Northern West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center launches BAD Buildings program website and toolkit

A highly visible abandoned and dilapidated building in downtown Fairmont, WV.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Centers are pleased to announce the rollout of the West Virginia Brownfield, Abandoned and Dilapidated (BAD) Buildings website and toolkit.
The BAD Buildings toolkit is an invaluable resource designed specifically for West Virginia communities to help them address the issue of blighted, abandoned, and dilapidated properties, accessed via wvbadbuildings.org.

The West Virginia BAD Buildings Program is a statewide initiative that provides communities with technical assistance, tools, resources, and a clear implementation process to address their problem properties.

Through wvbadbuildings.org, communities can download tools and templates to:

• Survey and prioritize buildings
• Engage a property owner
• Prevent blight
• Build a partnership network
• Address demolition and deconstruction
• Manage a brownfield

Tools include the BAD Building survey sheet, inventory, prioritization grid, letter templates, and a community beautification guide.

Visitors to wvbadbuildings.org will also find success stories from West Virginia communities who have tackled blight through local programs, volunteer efforts, and municipal ordinances. These stories include contact information so that communities can connect and learn from each other’s experiences.

The site also includes links to grants and loans for projects related to historic preservation, community building, economic development, demolition and deconstruction, and links to regional resources. The front page features news stories highlighting events and information relating to the abandoned and dilapidated building issue.

BAD Buildings is a program of the Northern West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center, which is housed in the West Virginia Water Research Institute at West Virginia University.

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Contact: Luke Elser, Northern West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center
304.293.6990, luke.elser@mail.wvu.edu