Together, we made it happen. Now the real work begins.

The Charleston Area Alliance today is proud and excited following Governor Manchin’s announcement that the State of West Virginia will accept Dow Chemical Company’s donation of property and buildings at the South Charleston Technology Park.

We look forward to working with the Governor, the Higher Education Policy Commission, the Chemical Alliance Zone, Advantage Valley and many others to create a recipe for success at the tech park. This project represents the opportunity of a generation.

We stand ready to work with our visionary partners to market the property and its assets, attract new companies and private investment to the site and help it become a research commercialization hub for the East Coast, as well as support MATRIC in its continued growth.

The Governor has asked for support from the private sector. The Alliance is speaking for its more than 600 business members and the business community as a whole when we pledge to continue investing time, expertise and resources to realize the potential of the tech park. 

We commend the Governor and West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission Chancellor Brian Noland for their commitment to the “new” tech park and their diligence in gathering and analyzing the information needed to make a final decision on such a complex project. Through their determined leadership, West Virginia has set its own course for the future. 

We recognize the donation is a major undertaking for the state. It requires a significant investment. The potential payoff, though, is well worthwhile – sustainable economic development that will spur entrepreneurship, attract private investment and create high-value jobs.  It’s about growth, something West Virginia desperately needs.

When the state accepted Dow’s donation, it saved 500 jobs. Today, many of our friends and neighbors will rest easier, knowing they can remain in the Kanawha Valley rather than look for work elsewhere. The Charleston-Metro region is still home to dozens of young minds, who are more confident in the state’s dedication to their future.

Just as important, the park’s facilities hold the promise of creating thousands of new jobs. We envision a globally-competitive innovation center where research is commercialized to meet global challenges and help West Virginia industry stay competitive in a changing world.

The Governor has affirmed his vision in such a center with a higher education component, a model that has been a blueprint for success in other parts of the country. Thanks to the Governor, Chancellor Noland, Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Paul Hill and others within the Governor’s staff, we can start making that vision a reality.

The citizens of the region and of the state were instrumental in moving this project forward. A grassroots effort brought this project to the forefront of the state’s public policy agenda. Thank you.

Now let’s work to create the future.

This FAQs list was created to address issues related to Dow Chemical Company’s offer to donate property at the South Charleston Technology Park to the State of West Virginia. We encourage you to learn more about the project and see what you can do to ensure that its potential is realized before it is too late:
 

1. Exactly what is Dow proposing to donate?

Dow has proposed and is willing to donate 258 acres of its technology park including fully outfitted laboratory buildings, pilot plants and infrastructure to the State of West Virginia.  

2. Why does Dow want to donate this property?

As a publicly-traded global corporation, Dow has made strategic business decisions that have resulted in the downsizing of its research and development activities at the South Charleston site.  The company incurs significant expenses each year to maintain buildings and property it no longer needs.   

3. Is Dow leaving the technology park?

Dow would likely continue as a tenant in this park rather than a “landlord.”  This donation does not impact the manufacturing facilities of Dow that are located off of MacCorkle Avenue in South Charleston.  Those plants will continue in their operation.  

4. Are there environmental issues on the portions that Dow will donate?

Comprehensive environmental studies have been conducted by several neutral parties and the data collected show no reason that the donation cannot occur. 

5. Is Dow passing off its environmental liability to the state?

Under federal law, Dow is not permitted to “give away” any responsibility arising from potential environmental issues.   (more…)

The Charleston Area Alliance, Chemical Alliance Zone and MATRIC Boards of Directors at 10:30 a.m. this morning will meet jointly to consider a resolution reiterating the importance of the South Charleston Technology Park to West Virginia’s future economic prosperity.

A donation by Dow Chemical Company of valuable buildings and land located at the technology park to the State of West Virginia is pending.

If realized, the project could generate hundreds if not thousands of high value jobs, make the region highly competitive in research and development and create new opportunities for West Virginia’s coal, natural gas and other leading industries.