MASON COUNTY, W.Va. –Mason County is seeing major economic growth with a new data and coal facility coming to the area, but that growth is also driving up costs.
Fidelas and Frontieras plans to build a data center and coal facility in the area, along with a new campground for workers.
“They bring their campers with them and they come into what we call temporary construction campsites, this has nothing to do with recreation campsites that we have in Mason County, but it’s only temporary constriction campsites,” Mason County Commission President Rick Handley said on MetroNews Midday Thursday.
Nucor, which is building a steel plant in the county, has brought in nearly 2,000 temporary workers since construction began in 2024.
Handley said they wanted to generate some revenue from workers staying in the county, but a bill to do so failed during the recently concluded 60-day legislative session.
He added that the plan was to include campsites under the existing hotel and motel tax.
“We were hoping to hug on with the hotel/motel, and we know they get six percent,” Handley said. “If someone comes in and spends the night, let’s say it’s 100 dollars, and they go out of there paying 106 dollars they don’t look at the bill and say where is the other six dollars going, you told me it was 100.”
He said the tax could have helped fund emergency personnel, who are currently struggling to meet demands.
“We are needing more law enforcement officers, EMS workers, plus out volunteer fire department and it’s only going to get worse with several thousand more construction workers in addition to what we down at Nucor now,” Handley said.
Handley said it’s great to see growth coming to Mason County but added it would have been nice to generate some revenue from workers living there.
“I love to see them here, they come here and spend money at the grocery stores and maybe at some of the restaurants, Walmart and all these places but again we just need to get tax money the same way hotel/motel would work,” he said.
He said that since the bill failed, the county is exploring other options.