Community

Ohio County Commissioners Table TIF District Action

WHEELING -- Ohio County commissioners tabled action regarding a mechanism to fund a second interchange at The Highlands after nearby residents voiced concerns Tuesday night.

Commissioners are seeking to establish a second tax increment financing (TIF) district adjacent to The Highlands that would join one already established there, and produce property tax revenue for the county that would help pay for the interchange and open up further development there.

Three Triadelphia residents told commissioners during a public hearing Tuesday night they weren't opposed to the construction of an additional interchange or any build out that might result.

Instead, they said water runoff over the hillside from The Highlands during major storms has caused them flooding in recent years, and they are concerned additional development on the hillside will intensify the issue.

A TIF district is a designated area in which a portion of the property taxes paid by the businesses there is kicked back to a local government. The local government, in turn, is required to reinvest that money into further development in the TIF district with the purpose of growing more revenue.

The proposed second TIF district in The Highlands area would continue down the hillside toward Middle Creek Road, taking in the Millenium Center and Touchstone Research Laboratory on the east-bound side of the interstate, then over to the Maroon Farm.

Money generated by the district would provide the opportunity for the second interchange, and more investment and development by the county in the Middle Creek Road area.

Triadelphia resident Gene South explained "the rain has to go somewhere." He reported that following a storm in 2020, he had about eight inches of mud and water in his basement that came from the nearby creek that overflowed.

Pat Roxby added that she shared the same concerns. Water from The Highlands flows downward into Middle Wheeling Creek, causing her flooding at times.

There are businesses and a school along Middle Creek Road, she continued.

"If it's going to pump more weather down on them, it's a concern," Roxby said.

Triadelphia Councilman Tom Hoffman also spoke, and suggested to commissioners they should send someone to evaluate the situation before moving any further on the project.

County Administrator Randy Russell explained the county has "spent millions" building detention ponds upstream from the Middle Creek dam with the intention of containing water and having it drain out more slowly.

A geotechnical engineer also has been consulted to make certain the dams are functioning and draining properly, according to Russell.

Commissioner Randy Wharton said he empathized with residents, and has personal experience with flooding of property.

He added that what he has discovered is that flooding often is caused by a blockage upstream when the streams haven't been properly cleared of debris.

"The appearance is maybe that all that water is coming from The Highlands, but it really is controlled in a much better way," he said.

The Environmental Protection Agency makes certain of this, according to Wharton.

"I'm not convinced that there isn't some stream cleaning that should be done above you," he added.

When it came time for commissioners to vote on the TIF District motion, Commission President Don Nickerson suggested the commissioners should wait and further review the proposal following comments by the public.

"When people come to a meeting to address an issue that is on the agenda, you listen to the comments they say, and then you move to approve it without any consideration of what was said ... that is arrogant," Wharton said.

Carrie Cecil, attorney with Frost, Brown and Todd of Charleston, is advising the commissioners on the matter. She reminded them the resolution before them was just to submit an application to the West Virginia Department of Economic Development for the consideration of a TIF District, and that they weren't yet actually creating the TIF District.

In the end, the commissioners opted to table the matter until their next meeting set for 6 p.m. on Aug. 15 at the City-County Building, 1500 Chapline St., Wheeling.