By CharLy Markwart
PRINCETON — At the dawn of this new year, several area business leaders are taking a renewing moment to celebrate the recent progress of Princeton and to look ahead to the development and growth they see in the city's future.
And, according to many of those businessmen and women, that exciting new growth is stemming in large part from the area defined by the bustling intersection of Interstate 77 and Route 460, a district better know as Exit 9.
“The center of commerce in Mercer County is Exit 9,” said Jim Montgomery, general manager of the Exit 9 Sleep Inn and the driving force behind a new Exit 9 business association set to come together this month. “As a group, I think all of us in business out here have one thing in common, and that's that if we direct more people off the highway then we will get our fair share. And, that's a goal shared by Mercer County in general. We need more people to come into our county, and that's my primary goal with this new association, to figure out how to advertise in order to direct as many people off the highway as possible and then let them see all that this whole county has to offer.”
For the past five years, the I-77/460 intersection, which sits just outside Princeton city limits, has been bringing major economic development into the area, from shopping centers like Wal-Mart and Lowe's to restaurants including Outback Steakhouse, Chili's and Ryan's and hotels like the Country Inn & Suites and the soon-to-open MicroTel Inn & Suites. Now, leaders of many of those businesses are looking for ways to work with organizations and companies within the cities of Princeton and Bluefield in an effort to motivate travelers who stop for the convenience of Exit 9 to stay in Mercer County a little longer.
“I think that the future for Mercer County is clearly tourism, and it's up to us on this highway exit to do everything that we can to build on what we're doing to draw people into the county,” said Montgomery. “Certainly area attractions like the Chuck Mathena Center and many other things that we've got here will make people want to stay here for a visit, if we just get the word out. That's what the plan is with this association. It's not to compete with any other business association at all; it's just to get some dollars into advertising on billboards south of Wytheville and north of Beckley to get people in here. My aim is to make Mercer County a destination instead of just a stopover, and there's a lot to be done.”
Some of the money Montgomery hopes to put toward that regional advertising would potentially come from funds generated by a 12 percent hospitality tax collected on each hotel room rented in Mercer County. While half of that money goes back to the state, the other half stays in the county, dispersed by the County Commission to the Mercer County Convention & Visitors Bureau and the local businesses that bring visitors to area hotels in the first place. According to many, that ongoing cycle is the key to bringing more people, and ultimately more dollars, into the county.
“It truly is just a revolving circle,” said Spring Turner, executive director of the Chuck Mathena Center. “The more money we get to promote and advertise outside of the region, the more advertising dollars we have to promote down in North Carolina and Roanoke, and that's just going to bring more people back into the hotels. Our goal in the near future is to have all of the hotels at the intersection wired into our ticketing systems. We're really hoping to build off that and have the hotels work in partnership with us to make it a win-win situation for everyone.”
That partnership, Turner insists, won't just benefit the CMC and the Exit 9 hotels. Several people coming in from out of the area to see a show at the performing arts center call in advance to inquire about what else there is to do and see during their stay in the county.
“To date, we've brought in 26,000 visitors from 265 different zip codes, five countries and 30 states,” she said. “And, all the time, those people are asking what is there to do; where should we go; where should we eat? They don't want chains, either; they want things that are unique to southern West Virginia. We're doing what we can to promote Mercer County as a tourist destination, and I think it's happening. And, obviously, the more things we have here to do, the better it will become for that.”
The Exit 9 businesses, according to Lyle Huntington, a Princeton consultant working to help bring more establishments to the I-77/460 intersection, are a major piece of that puzzle. The more successful those companies become, he says, the more additional businesses there will be that want to come into the area. And that, Huntington says, will only mean more revenue for Mercer County, and more dollars to put back into the tourism industry that could help the region to thrive.
“There are 127 businesses out there, and they all contribute to the upkeep of Mercer County big-time,” he said. “Putting together this merchant's association out there is going to help create more development, because those businesses came in because the area is successful, not because it's not successful. If that area becomes more successful due to more advertising, that will just keep businesses wanting to come here.”
And, even though the location of those businesses would be outside of city limits, County Commissioner Joe Coburn says the economic development they would bring would still directly impact the downtowns of Princeton and Bluefield.
“That intersection out there has been great; it's helped the county and the cities and everything with all of the traffic that it generates, and as we get more things out there, it will be even better for us,” he said. “It brings people in, and really, we're all one people; we trade in Princeton; we trade at the malls and we do all this. I just think it's a big help to Princeton no matter how you look at it. We'll do well from any growth that happens out there.”
That's not just a one-way street, either. Holiday Inn Express General Manager Deborah Trent says the county's many attractions, including such places as the historic downtown areas of Princeton, Bluefield, and Bramwell, bring countless visitors, and dollars into the Exit 9 establishments each year.
“The Holiday Inn Express takes care of most of the entertainers that come into the Chuck Mathena Center, which means anywhere from 10 to 20 rooms per night when they have a show, in addition to people coming to watch, so that is definitely a value to us,” she said. “Plus, so many other local attractions including Winterplace and the ATV trails in the county just bring more revenue into the hotels out here, which is paid back into tourism. It really is just a good partnership between us and the city businesses that benefits everyone.”
Montgomery agrees.
“Everyone in the county benefits from this development, and I think the Exit 9 association could be the spearhead to turn this into a tourism area,” he said. “The fact of the matter is, we want tourists to come into Mercer County, and we have what they want and what they need. We have so many good, old-fashioned things here that are really fun and cheap for people to enjoy. Here, you can stay in a hotel, eat in a restaurant, and go see some sights, all for a fraction of the cost of going to Daytona or Atlanta or another tourist place. I think it's just a matter of getting the message out, and that's exactly what our first step is going to be.”
— Contact CharLy Markwart at cmarkwart@ptonline.net.
