City To Clear Future Wheeling Fire Department Headquarters Site
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WHEELING -- Bids are scheduled to be opened later next week for demolition of buildings along 17th Street where the new Wheeling Fire Department headquarters will be constructed next year.
City officials this month continued to take steps forward to bring the new, spacious facility to East Wheeling. Earlier this year, the city purchased the property from Gregory R. Gantzer of A.E. Pelley Plumbing and Heating for $250,000, acquiring much of the city block. Wheeling City Manager Robert Herron said the previous property owner vacated the site in November, and asbestos abatement inspections were performed shortly thereafter.
A.E. Pelley Plumbing and Heating has relocated the business to 1691 Warren St.
Much of the site was already vacant -- with primarily unoccupied buildings between vacant pieces of land -- and had been used for storage of trailers and equipment. Some vacant buildings in the block will soon be removed as the city clears the site for redevelopment.
"The fire headquarters project continues to move forward," Herron said. "The demolition of the buildings for the site for the new headquarters in East Wheeling are currently out to bid, along with asbestos abatement. Those bids are due on Jan. 6 for presentation to city council in January."
The city manager indicated the site is expected to be cleared by springtime if all goes as planned.
"It still is on schedule," Herron said. "Hopefully demolition will be occurring in February and early March, and the bid opening is still scheduled for that project for March 24, so we are moving along."
Next week, members of Wheeling City Council are expected to take action on a handful of ordinances recently introduced to reconfigure traffic patterns around the property in anticipation of the new fire department headquarters needs. City officials have noted that the centrally located site is ideal for the new fire department facility, as it has fast and easy access to the downtown area, South Wheeling, W.Va. 2 and Interstate 70.
According to the ordinances slated for a second and final reading during the next Wheeling City Council meeting on Jan. 4, the city will authorize -- with the consent and approval of the Wheeling Traffic Commission -- one-way traffic on Lane G from 17th Street to Lane 15 heading south, one-way traffic on Lane 15 from Lane G to Wood Street heading west and two-way traffic on 17th Street from Wood Street to Lane G. An ordinance is also expected to be approved to forbid parking on 17th Street from Wood Street to Lane G.
M&G Architects and Engineers was hired to complete the designs for the new fire department headquarters. Construction of the new, state-of-the-art facility is expected to cost around $6.4 million, according to estimates provided earlier this year. The project is being funded through Wheeling's new City Service Fee -- or User Fee -- which was implemented last year.
Construction of the new fire department headquarters is expected to bring yet another aesthetic improvement to the East Wheeling neighborhood that for decades has been peppered with deteriorating, neglected and dilapidated structures. Architects said the exterior of the facility will bring a modern look to the neighborhood, which has a cross section of industrial and residential properties, is adjacent to Wheeling Heritage Trail and is near the access road to and front the Fitzsimmons Family Dog Park.
The new fire department headquarters will hold bays for ambulances and larger bays for ladder trucks and the big firefighting apparatuses. In addition to the bay areas, the building will also house administrative offices, bunk rooms and living areas, storage spaces, a public lobby, a fitness room, classrooms and a training tower.
Once built and put into operation, the facility will replace the current Wheeling Fire Department headquarters, which is located in the lower level of the Center Wheeling Parking Garage.