Haymaker Forest, riverfront revitalization, cherry trees, deputy mayor drama and city boards and commissions all got people talking about Morgantown City Council in 2018.
In the woods
Morgantown City Council indefinitely postponed the second reading of a highly controversial $5.2 million purchase of the 40-acre Haymaker Forest after nearly four hours of public outcry during its June 19 regular meeting.
Some 47 residents addressed council, prompted by a public challenge issued on the radio by Councilor Barry Wendell, who said those opposed to the deal don’t typically bother attending meetings.
During the deluge of public feedback, only eight speakers favored the purchase. The majority mocked the proposal to spend $5.2 million on land valued at only $2.5 million by an appraisal released hours before the meeting.
The issue was subsequently declared dead by members of council and has not resurfaced.
Deputy mayor drama
During its Aug. 21 meeting, Morgantown City Council voted 5-2 to remove the deputy mayor designation from 6th Ward Councilor Mark Brazaitis.
Fourth Ward Councilor Jenny Selin got council’s nod to take over the largely ceremonial role.
The move capped more than two months of frequent and sharp public criticism of Monongalia County, WVU and other local stakeholders by Brazaitis in his capacity as deputy mayor and city councilor.
Brazaitis went against the wishes of city council and BOPARC in unsuccessfully presenting a levy to the county commission to fund a new ice rink.
He checked into Ruby Memorial Hospital, and later, Pittsburgh’s Western Psychiatric Institute after police were called to his Courtney Avenue residence Aug. 6, resulting in a 15-hour overnight search by the Morgantown Police and Monongalia County Sheriff’s Department.
The WVU English professor announced a write-in candidacy for U.S. Senate in September.
WVU ultimately removed Brazaitis from the classroom this fall and barred him from campus pending an evaluation through the university’s Faculty and Staff Assistance Program.
Down by the river
In January, the City of Morgantown announced a $4.1 million gift from the Hazel Ruby McQuain Charitable Trust for riverfront revitalization, including enhancements to the Hazel Ruby McQuain Riverfront Park and a reworking of the Walnut Street landing.
A portion of the funds will also be used to create a police substation near the park.
According to the terms of the agreement, the city will need to create a full-time position to maintain and operate the park and riverfront, as well as a fund into which it will place $150,000 annually, up to $1 million, for maintenance and repairs.
The impending project forced Mountain Line out of the riverside Garrett Street depot, leaving the transit service scrambling to find an alternative and throwing bus service into disarray as Mountain Line was left moving the depot out of the downtown and out to its hub, in Westover.
Lastly, the city courted a bit of controversy when it was announced that the project would also require the removal and replacement of the majority of the Yoshino cherry trees planted as a memorial near the amphitheater by Morgantown resident Milan Roh after the 2001 death of his wife.
After some public outcry, the foundation stepped in and insisted on a solution that left most of the trees untouched.
Commissioned
Over the past year, Morgantown City Council created two new commissions for the purpose of offering guidance to city council.
One, the Morgantown Health and Wellness Commission, will offer advice and make recommendations to city council and administration regarding plans, programs and projects aimed at improving the health and well-being of city residents.
One of the commission’s first priorities is to assist in an ongoing assessment aimed at achieving a Blue Zone designation.
WVU and Morgantown hope to be the first joint city/university to receive a prestigious Blue Zone health and wellness distinction.
Also this year, council created the Morgantown Land Reuse and Preservation Agency, the first of its kind adopted in West Virginia, made possible by the state’s Land Reuse Agency Authorization Act.
The agency has autonomy to make purchases or acquire property through gifts or other means. Council will appoint the members to three-year terms but would not have a final say over acquisitions.
The agency does not have access to funds without an allocation from the council and cannot acquire property outside the city limits.
In another bit of news surrounding city boards and commissions, City Manager Paul Brake’s application to the Morgantown Utility Board (MUB) — and subsequent drafting of a potential ordinance making the city manager a permanent fixture on the body — has drawn quite a bit of public feedback, including from MUB, which opposes the move.
Brake is among five applicants to fill two open positions on the MUB board.
