West Virginia
Town hall meeting scheduled to discuss proposed Google data center in Putnam County – WV MetroNews
BUFFALO, W.Va. –The Buffalo community and surrounding areas will have the opportunity to discuss next steps in opposing a proposed data center Friday evening.
It was announced in late March by Governor Patrick Morrisey that Google had purchased 1,700 acres of land on both sides of Route 62 in Buffalo to construct a new data center. The site—on the opposite end from the Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia plant—was considered attractive due to Appalachian Power’s existing 765-kV transmission line that runs through the property.
Individuals will meet at Buffalo Town Hall at 6:30 p.m. to discuss community concerns and determine next steps.
“At the moment, it just feels like everyone is upset, but we don’t have a clear plan of action, we don’t know where to direct our concerns, so hopefully we can come together to just ensure that we’re raising a unified voice, with clear goals and a consistent message,” Heather Ransom, meeting organizer and Pliny resident, said on MetroNews Midday Thursday.
Ahead of the meeting, Ransom discussed some of the questions surrounding the proposed data center.
“If I had to kind of sum them up, the lack of transparency, the potential financial burden, and then of course the health and environmental impact from various types of pollution,” she said.
Google said it is committed to covering the cost of any infrastructure needed to operate the center, including water, sewer, and electrical transmission.
The data centers coming to West Virginia are the result of House Bill 2014, which created the Power Generation and Consumption Act. The law established the certified microgrid program to promote economic development and attract high-impact data centers.
Ransom said there are questions surrounding this particular data center, as well as data centers in general, due to a lack of regulation.
“There’s lots of questions about this facility in particular, but there are plenty of questions around AI data center’s more generally, and there aren’t adequate studies, there’s no clear regulation, there’s this rush to get them built and it seems irresponsible at best,” she said.
The community had the opportunity to voice its opinions to the Putnam County Commission during its April 14 meeting.
Ransom said a range of individuals with diverse backgrounds spoke.
“There were a lot of different concerns, so I certainly can’t represent all of them,” she said. “I know there was one gentleman who spoke who was very well versed in the actual technology around the data center and the implications kind of at a larger scale at what AI can actually result in.”
During that meeting, Commission President Andy Skidmore stated that the available acreage could accommodate up to four data centers.
BOONE COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) – We have a traffic alert for drivers in the Danville area of Boone County.
Starting on Friday, they should expect delays as crew perform work on the Jill Micah Hess Bridge along U.S. 119.
According to the West Virginia Department of Transportation, northbound traffic will be shifted from the slow lane to the fast lane.
This will take place from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and drivers are asked to expect delays.
Copyright 2026 WSAZ. All rights reserved.
West Virginia
Community Catalyst Grant applications are open through West Virginia First Foundation through June 30 – WV MetroNews
The West Virginia First Foundation, which was established to use drug lawsuit settlement money to try to alleviate problems related to addiction, reported having access to $378.5 million in financial resources and noted that more than $34 million in grants have been awarded since the organization’s start.
The West Virginia First Foundation met for a few minutes Thursday at Ascend West Virginia in Charleston. The meeting was also available for view through streaming.
Executive Director Jonathan Board highlighted the launch of the Community Catalyst Grant application and a statewide needs assessment intended to identify service gaps.
Designed as a three-year, outcomes-driven investment, the program will support projects focused on public safety response, day report centers and generational prevention efforts. The program opened for applications on June 1 and remains open through June 30.
“We’re very encouraged by the interest and engagement so far,” Board said.
The board also approved a $4 million funding request for the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute. The project is focused on expanding access to innovative addiction treatment and recovery support tools while building the technology and infrastructure needed to support implementation across West Virginia.
Additional details about the project and funding agreement are to be released in the coming weeks following the completion of final documentation. West Virginia First Foundation and Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute plan to issue a joint announcement once the agreement process is complete.
“They’ve gone through a very rigorous process for the correct funding,” Board said. “Their team has presented an opportunity to fund a project that will build technology, training and support systems of care needed to expand access to an innovative addiction treatment approach throughout the state of West Virginia, and really beyond.”
The West Virginia First Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 2023 to manage and distribute 72.5% of the state’s opioid settlement funds, totaling hundreds of millions of dollars. The organization is aimed at combatting the addiction crisis through grants and regional projects.
The next regular meeting of the Foundation’s Board of Directors is scheduled for Sept. 17 although it’s subject to change.
West Virginia may have come up empty-handed in two tries against North Carolina in the College World Series, but they earned the respect of their head coach, Scott Forbes, who was incredibly complimentary of the Mountaineers following Wednesday’s game.
“I want to congratulate West Virginia. A heck of a team, a heck of a run,” he opened his postgame press conference with. “They are very well coached. They just play the game the right way. It’s a credit to their coaching staff. They come at you a lot of ways. A lot of speed, deep pitching staff, so we really had to work in those two games to beat them. I’ve been in their shoes, and I know what that feels like, and it’s a stinker. But man, they got a lot to be proud of, and they should be extremely proud of how they represented their university.”
The culture at WVU is as strong as it gets
Multiple times this season, West Virginia looked like they were well on their way to a loss and were rewarded with a win because they never stopped playing hard. Everyone thinks of the two games against Kentucky in the Morgantown Regional, and rightfully so, but they also came back to win after trailing by eight against UCF and after trailing by five to BYU.
For a moment, there was a belief that the magical moment was going to come again during Wednesday’s game against Forbes’ Tar Heels. With two outs in the 7th and trailing 12-1, Armani Guzman busted his tail down the first base line to beat out a grounder to short. It ultimately led to a five-run inning for the Mountaineers, all of a sudden turning a laugher into a semi-interesting game. Gavin Kelly hit a solo home run in the 8th to make it a five-run deficit, and in the ninth, Ben Lumsden just missed a three-run shot that would have really put pressure on North Carolina, even with two outs.
To have your team still playing hard when trailing by 11 with their season likely about to come to an end, it says a lot about the character of this group, but also how deeply ingrained the culture is at WVU. There’s a reason this program has turned the corner over the last 14 or so years and is continuing to trend up. They’ve had the right people in place leading it.
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