Ohio County Development Authority Approves Environmental Study of Former Straub Lot in Downtown Wheeling
Joselyn King WHEELING -- The Ohio County Development Authority will spend as much as $135,000 for an environmental study necessary to complete the transfer of the former Straub Honda parking lot at 16th and Main streets to West Virginia Northern Community College.
It's a transaction that has been in the works for more than a decade.
OCDA members this past week approved a contract with Downstream Strategies to do an environmental study that is expected to take at least 18 months, and will involve the drilling of holes across 16th Street near the Boury Lofts, explained County Administrator Randy Russell.
The cost of the study is expected to be at least $95,000, but is not to exceed $135,000, he reported.
The OCDA already paid about $700,000 for remediation of the lot that involved the removal of 21 gas storage tanks found under the property in July 2020.
That means the entire cost for the project could be as much as $835,000.
The OCDA acquired the former Straub Honda building and lot in 2010 under a deal that took the Straub Honda dealership to county-owned property at The Highlands. WVNCC later agreed to buy the former property for $1,050,000 in 2011, according to Russell.
WVNCC accepted ownership of the former Straub building. But ownership of the adjacent parking lot remained with the OCDA as it was responsible for what was initially thought to be "just one or two" tanks under the property.
Once remediated, the OCDA is obligated to turn ownership of the parking lot over to WVNCC, explained County Solicitor Don Tennant.
"You can see WVNCC has improved the lot with some fencing and landscaping. However, we still own the lot," Russell told OCDA members this week. "We are obligated under our purchasing agreement to mitigate and correct any environmental concerns."
The work by Downstream Strategies will include drilling holes across the street near the Boury Lofts and watching the intersection to make certain runoff from the lot isn't reaching the river, Russell explained.
The observation will involve 18 months of continued analysis of the lot, and after that time Downstream Strategies will prepare a report that will be sent to the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, he continued.
"Chances are, they (the DEP) will probably close the issue," Russell said, noting the entire process is likely to take up to two years.
Russell also noted the future release by the DEP likely will come with some restrictions on the property.
"You'll be able to use it as a parking lot, but you won't be able to put anything else on it -- obviously not residential," Russell said. "You could put some industrial (use) on there, but I don't think Northern is going to be doing that."
OCDA members expressed concerns that the OCDA still could be held liable for the lot even after it has been accepted by WVNCC.
Tennant noted the large amount of construction that has been ongoing along Main and 16th streets adjacent to the property. Work at the intersection has resulted in even more digging and removal of dirt, and more dirt brought in to replace it, he continued.
"We're probably in pretty good shape that nothing is going to be going across the street unless it is coming from across the street," Tennant said. "The hope is that after the monitoring, that will satisfy the DEP … allowing us to deed the property over to WVNCC pursuant to the time it was sold."
Tennant said when the OCDA purchased the property in 2010 there was a mistake in the contract -- negotiated prior to his tenure -- that gave Straub a "hold harmless" clause that kept the county from collecting from them any remediation costs.
"Straub had already removed two tanks from the ground," Russell added. "We have no idea how they were able to remove two tanks and not remove the others, but it is what it is."
Sonar initially was used to try and determine if any additional tanks were underground, but large rebar in the pavement kept them from being detected, he added.
Tennant acknowledged it always costs more money to have additional ground studies.
"But in retrospect, a deeper dig should have been done," he said.
Ohio County Commission President Don Nickerson, also an attorney, said it appeared to him the OCDA had to pay for the study if it ever wishes to relinquish the property.
"I don't think we have a choice," he said.
Russell said WVNCC is "a good user for the property."
"They're a good partner. They wanted the property, and it wasn't conducive for them to purchase and remediate," Russell said. "We were glad to take ownership and do the remediation. It was part of our interest in cleaning up downtown Wheeling and Ohio County as a whole."