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‘A Building Boom’: Wheeling Mayor Sees Similarities Between Progress of Late 1800s, Present

photo by: Eric Ayres

Woda Cooper Companies’ new apartment complex — The Doris on Main — is being completed at the primary entrance to Wheeling’s downtown area from Interstate 70 on Main Street. The new building quickly rose out of the site of a former surface parking lot, and its multimillion-dollar investment has already changed the landscape of the upper part of downtown.

WHEELING – “Building operations were never so brisk in Wheeling as they are at this time,” stated the lead to a story published in the Wheeling Daily Intelligencer on Friday, June 12, 1891. After more than a century, it seems that the past is providing today’s blueprint for the city’s future.

An avid reader of archived newspaper articles kept by the Ohio County Public Library, Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott cited this particular article as an intriguing snapshot of a pivotal moment in the city’s history – a time when Wheeling was writing the beginning to a significant chapter of growth.

With hundreds of millions of dollars being invested in the Friendly City on construction projects today, the mayor indicated that he couldn’t help but to draw similarities between the late 1800s and today, expressing his enthusiasm about what lies ahead for Wheeling in the wake of the major investments that have been unfolding before everyone’s eyes and beyond the seemingly endless barrage of orange barrels.

“I’ve read a lot of old newspaper stories about Wheeling’s history, and in particular, its architecture,” Elliott said. “Where we are right now reminds me of the story from the June 12, 1891, Wheeling Daily Intelligencer. More buildings were built between 1890 and 1910 in Wheeling than probably any other era.”

The article boasts a headline proclaiming “A Building Boom: Now at its Height in This City – Such as Wheeling never Experienced before in her History.” The story lists scores of building and home construction projects taking places in neighborhoods throughout the city, from the the first Jewish synagogue in the state – the old Eoff Street Temple to a new rectory at St. Matthew’s Church, a Fourth Ward public school annex, a number of business buildings and numerous private residences that today would be considered mansions.

Some of those structures – such as the Eckhart House in North Wheeling and the City Bank of Wheeling (the Professional Building) downtown – still exist as history landmarks today. Most of the structures listed in the story are long gone, but for many decades were part of the landscape of a vibrant city.

Leaders in Wheeling today are confident that the city is poised to usher in a new era of vibrancy – particularly with all of the investment taking place in and around the downtown area.

“I’m not sure you can find a period of modern Wheeling history that even comes close to this level of public and private investment in and around downtown Wheeling,” Elliott said. “When you start looking closely at just how much money is being spent and on what projects, it’s easy to see a very near future in which downtown looks and feels much improved over where it is today.”

There are dozens of private and public projects that are presently under construction, are about to begin or have recently been completed, the mayor noted. If the state’s recently finished Interstate 70 Bridge Project – a $215 million job – were to be included in the current list, the total investment into Wheeling approaches nearly a half a billion dollars … all in a relatively short window of time.

The state of West Virginia has already started the long-awaited $32 million Downtown Streetscape Project and continues to work on the $17 million rehabilitation of the Wheeling Suspension Bridge. Big city projects that are underway include the $6 million Wheeling Police Headquarters project in Center Wheeling, the $9 million Wheeling Fire Department Headquarters project in East Wheeling, the $13 million Market Street Parking Garage taking shape downtown and the city’s partnership with Desmone Architects of Pittsburgh is seeing initial steps taking place to rehabilitate four historic buildings in the 1400 block of Market Street.

Funds are also being put into place for an estimated $1.8 million investment into the reconfiguration of the Wheeling Artisan Center downtown through a project spearheaded by Wheeling Heritage.

As for private investments, the first thing most motorists see coming into the downtown area from I-70 is the Woda Cooper Companies’ new apartment complex – the Doris on Main, estimated to be a $9 million project. Another downtown housing project – the Historic Wheeling-Pitt Lofts – promises to deliver a $38 million investment with Coon Restoration set to begin construction in early 2023.

Roxby Development has brought significant investments into the historic McLure House hotel in the heart of downtown, and work is moving forward to bring significant improvements to The White Palace, a $3.2 million project itself, and other Wheeling Park Commission facilities.

The mayor noted that other private investments include: a major restoration of the Fort Henry Club by McKinley & Associates estimated at $8 million, Helping Heroes’ $6 million restoration of the Columbia Gas Building, the Milleson family’s transformation of the former Berry Supply Building on Water Street into Waterfront Hall, the Strong family’s restoration of the former Goodwin Drug building on Main Street for the Smart Center, restoration of the old Kaufmann’s location on Main Street for Collective Luminescence LLC, continued renovations by the Carl family at the Bridge Tavern building, restoration of the Outdoor Store building on Main Street, the Hamilton family’s restoration of the Posin’s building on Market Street to include first-floor event space and upper-floor housing, stabilization of the King’s Jewelers building on Market Street for The Hub on Market LLC, and improvements to 1207 Market St. for a new waffle shop.

“Obviously, even with all these improvements, Downtown Wheeling still has a way to go to achieve the coveted destination location status it had 50 years ago,” Elliott said. “But judged against where it was just 10 years ago, it is safe to say that we are on an upward trajectory.”

Other projects that are currently planned, the mayor noted, include the major WVU Medicine Cancer Center on the former Ohio Valley Medical Center campus, the YWCA building total restoration, the pending demolition of the Wheeling Inn and potential creation of a new West Virginia-Wheeling Visitors and Welcome Center downtown, Edible Mountain’s East Wheeling project with a $3.2 million pool already secured by Grow Ohio Valley, the Food Hub on 17th Stret by Grow OV, Vineyard Church’s restoration of 1000 Main St., new splash pads at Heritage Port and other city locations and West Virginia Independence Hall’s plans for an outdoor amphitheater and Arthur I. Boreman statue addition.

“The majority of the projects taking place have been several years in the making,” Wheeling Vice Mayor Chad Thalman said. “This level of investment doesn’t happen overnight, nor does it happen without a significant number of people dedicating their time, energy and resources. A big thank you goes out to all the individuals who have invested in the city and are playing a role in Wheeling’s revitalization.”

Individual homeowners and business owners have been taking advantage of city incentive programs such as the Homeowner-Occupied Repair Assistance Program and the Facade Improvement Program, which also add up to notable investments and improvements to existing buildings.

These projects are not only helping to revitalize countless blocks and neighborhoods in town, many are also helping to generate tax revenue via the city’s Business and Occupation Tax.

“For the past two years or so and for the coming two years, there is unprecedented construction and projects underway in downtown Wheeling,” City Manager Robert Herron said. “The I-70 Bridges project generated B&O revenues, as does the Suspension Bridge project that is still underway.”

Some projects are exempt from B&O taxes, the city manager explained, while a significant volume of other investments aren’t.

“City projects are exempt, as they are funded out of various sources of city funds to begin with,” Herron said. “The private sector projects such as Doris on Main, the 1400 Block project as well as The Wheeling Pitt Historic Lofts Project will create an additional, valuable tax base. There are several other smaller private sector investments that will add those values.”

Many of the investments promise to bring a huge impact on potential tax revenues for the future once they are completed, Herron noted.

“The new parking structure has commercial space in it, and that will generate B&O and sales tax in the future,” he said. “The Streetscape project is exempt from B&O as it is partially funded by the city, but is a $32 million investment that will have significant economic benefits on the local economy once completed. As part of the recent TIF Bond issue, we conservatively projected those increases in our tax base.”

While it may seem that Wheeling is currently seeing all of the investments anyone could imagine, city leaders said the construction boom is far from over – and it may just be beginning.

“There are more projects in the discussion phase that I’m confident will come to fruition over the next several years,” Thalman said. “It’s an exciting time for Wheeling.”

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