By Greg Jordan, CNHI West Virginia
BECKLEY — This year’s Bridge Day in Fayette County will proceed as planned despite the federal government shutdown that led to West Virginia getting an agreement reopening both its national parks, the governor said Tuesday.
During a press conference streamed live from Charleston, Gov. Patrick Morrisey said that a few days after the federal government closed down, West Virginia became the nation’s first state that reached an agreement with the National Parks Service to keep its national parks open. These parks include the New River Gorge National Park & Preserve in Fayette County and the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in Jefferson County.
Getting these national parks open was important for West Virginia’s tourism industry, Morrisey said, adding that Tuesday was the government shutdown’s 14th day, which means many federal workers in the state and beyond are without pay.
“In West Virginia, we’re sick and tired of it and in West Virginia, we want to get our people back to work,” Morrisey said. “Just a few days into the shutdown, I announced that West Virginia would be keeping its national parks open and fully operational during one of the busiest tourism months that we have. We acted quickly and thanks to Tourism Secretary Chelsey Ruby and many others, West Virginia was the first state in the nation to sign an agreement with the feds to keep our national parks open, but I think that’s making a difference for our local communities.”