The rise and fall of commerce in downtown Wheeling are parts of the Friendly City’s storied history, and the Facebook page “Memories of Wheeling” is chock-full of recollections of places like Stone & Thomas, Elby’s, G.C. Murphy, Louis’ Famous Hot Dog, L.S. Good, the 12th Street Grill, and Boury Inc.
Thanks to the invention of a shopping center called a “mall,” though, downtown districts throughout the Upper Ohio Valley began struggling in the 1980s, and these days only one mainstay business remains in operation along Main and Market streets in Wheeling.
Welcome to the Bridge Tavern, and thanks to the owners, Doug and Mike Carl, the eatery has undergone extensive renovations during the past two years with more upgrades to follow.
“When we reach a certain point in our renovations, we will have to close for about a month because we want to completely renovate the kitchen, and once that begin, the main doorway will be moved, and the stage will be moved to the corner of the building,” Mike Carl explained. “Once that is complete, our patrons will enter the tavern from the 10th Street side, and we’ll have a bigger stage and even more seating.
“The lunch counter will go away, as well, to make room for more tables,” he said. “That will allow everyone in the Bridge Tavern to see the bands playing on the corner of 10th and Main streets. The bar area has been here since 1961, and we’re going to keep the horseshoe bar the way it is forever. I love it.”
A Sign of Growth
In early July, the Bridge Tavern caused a stir on the corner of 10th and Main streets when the Carl brothers erected new signage for the establishment unlike any other in downtown Wheeling.
“The neon sign came to be because we thought it would become a major attraction, and it would let people know that there is in fact live music again in downtown Wheeling,” Carl explained. “We are huge fans of Memphis, Nashville, and Austin, Tx., and our sign is a beacon to let people know that our town is alive.
“We thought the sign would be a good way to deliver that message,” he continued. “Plus, it lets people know the Bridge Tavern is a live music venue, and it’s our hope that in the future we have live music here at least every Friday and Saturday. Right now, we have bands scheduled every weekend through September. We’ll have local musicians, and also some of the bands will be from outside this area.”
In fact, Luke Burkhardt is scheduled to perform this Friday beginning at 6 p.m. Luke was the first performer for the Blame My Roots Country Music Festival on July 16.
“We thought of the sign before we purchased the Bridge Tavern,” Carl recalled. “It was just a vision and my brother and I had, and we talked about this dream the for the last 10 or 15 years. We wanted an exit from the daily life we had created for ourselves, and that is why we purchased the tavern so we could bring live music back to downtown Wheeling.
“We wanted to be a part of revitalizing the downtown, and we feel what we are doing here is accomplishing just that. The sign was an idea we dreamed up a while ago, and it’s come to fruition,” he said. “I think the first time we told people about the sign, it took about 30 to 40 seconds to call us crazy. A lot of people told us Wheeling is never going to come back, and we disagreed.”
People Come First
The 16 one- and two-bedroom lofts in the Stone Center were first, and then the Woda Group added more than 70 apartments in the Boury Lofts in 2018. Currently, Coon Restoration is redeveloping the former Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel headquarters into 128 residential units in what is expected to be a $30 million project.
Plus, the McLure Hotel is now under the ownership of Roxby Development and a total renovation to its 176 rooms, bar, and restaurant is planned for the next three years. The hotel also includes 14 long-term apartments along 12th Street.
“The way I think about the revitalization of this town is that you have to have first is downtown living. That’s first and that has started with the lofts in the Stone Center, the Flatiron Building, and at the Boury Lofts,” Carl said. “And we are going to add downtown living here in this building, and we believe the services come to where the people are. In other words, no one is going to invest in opening a store if there’s no one to go to it.
“The fact we have downtown living now means those services will follow because people need what they need,” he said. “The people in Wheeling have been so negative for so long, and we got tired of hearing it. I believe instead of whining about change that you should be the change.”
And based on the reaction received by the Carl brothers since flipping the switch for the new sign, local residents appear to be welcoming a new chapter for the city’s history book.
“The reaction to the lighting of the sign was awesome. Everyone loved it and, we probably had 75 to 100 people in the street. When we lit it up for the first time, there was a lot of applause from people who are really excited that there are things happening in downtown Wheeling,” Carl said. “What I think we need in the downtown is five more Bridge Taverns. My honest opinion is that one can’t do it.
“We don’t want to be the only one,” he said. “We would love to six or seven more music venues so Wheeling becomes a destination for people to go out on the weekends. No one is going to drive 45 minutes for one tavern, but if you have five taverns, then I believe it becomes an attraction for people to come back to downtown Wheeling to go out. We hope what we are doing here provokes others to do the same.”
