GLEN JEAN, W.Va. — The New River Gorge National Park Service says three of 20 proposed historic structures up for demolition will now be preserved following an ongoing environmental assessment and public comment period.
The National Park Service recently announced their decision on the ongoing Finding of No Significant Impact for the Proposed Demolition of Historic Structures Environmental Assessment (EA) that was conducted within the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve after beginning that study last fall.
The EA was launched following a proposal to demolish a total of 20 structures, primarily in the historic Town of Thurmond, that are considered dilapidated, are a financial burden to maintain, and are not considered necessary to achieve the park’s overall preservation mission.
The park also launched a public comment period as part of the EA for residents to give their input on the matter and to help them determine what should be done about the structures, which were starting to cause a public safety concern.
The park considered three options in the EA, including:
. Alternative A: No Action
. Alternative B: Demolish All Proposed Excess Historic Structures
. Alternative C: Retain Proposed Excess Historic Structures with High Potential for Reuse
New River Gorge National Park Chief of Interpretation Eve West told MetroNews that based on the results of that study and the subsequent public comment period, they made the decision to go with Alternative C and retain three specific structures, which includes the Marilyn Brown House and the Thurmond Ice House in Thurmond and the Dun Glen Ark in the Dun Glen area of the national park.
West said the other 17 structures are still being proposed for demolition as they are deteriorating and are not considered viable for reuse.
“The whole idea behind this project is that those structures that aren’t as critical to the park’s story will be removed, because they’re old, they’re deteriorating, they’re not in good shape, there’s not potential for reuse, not potential for leasing of those structures,” West said. “This will allow us to put the funds into those structures that are more important to the park’s story.”
Here’s the full list of the structures that are now up for demolition:
Charles Ashley Garage
. Charles Ashley Outbuilding
. May Bagoski House
. Harold Smith House
. Wedzel Young House
. Tom Kelly House
. McGuffin Garage
. Erskine Pugh Rental House
. Philip A McClung/Meadows House
. Sidney Allen Ward House
. James Humphrey Sr. House
. Dun Glen Building
. Dun Glen Mini Ark
. Dun Glen Boat Storage Rack
. Prince Brothers’ General Store
. Brookside Pool Chemical Treatment Building
. Vallandingham House Addition
However, the park is considering the leasing of three other structures on the list, the Tom Kelly House in Thurmond, and the Mini Ark and Boat Storage Rack in the Dun Glen area.
West said they are still working out the logistics of the leasing process.
“We’ve not really looked at the leasing up until now, we were kind of waiting on the final decision to be made, we’ve been in a holding pattern, but now that it has been made, we’re gearing up to get a leasing program started,” she said.
West said that along with the public comment period, opportunities for enhanced interpretation was another factor in making their decision to preserve some of the proposed structures up for demolition.
She said other things are being considered as well that may impact their decision moving forward.
“Environmental factors, economic factors, and really just seeing our overall purpose and need of the projects, those are all things we’re looking at coming up with this final decision,” she said.
West said demolition will most likely begin in the winter of 2026.
She said they are currently getting started with the leasing program, but there’s a process that goes along with it.
“We’ll be drafting requests for proposals in coordination with our regional leasing office, we will come out with a press release announcing our release date, and we will be looking at each structure separately and determining which ones are appropriate for leasing,” West said.
She said there will be some deadlines for proposal requests and after the deadlines are over, they will make the selections within a minimum of 30 days.