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Designs for Wheeling’s Police, Fire Stations To Be Discussed

Wheeling City Council members will decide Tuesday whether or not to move forward with design work to have the Valley Professional Building on the campus of the former Ohio Valley Medical Center converted into a new headquarters for the Wheeling Police Department.

WHEELING — Members of Wheeling City Council are expected to vote on legislation authorizing design work for new police and fire headquarters Tuesday after the matter was tabled during the last council meeting.

An ordinance authorizes the city manager to spend $522,540 with M&G Architects and Engineers of Wheeling for professional design services for the Valley Professional Building on the former Ohio Valley Medical Center campus for a new police headquarters, as well as initial design services for a new fire station at a location yet to be determined.

City council was set to finalize the legislation two weeks ago, but new members of council moved to table the ordinance and go into an executive session to discuss the potential purchase of property. After months of crunching numbers, the previous city council — which finished out its administration at the end of June — decided to acquire the OVMC campus with the intention of using at least one of the buildings for its new police department.

The new police and fire department headquarters are being funded through Wheeling’s new City Service Fee, which was implemented at the beginning of this year. People who work within Wheeling’s city limits are charged $2 per week for the new service fee, half of which goes to public safety for these new police and fire facilities and the other half of which goes to various infrastructure projects in the city.

New Wheeling councilmembers Ben Seidler, Rosemary Ketchum and Jerry Sklavounakis took office at the beginning of July and had not been privy to the many discussions that took place regarding the selection of the OVMC site for the new police and fire headquarters. During the selection process, previous council members had considered other properties as well, and those offers were still on the table.

Council met in executive session to discuss these matters, as well as the potential purchase of property, as option agreements have remained on the table for other parcels.

Legislation for the design work is expected to be brought back to the floor for a vote when city council meets again on Tuesday at noon.

The meeting will take place virtually online beginning at noon on Tuesday and can be viewed live on the city’s official Facebook site. Prior to the regular meeting, there also will be a Development Committee meeting beginning at 11:30 a.m. and a Finance Committee meeting beginning at 11:45 a.m.

For public comment during the regular city council meeting, members of the public may call the city clerk’s office at 304-551-2151 at any time up until 15 minutes prior to the beginning of the meeting to sign up to speak.

When the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting was finalized late last week, city leaders explained their consideration to purchase nearly 3 acres of property owned by Americo Inc. at 19th and Jacob streets for $150,000. City leaders are hopeful that if the property is acquired by the city, funding through the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection could be obtained for asbestos abatement and environmental remediation. The city hopes to clear dilapidated buildings from the site at the main southern entrance to the city’s downtown area. Legislation is being introduced Tuesday to initiate this action.

Among other new pieces of legislation being introduced before Wheeling City Council on Tuesday afternoon is an ordinance authorizing the city manager to spend $377,687 with Savage Construction of Wheeling for a sewer reconstruction project in South Warwood.

City Manager Robert Herron explained that this project is funded through the DEP and is being administered by the city.

“This project addresses mine drainage in North Wheeling,” Herron said. “It is being funded through the state. We actually have a full grant to do this. It’s handling mine drainage in Warwood. Occasionally you see where orange water comes out of the ground. We capture that in cooperation with the state. They initiated this project. They came up and worked with us. They pay for it, but we administer it.”

Other items being introduced on Tuesday include:

* An ordinance initiating the removal of no parking signs in Ward 2 as they relate to the city’s street sweeper schedule.

* An ordinance authorizing the city manager to spend $60,470 with Doan Ford of Belmont for a 2020 Ford F-350 utility truck fitted with aluminum service body, crane and power inverter to be charged to the water distribution vehicle replacement fund.

* An ordinance authorizing the city manager to spend $99,993 with FYDA Freightliner of Canonsburg, Pa., for a 2020 Frieghtliner M2 106 Low Profile truck with a dump bed to be charged to the water distribution vehicle replacement fund.

* A resolution identifying 102 Carmel Road as a development or redevelopment site.

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