strength in wood products and numerous tourism opportunities
that are influenced by major drivers like The Greenbrier and
the Summit Bechtel Reserve. Economic development leaders
should focus on factors such as further promoting the area
for tourism and attracting more manufacturing to the area.
Metro Valley
The Metro Valley region has seen mixed results in recent
years with small declines in employment but slight increases in
wages. However, the region enjoys several strengths. The urban
nature of the area is an asset for economic development, espe-
cially with the attractive housing possibilities throughout the
region. Perhaps most importantly, the footprint of auto parts
and petrochemical manufacturing in the area is a potentially
major source of strength. In particular, given that the state is
poised for significant growth in this sector in coming years,
this petrochemical manufacturing footprint could be a major
asset for the region that can be built upon by leveraging net-
work effects with the existing businesses that are in the region
with potentially new and related businesses.
Mid-State
Although most of the growth in West Virginia’s natural gas
industry has occurred in counties to the north and west of the
Mid-State counties, this region has benefited from the industry’s
rebound over the past couple of years. Indeed, the four-county
area—especially Lewis and Upshur counties—contains a
healthy number of businesses that provide transportation and
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WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE
engineering support services for drilling and exploration com-
panies operating in the state. Pipeline construction has also
provided a boost to regional economic activity as the Mountain
Valley Pipeline and Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) projects are
being constructed within the area’s geographic footprint. The
latter project does pose a downside risk to the region’s near-
term expected performance, as the ACP’s construction has
seen prolonged delays following a court-ordered stay of several
required federal permits in late 2018 and the outcome of court
appeals is uncertain at this time.
The Mid-State region, like other rural portions of West Virginia,
faces sizable demographic challenges going forward, most
notably a shrinking workforce and overcoming the impacts
of the opioid epidemic. However, the area has potential for
positive—albeit moderate—growth over the longer term. In
addition to leveraging the area’s potential for natural gas develop-
ment and expanding its network of industry support services,
the four-county region’s wealth of natural amenities points to
placing an emphasis on marketing its tourism opportunities
and enhancing infrastructure access, both transportation and
broadband.
Mid-Ohio Valley
The Mid-Ohio Valley has experienced some significant
economic volatility in recent years. The area has registered
measurable job losses within several of its longer-established
manufacturing industries and has also experienced some siz-
able layoff activity within the retail trade sector, which can be