Monongalia County Mayor Concerned About Safety In Growing Area Near Monongalia County Ballpark

GRANVILLE, W.Va. — Mayor Patty Lewis has been working for nearly three years to add traffic signals in two high-traffic areas of University Town Center. Local officials are hoping for help from the State Highway Division to complete the work this year.

Both intersections are in a busy commercial area of ​​Granville near Morgantown that continues to grow in popularity due to the wide variety of popular retailers, restaurants and the Kendrick Family Ballpark at the Monongalia County Baseball Complex.

Lewis said the downtown WVU Medicine intersection is both a pedestrian and traffic problem, with many people crossing the street from WVU Medicine facilities. The Sesame Drive intersection is primarily a traffic problem.

“A lot of people are passing from Walmart to WVU Medical Hospital, probably for lunch or just before going home,” Lewis said.

The DOH opened bids in March for the project with a price tag of approximately $1.5 million.

Lewis said there is a five- to six-month wait time for delivery of the poles that will hold the traffic lights, and the Department of Health has what it needs at a construction site in Charleston.

If they would allow us to buy the poles they have in Charleston, it would probably cut the installation time in half,” Lewis said.

The DOH said there was no policy covering what Lewis proposed.

State Sen. Mike Oliverio, R-Monongalia, said if a state agency owns something that a municipal unit needs, there should be a reasonable way to transfer the property with compensation. However, when that item(s) has something to do with public safety, the state agency must make that item(s) available to help resolve the issue.

“We want the Department of Health to be available to support our communities in any way possible,” Oliverio said. “If a rule or regulation exists, if it goes against public safety, I want that rule to be reviewed. »

Oliverio said he is asking the DOH to reconsider its policy.