THOMAS, W.Va. — A 2,700-acre tract of land which is largely the view the public gets from Lindy Point in the Blackwater Falls State Park will soon be protected in perpetuity. John Crites, owner of the beleaguered Allegheny Wood Products company has agreed to a sale of the long talked about property to the U.S. Forest Service.
“I am very excited. I got a call form Senator Manchin telling me this was going to happen and it took my breath away,” said Judy Rodd, executive director of the Friends of Blackwater.
Rodd’s organization was formed almost 25 years ago with the expressed purpose of working to get this particular property in the Blackwater Canyon into some form of public ownership.
“We were getting very doubtful, especially knowing Senator Manchin was leaving office. He had been a big hero on this in 2005 when he was Governor. So we’re so happy this land will become part of the Monongahela,” said Rodd.
Rodd and the organization along with Manchin in the early 2000’s worked at creating a National Park for the area, but ultimately the proposal did not work out. Now that the announcement of the sale has been made, Rodd was indifferent to which federal agency held jurisdiction over the land, but simply pleased it will be a public place for all to enjoy.
“At this point it does not matter, we’re just excited there’s a federal agency with some money to put into it,” said Rodd.
She was already thinking about improvements and upgrades she’d like to see on the land for accessibility. Rodd said they’d like to see improvements on the Rail Trail which links Thomas to Parsons along the old railroad grade. The trail for about half its distance was a shared ownership for many years between the Forest Service and AWP. Hikers and mountain bikers still used the Forest Service side of the trail and helped to maintain it, but the USFS would never promote or invest in the area because of the property divide.
The property also includes the two banks of the Blackwater River for a distance. Rodd believed it would enable better access for those who like to fish and enjoy kayaking the Blackwater Canyon.
Manchin issued the following statement on the land sale.
“This is a huge win for the Mountain State and the nation as people are able to enjoy more of the true treasures of Wild and Wonderful West Virginia,” said Manchin. ” John Crites and his family have been wonderful stewards of their land in Blackwater Canyon for many years. I thank the Crites family for their willingness to allow this spectacular area to be permanently available to the public and thank my colleague and friend Senator Capito for her ongoing support of this effort.”
“When this deal is complete, it will provide wonderful outdoor recreation opportunities, which will strengthen opportunities for tourism, job creation and economic growth in the region,” Manchin continued. “I am proud to have worked with both the Crites family and the Forest Service to help make this agreement possible, and look forward to continuing working to improve public National Forest. The parcel will be acquired using funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Manchin previously sponsored the outdoor recreational access.”
The land to be acquired is bordered by Blackwater Falls State Park and the Monongahela law that permanently authorized the LWCF, and later authored the Great American Outdoors Act, which provides dedicated funding for LWCF land acquisition projects each year. Based on a recently completed Forest Service appraisal, the purchase price is expected to be about $14 million.
The Forest Service’s acquisition of the property is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Story by Chris Lawrence, MetroNews