Office of the Governor > News > Press Releases > 2020 Press Releases > Gov. Justice approves award of Berkeley Springs Bypass project; spotlights progress on $25 million improvement project at Cacapon Resort State Park

Gov. Justice approves award of Berkeley Springs Bypass project; spotlights progress on $25 million improvement project at Cacapon Resort State Park

10/18/2020

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​BERKELEY SPRINGS, WV – Gov. Jim Justice joined West Virginia Division of Natural Resources Director Steve McDaniel and local officials for an event today at Cacapon Resort State Park, both to announce the bid award for the nearby Berkeley Springs Bypass project and to spotlight over $25 million-worth of improvement work underway at the resort. “We’re doing all kinds of incredible things that are going to make life better, right in our backyard; right here, right now,” Gov. Justice said  “All across West Virginia, we’re upgrading our parks, we have major road projects underway, and we’re recording surplus after surplus, all with no new taxes. To be able to do multiple major projects like this right now in Morgan County, particularly in an area as beautiful as Berkeley Springs, is fantastic.”

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The Governor first discussed the Berkeley Springs Bypass, a Roads to Prosperity project, which will improve traffic flow and operations in Morgan County with a four-lane highway with a diamond interchange at the intersection with WV 9. The contract for the road project was awarded to contractor Trumbull Corporation, with an apparent low bid of $59,822,690.44. This new road will allow vehicles to bypass US 522, which sees a current traffic volume of 13,400 vehicles per day, approximately 30 percent of those vehicles are trucks. The new Berkeley Springs Bypass will be a little over three miles long, beginning south of Winchester Grade Road and extending north of Martinsburg Road. The project includes construction of three bridges – one mainline bridge and one overpass bridge – and three new at-grade intersections, plus an interchange with existing WV9/Martinsburg Road. “This project will alleviate traffic congestion, enhance safety, and increase roadway capacity along the US 522 corridor,” Gov. Justice said. “There’s a lot of people putting in a lot of good licks to make these things happen.”

Over $1 billion-worth of major infrastructure improvement projects through Gov. Justice’s Roads To Prosperity program have either been completed to date or are currently underway. Gov. Justice was joined at the event by West Virginia Senator Charles Trump, Senator Craig Blair, and West Virginia House of Delegates Speaker Pro Tempore Daryl Cowles. “This project is important for human safety,” Senator Trump said. It’s going to be a great project for Morgan County, and for the safety of the people of West Virginia and people from all over the United States who drive this highway. “Governor, I’ll say this up here in front of everybody else, it’s been a dream of a lot of us for a long time,” Trump continued. “The design of it started a generation ago. But it was your Roads To Prosperity program, where you went all around the state of West Virginia, made the case that we need to invest in our infrastructure, and the sale of those bonds, a couple billion dollars of infrastructure investment in West Virginia that is a result of your leadership.”

“This is a great day,” Senator Blair said. “It was the perseverance of everybody that made this happen. “When you’re talking about these bond projects, they were done in a way that was responsible, we’ve done ‘pay as you go’ as we’ve gone through these projects, and that was because of great leadership,” Blair continued.

“It will make a difference, these enormous investments in infrastructure here in Berkeley Springs and Morgan County, Governor, it will change people’s lives,” Speaker Pro Tempore Cowles said. “The economics of that – it’s great to have a safe highway, it’s great to have the trucks out of downtown for the tourism industry – but let’s not forget that this will change people’s lives. It will lift and raise the boats of home budgets and the prosperity of regular citizens everyday,” Cowles continued.

While at Cacapon Resort State Park, Gov. Justice also spotlighted the progress on a multi-million dollar project to bring much-needed upgrades to Cacapon Resort and provide additional attractions for visitors to the Eastern Panhandle. The $25.3 million project is adding 78 guest rooms, a dining room, a lounge, a spa, and an indoor pool. Existing facilities are also receiving major upgrades, including remodeling each existing guest room, creating new conference space, renovating the lobby, and upgrading utility and electrical equipment. Gov. Justice attended the groundbreaking ceremony for the project in November 2018. This work is being funded by bonds financed with excess lottery revenues, which is part of the Governor’s plan to upgrade and modernize aging state parks. The project is expected to be completed early 2021. Paramount Buildings from St. Albans is the contractor. West Virginia Division of Natural Resources Director Steve McDaniel also announced today that Cacapon will also be breaking ground this spring on an additional project to add a 26-slot RV park to the resort. “The day that the Governor hired me, and he looked at me and said, ‘We are going to bring West Virginia back and one of the vehicles we’re going to do that with is tourism. We’re going to show the world just how special West Virginia is,’” Director McDaniel said. “As I stand here today, under the Governor’s leadership, we will have invested over $100 million in West Virginia's state parks by the end of this year.

“After 20 years of waiting for upgrades at Cacapon, it took Governor Justice coming in here, giving us the direction, working with the delegates and senators, and we’re getting it done,” McDaniel continued. Major improvements have now been completed or started at every state park in West Virginia. Over the past month, Gov. Justice has announced $2.4 million in improvements at Tygart Lake State Park and another $12 million in improvement projects coming to Blackwater Falls and Canaan Valley Resort state parks. “It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out just how good we can be,” Gov. Justice said. “It is amazing how many people want goodness for our state and are truly willing to step up and do it. “I’m a coach and I’m a believer, really and truly, when you turn your team loose, you can do all kinds of good stuff,” Gov. Justice continued. “And right now, the team’s playing dadgum good ball, that’s all there is to it, and we just need them to keep doing exactly just that.”

“This park project, Governor, has been the dream of the people in this county for a generation,” Senator Trump said. “The truth is, Governor, although a lot of people have thought, ‘Yeah, that would be a great idea if the state would make an investment in Cacapon.’ Politicians, over the years, have come here and talked about it; a lot of talking, but it didn’t happen until you became the Governor. “I attribute it, in part, to the vision that you have, which is the result of coming from a business background, and being really the first Governor we’ve ever had in this state that really understands the hospitality and tourism industry,” Trump continued. “There is going to be a return on this investment. This is going to return dollars to the state, to the taxpayers, to the people making investment, but it’s also going to help grow the economy for the whole area, and it’s going to give people a new perspective of West Virginia, new opportunities to travel here, and I couldn’t be happier that I am today.” “We are changing the state of West Virginia,” Senator Blair said. “It was the horsepower of this Governor that did it. “You think like a businessman,” Blair continued. “That applies to this project. It also applies to the bypass project. “Today is a wonderful day,” Speaker Pro Tempore Cowles said. “I’ve walked around all day smiling, because today has been a long time coming. “I thank you, Governor,” Cowles continued. “It was you that came and delivered for us. We appreciate it and it’s going to make a difference.”

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