Business View Civil & Municipal l November 2022

60 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 3, ISSUE 9 To help attract new business, Putnam County has invested $1.2 million of its American Rescue funds to create its own broadband infrastructure. “The county’s investment will allow our residents to choose their internet provider, and it will be a county-run utility. It will be the first in the state, and we’re really excited about that,” Alford- Glance says. “Not only will it be a huge benefit to our residents, but also when we are seeking new companies to our areas, and to our existing companies.” Maintaining a county-run utility will drive down costs and increase competitive services. The county also works with its local school board on workforce development all the way from K-12 schools to higher level education. “We have a county career and technical center that is aggressively trying to provide the skilled training that’s needed at the high school level, not only for Toyota, but also forthcoming with Nucor. Putnam Career and Technical Center also works alongside our WV Community and Technical College System to ensure a seamless transition and accurate workforce skills,” Tenney says. Working with local businesses and organizations to ensure they are happy and getting what they want out of the county is a priority for Putnam. Every year the Chamber brings together all the organizations in the community, its county commission, elected officials, cities and municipalities, non-profit organizations, property owners, and large and small business owners to collectively work to improve the community. “We never worked with the mindset of ‘if it’s not broke, don’t fix it,’’ Alford-Glance says. “It’s kind of our annual maintenance. Every year we set at least three to five goals to work on with all our organizations in our county to make sure we are solving problems before they arise and making our community even better than it is.” As they look to the future, Putnam County is ready to roll out the welcome mat, with a friendly smile for anyone looking to call it home. “I’m very excited to see all the people who are going to be moving here for Nucor Steel and continue to be thankful for Toyota’s growth in our county as well,” Tenney says. “That means there are new kids going into our school systems and more people that we will see eating out. We are ready to welcome and befriend all the new faces that will be joining us here in Putnam County.” PREFERRED VENDOR/ PARTNER n DHB LLC www.davehobbabuilder.com Since 2000, Dave Hobba Builder has built over 500 homes and townhomes in West Virginia and Kentucky. The company has developed several communities totaling over 500 lots. Recognized by the West Virginia Home Builders Associations’ “Best of West Virginia” and Charleston Gazette-Mail’ “Best in the Valley”. For more information, visit our website DaveHobbaBuilder.com n Gritt’s Farm www.grittsfarm.com Kelli Steele, Executive Director at Putnam County Convention and Visitors Bureau