring that land use policies and decisions are fair and equitable. One focus is to prioritize street improvements including sidewalks and bike lanes, along with planning new areas to be not car-focused which could provide housing options for low and middle class families, not only wealthy families.

One issue is the lack of wayfinding or knowing where you are in a building or place, and then knowing how to travel to another area. Government officials would like to incorporate more directional signs to major destinations to entice visitor engagement. Another problem is preserving historical sites/buildings that hold significance and economic viability for tourism. The wayfinding and historic structure issues go hand-in-hand when having this discussion since even the general Fairmont populous need to know where their historical districts/buildings are. These issues would impact the overall Marion county area.

City Applies for Sidewalk Grant for Country Club Road (2017)

https://www.wvnews.com/theet/news/free/city-applies-for-sidewalk-grant-for-country-club-road/article_09aa586c-912a-5fe1-9b6b-df099ee0f6d1.html

This article talks about how the Fairmont City Council has applied for a grant in order to build sidewalks along Country Club Road. The mayor brings up how dangerous it was to walk beside the street as a child and wonders why it took this long for something to be done about it. The addition of the sidewalks would make life easier for residents and provide them with a safe, easy, and walkable connection to the rest of the city.

Walkable Blocks Celebration Saturday (2015)

https://www.timeswv.com/news/walkable-blocks-celebration-saturday/article_ff350572-1011-11e5-b837-47ddd7fdc450.html

This article describes a celebration from 2015, where local artists and volunteers painted crosswalks and installed new bike racks throughout the city. This event was created in an effort to encourage people to walk around downtown Fairmont and explore the various restaurants and shops, as well as to bring the community together through art. The event also included several musicians, as well as a bike raffle to further catch the interest of citizens.