For most of this past Saturday, downtown Wheeling just felt different.

A trip through the central business district and parts of Center Wheeling Saturday afternoon and evening showed the sidewalks full. Restaurants and bars buzzed with conversation.

People wandered from one venue to another, laughing, greeting friends, discovering new businesses and enjoying a day filled with live music.

Families celebrating West Virginia Day at West Virginia Independence Hall mixed with others making their way through downtown streets.

Most importantly, people stayed throughout the afternoon and into the evening.

The busyness and the energy of those downtown reminded me of my first trip to Wheeling in the mid-1980s — at least the first trip I can recall. I came to a Ray Stevens performance at the Capitol Theatre with a friend and his parents on a Friday night. The streets were packed — much more so than the streets of downtown Morgantown on a Friday.

The city was alive — people everywhere, lights flashing, car horns honking, excitement in abundance. We walked across the Wheeling Suspension Bridge and back prior to the show and had dinner downtown. It is a memory that has remained vivid for more than four decades.

That’s what I saw the makings of this past Saturday.

The Jamboree City Wheeling W.Va. idea was a huge success. It was a music festival that featured nearly two dozen acts across multiple venues in downtown and Center Wheeling. What began as a simple idea among local business owners became a citywide celebration that, coupled with those visiting for West Virginia Day, brought thousands of people — young and old alike –into the city’s heart.

Events like this matter because they remind us of something we often forget: people want reasons to come downtown.

For generations, downtown Wheeling was the region’s heartbeat. It was where people shopped, worked, gathered and celebrated. Over time, though, economic changes, suburban sprawl and shifting consumer habits pulled that energy elsewhere.

But if Saturday was an indicator, downtown may finally be having its moment — again.

The goal, though, must not be to recreate the downtown of 1975 or, from my perspective, that Saturday night in the mid-1980s. Nostalgia alone won’t revitalize a city.

Instead, we must focus on building the downtown Wheeling needs in 2026 and beyond.

That means creating a place where people want to spend time — not just pass through.

It means embracing experiences over transactions.

It means investing in events that combine music, arts, history, food and culture.

Saturday, June 20, offered us a clear blueprint.

Visitors could celebrate West Virginia’s birthday at Independence Hall, listen to local musicians, browse shops, enjoy a meal and reconnect with neighbors — all within a few blocks. The day showcased the unique assets that no shopping center or online retailer can replicate: authenticity, history and, most importantly, community.

Wheeling already has the ingredients. We have historic architecture, strong local businesses, a rich musical legacy and a growing calendar of events. We have new streets and sidewalks, improved public spaces and renewed energy from entrepreneurs willing to invest in our future.

We have a downtown that is once again becoming more welcoming and more vibrant.

Now is the time to build on that momentum.

City leaders, business owners, community organizations and residents should view Jamboree City not as a one-time success, but as a challenge.

What’s next? How do we create more days like Saturday?

The answer is not one signature event. It’s a steady dose of activities and experiences that give people a reason to return week after week, season after season.

Downtown revitalization won’t happen just because we have new streets. It will happen when we help people create their own memories there, just as I did more than 40 years ago.

Is is OK to be hopeful that downtown Wheeling found its rhythm again? I surely think so.

Now it’s time to keep the music playing.

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Molly Aderholt’s departure on June 30 from the Ohio County Board of Education creates a void that will be hard to fill. Aderholt offered a thoughtful, reasoned and well-research approach to all the issues she championed during her eight years on the board. Chief among those were school start times, which remain on the table.

While there needs to be movement soon on getting the high school to start later, it’s unclear if the newly constituted school board even will address the issue. Come July 1, three of the five board members — Andrew Garber, Anne Hercules and new board member Jerry Ames — will be either former teachers/administrators or school service workers. Those groups have been opposed to any time change.

We shall see.

John McCabe is editor of The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register. From 9-10 a.m. each Friday, he joins Howard Monroe on AM 1600 WKKX to discuss the most pressing issues in Wheeling and the Ohio Valley. Email him at jmccabe@theintelligencer.net.