EDITORIAL
Neighborly thing to do
Makeover Morgantown 2009 sign Sunnyside’s future looks brighter
Extreme Makeover: Neighborhood Edition. Maybe not, but Morgantown Makeover 2009 — minus any hype, ratings, producers or cameras — might be the next step in the evolution of this concept. Whether or not the sun is rising or setting on Morgantown’s most popular and crowded student neighborhood, Sunnyside, has yet to be determined. However, if last weekend’s student-led annual cleanup project in this neighborhood is any indication, things just might be looking up. Dozens of student volunteers and others spent more than three hours Sunday tidying up Sunnyside’s streets, Dumpsters and its landscape. Also joining this year’s third annual makeover program were the parents — many also alumni — of students, who were in town for WVU’s annual Fall Family Weekend. We commend all the students, their parents and others who participated in this project. Despite what some might think, most students who come to Morgantown to attend WVU don’t just come here to trash our streets and leave. This program not only fields students in the cleanup, but was also their own idea. Makeover Morgantown sprang from student input within WVU’s Student Government Association and Leadership Studies Student Association. Their contributions to this community may not always be as apparent as the scores of volunteers who scoured Sunnyside’s streets, but they do make a difference. For instance, some might think giving a street a makeover, simply looks good. However, we would point out that businesses benefit from that, too. And, in turn, so does the city’s tax revenue as property values increase. Sunnyside’s history is a rich addition to that of Morgantown’s. Its boundaries can no more be defined than its changing composition over the past century. In recent years, many of the former student rentals, which were in disrepair, have been replaced by apartment buildings, parking lots and renovated houses. Though Sunnyside still serves as home to thousands of students, many of these temporary residents are leaving a permanent mark on this area’s future with programs like Makeover Morgantown. What this generation of students refer to as street cred is not something that’s granted through rumors and talk. Instead, deeds still speak louder than any discussion when it’s all said and done. In the case of those students, who are joining efforts to give Sunnyside a makeover, they earned their street cred by helping this community rebuild itself.