McDowell County gets $851,000 for Jolo water line extension

Water service on Baker Ridge Road, Panther Creek Road, Rock Ridge and Lex is set to expand after McDowell County Public Service District landed $851,000 in new state money for a Jolo-area line extension. Governor Patrick Morrisey announced the award Monday, June 8, as part of about $3.3 million in funding and financing the West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council approved for four water projects across Webster, Kanawha, Brooke and McDowell counties.

The McDowell project is expected to help 119 homes and local businesses, and the full price tag rises to about $9.8 million when the state award is combined with support from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the Appalachian Regional Commission and the Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program. For residents along those roads, the practical payoff will come when the extension reaches the area and water service becomes dependable enough to support daily use, not just new development on paper.

Morrisey cast the spending as more than a utility upgrade. “When we invest in water infrastructure, we’re investing in people, communities, and the future of West Virginia,” he said, adding that the projects would improve public health and expand opportunities for housing and business development. In McDowell County, that means the line extension is being treated as part of the county’s economic base, not only as a fix for taps and pipes.

The Jolo project fits a pattern that has repeated across McDowell County. In May 2022, the U.S. Economic Development Administration announced a $6.48 million grant for McDowell County Public Service District’s Phase III Elkhorn Water project in Welch, matched by $1.62 million in local investment. That project was meant to provide potable water and fire protection service to customers, including about 50 businesses, and federal officials said it could create 85 jobs, retain 40 jobs and generate $4 million in private investment.

State officials have also kept legacy-coalfield water work on the front burner through the Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program. The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection says AMLER has committed more than $268 million in grant funding since 2016, and Morrisey announced another $9.5 million in AMLER grants on Feb. 13 for five water and sewer projects in McDowell and Mingo counties.

That broader spending comes as McDowell County systems remain under pressure. March hearings on Gary’s water system drew attention to annual reports showing 90% to 94% water loss, underscoring why the county keeps returning to state and federal partners for help. The new Jolo award is another step in that same effort, with the clearest local benefit reserved for the homes and businesses waiting for water to reach their roads.