Thanksgiving, November of 2017. A public notice was run in the paper about rezoning in the city of Ranson WV, to accommodate heavy industry. Thus began a chain of events that brought Rockwool to Jefferson County. Fast forward to April 5, 2023 when another public notice was run in the same newspaper about rezoning the remaining portion of Jefferson Orchards to “industrial”. Are plans being made to bring another toxic, polluting company to our home? While investigating how Rockwool came to be in Jefferson County we discovered that Ranson and state officials planned to create a 1000 acre industrial park in the Eastern Panhandle. Are they on their way to achieving this with the most recent notification to re-zone more of the former Orchards to “industrial”?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
JCV Needs your help now!
How can this type of change happen again? It definitely does not have citizen input. The Ranson Planning Commission, which oversees zoning changes, has only met once since September 2022. Instead of holding regular meetings, the Planning Commission is spending your money needlessly by hiring outside contractors to conduct regular Planning Commission business. In so doing, the Planning Commission is circumventing the public process, denying the citizens of Jefferson County the right to transparency. The right to know what is going on in our county. Additionally, the Ranson City Council has business that needs to be addressed which can’t happen if the Planning Commission doesn’t meet. We need a Planning Commission in Ranson capable of meeting regularly and assessing zoning needs themselves without spending money with outside contractors. A Commission with the ability to listen to the people of Ranson and what businesses they want brought to their town and county.
What can You Do?
Members of the planning commission DO NOT have email available for public communications. Please email Ranson City Council Members and Mayor Pierson below and ask them to forward on to the private emails they are using.
Keith D. Pierson Mayor of Ranson at Dpierson@ransonwv.us
Mike Anderson, Ranson City Council and President of Ranson Planning Commission at Mike Anderson MAnderson@ransonwv.us
Ranson City Council:
Tommy Custer tcuster@ransonwv.us
Amanda Stroud astroud@ransonwv.us
Andy Colandrea acolandrea@ransonwv.us
Mike Anderson MAnderson@ransonwv.us
Herbert McDaniel hmcdaniel@ransonwv.us
Ken Suits ksuits@ransonwv.us
Not sure what to say in your email? We’ve put some talking points together to help:
- No more heavy industry in Jefferson County. No re-zoning to accommodate it.
- The Planning Commission needs to meet regularly. If they can’t, the members need to be replaced so that they can meet and be effective.
- No more businesses/developments that require an air emissions permit.
- Stop wasting taxpayer money for contractors to do what the Ranson Planning Commission should be doing themselves.
