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Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Sara Payne Scarbro, Deputy Press Secretary, Office of the Governor;
304-558-3830,

Lara Ramsburg, Director of Communications, Office of the Governor;
304-558-2000, ext. 3702,

Neil Cotiaux, FHLBank Pittsburgh: 412-288-2851, cell: 412-335-9488;

Governor Manchin Launches ‘Blueprint Communities’:
Ten Localities to Receive Assistance in Building for the Future; Leadership Training, Capacity Building, Funding Access Coming

CHARLESTON, WV, March 12, 2007 – Governor Joe Manchin today officially named ten counties, cities and neighborhoods in The Mountain State as Blueprint Communities, a new designation that sets the stage for sustainable economic development.

Named as West Virginia’s first Blueprint Communities today were: Ansted, Fairmont – Southside, Gilmer County, McDowell County, Mullens, Ritchie County, St. Albans, Salem, Shinnston and Williamson. The announcement was made at “West Virginia Rising,” an event held in the Rotunda of the State Capitol and co-hosted by Governor Manchin and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh (FHLBank). More than 100 state and local officials, community and nonprofit leaders attended the event. FHLBank developed Blueprint Communities and serves as primary funder during its first year of operation.

West Virginia Rising celebrated the dawning of a new day for community development in the state. It was marked by the debut of a new folk song of the same name by Larry Groce, host and artistic director of Mountain Stage®, an internationally-distributed live performance radio program produced in Charleston. Today’s performance by Groce was delivered in front of the newly assembled Blueprint Communities teams as well as a wide variety of other community development stakeholders. Jean Ambrose, chair of Community Collaborative, Inc. and executive director of the West Virginia Commission for National and Community Service, and Joe Hatfield, executive director of the West Virginia Housing Development Fund, joined the governor in speaking at the event.

“During the past two years, people from all walks of life have come together for the betterment of our state,” said Gov. Manchin. “Today’s announcement of these ten Blueprint Communities is just further proof that our state is moving in the right direction when it comes to economic development and planning for community growth. Small communities are the foundation of West Virginia, and I am confident that today’s announcement will help strengthen many areas across the state.”

“West Virginia continues to grow as a great place to live, and a promising place to do business,” said U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller, who was unable to attend West Virginia Rising. “Today’s announcement is a sign that this growth will only continue. With the resources and support they receive, these counties and cities will have a remarkable opportunity to implement new ideas for an even brighter future.”

FHLBank Pittsburgh and its partners considered 26 localities for participation in the Blueprint Communities initiative and selected the ten finalists earlier this year. Localities were chosen based on their current capacity to plan and implement community revitalization projects and their ability to assemble a qualified leadership team representing diverse community interests. Each team must include representatives of a development organization, local governing body, a financial institution and other key stakeholders.

Major benefits

As part of the Blueprint Communities initiative, each participating locality will receive initial benefits totaling more than $20,000, including:

• Five days of community revitalization training by the Heartland Center for Leadership Development and
• Brushy Fork Institute, materials, meals and lodging
• A one-day housing capacity and technical training workshop
• A community profile including important key indicators and trends for planning
• A matching mini-grant for technical assistance, project implementation or predevelopment needs after successful involvement in training
• Funding opportunities and strengthened relationships between community leaders and funding source representatives.

“Community leaders will be given the opportunity to pull back and analyze their hometown’s longer-term needs and come up with a reasoned blueprint,” said William G. Batz, chief operating officer of FHLBank Pittsburgh. “Our teams won’t have it easy. They’ll be asked to dig deep, build bridges and create consensus. They’ll be expected to think outside the box. And they won’t be paid for their efforts. They deserve our wholehearted support.”

Training for the West Virginia teams will begin next month in Beckley. Teams that develop a clear vision for their community’s future and a comprehensive strategic plan will be given access to a network of potential public and private funders for coordinated investments as well as ongoing technical training. In addition, FHLBank Pittsburgh is setting aside funds in its Banking On Business program for business startup and expansion and its First Front Door homebuyer grants program for use within each of the Blueprint Communities. FHLBank has committed about $300,000 to Blueprint Communities’ first year of operation.

Sponsors, partners

Blueprint Communities involves three sponsors – City National Bank of Charleston, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh and WesBanco Bank, Inc. – and the following eleven partners: Brushy Fork Institute, Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation, Community Collaborative, Inc., Community Development Partnership of West Virginia, Community Visions Foundation, Heartland Center for Leadership Development, USDA Rural Development, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Charleston Office, West Virginia Department of Commerce, West Virginia Housing Development Fund and the West Virginia University Extension Service.

Participating Blueprint Communities financial institutions include: City National Bank of Charleston, Fayette County National Bank, First Exchange Bank, First National Bank of Williamson, Pioneer Community Bank, United Bank, WesBanco and West Union Bank.

For FHLBank Pittsburgh, the decision to extend this initiative to West Virginia was an easy one. In 2005, Pennsylvania’s 22 Blueprint Communities came together for community revitalization training, which over the past 18 months has produced noticeable benefits including agreement on core community goals, additional technical support, grants and low-cost loans as well as groundbreakings for new housing and businesses.

With assets of approximately $77.4 billion, FHLBank Pittsburgh, a government-sponsored enterprise created by Congress in 1932, serves 334 financial institution members across its three-state district of Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. It is one of twelve FHLBanks, all cooperatively owned banks using private capital, not taxpayer dollars, to provide a steady stream of low-cost financing and grants for affordable housing and community and economic development.