CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Kanawha County State Senator Eric Nelson admitted he gave some consideration to other political prospects for next year, but ultimately decided he was best suited for the job he already has. Nelson recently announced plans to seek a second term in the Senate. Speaking on Wednesday’s 580-Live on WCHS Radio in Charleston, he noted the job isn’t done yet.
“You know we’ve not finished the job. I wanted to step back in and continue with the progress we’ve made in the last three years and really in my last 12 years,” said Nelson.
Nelson said specifically there are infrastructure projects he wants to see finished like the Jefferson Road Project and the rebuilding of MacCorkle Avenue in Kanawha City. He added he believed those projects could have been done much faster and gets that complaint a lot from constituents.
He’s also ready to see an expansion of the Tech Park in South Charleston, specifically with the consolidation of the state’s multiple laboratories.
“They have cleared some land up there for additional expansion and we’ve approved in these last two sessions over $200 Million to pay for a consolidation of our state labs and we’ve got to keep working on making sure most all of those stay here in Kanawha County,” he said.
Nelson said he had looked at some of the statewide offices which will be opening up next year, but ultimately believed his talents lie in the area of the Legislative work.
“I had a lot of encouragement from the outside, but my strengths are one of connecting the dots, working with people, getting information, and putting it on the table,” he said.
He said with a lot of turnover in recent years in the Legislature his experience will be even more valuable in a second Senate term to keep the state moving in the direction of progress.