Trending
Work is just now underway on a much-needed, $12 million upgrade of the City-County Building in Wheeling. The renovations are set to take 18 months -- perfect timing for the outdated structure to have new life just as the Downtown Streetscape projects wraps up.
The work will include new heating, ventilation and air conditioning system installed, and the ceilings throughout the building lowered. A large window in the chambers of the Ohio County Commission already has been replaced, with several others set for the coming months.
Some offices will be relocated through the work, so if you're visiting the building in the coming months, be aware. City offices will be the first to be displaced, and plans call for that to begin sometime in April.
All of this work is on top of other upgrades currently happening at the City-County Building.
For years, the granite slabs that adorn the columns at the building's side entrance at 16th Street have been separating from the underlying pillars. It's made for an unsightly appearance for our official government offices.
The project to repair the columns is set to cost $190,000, and more than half that funding is coming through a $100,000 Courthouse Facilities Improvement grant. Ohio County Administrator Randy Russell has previously said funding sources for the remaining $90,000 are being evaluated.
The project is set to go out to bid early next year, with a projected April start date. The sooner the better, we say, as the work needs completed and the ratchet straps holding the columns together need gone.
We can't stress enough -- appearances do matter, particularly when it comes to how government is managing our community.