MORGANTOWN — Come July 1, there will be at least one new member of Morgantown City Council.
Councilor Dave Harshbarger, who’s represented the city’s 6th ward since July 2019, announced Tuesday that he will not seek a third term.
Harshbarger was elected to a two-year term in 2019. He was one of three members, along with Bill Kawecki (2nd) and Jenny Selin (4th), first elected to four-year terms in 2021 following a change to the city’s charter.
“It’s been an honor to serve our community,” Harshbarger said, explaining he intends to remain involved with groups like the Mon River Trails Conservancy and, potentially, the Morgantown Utility Board. “Democracy works best when more people participate, so I want people to know there is a vacancy in the 6th Ward.”
Conversely, Selin said she’s ready for another four years if the voters will have her back.
At the June 30 end of her current term, Selin will have spent 18 years as a member of council; having first been elected in 2007.
“I started off back in the day with my fresh, new ideas; similar to other people who are looking to run with their fresh, new ideas. Now I have some of the, sort of, knowledge about how things have been, but I continue to have new ideas and like to follow up on current projects,” she said. “So, I am willing if voters are interested, to run again.”
Kawecki told The Dominion Post on Monday that he remains undecided on whether he’ll seek another term.
City Clerk Christine Wade said that two people came to her office Tuesday to pick up certificates of announcement and nominating petitions for the April 29 city election.
In other city news, Interim City Manager Damien Davis announced the city has been awarded an $8 million federal RAISE (Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity) Grant.
“We got $8 million for planning and design to look at Dorsey Avenue from Kingwood Pike all the way to the downtown. The project will look at improving it for pedestrians and cyclists. That corridor connects four different schools, three different parks, five-plus different neighborhoods,” Davis said during his first report from the manager’s chair. “The project has the potential to have a really big impact on that area, so it’s exciting to get that.”
While this money is not for construction, Davis said it the critical first step and the largest federal transportation grant the city has ever received. Further, it will deliver a project ready to go to bid, making it attractive for future funding opportunities.
“It’s planning, not just conceptual planning, but planning and design. So, we would have a shovel-ready design that would have costs attached to it and be ready to go to the next step,” Selin added. “This is how we get large projects accomplished. There’s not room in our budget for these types of large projects.”
