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SUMMERSVILLE -Mayor Robert Shafer told an assembly of Wood County officials the prospect of partnering the West Virginia National Guard to construct an armory and conference and events center is too good to pass up.

"There are services we can provide to the community that we never had before," Shafer said Friday.

Shafer said the city has seen no new infrastructure as result of its new armory. But that does not mean there have been no benefits.

"There has been an economic gain to both the public and private sector as a result of this facility," he said.

Summersville has a population of about 4,000. It is the county seat of Nicholas County, which has a population of about 25,000.

"For a small community, what we are able to provide and do is better than most," Shafer said.

Shafer and Summersville Convention and Visitors Bureau President Keith Spangler said the Summersville Arena and Conference Center has provided a boost to the area economy. Spangler said the event conference center provided increased opportunities to put more "heads in beds."

While many cities in the nation are struggling financially, Spangler noted Summersville's hotel and motel tax revenue was up more than 2 percent through the end of the calendar year.

The Summersville Arena and Conference Center is a 73,000-square-foot multi-use facility.

The main arena has 24,000 square feet of multi-use area complete with 2,000 seats for basketball games and can accommodate an additional 2,400 seats for staged events.

The convention area is comprised of a 3,600-square-foot multi-purpose area suited to the needs of conventions, meetings and training. The area can be partitioned into six smaller rooms. Each room can accommodate 25 to 100 comfortably. The entire space can be opened to accommodate 400 people.

Officials in Wood County are hoping to do a similar project- on a larger scale - at Fort Boreman.

Keith Burdette, president of the Wood County Economic Development Authority, believes the Fort Boreman site has an opportunity for additional development.

"I think this development works and there are other opportunities surrounding it. The proof will be in the property sold adjacent to where the property will be," he said.

The Summersville structure, built in 2005, sits just off W.Va. 19 in the retail section of the city. Much of the retail in the area has sprouted up within the last 15 years, prior to the new armory.

"There has been no new infrastructure as a result," Shafer said. "But we have been able to better utilize what we have."

Burdette said the Boreman site is a "whole different scenario." He notes Summersville did not have room for development.

"We are not going to be in that situation. We have a clean slate up there. This is a great opportunity," Burdette said.