BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. — A proposal to build a Dollar General ten miles south of Berkeley Springs will continue after a judge ruled Thursday that the Morgan County Planning Commission did not violate local residents’ due process rights in approving plans to move forward with the project.
The store, which will be built in a rural area at the corner of Oakland Road and U.S. 522, was opposed by many residents who didn’t want it in a residential area.
The decision could potentially be appealed in the West Virginia Supreme Court, but it’s up to the court to decide whether an appeal would be heard. Larry Schultz, the attorney for the residents who filed the lawsuit, was willing to file the appeal.
A group of citizens filed a petition with over 400 signatures last month calling on the Planning Commission to encourage developers to consider moving the new Dollar General store from proposed location to the Morgan County Business Park just one mile away.
Another citizens group in favor of the Dollar General at the Oakland Road site delivered a petition earlier this year to the Planning Commission with 136 signatures.
Workers were seen working on construction at the site last week.
The residents asked Judge Christopher Wilkes to intervene and stop the excavation work, but Wilkes did not address the petition.