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Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott Ready to Deliver State of the City Speech

Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott will deliver the State of the City address on Tuesday. Photo by Casey Junkins

WHEELING — An example of how fast things are happening in Wheeling could be that residents at the Boury Lofts can use the Uber ridesharing service on their way to Mayor Glenn Elliott’s State of the City speech.

At this time last year, the 73-unit apartment building was still under construction, while Uber had yet to establish itself in the Friendly City.

“There’s a lot going on,” Elliott said.

Elliott will give his second State of the City address at noon Tuesday at Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack. The event is free and open to the public, while the cost of lunch is $10.

Elliott acknowledges he had hoped to wait until the speech to announce plans to ask city residents to approve a tax levy for a planned $15 million public safety building for the north end of downtown Wheeling. However, concerns over potential flooding forced the city to postpone the event from its original Feb. 27 date.

According to Elliott, the new police and fire building would likely go in one of two locations, both of which the city owns: next to the Marsh Wheeling building in the 900 block of Main Street, or on the tiered parking lots in the 1000 block of Market Street.

On the November ballot, city leaders will ask residents to approve a levy to fund the project, which would serve as a new headquarters for both the Wheeling Police and Fire departments.

“The public safety building is not something we would contemplate if our police officers and firefighters had not expressed a need,” Elliott said.

City Manager Robert Herron said the new building would be thought of as a “regional facility,” which he said may allow Wheeling to host some public safety training events.

At the same time, Wheeling leaders are planning a new $10 million parking garage in the 1100 block of Market Street, with tax increment financing to fund at least some of the project. This would be directly across the street from the former Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel building, which Coon Restoration and Sealants hopes to renovate into a $20 million apartment tower.

“The Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel building project will not happen without the parking garage,” Elliott said, adding the parking garage would need to accommodate anywhere from 350-550 automobiles.

If all three projects come to fruition, there will be at least $45 million worth of investments during the next few years in the area between the Wheeling Tunnel and 12th Street.

“It shows that downtown Wheeling is a viable area for growth and investment,” Elliott added.

Below is a list of other projects/work completed in the city during the last year:

∫ the $16 million headquarters of The Health Plan in the 1100 block of Main and Market streets;

∫ the Fitzsimmons Family Dog Park opened at the Tunnel Green Recreation Complex in East Wheeling;

∫ contractors refurbished the pre-Civil War structure between the Capitol Theatre and the Wheeling Suspension Bridge to house a new dress shop;

∫ overtime parking meter fines jumped from $3 to $10;

∫ a new sidewalk snow removal mandate for commercial districts;

∫ a three-story height mandate for new downtown buildings;

∫ $950,000 for new hockey dasher boards and an outdoor storage area at WesBanco Arena; and

∫ the city spent at least $250,000 for new playground and recreational equipment at various sites.

This is a list of ongoing projects with direct city involvement:

∫ a planed pay raise for the positions of mayor and city council, to go before voters on May 8;

∫ a $4 million renovation at the Center Wheeling garage, to be funded with tax increment financing;

∫ a new oil and natural gas lease agreement for 336 acres of city property, resulting in $2 million worth of upfront payments, plus 18.5 percent of production royalties once gas starts flowing;

∫ the Wheeling Waterfront Enhancement Committee is exploring ways to improve and optimize the Heritage Port area;

∫ a study of the possibility of two-way traffic on Main and Market streets in the downtown area;

∫ $28 million worth of new sewer lines;

∫ $36,890 for video conference technology on the third floor of the City-County Building;

∫ a new $33,000 website;

∫ a possible rental unit registration program; and

∫ $300,000 worth of roof and facade improvements at 1107 and 1109 Main St., along with 1425, 1429, 1433 and 1437 Market St., with the city owning all of these buildings.

These are other significant projects ongoing in the city:

∫ a $20 million apartment complex at the former Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel building on Market Street, with assistance from state and federal tax credits;

∫ the $4.7 million expansion of West Virginia Northern Community College at the former Wesco Distribution building in East Wheeling;

∫ plans for a Grow Ohio Valley fresh food market at the Robert C. Byrd Intermodal Transportation Center on Main Street;

∫ plans to add a section of South Wheeling to the National Register of Historic Places;

∫ renovations at the Flatiron Building on Main Street;

∫ reconstruction of the former Gerrero Music building on Main Street;

∫ planned complete renovations of the two city-owned buildings at 1107-1109 Main St., by a developer of the city’s choosing; and

∫ relocation of the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument from Wheeling Park to property adjacent to West Virginia Independence Hall.

“We’re really busy, but that’s a good problem to have,” Elliott said.

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