Mayor Marks Accomplishments

WHEELING - From reopening the Capitol Music Hall to reviewing the city's 16-year-old municipal charter, Mayor Andy McKenzie promised to produce dramatic changes in the way Wheeling works within his first 100 days in office.

Wednesday, which marked the 100th day of his term after being sworn in July 1, McKenzie highlighted several of his accomplishments and future goals during his tenure as mayor.

"I think we have made a lot of changes, and are clearly taking a different direction," he said.

As for early accomplishments, McKenzie cites changing the time of City Council meetings from 7:30 p.m. to 7 p.m; announcing plans to move council chambers to the first floor of the City-County Building to make better use of office space; engaging in regular dialogue with Ohio County commissioners; continuing to upgrade the city's Web site; conducting a review of the Ohio Valley Regional Transportation Authority's bus services; conducting a review of the city's use of Community Development Block Grant money; and plans to reduce the number of fees the city charges for permits and licenses.

"The changes we implement today will affect the city for five, 10 or 20 years," he said.

Though the Capitol Music Hall remains closed, McKenzie said the viability of the 1928 theater that is still priced at $850,000 by owner Live Nation is one of his top priorities.

The Capitol "is very important to the future of Wheeling," he said, noting the city is working with the Wheeling National Heritage Area Corp., Wheeling Convention and Visitors Bureau and Regional Economic Development Partnership to purchase the theater, or ensure that it is acquired by private investors.

"As long as it is opened and maintained, we will be happy," McKenzie added.

The theater has been closed for more than a year after 23 fire code violations were uncovered.

With the J.B. Chambers Performing Arts Center set to open at Wheeling Park High School in 2010, and an increasing number of musical shows held at Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack, some are questioning if Wheeling needs the Capitol.

But not McKenzie.

"Those are three completely different venues. A school amphitheater and a casino hall are different from the Capitol," he said.

The city has planned to use tax increment financing bonds as the means to finance the $2.5 million in repairs needed for the Capitol if it is purchased by a non-profit group. However, McKenzie said there are no plans to issue any new debt at this time.

"We have no plans to issue more TIF debt right now," he said, as the current volatility of the nation's financial system would make any bond nearly impossible to sell.

But McKenzie said the city has issued $715,000 in TIF bonds to fund the recent purchase of the former Rite Aid building, former G.C. Murphy building and former River City Dance Works buildings in the 1100 block of Main and Market streets.

The mayor said buying these buildings was the best way the city could promote redevelopment of the downtown district.

"All of those buildings were owned by people who did not live here, and had no interest in seeing them revitalized. The difference now is that there is local interest in revitalalizing these buildings," he said.

To date, the only "local interest" that has publicly expressed any plans to save the buildings in the 1100 block is the Wheeling National Heritage Area Corp.

McKenzie said the city is exploring several options for the 1100 block buildings, including possibly purchasing Dr. Manny Velez's dental office and Feet First building that is directly adjacent to the former G. C. Murphy building.

The mayor also did not rule out demolishing some or all of the buildings in question.

"That is still a possibility," he said of razing the structures to create greenspace for future commercial development.

McKenzie also cites the work he and fellow council members are doing to implement the city's home rule powers. The state-granted program will allow Wheeling to impose fees upon owners of vacant buildings; enforce collection of liens placed on delinquent property owners; and issue conditional use zoning permits.

Home rule "is one of the biggest things we are going to do as a council. It is good that we are having free and open discussions of these matters," he said, noting that he personally does not favor charging fees to owners who maintain their buildings.

"We need to focus on cleaning up dilapidated structures," the mayor added.

McKenzie said he does not currently plan to ask the Municipal Home Rule Board for additional home rule authority, similar to the taxing powers gained by Charleston and Huntington.

While discussing how to best use the city's home rule powers, McKenzie is still very much in favor of reviewing the city charter.

"There are so many things we could do better, but we cannot do them because of the charter," he said.

McKenzie said one of the main issues in the charter he would like to see reviewed is the number of council wards in the city, which is currently six.

"I am going to appoint an independent body to review this," he said of a group that would conduct a preliminary review of the charter before calling for an official review.

"I don't want to impose a burden on the taxpayers if there is no reason to have a formal charter review," the mayor added.

Moving forward, McKenzie said two of his main goals are to reduce the city's workforce as much as possible, and to attract economic development.

"People ask if we have too many employees. As we move forward, we will see if we need to fill positions of those who leave through attrition," he said, noting the city currently has 407 full-time employees.

Though he declined to discuss the departments that could see personnel reductions, McKenzie said all departments would be examined to see where reductions could be made without reducing the amount of service provided to citizens.

"The city manager (Robert Herron) has to make sure there are enough people to provide services," he said, noting citizens expect the water to flow when they turn on their taps.

Though some may question whether the current economic environment is conducive to producing economic development, McKenzie says now is the time to act.

"This is a great opportunity for small cities like Wheeling to attract new businesses and companies because we offer a high quality of life. ... The cost of doing business here is much cheaper than in larger cities," he said, noting that the city hopes to attract more companies like Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe and Williams Lea.

With his term as a Republican state senator set to expire in January, McKenzie acknowledges that being Wheeling's mayor is much different - and much more complex - than being one of 134 legislators in Charleston.

"Being mayor is much more hands-on. The local concerns are about safety, weeds and dilapidated buildings. You must be cognitive to what citizens care about," he said.

McKenzie said he was not quite sure what to expect when taking over for former mayor Nick Sparachane this summer.

"I did not really expect anything. Each mayor has his or her own style and own agenda," he said.

With just over 100 days as Wheeling mayor down, McKenzie said it is far too early to say if he will seek higher office in the future.

"I just took office here. ... I cannot answer that right now," he said.

Moving forward, McKenzie said he still has a lot of work to do in Wheeling during his time as mayor.

"I love Wheeling," he added.