Infrastructure at a Glance
COMPILED BY JENNIFER JETT PREZKOP
Change is happening in West Virginia. Small businesses remain the backbone of the state’ s economy, and a movement to support and promote the creative class is encouraging new entrepreneurs to take the leap into business ownership. The West Virginia Department of Commerce continues its efforts to recruit new businesses into the state while assisting local manufacturers in marketing their products around the world. These days, West Virginia really is“ Open for Business.”
Ensuring the state remains open for economic development has its challenges, one of the most critical being the state’ s outdated infrastructure. In order to recruit businesses to the Mountain State, vital pieces of infrastructure like roads, water lines and broadband must be reliable and accessible.
Necessary infrastructure doesn’ t end with highways, pipelines and connectivity, though. Looking around us, there are forms of infrastructure that impact every element of day-to-day
Architecture
BY JUDY BELCHER. The word infrastructure typically calls to mind transportation and utilities, but buildings such as schools, courts, libraries and affordable housing are just as vital as roads, bridges and mass transit systems. Schools are the second largest public infrastructure investment after transportation. West Virginia’ s schools have an estimated capital expenditure gap of $ 265 million. Unless buildings are included in the discussion about public infrastructure, taxpayers will be stuck with decrepit community places, higher energy bills, deferred maintenance expenses and vulnerable structures.
When designing new buildings, the state must focus on smart design and energy efficiency. Almost 40 percent of all U. S. energy is consumed by buildings that produce carbon through heating, cooling, lighting and construction. Building codes are the foundation of a resilient, efficient and safe infrastructure. The codes that have been adopted in West Virginia protect life and property and ensure the built environment’ s ability to withstand extreme weather events, devastating fires and seismic and geologic events.
Whether living in cities or rural towns, West Virginians deserve quality public infrastructure that uplifts their communities. The infrastructure designed today must be worthy of passing down to our children tomorrow. life, some of which are overlooked during conversations about infrastructure. The success of the banking industry; the health of the state’ s construction, engineering and architecture industries; and the evolution of health care are all important infrastructure issues that, when pulled together, create a clear image of what it takes to support and grow cities throughout the state and the state as a whole.
In this infrastructure overview, West Virginia Executive asked industry leaders in multiple types of infrastructure to provide an update on the challenges they are facing and how they are addressing them. While West Virginia’ s infrastructure may have its challenges, leaders in industries across the state are paying attention, and they are pushing for action to address the problems that prohibit growth. In order for West Virginians to take advantage of the opportunities at hand, the state’ s infrastructure must be a top priority.
Banking
BY SALLY CLINE. Banks play a critical role in maintaining vibrant local economies by creating jobs, lending to small businesses and providing banking services to consumers. Historically, community banks have served West Virginia well. In 2016, West Virginia banks served 2.2 million customers through loan and deposit services, extended $ 2.6 billion in small business loans and employed 8,858 people.
In recent years, community banks have been disadvantaged by federal regulations. After the recession, federal policy makers surmised regulatory controls could be used to curb future crises, and several new regulations were imposed on the banking industry, many of which disproportionately affected community banks. This led to higher costs of doing business and a significant decline in the number of community banks across the country. The number of bank charters in West Virginia has declined by 15 percent in less than three years.
The future of community banking depends on how the industry responds to excessive regulation and consolidation. It is important banks maintain a diverse and decentralized financial system to support our economies, consumers and small businesses. However, equitable regulation is needed so community banks are not constrained by rules designed for the largest financial institutions.
WWW. WVEXECUTIVE. COM SUMMER 2018
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