Historic Downtown Redevelopment
Hinton, West Virginia is a small town nestled in the Appalachian mountains along the New River within the New River Gorge National Riverways. Once a bustling railroad center, the town has over the past 75 year diminished in both population and economic base as the dependence on railroad transportation has decreased. PracticeLink is a medical placement firm with offices in both Hinton and St. Louis. The CEO of PracticeLink is a native of Hinton and has a passion to restore the town to its past vitality. Destination Services was engaged to:
- assess the destination’s strengths and weakness
- prepare a concept development plan
- present a powerpoint presentation to sell the concept
- evaluate potential historic buildings for purchase
- seek private investment
- obtain state and federal grants
- secure political support for the redevelopment
This an ongoing project with a concept plan in place, one grant secured and several in process. The project has gained the support of the West Virgina Governor and two key Congressmen. It is moving forward with the acquisition of ten historic buildings. Preserve America designation was recently obtained and the campaign for private investments is in place.