Clarksburg Exponent Telegram

by Jennifer Biller, Staff Writer

BRIDGEPORT (Tuesday, October 23, 2001)

Members of the Harrison County Board of Education toured the future site of the proposed Charles Pointe community on Monday.

Charles Pointe is a $750 million planned development that will include everything from manufacturing and retail businesses to restaurants and residential housing.

The site has plenty of room for a school to be part of the community, said Jamie Corton, managing partner of Genesis Partners LLC, the development group for Charles Pointe.

"We are pleased that board members were looking at our site," Corton said. "We gave them a presentation and showed them there is space for whatever they would need."

Superintendent Carl Friebel said the tour was an exercise to gather information.

"We have no agreement or commitment at this time," he said.

If a school were to be built at Charles Pointe in the future, it would be either a high school or an elementary school, Friebel said.

However, the current schools in Bridgeport would be able to accommodate the additional students from the Charles Pointe development, Friebel said.

For the purpose of long-term planning, the tour was a chance to see the future possibilities, he said.

"I think education plays a critical role in economic development," Friebel said. "This was our attempt to keep abreast of what economic development is going on in the county and how best to meet that future educational need."

Approximately 500 homes are planned to be built at Charles Pointe, Corton said.