Magruder Promoting Teamwork as Answer for Future of Wheeling

There were a few key points in time during Denny Magruder’s career as the executive director of Wesbanco Arena and the Capitol Theatre.

• He filled a key role with the recruitment of professional hockey to the Friendly City;
• Magruder was at the table during the naming rights negotiations with Wesbanco Bank for the city’s downtown entertainment venue; 
• As soon as the Wheeling Convention & Visitor’s Bureau purchased the Capitol Theatre in April 2009, Magruder was named the executive director of the arena and the theatre;
• Nearly 10 years ago, former Wheeling mayor Andy McKenzie and his Council approved a $15 million arena renovation pushed by Magruder, a project that included a new façade and atrium area, new seats, state-of-the-art video technology, and a new mid-rink, four-sided video scoreboard.
• During his final 10 years in the position, Magruder developed and pushed for a partnership program that would give the arena “skin in the game” when it came to event scheduling for the two downtown venues. Today that successful system is known as the “Endowment Fund” and is credited for the increase in entertainment during the past two years.

Following each of these milestones, Magruder simply said something close to, “This is going to be great for Wheeling,” and “This was a team effort.“

Now Magruder, who managed the arena and then the theatre for a total of 36.5 years, wants to be the next mayor of the city of Wheeling.

“One of the biggest reasons why I want to be mayor is because I have a life full of experiences that qualify me for the position, and also because after I retired, I looked around and there were some things I’m just not happy with,” Magruder said. “I learned during my life that if you’re not happy, you have to step up and try to do what you can about it. That’s what I did when it came to the sustainability of our entertainment venues and it’s what I want to do for our city.

“I have the time and I have the passion,” he said. “I love this city, and I want to help make this a place where my grandkids feel good about living here when it’s time for them to make that decision. That’s why I wanted to run. I love Wheeling and I believe I have the skill set to do what needs done to move this city forward.”

Magruder insists he made “an embarrassing mistake” during a candidate panel event sponsored by WTRF TV-7 and the Wheeling newspapers at West Virginia Northern Community College when he stated he would consider supporting the repeal of the Crown Act, an ordinance adopted by Wheeling Council in February 2023. 

The 6-0 approval established the “Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair” Act, legislation that established a violation to discriminate anyone because of their hair, hair textures or headwear.

“I confused it with something else and that’s my mistake and I own it,” the candidate said. “One of the main reasons why I’m willing to fight for this city is because the people have always embraced me when I’ve needed them, and that’s what friends did for me again after I made that mistake. This community is an incredible community because of the way they reach out when you need them most, and that’s the kind of community I want to help with every ounce of energy I have. I want to pay back the people.

“I’ve had the privilege to travel during my lifetime, and I’ve had the chance to visit some pretty neat places,” he said. “But I always looked forward to coming home because there’s no place in the world like Wheeling, W.Va. That’s why, not matter where people have moved to, they call Wheeling their home.”

Captain of the Team

Early voting began in West Virginia on May 1, and in years past a little more than one-third of the total vote took place before Election Day.

Even though there’s no way to predict what numbers will be produced for a crowded primary ballot for voters in the city of Wheeling, Magruder said he plans to make the most of the time remaining between now and May 14^th. 

“We’re down to just a few days left in the campaign, and the rest of it is going to look like the last six or seven weeks because we’re going to talk to as many people as possible about the future of this city,” Magruder said. “When I get together with people, we talk about the issues we have here in Wheeling and then we talk solutions. 

“We’ve discussed the homelessness issue and the streetscape and the crime that we do have in Wheeling. We’ve discussed the issues we can’t run from anymore and I like that,” he said. “It really depends on what neighborhood you’re in when having these kinds of conversations, and those talks have been the best part of the campaign.”

Magruder, a husband, father, grandfather, and a long-time resident of the Woodsdale neighborhood of Wheeling, insists he wants to be a team with the five other candidates if elected. 

“I believe everyone who’s running for this position has love for the city of Wheeling, and I think each of us want to show that love in our own ways. If we didn’t care, we wouldn’t be on the ballot,” Magruder said. “I know if I’m lucky enough to win this race that, after everything settles down and we get together as a council, I would suggest we call the other folks and get together with them.

“I would like for everyone to sit down so we could find out what they would like to offer to do for the city,” he said. “I would want to utilize their passions to help make this a better place than it already is, and I believe we could do that if we work together.”

The amenities in the city of Wheeling, Magruder believes, are impressive, and now that the state has spent and is spending nearly $300 million in infrastructure improvements on Interstate 70 and in downtown Wheeling, the time is now to make the most of the gifts given.

“We are equipped already with a lot of quality-of-life factors already, and I believe we have to focus on them more instead of taking anything we have for granted. And we need cheerleaders for this city,” Magruder said. “We need to partner with the folks at the chamber of commerce, at (the Regional Economic Development Partnership), with the Wheeling Park Commission, and with the state see what we can achieve next. It’s a must we work hard now so we can take advantage of all of the upgrades paid for by the state of West Virginia.

“When we all come together, we’re an impressive team that’s difficult to beat,” he said. “That’s what I believe the focus needs to be for Wheeling to move forward.”

(This article is a part of the advertising package purchased by the candidate.)