The Wheeling-Ohio County Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB), the City of Wheeling, Wheeling Heritage, Ohio County, and RED are excited to officially unveil the concept designs for the new Wheeling Gateway Visitors and Heritage Center.
The event will take place on Wednesday, October 9th, 2024 at 12:00 PM at the site of the former Wheeling Inn and adjacent the Historic Suspension Bridge. Due to site constraints, in-person attendance will be limited to media and by RSVP-only.
For the general public to witness this historic moment, a live stream will be provided by Wheeling Heritage and can be accessed HERE. The live stream link will again be publicly circulated on the morning of the event.
The event will kick off with remarks from Wheeling City Manager Robert Herron and Executive Director of the Wheeling-Ohio County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Frank O’Brien, followed by the reveal of community-centered design of the Wheeling Gateway Visitors and Heritage Center. High resolution images will be circulated to the media following the event, as well as posted on various social channels and websites of all the project stakeholder’s involved.
“This historic event is made possible by the CVB’s forged partnerships between West Virginia’s Department of Tourism, City of Wheeling, Wheeling Heritage, Ohio County and RED. Our collaboration and collective efforts to reach this moment has been one of the greatest joys in my professional career,” said Frank O’Brien, Executive Director of the Wheeling Ohio County Convention Visitors Bureau.
“The design concepts are a true reflection of the community’s top priorities, which are access to the riverfront trail, celebrating our region’s heritage, and to establish a family-oriented destination for both visitors and locals. The Heritage component of the center intends to provide an experience that encourages people to explore other destinations and landmarks that are the fabric of Wheeling’s history,” said Scott Schenerlein, Executive Director of Wheeling Heritage.
Earlier this summer, the City of Wheeling entered into a contract with the State of West Virginia’s DEP to complete full environmental remediation and demolition of the existing structure. After a public bidding process, RAZE International, Inc. was selected as the lowest-qualified bid. All environmental remediation has been completed, and the demolition team is ready to begin the careful disassembly of the building.
“The City team has worked closely with the State, the architects and engineers to come up with the safest, least disruptive plan to complete the full demolition of the building. Assuming we do not discover any unknowns, and we maintain a safe perimeter around the site, the building should be mostly gone by the end of the year,” said City Manager Robert Herron.
Active demolition of the building will occur over a six to eight week period on Mondays – Thursdays, and some select Fridays. During this time, the section of the Wheeling Heritage Trail will be closed during working hours, which is anticipated to be between 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM.
Pedestrian traffic will remain open on the Historic Suspension Bridge, but construction flaggers will be stationed to occasionally consolidate pedestrian traffic to the south entrance of the bridge on 10th Street, to avoid any demolition activity that may be occurring adjacent to the bridge throughout the day.
Construction flaggers will also be present on Main Street, as needed, to help construction vehicles safely enter and leave the site to remove the debris as a result of the demolition work.
For more information, news and updates on the Wheeling Gateway Visitors and Heritage Center please visit the Wheeling Gateway Center Digital Community Hub.
