It's been five years since Putnam County's "leaders" purchased 45                               acres of land costing                              millions of dollars with                                  the promise of an                                     office park and a                                      Marshall University                                  satellite campus.

So far, all we have to                               show for our                                     "investment is a bunch                                   of vacant retail stores,                                  a yet-to-be--opened                                Wally World with lots of low-paying jobs, hundreds of thousands of dollars in wasted interest, and a well-earned reputation for little integrity among our "leaders."

It will take years to clean up Putnam County's reputation, however, it is not too late to keep the Marshall University promise.

When the PCDA sold 25 acres to Wal-Mart and a few acres to the Hurricane Marketplace, that left about 20 acres still unsold. That acreage is an ideal site for the Marshall satellite campus that we were promised five years ago.

The land sits just above Wal-Mart, is close to Interstate 64, and would be a highly visible location similar to Marshall's South Charleston Graduate School.

Today, Marshall provides classes to hundreds of Putnam County students scattered around rented rooms in local buildings. Hundreds more drive to Huntington, wasting time, gas, and money, while others live in dorms or apartments.

It shouldn't be that way.

In Mason County, leaders made a local campus a priority and offered Marshall a deal it couldn't turn down. Since then, the campus has expanded, providing thousands of students the opportunity to earn a college degree in their own community.

Putnam County's citizens deserve the same opportunity.

The answer is obvious: The commitment was made to Putnam County to build a Marshall campus. We own the land. It is paid for. Now the 20 acres must be donated to Marshall in the interest of higher education, ethics, and common sense.

The fact that Putnam County does not have a college campus is inexcusable. It is a failure of the PCDA to deliver on its promise and a failure of the Putnam County Commission to properly oversee the PCDA and properly provide for its citizens.

Not another day should go by before the Putnam County Commission and the PCDA donates the 20 acres and floats a bond or gets grants to build that campus. Students must be able to attend classes on the new Marshall campus this fall. If not, the Putnam County Commission should dissolve the PCDA and resign. Failure is no longer an option.

The Marshall promise was made years ago. Keep that promise today!