Community Investment Is Important for the Summers Companies
For the Summers Companies, investment in the community
goes hand-in-hand with investment in the business. Such
investment began years ago under founder Al Summers and
continues under the leadership of his son, T.J. Summers.
Many contributions have come in the form of infrastructure
aiding development in Putnam County. For example, they
donated and expanded sewer and water systems that serve
not only their properties but also other nearby properties.
When the state expanded the I-64/W.Va. Route 34 bridge and
roadway at Exit 39 from three lanes to six lanes, Summers, at
the companies’ own expense, extended twin concrete culverts
to make the project possible. Further, the companies sold 11
acres to the state at a fraction of its value to assist in
completing the I-64/U.S. 35 interchange.
When the Putnam County Chamber of Commerce needed a
better headquarters, as well as the Putnam County
Development Authority and the Visitors and Convention
Bureau, T.J. Summers sold the chamber a 5,600-square-foot
former day care facility in 2016 at well below the appraisal
price. “I wanted to ensure that the chamber and the other
agencies could have a good location to promote the county,”
he says. “It was in the best interest of the county.”
“My father would be very happy to
see our companies continuing the
tradition he started by helping the
communities of West Virginia.”
- T.J. Summers
Ashley Alford, chamber interim president, credits T.J.
Summers with playing a major role in helping the
organizations relocate as well as setting up a co-working
space called Area 34. “He worked with us so that we
could secure a prime, visible location that not only gave
the chamber a new home, but he also believed in the
concept of Area 34 that gives start-ups and home-based
businesses a place to grow,” she says.
Years ago, the Summers Companies donated space
for Putnam County’s Museum in the Community. The
museum paid only for utilities but stayed rent free for nine
years. Summers even paid taxes on the space. In
addition, Summers donated Putnam County Library’s
land, located at Putnam Village Drive and W.Va. Route
34.
Beyond offering free space, Summers has donated
funds to such causes as the Teays Valley Volunteer Fire
Department, the Prestera Foundation and flood relief in
the Clendenin area and Clay County, while encouraging
shopping center tenants to do their own charity work.
These are just a small number of community
contributions the Summers Companies have made over
the years and don’t include many made in Charleston,
where Al Summers got started.
“My father would be very happy to see our companies
continuing the tradition he started by helping the
communities of West Virginia,” T.J. Summers says.
The Conference room of Area 34, a co-working space Summers
helped create.