McLure Hotel Permits Suspended, Operations Halted
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WHEELING – Boiler issues at the McLure Hotel have led to its permits being suspended and operations halted until the problems are fixed, according to Ohio County Health Administrator Howard Gamble.
The Wheeling Fire Department was at the downtown hotel early Thursday responding to an issue, Gamble said, when city code inspectors arrived and health inspectors followed. What they all found was that the boiler that feeds the building was not working. Not only was the heat in the building not operational, but neither was the hot water.
Buildings like pools, restaurants, hotels and schools are governed by state code that requires both building heat and hot water be maintained.
"So you’re not going to be able to maintain that and, so, as a result of both of them, you can’t meet the requirements for both those provisions," Gamble said. "And so at this time, we have to suspend the permits."
Permit suspensions like this happen a lot, Gamble said. Normally all it takes is a short temporary closure to fix the problems before the business can resume operation. The McLure Hotel is different, he added. Because of the size of the problem, it will take a little longer and require a professional to come fix the issues.
The weather also was a factor, Gamble added. Low temperatures are forecast to be in the 20s through Sunday.
Once the issues are fixed, Gamble said the health department would inspect the building again. If everything is back in working order, health inspectors would recommend reinstating the permits.
"With that said, the City of Wheeling still may have issues," Gamble said, "whether it’s the fire department or building codes, and we respect that. And if they still have an issue, then that has to be corrected before you can reoccupy or resume your duties or your business at the hotel, the school, the pool, whatever it may be. And we'd stand behind them. If that has to be done, it has to be done."
Gamble said the closure would affect any tenants and employees in the building.He added that the issues could be fixed faster, but the right professionals would need to be brought in as quickly as possible.
When contacted Wednesday evening, a front desk receptionist at the hotel said the manager had left for the day and could not be reached for comment.
The McLure Hotel had recently been returned to the ownership of FA Management Corp. and FG Management LLC in a June 2023 foreclosure auction. The company regained ownership through a credit bid of nearly $5.7 million which is what Roxby McLure LLC still owed FA Management and FG Management. Roxby head Jeffrey Morris recently pleaded guilty in federal court to one charge of wire fraud and one charge of willful failure to pay over taxes.