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WHEELING -- The Ohio Valley will get to see Wednesday just what the Gateway Visitors and Heritage Center to be built at the top of Main Street will look like.
The Wheeling-Ohio County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB), the City of Wheeling, Wheeling Heritage, Ohio County, and RED will officially unveil the concept designs for the new center at noon Wednesday at the site of the former Wheeling Inn. Due to site constraints, in-person attendance will be limited to media and by RSVP only. The general public can view the announcement via a livestream on the Wheeling Heritage Media YouTube page.
"This historic event is made possible by the CVB's forged partnerships between West Virginia's Department of Tourism, City of Wheeling, Wheeling Heritage, Ohio County and RED," said Frank O'Brien, executive director of the Wheeling Ohio County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
"Our collaboration and collective efforts to reach this moment has been one of the greatest joys in my professional career."
The CVB purchased the former Wheeling Inn in January 2023 to tear it down and build a new Gateway Visitors and Heritage Center next to the Wheeling Suspension Bridge. Raze International began environmental remediation of the site in July and the building's demolition is ready to start.
Active demolition of the building will occur over a six-to-eight week period on Mondays-Thursdays and some select Fridays. During this time, the section of the Wheeling Heritage Trail will be closed during working hours, which is anticipated to be between 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Meanwhile, Tipping Point, which has been hired to oversee the project's development, has been soliciting community input for what it would like to see the center look like and what services it wanted to see in the new facility.
"The design concepts are a true reflection of the community's top priorities, which are access to the riverfront trail, celebrating our region's heritage, and to establish a family-oriented destination for both visitors and locals," said Scott Schenerlein, Executive Director of Wheeling Heritage. "The Heritage component of the center intends to provide an experience that encourages people to explore other destinations and landmarks that are the fabric of Wheeling's history."
Pedestrian traffic will remain open on the Suspension Bridge, but construction flaggers will be stationed to occasionally consolidate pedestrian traffic to the south entrance of the bridge on 10th Street, to avoid any demolition activity that may be occurring adjacent to the bridge throughout the day.
Construction flaggers will also be present on Main Street, as needed, to help construction vehicles safely enter and leave the site to remove the debris as a result of the demolition work.