ST. CLAIRSVILLE – The former Ruritan building next to Red Devil Stadium on the St. Clairsville High School campus is getting a new name.
The building will now be called the Kevin Barr Event Center.
Barr was the original recreation director for the City of St. Clairsville and the driving force behind the department.
“If it weren’t for Kevin, I don’t know if there would be a recreation department,” Said Eric Gay, St. Clairsville recreation director. “He was responsible for the building we are in now, the junior baseball and softball fields and the amphitheater.”
Gay said he came up with the idea because he looked at all the accomplishments Barr had made for the community but noticed that his name was not on any of them. Gay recalled contacting Barr.
“I said, ‘Kevin, you deserve more recognition than anyone else for the amount of work you’ve done for the recreation department.'” Said Gay. “We chose the Kevin Barr Event Center so his name would be close by and we could tell people who asked, ‘Who is Kevin Barr?’ everything he did.”
Gay jokingly said he called Barr and told him the dedication was not a memorial building because he was still alive, but he felt Barr’s name should remain forever associated with the department.
“I told him, ‘I want your name associated with the recreation department because everything else already has a name.’ The JB Martin Recreation Center, we have the Gulfport Energy Basketball Court under construction and the Unified Bank Junior Sports Complex. I just thought this was a great building to have his name associated with because with all the dinners and soup days that the Ruritan hosted, he always made sure his staff was there to support them.” Said Gay.
The City of St. Clairsville recently purchased the Ruritan Building for $25,000.
The building is operated by the St. Clairsville Recreation Department to accommodate the overflow of bookings at the recreation center.
Gay said the building is rented for various parties and can accommodate up to 80 people. Although the city purchased the building from the Ruritan Club in July, it will continue to be the site for the club’s monthly meetings, soup days, chicken dinners and any other events it holds on a regular basis.
“I was very determined when these initial conversations started that I didn’t want them to think they weren’t going to have a home. They do phenomenal work and are such wonderful people who do so much for the community. So we wanted to make sure they knew that this would continue to be a home for them,” Said Gay.
After purchasing the building, the recreation department began renovating the building. They painted the building inside and out, replaced the windows, removed the catering bar and installed new ceiling fans. The department plans to replace the flooring and install air conditioning, which Gay said is much needed during the summer months. The department completed all of the renovations themselves within three weeks to ensure the building would be ready for its first rental under the new ownership last Saturday.
“I want to give credit to a few guys. Randy Mellott has helped so much here. Donnie Hines and Mike Casper have helped us with a lot of things to turn this building around in just under three weeks, and those guys are a big reason why.” Said Gay.
The Kevin Barr Event Center is now open for bookings. Contact Gay at the JB Martin Recreation Center at 740-695-6327.
