County Economic Development Corporation (HCEDC). The
organization encourages the creation of good-paying jobs
for Harrison County residents and assists them with loans,
investments and other business transactions while also helping
bring new industries to the area, rehabilitate and assist existing
businesses, provide maximum opportunities for employment
and improve the standard of living.
“Through fostering a shared, common vision with all parties
engaged in economic development, the HCEDC desires to be
a leader in bringing business prosperity and economic well-
being to all of Harrison County,” says Executive Director Amy
Haberbosch Wilson.
The ribbon-
cutting ceremony
for the new
Clear Mountain
Bank branch in
Bridgeport.
Photo by Ben Queen
Photography.
Fresh offerings
from the
Bridgeport
Farmers Market.
Photo by Ben Queen
Photography.
Local business
leaders at Governor
Jim Justice’s North
Central West
Virginia Airport
presentation.
Photo by Ben Queen
Photography.
Business is Booming
With rates of unemployment and cost of living below the
national average, affordable land, the country’s sixth lowest
property tax burden and proximity to more than half of the
U.S. population, it’s no wonder why Harrison County is
attractive to a variety of industries.
Harrison County’s greatest strength lies in the diversity
of its business community. While the state of West Virginia
works to diversify its economy, Harrison County’s labor force
of 31,255 people currently serves 2,975 companies in the
health care, aerospace, biometrics, manufacturing, oil and
natural gas, social services, public administration, retail and
food services sectors. The region’s credentials include impres-
sive anchors such as the FBI Criminal Justice Information
Services Division, Department of Defense Army Biometrics Task
Force, United Hospital Center, EQT Corporation, Dominion
Energy, Lockheed Martin, Antero Resources Corporation,
Allegheny Science and Technology and The Thrasher Group.
While these companies continue to flourish, county leader-
ship has ensured room for growth with development sites such
as the Mid-Atlantic Aerospace Complex, MCP Mountaineer
Energy Park, White Oaks Business Park, Charles Pointe,
Meadowbrook Industrial Park, North Central West Virginia
Airport (CKB), Harrison County Industrial Park and Meadow
brook Business Park. These spaces provide opportunities for
new businesses and industries to locate in Harrison County
while also satisfying the needs of existing entities.
Leading the charge to promote, develop and advance the busi-
ness prosperity and economic welfare of the area is the Harrison
Education is Power
An educated workforce is an integral part of an expanding
economy, and central to the success of Harrison County is its
formidable educational system, at the heart of which is Fairmont
State University, located in neighboring Marion County. Fairmont
State educates a higher percentage of native West Virginians
than any other higher education institution in the Mountain
State with 88 percent of its students hailing from the state. In
Bridgeport, 45.3 percent of adults over the age of 25 hold a
college degree, which puts it near the top of the most educated
cities in the state.
One of the things that makes Harrison County so unique
is its relationship with this four-year university, which creates
specific academic programs to meet the needs of the region’s
burgeoning industries—particularly aviation and aerospace.
This allows these industries to continue to grow while also
keeping graduates in West Virginia. With a new, secondary
campus at Charles Pointe in Harrison County, Fairmont State
also offers higher education opportunities for nontraditional
students, including adults returning to school to pursue a new
career track and high school students pursuing dual enrollment
in college-level courses. The Charles Pointe campus also hosts
the school’s aviation program, which offers the only FAA Part
141 flight school in West Virginia.
A student of
Fairmont State
University’s
FAA Part 141
flight school.
Photo by Jared
Tadlock.
Kids Entrepreneurship
Day at Meadowbrook
Mall. Photo by Ben
Queen Photography.
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