City Council votes, declares Wheeling Inn a public nuisance

WHEELING -- Members of Wheeling City Council voted before a packed house Tuesday to declare the Wheeling Inn a public nuisance. The vote was 5-1, with only Vice Mayor Chad Thalman in opposition.

A public hearing on the matter is expected to take place in June.

Last month, city council moved to table the vote on a resolution to declare the Wheeling Inn a public nuisance after the hotel manager and advocates of the local homeless community advised city leaders that if the hotel were to close, a number of people living there would be put out onto the street.

Since then, the city administration and members of council, along with the city’s Homeless Liaison Melissa Adams and Project HOPE Director Crystal Bauer, have been working to relocate individuals in need of a place to stay while the Wheeling Inn is closed pending the public hearing.

Officials said Roxby Development has assisted in providing a space for those who are being relocated.

Anand Patel, manager of the Wheeling Inn, also said he will make sure those in need are able to get out of the hotel and into a safe place while the public nuisance issue is still pending.

"I’ve known these guys for 10 years," Patel said. "They’re like family to me. As of today, these senior citizens have to get off of the property, but I will help make sure they have a place to stay."

Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott -- who has recused himself from the discussions involving the Wheeling Inn because of his personal relationship with Patel -- abstained from voting on the matter. Thalman cast the only dissenting vote on the resolution to declare the Wheeling Inn -- also known as the Knights Inn in Wheeling -- a public nuisance.

Thalman acknowledged, however, that the situation at the property needs to be addressed, and the rest of city council agreed.

"I think most of us would agree that the status of the Knights Inn is not acceptable," Thalman said. "Something needs to change."

Thalman expressed concerns as to where people staying at the hotel would go after they are told to leave, and he also questioned whether the rate of criminal activity around the property would change if the hotel was simply vacated.

"I suspect that an empty and abandoned motel in an urban environment would bring a whole new set of problems for that block," Thalman said.

City Manager Robert Herron had recommended to city council last month that the property at 949 Main St. be declared a public nuisance after Police Chief Shawn Schwertfeger issued a report detailing calls to service and criminal cases stemming from the hotel and surrounding area.