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WVU students to study Elkins

ELKINS — West Virginia University Landscape Architecture students will visit downtown Elkins on Wednesday, to create possible design proposals that could benefit the area.

The design students chose the Railroad Avenue corridor to be the location of a class project, after a request for services by Maryann Durland, chairperson of the Elkins Main Street Design Committee.

The partnership will benefit students as well as give Elkins possible proposals for roads. Durland said it is the perfect opportunity for students to practice their skills while helping community leaders evaluate options.

The concepts the design team will create will not be literal plans for redevelopment, but they will give ideas for new possibilities in the future.

“It’s an opportunity to partner with WVU and get a fresh look that may result in some exciting new ideas for us,” Durland said.

Visiting WVU students will view areas along the corridor in hopes of gathering inspiration for their new design. Their route will begin at the Holiday Inn Express, and will then go to City Hall and many more locations.

Traffic on Railroad Avenue and Third Street also will be monitored so students can determine what traffic patterns are like in the city.

“Railroad Avenue has become the gateway for tourists who visit attractions on the Elkins Railyard and historic downtown Elkins,” Durland said. “We need to make this entry route more welcoming for visitors and improve safety for pedestrians at the depot intersection.”

Durland said she hopes a new design will create a better flow of traffic for motorists and pedestrians, and that it will lead more traffic to the downtown businesses. Encouraging motorists to take a route past local businesses will be positive for downtown Elkins business development, she noted.

The project will focus on an entry route and landscaping near the Veterans Memorial to the historic Elkins Depot Welcome Center.

Durland said Elkins Main Street Design Committee members and the design students at WVU are excited for the future possibilities of this project.

Last year, the WVU program designed plans for the West Virginia State Fairgrounds in Lewisburg, and they were used to carry out a new landscape.

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