Marion Co., West Virginia, officials set sights on downtown Fairmont revitalization

Last week, Main Street Fairmont prepared for the mural’s April 16 unveiling by cleaning up Monroe Street, as well as the old firehouse that sits next to the mural’s new spot. Main Street Fairmont Executive Director Tim Liebrecht said that if done right, this could be the start of a new, more focused effort to revitalize and beautify all of the downtown district.

“You’ve got a block there that doesn’t have a lot going on, so what we want to do is really spruce it up and make it much more welcoming and make it a place that people will enjoy walking past and enjoy being there,” Liebrecht said. “I think that’s a big part of what needs to happen downtown in general, and that’s the message we’re trying to send to people. …

“If we put the work and effort in and if we make these places beautiful, they’re places where people will want to spend time. They’re places worth spending time at. There’s beautiful architecture and history, and they’re amazing places to be.”

The mural was designed by Fairmont State University art professor Joel Dugan, who agreed with Liebrecht and said that the city could use Monroe Street as a jumping off point for the next round of downtown revitalization.

“In order to build a city, you start with a really strong right angle,” Dugan said. “You start with a really strong elbow and you build out from that. That Monroe Street area … means a lot to the city, and if they can revamp that little curve and they can get that alleyway worked on … they could reidentify downtown from that corner out, and it’d be pretty impressive.”

Liebrecht and Dugan are not the only ones with these beliefs. Shae Strait, the City of Fairmont’s director of planning and development, said the Monroe Street project has a lot of potential to be the start of something special.

“What (the mural is) going to do is make that a space that people want to be,” Strait said. “Nobody wants to look at a blank, boring wall, but now we have something interesting to gather around and talk about, and along with the work on the firehouse, it makes it look like a space that somebody can use tomorrow rather than a building that’s been sitting empty for years. It helps to start change the narrative and the perception.”

Strait added that, historically, downtown districts act as the heart of any city, and with a little effort and a lot of passion, that feeling can be returned to The Friendly City.

“Financial resiliency is very important, because where most of our money is made as an economy and for property taxes is usually generated in our downtowns,” Strait said. “So, the investment and revitalization into our downtown is critical, because that’s where, economically, we are most productive. It’s also important because downtown serves as our central gathering point for our community. They house our primary government agencies and key services, but they also host the spaces that we gather in … and that’s important for making connected and socially strong communities.”

Marion County Chamber of Commerce president Tina Shaw said that she has seen people and businesses already start to make more investments downtown, citing the success of restaurants like The Rambling Root, Joe N’ Throw and Mama Di Roma, which all sit within a few blocks of one another.

She added that she hopes this urge to work and live downtown continues into the near and distant future.

“I think people are taking more of an interest downtown,” Shaw said. “I can think back to when we were promoting bringing the (Gateway) Connector here. We were all excited, because the connector was going to take people from the interstate to the central business district. Now, what we’re seeing is that’s really coming true. You can be on that interstate and then be right in downtown Fairmont, and right now, we do have retails and restaurants and housing and other service available here. That’s what makes your downtown attractive.”

While Shaw believes the transformation is already underway, she sees a lot more potential down the road, as well.

“We’re just beginning,” Shaw said. “Right now, we’ve got some vacant space, but I believe that, in the next three to five years, you’re going to see a lot of growth in downtown Fairmont.”

Strait, too, thinks that in five years the landscape of downtown Fairmont will have changed, and city and county officials will have moved on to the next step to make the district even better.

“I think that, in a few years, the conversation’s not going to be about filling vacant storefronts,” Strait said. “The conversation is going to be about filling vacant land. That’s our goal. We want to fill the empty buildings first, and then we’ll make it so desirable to be here, we’re going to build new buildings to replace the ones we lost.”