e e we'll get started here if you want to we have some extra seats you like oh no you can't grab one or two what's a great day to be outside isn't it September in West Virginia Welcome to our groundbreaking event that today here on an exciting Highway the zway here in Beckley and uh if you haven't figured out already we're building this in sections uh from Shady Spring to to Beaver and then from Beaver on into Beckley of course some of it's already open as you know we're here today to to celebrate the second half of the zway and what you may not have figured out uh started this movement about 7 and 1/2 years ago with something called roads to prosperity and if he hadn't we wouldn't be here today this is one of the roads to Prosperity projects but a few contractors is going to do the job we've got Canal Stone I believe Nikki is Nikki Brewer and of course uh Mountaineer construction I'm sorry Mountaineer uh yeah Mountaineer construction um okay all right here okay very good and we're I know you guys are going to do a wonderful job on building the the second half of his Z way well I spoke with the president of the Raleigh County Commission yesterday and I asked him about his excitement level for the zway and he just took off and I've asked him to be here today to share some comments and remarks like to introduce Greg Duckworth president of the Raleigh County Commission [Applause] Greg well good afternoon excitement was actually an understatement but um so behalf of uh commissioner Linda K eping and uh Daniel Hall and myself we'd like to you know welcome Governor Justice here it's a great great day groundbreaking for something we've all been waiting on uh we'd also like to acknowledge uh Jimmy wristen and bird white they both put a lot of time in this over the years getting it going but uh this initiative don't just represent uh just not the commitment to improving our infrastructure but a pathway to a brighter and more prosperous future for all of us yeah we here in Raleigh County especially on this end of the county we've been talking about this project for years you know it's a pretty day to see it come off the ground here um you know thank you Governor Justice for your leadership and your dedication for the whole state of West Virginia uh thank you for your vision for what the roads of prosperity actually mean everybody's seeing what that Vision was it's it's coming fruition and uh thank you for that you we're uh we're excited down here to to break ground on what promises to be a transformative project uh for our community and Beyond so let's build This Road Together towards a stronger and more connected West Virginia and thank you very much told you he was excited for Raleigh County we know any organization be it government or Private Industry needs a leader to lead that organization to set goals and to establish criteria to make it a better organization and we have that in our organization with the Department of Transportation he's with us today he's Secretary of Transportation his name is Jimmy R Jim thank you Randy Governor once again we're here on a project that has lingered for decades and decades we've worked on this for nearly two and a half decades two and a half decades to get to this point and we owe this to this to this great leader right here with his big bold vision for the roads to prosperity and the bond issuance that we that that he came in the office office took it out to the public in this election cycle think about this 73% of the people voted for this for this initiative 73% I don't think the governor's even at that level at this point he's going to run it down I'm sure but 73% had to bring that up this this is indeed a great day for for southern West Virginia it's a great day for Raleigh County the city of Beckley and all the folks that have really put their licks in over the years as the governor would say uh I think back to uh you know two and a half decades ago when when we were meeting with father aan and uh former mayor Pew and some of those folks that we we had that zway Coalition and we we just struggled because for decades and decades all across this country we have underinvested in our infrastructure the governor's big bold Vision put transportation out on the front line along with tourism and education and we've turned this state around we've turned this state around and it's no more apparent that it is anywhere than it is right here in southern West Virginia and Raleigh County because you you've seen the impact of the zway today we're going to break ground on the southern leg of the zwave we thought we'd never get here didn't we Greg thought we'd never get here Brandon you you know we worked hard on this one I'd like to take just a moment to to recognize some folks because what we're talking about is a project that's going to impact the future so there's there's some special guests of mine here today from West Virginia Tech um would you would you guys please stand up this is the future of Department of Transportation here the these folks just like this that attend West Virginia Tech right here in back this I I can't tell you enough how proud I am to be an alumni of West Virginia Tech and to to have been named the alumni of the year just last year for for West Virginia Tech so you guys are indeed the future and I I thank you and I'm I'm I I haven't asked the governor yet but I I'm going to ask him to impose upon him for a picture with you guys before you leave so if you'll come up after we cut the river so without any further Ado I'm going to introduce the great governor of the state of West Virginia governor Jim Justice all right I'll be real real short and sweet okay you know I grew up in Beckley and I can remember like it was nothing you know that I would leave Northwest Northwestern Avenue and ride my bike all the way across town to the little league and we'd have practice or a game at little league and then I'd ride my bike back you know I can remember like it was nothing leaving from a red dog Road at the end of Northwestern Avenue and walking through the woods to Crescent Elementary and at lunch I'd come home and eat lunch and then go back you know lots have changed lots lots lots have changed and through all that time in West Virginia to tell it like it is we were the blunt end of a lot of bad jokes and we absolutely just couldn't get ourselves out of the rut we tried but we couldn't get get ourselves out and today by the help of all of you whether they be senators or delegates or Mayors or Commissioners or whomever it may be all of us today it's a different animal and we celebrate we celebrate all the goodness that's going on in our state and we should all feel 100% we should all feel that all of us pulled a rope together I didn't know you were such a celebrity you know that you were crowned this thing by what tech and everything that's really neat it's my hotel too govern I I love it but with all that being said I can never thank you enough it's been an honor being your Governor like nobody's business and I would absolutely tell you to continue to dream big push your politicians push them to dream really big I'm really really hopeful that we can get another sign ific tax break to all of you on your personal income tax and we're hopeful I'm hopeful that that's going to happen and happen real soon now I know Jimmy's claing absolutely but but now all right y'all hold up just one second now listen to me because I'm right about this on day one when we walked in the door where were we going to turn and what were we going to do the only thing we were able to do in the past is cut and cut and cut again and we claimed and there was there was surely wasteful spending in government and absolutely but when we turned around over and over and over and thinking we were going to cut our way out of this or we passed a right to work law or we got rid of prevailing wage and those were good things in my book really good but when we did all that we spun around and we said we expect all kinds of people now are going to come and we spun around and like it or not like it they didn't come now we can say what we want but they did not come now and then all of a sudden and I don't pat myself in the back on this but then walked in a great big guy with a lot of really really ideas that maybe nobody thought about and absolutely I walked right to the podium and said what we need to do is go to a bond referendum and to get to vote of the people and we need to pass this and pass road to prosperity in every way and we did it and Jimmy's right nearly 73% of the people voted for it when many many many many said there's no way there's no way they'll vote for it and then they feared like crazy that if they did it their taxes would go through the roof and they didn't they didn't in fact we've lowered taxes like you can't imagine now that's great work by lots of people whether it be our legislature or the governor or all of you there been a lot a lot a lot of good work absolutely just remember just one thing AB I believe this with all my soul I give credit first and foremost to the good Lord wholeheartedly wholeheartedly I mean say what you want but I'm not smart enough to have come up with the idea of rose to Prosperity where'd it come from and this is not a subject I want you to dwell on but I was in the shower block that out of your mind literally and I absolutely what happened was I said we got to create an instant job this idea of leveling the field and hoping somebody's going to come is not going to cut it we got to have instant jobs because that brings wealth to this state like you can't imagine well what can we do then I said to myself well wonder what it would cost every breathing every breathing human in West Virginia for us to be able to let every road job let them all go on W well we figured out how to do it and lo and behold boom we took off like a rocket ship like you can't imagine you should be really really really proud West Virginia is really doing it and the last thing I'd tell you is just this if you could use West Virginia slang who could have ever thk it who could have ever th it that West Virginia would be on World Travel guide saying West Virginia is the place to go West Virginia of all places is the place to go we knew it all along but the world didn't and now the world knows so keep it going it's been an unbelievable honor of mine and I'll continue to do any and everything I can do to help in every way I congratulate all of you you've done good work and you should be really proud really really proud of yourselves just keep doing it keep doing it and keep this thing going God bless each and every one of you let's cut a ribbon and make more goodness happen right here in Raleigh County can you imagine I mean I'm the guy that would remember re's Hardware or Sam Anderson's dad and owned a little Filling Station down the road or absolutely you know raised bait shop I'm that guy I love you more than good sense and I thank you from the bottom of my heart in every way God bless each and every one of [Applause] you you going to give you a shovel say what last thing is probably the most important of all if any of you want to come up when we're done baby dog sitting there in the car but she can't get out here it's too hot C come overmy we're going to throw this real hard that way yall cat [Applause] okay it's official now thank you gentlemen and thank you for being here uh the governor is um going to stay around a few minutes um in fact uh is it true that is it still too hot for baby dogs there we'll get her out here for a little while all right