New Look, New Leader for Oglebay Park in 2021
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WHEELING -- Oglebay Park has a new look and a new leader for 2021, and officials say the park also has the financial resources to do what is needed to take the park into the future.
New Wheeling Park Commission President and CEO Bob Peckenpaugh on Thursday showed off renovations already made to the West Ballrooms, and said he wants to get to know the area and its likes and dislikes before setting goals for the park.
He took over the job at the start of 2021 following the retirement of David Lindelow.
"The pandemic was hard for everybody," he said. "But Oglebay Park especially, and even Wheeling Park, have been a place of peace, a place to get out of your house and really enjoy getting out and social distancing. Knowing we've found another reason for Oglebay to be in people's hearts is really a good thing."
Peckenpaugh most recently served as general manager of the Edgewater Hotel in Seattle, and speaks of stints working for spas, ski lodges, parks and hotels in such locations as Texas, San Francisco, Hawaii and Florida.
He discussed what he believes will be the "next evolution" of Oglebay Park.
"I don't know Oglebay, I don't know Wheeling, and I don't know the greater Ohio Valley -- but those are things I can learn," he said. "There are things I bring to the table, and I know combining those experiences with the feedback of our patrons of the park that we can come up with some really great ideas.
"We will focus on the people, our guests and our patrons. We will focus on our product and the experiences we create."
All the while, the park also will have to keep an eye on its financial stability, according to Peckenpaugh.
"In the last three years, that is something the team here has really solidified," he said. "The park is in a financial position right now where we are able to move things forward. Thank you to the team for making that happen."
Eriks Janelsins is president and CEO of the Oglebay Foundation, the fundraising arm assisting the Wheeling Park Commission. He said people were inspired by the park's value during the pandemic in 2020, and last year was the foundation's most successful fundraising year ever.
He estimates about $6 million was contributed to the Oglebay Foundation, and $725,000 of the money is going to be used on a project to rehabilitate the park system's trails and the Good Zoo.
"It may sound like a lot of money, but it's a very big park," Janelsins said.
Upgrades already have been made to 17,000 square feet of meeting space at Wilson Lodge, including the West Ballrooms, the Fort Henry Room and the Terrace Room. Next to get upgrades will be Glessner Auditorium, and six meeting rooms near it in the adjacent corridor.
The renovations are being made possible by a gift from Wheeling businessman and philanthropist Gary West in honor of his wife Flip and daughters Lori West Sholota and Kimberly West Baker.
The renovated meeting rooms have been equipped with the latest in technology, and money for the improvements was provided by U.S. District Judge Frederick Stamp and his wife Joan.