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Wheeling City Council members did the right thing recently, in amending a 2017 ordinance that had been an obstacle to development in the downtown business district. One of the keys to success in economic development is flexibility, and council members demonstrated it.
In June 2017, with two dissenting votes, council adopted an ordinance requiring that new buildings in the downtown business district be at least three stories in height. The idea was to ensure that new construction fit in with the existing multi-story architecture. At the time, Mayor Glenn Elliott commented that, "I see this as a very forward-looking move. A downtown with a lot of one-story buildings will feel like a strip mall."
At the time, some critics of the plan -- and we were among them -- wondered whether Wheeling could afford to turn down growth by rejecting developers with plans for one- or two-story structures.
Fast forward to this spring, when an existing business, Ohio Valley Community Federal Credit Union, requested permission to construct a two-story building at 1114 Chapline Street. The credit union now occupies a one-story building.
Credit Union officials sought an exemption, technically a variance, from the three-story height requirement but were turned down by the Board of Zoning Appeals. That left the ball in council's court.
To their credit, council members -- including some who in 2017 voted in favor of the three-story requirement -- voted unanimously to amend it. Henceforth, new two-story buildings will be permitted downtown.
Councilwoman Wendy Scatterday, who championed the three-story rule in 2017, did express concern about the amendment, however. She fears it may lead to yet another change if someone seeks approval for a single-story structure.
Perhaps so. But if that happens, council should do precisely what members, including Scatterday, did recently. Members should demonstrate the flexibility without which Wheeling cannot grow.