Prince train depot likely to have enhanced role in future Boy Scout functions – Beckley Register-Herald

BECKLEY —
A decrepit old bridge thwarted plans to use in it this year’s Jamboree, but the historic Prince train depot figures to play a major role each summer when the Boy Scouts of America stages high adventure camps in Fayette County.

Such was the consensus Tuesday of not only the Raleigh County Commission, but also David Gay, chairman of a two-county authority seeking ways and means of shoring up the station.

Erected in 1946, a year after World War II ended, Gay reminded commissioners it had one market in mind back then — post-war commuters.

Now, however, with the upsurge in activities in the New River National Gorge, and the advent of the Summit Bechtel Family Scout Reserve in Glen Jean, it now boasts three distinct markets, Gay pointed out.

“I think it could be used tremendously in the next several years, with the Boy Scouts coming in,” Commission President Dave Tolliver said.

“A lot of people think the Scout camp is now dormant. I’m told there will be 30,000 Scouts next year for the high adventure camp. Every year, they will be having something going on.”

Upwards of 40,000 Scouts spent 10 days at the Glen Jean complex.

“The report we got yesterday was that everything went extremely well,” Tolliver said.

“Few things will have to be tweaked.”

Just how much money is needed to put the depot back in shape, with modern accouterments, especially in accord with the Americans with Disability Act, isn’t known at this stage, but Gay says he is working with ZMM Architects & Engineers, an award-winning design firm in Charleston, to get an estimate.

One step is for the authority to set up a 501-c-3 so people can make tax-deductible donations, and Gay said he intends to call on the Benedum Foundation and similar organizations to help.

“You have a lot of influential people on that authority to help out with funding,” Commissioner Pat Reed said.

Even with the 3-ton weight limit on the Prince bridge, Gay said 50 scouts based in Colorado and their leaders and some adult Scouting officials from New York and New Jersey arrived by rail, “and it worked out very well.”

“So, we laid the groundwork,” he said.

Gay plans to work with Gary Hartley, director of community and government relations for the Scouts, to see how more can take advantage of the Prince station.

Six years from now, Gay reminded the commission, some 80,000 visitors will pour into the summit for a world jamboree. Next spring, he said, the Division of Highways hopes to begin work on shoring up the old bridge. Bids already are being sought.

Amtrak has submitted plans with the state Historical Preservation Office for upgrades, but all of them are in limbo until funding is secured, Gay sad.

“That is giving us some breathing room as we set up a legal framework and start reaching out for funding,” the authority chairman said.

One asset in mind is the same type of outdoor lighting in use at Thornhill Courts in Beckley, he said, something that is modern and provides high-quality, LED brilliance but also not out of harmony with the architectural style.

Ahead of its time, the Prince depot included solar panels in the interior, and Gay said the authority is trying to ascertain the feasibility of adding them to the roof.

Amtrak provides six trains weekly, and Gay said the authority is trying to justify a return to daily runs by the Cardinal.

“We feel the population will support it,” he said.

“The Greenbrier hotel has had good outreach with Amtrak since Mr. (Jim) Justice bought it. There have been some good loadings at White Sulphur Springs.”

Gay sees the Prince depot as “the crown jewel” of travel for the Summit, since it lies only 7 miles away.

“We’re looking to bring Scouts in by train each summer,” he told the commission.

“We’re looking to a long-term, on-going relationship with them.”

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In other business, the commission:

— Unsealed three bids for installing a heating and air conditioning unit in the Campbell Building, to be re-occupied by the prosecuting attorney’s office.

Bids were submitted by Pennington Heating and Plumbing, Beckley, for $60,000; Childers Enterprises, also Beckley, $32,985; and J.H. Holt Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning, Inc., Beckley, $44,850.

All three offers will be reviewed by the county engineer before the commission awards a contract.

— Approved demolition and debris removal orders at burned-out structures in Eunice and Eccles. Owners were given 60 days to comply.

 Hired Tricia Meador as a part-time employee on the staff of Assessor Drema Evans.

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com