By ERIC AYRES

WHEELING — With multimillion-dollar investments taking place throughout the downtown and in other areas of the city, Wheeling Mayor Denny Magruder sees a responsibility of city leaders to help guide this renaissance toward one steadfast goal — providing a good quality of life for the people who live here.

“I’ve made the comment before that one of my biggest jobs is watering the seeds that have been planted,” Magruder said, noting that Wheeling’s rebirth is a credit to city officials and community leaders that have for decades been working hard to make the Friendly City a better place.

“Over the past 15-20 years, some great things have been happening. We’ve really been postured so that progress can happen,” Magruder said.

Even before Magruder took the helm as mayor, he served as a prominent figure in Wheeling for decades. He worked as the executive director of the Greater Wheeling Sports and Entertainment Authority for many years, overseeing operations at WesBanco Arena and the Capitol Theatre. Although his early professional background was in finance, his prowess as a natural leader centers around his ability to bring people together and to work collectively as a team.

During his first State of the City address — a speech he delivered before a roomful of community leaders in January of this year — Magruder highlighted the staggering number of transformative private developments that have been completed in recent years, are being completed currently or are planned for the near future.

He cited the impact of developments like The Health Plan offices, Williams Lea, The Bridge Tavern, Waterfront Hall, Newbridge Academy, DiCarlo’s condominium project, The Doris on Main, the Smart Center and other private investments are having on the downtown. The new hotel complex across from WesBanco Arena promises to add to that impact in a big way in the future.

In other areas of town, Magruder noted that the demolition of the former Ohio Valley Medical Center and the Center Wheeling Parking Garage are making way for WVU Medicine’s new regional cancer center, which will transform Center Wheeling. In Woodsdale, Sheetz is being totally renovated, a new Dunkin Donuts store has been built and Unified Bank is well underway with work to bring an innovative new bank branch to Wheeling.

These private investments move forward because of good public-private partnerships and strong working relationships that help bring them to fruition, Magruder said.

“There’s just a lot of things going on, and I think that with these things comes job development,” he said, noting that with new buildings comes new employees and new residents. “There’s just some good vibes all around town. People are relocating to Wheeling. They’re looking for a great place to live, and they tout the quality of life here.”

Magruder said it is easy for those who live in Wheeling to overlook the city’s many assets and take them for granted, but those who come to the city from other areas bring a fresh perspective and often rave about things like Oglebay Park, Centre Market, Heritage Port and its activities, Heritage Trail, the school systems, Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack and other amenities that are not common in smaller cities with reasonable costs of living.

“These are things that make small cities really intimate, high-quality, walkable and livable,” the mayor said. “I’m really excited about the future. My vision is to make sure we support the city so that we can keep ourselves in position to take advantage of future opportunities.”

Magruder said the city must continue to assist with development and to help maintain, improve and promote quality of life.

“We want to make sure that momentum continues,” he said, adding that part of the city’s role in setting the table for future development lies with its responsibility to maintain and improve its infrastructure. “Streets are being addressed, and bridges and infrastructure will continue to be addressed. So far Wheeling has been in good shape because we’ve continued to invest in water and sewer over the years. We will continue to do that this year and years going forward.”

In order to do so, the city must continue to be financially stable.

As times change and new faces in Charleston, West Virginia, and in Washington, D.C., represent the local constituents, officials in the city of Wheeling have to nurture and maintain relationships with local, state and federal movers and shakers, Magruder stressed.

“I believe in partnerships,” he said. “With some new political heads both in West Virginia and the U.S. Senate, we have to continue to build and strengthen those relationships. That’s how things get done.”

Magruder said that formula has proven to be fruitful locally, as the city continues its strong working collaborations with the Regional Economic Development Partnership (RED), the Wheeling Area Chamber of Commerce, the Wheeling Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Ohio County Commissioners and others.

All of these entities work closely together to pursue projects, and as a result, positive momentum instills optimism.

“Confidence begets confidence,” Magruder said. “That’s one of our jobs — to talk about the optimistic things and view that glass as half full as opposed to half empty — to keep a focus on the high-quality stuff that’s happening.”

As the Downtown Streetscape Project wraps up this year, the new Wheeling Fire Department Headquarters nears completion and other big ventures dawn on the horizon, it’s not hard to maintain a positive attitude about the future of the city, Magruder indicated.

“I’m a lifelong resident of Wheeling, and I mean this sincerely — I personally have never been more excited about the path that Wheeling is on today — and that’s certainly not a credit to me — that’s a credit to the community and its leadership,” he said. “I just love living here. My family has been blessed to grow up here and live in this community. It’s a wonderful place to raise a family and to live.”