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Local News & Events in Jefferson County WV

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Latest Stories

Observer Weekly — September 24, 2026

Observer Weekly — September 17, 2026

Circuit Court Orders David Tabb To Be Removed From County Commission Ballot

Appalachian Heritage Festival Turns 30

CTUB Sets Special Meeting To Review Sidewinder Permit Issues

Observer Weekly — September 10, 2026

WV DEP Issues Permit For Sidewinder Water Line Construction

Observer Weekly — September 3, 2026

Two Years Of Charles Town “Walks About Nothing”

Observer Weekly — August 27, 2026

Observer Weekly — August 20, 2026

Interactive Map Of Valley North Transmission Line Potenial Paths In Jefferson County

Read all stories

Economy & Environment

Birdhill Subdivison Stormwater Management Plan Reviewed by WV DEP

April 23, 2025 Tagged With: Birdhill Subdivision, Housing Growth, Jefferson County Planning Commission, Jefferson Orchards, Kearneysville, Lennar, WVDEP

plat of Birdhill subdivision

National homebuilder Lennar has plans to build 720 houses on 195 acres in the Birdhilll Meadows subdivision off Route 480 in Kearneysville.  Read the Full Story >>

WVU Medicine Will Invest In Berkeley and Jefferson Counties

April 22, 2025 Tagged With: WVU Medicine

WVU Medicine - Jefferson facility

WVU Medicine plans to invest $260 million to expand its facilities in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle. Read the Full Story >>

Sidewinder Files Lawsuit Against Jefferson County Planning Commission

April 17, 2025 Tagged With: Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission, Jefferson County Planning Commission, Middleway, Mountain Pure, Sidewinder, Water Bottling

protect middleway signs on table during March 11 public workshop

Sidewinder LLC has filed a petition in Circuit Court seeking to move forward with its plans for a water bottling plant in Middleway. Read the Full Story >>

Data Center Tax: Local Share Set By Senate Committee

April 8, 2025 Tagged With: data centers, Governor Patrick Morrisey, Jason Barrett, property taxes, West Virginia Senate

west virginia senate economic development committee

A bill to create special tax districts for data centers cleared the Senate Economic Development Committee earlier today. Read the Full Story >>

Governor Morrisey Looks To Data Centers To Fund West Virginia’s Future

April 7, 2025 Tagged With: data centers, Governor Patrick Morrisey, microgrids, WV Legislature, WV Senate

200 megawatt gas-fired power plant

Governor Patrick Morrisey is pushing for the West Virginia legislature to pass legislation to attract data centers to the Mountain State. Read the Full Story >>

Plan For Data Center Complex Near Kearneysville Approved

April 7, 2025 Tagged With: Berkeley County Planning Commission, data centers, Jefferson County Planning Commissioni, Kearneysville, QTS Data Centers

QTS data center Atlanta

The Kearneysville data center campus will be located on a 300 acre property that is split between Jefferson and Berkeley Counties.  Read the Full Story >>

Planning Commission Denies Plan For Middleway Bottling Plant

March 12, 2025 Tagged With: Jefferson County Foundation, Jefferson County Historic Landmarks Commission, Jefferson County Planning Commission, Jefferson County Planning Commissioni, Middleway, Mountain Pure, Sidewinder, Water Bottling

crowd at planning commission meeting

The Jefferson County Planning Commission voted unanimously to deny the Sidewinder water bottling plant concept plan. Read the Full Story >>

Manufacturing In Middleway — A Brief History

March 11, 2025 Tagged With: Middleway, Mountain Pure, Sidewinder, Water Bottling

image from Commercial Liability Partners website (circa 2018)

The industrial site near Middleway that is being proposed for redevelopment as a water bottling factory by Sidewinder Enterprises dates to just after World War II. Read the Full Story >>

Tourism Is Big Business In Jefferson County

March 11, 2025 Tagged With: Jefferson County Convention & Visitors Bureau, tourism

CVB website image

Visitors to Jefferson County, WV spent $876 million in 2024, according to the Jefferson County Convention and Visitors Bureau. Read the Full Story >>

County Commissioners Vote To Oppose New Electric Transmission Lines

February 25, 2025 Tagged With: electric grid, Jefferson County Commission, PJM Interconnection

The Jefferson County Commission voted unanimously to send a letter to PJM opposing the construction of two new high-voltage transmission lines across the county. Read the Full Story >>

Does Jefferson County Zoning Permit Water Extraction?

February 7, 2025 Tagged With: In Print 2025 Feb-Mar, Jefferson County Planning Commission, Mountain Pure, Sidewinder, Water Bottling, zoning ordinance

public hearing notice for bottling factory

Water extraction is not defined as a use in the Jefferson County Zoning Ordinance. Read the Full Story >>

Review For Birdhill Subdivison On Feb 25

February 7, 2025 Tagged With: Birdhill Subdivision, Housing Growth, In Print 2025 Feb-Mar, Jefferson Orchards, Kearneysville

plat of Birdhill subdivision

The Jefferson County Planning Comnmission will review the Birdhill subdivision preliminary plat on February 25. Read the Full Story >>

Winter Duck Captivates Hunters And Artists 

February 7, 2025 Tagged With: In Print 2025 Feb-Mar, nature

black duck

Sometimes called black mallards, black ducks spend the winter here, following the rivers and tributaries inland from the Chesapeake Bay.  Read the Full Story >>

New Plan Submitted For Middleway Water Bottling Facility

November 20, 2024 Tagged With: In Print Dec 2024, Jefferson County Planning Commission, Middleway, Mountain Pure, Sidewinder, Water Bottling

revised concept plan sketch for Mountain Pure water bottling project

Sidewinder Enterprises submitted a new concept plan for its Mountain Pure water bottling facility project in Middleway on November 15 2024. Read the Full Story >>

Get Cracking, It’s Black Walnut Time

November 20, 2024 Tagged With: In Print Dec 2024, nature

black walnuts - D. Pifer photo

Black walnuts are stately trees with serpentine branches, wide spreading crowns and thick twigs. Read the Full Story >>

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