Mayor-Elect Denny Magruder: A Man of Many Perspectives – Part 2

(Publisher’s Note: This is the second of a two-part series on Wheeling’s Mayor-Elect Denny Magruder as he prepares to take the Oath of Office on July 1^st and preside over his first Wheeling Council meeting the very next day.)

Once upon a time in a small Appalachian steel town, a long list of the biggest rock bands performed to sold out shows at the Wheeling Civic Center.

Fans from the tri-state region enjoyed groups like the Doobie Brothers, Boston, Foreigner, Kansas, Guns n’ Roses, KISS, Aerosmith, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Styx, Rush, Cheap Trick, Poison, AC/DC, Bon Jovi, ZZ Top, REO Speedwagon, Night Ranger, Heart, and many, many more. But then one day early in the 1990s, the Civic Center’s phone stopped ringing and the bands stopped coming.

Just like that.

That’s when newer, larger outdoor venues similar to the Coca-Cola Star Lake Amphitheater were being built around the country, and a rain-or-shine crowd of 20,000 fans started generating four times the cash an artist could earn in Wheeling. So, instead, the Friendly City’s auditorium turned into a middle-market rental house where the Globetrotters played and the Wheeling Nailers moved in and planted ice-rink roots.  

Despite those consumer-driven economic trends, it was Wheeling Civic Center General Manager Denny Magruder who took the blame for the absence of rock n’ roll when in reality it was his management that allowed the facility to survive as an entertainment venue.

But how?

“I listened and learned,” he explained. “We made the arena the most if could be, and we did the same with the theatre.”

But can Magruder do the same with the City of Wheeling?

Magruder: During the campaign, I believe I knocked on more doors than anyone has in the history of this town, and that was because I wanted to talk with the town. I wanted to find out what they were thinking, and that’s exactly what I found out. The people wanted this change. And once I get into office and we get this thing moving forward, I’ll continue knocking on the doors of residents and businesses, too.

I’ll be talking to a lot of business owners, and to a lot of organizations, but don’t be surprised when I knock on a citizen’s door from time to time. I’ll say, ‘Hi, I’m the mayor and I’m here on behalf of the city. Number one, thanks for living here, and thanks for taking care of your property. What more can we do for you?’ I believe we need to tell our people ‘thanks.’

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Magruder wasn’t much on social media while managing Wesbanco Arena and the Capitol Theatre, but his children, grandchildren, and friends showed him around the Facebook platform once he decided to run for mayor in June 2023.

That’s when he saw what people were saying about him. The good, and the bad.

The mayoral race included five other candidates, including a pair of council members, an insurance salesman, a businesswoman, and a retired factory worker, and the group remained cordial throughout the process. They spoke about their qualifications for the position, and about their motivation for filing to run.

On Facebook, Magruder received messages like “Save Our City,” and “Bring the pride back, Denny,” but he was also called “old,” and “out of touch,” and some posters said a man in his 70s wouldn’t be as inclusive as a younger mayor would be.

Does he believe that to be true?

Magruder: I read those comments and I get it. I understood the concerns. All I can say is that I’m going to do my best to include everyone in everything. For example, when I talk about door knocking, I want to visit people in every neighborhood, and I have that same mindset about everyone in the city. Wheeling isn’t just my city. It’s everyone’s city.

One of my opponents, J.T. Thomas, said it perfectly when he said we need pride in our neighborhoods and he referred to the people by their teams … the South Wheeling Indians and the Warwood Redbirds and the Island Tigers. There is the pride factor that is a key element in Wheeling. It’s something that brings us together, lets us be competitive, and then encourages us to work together.

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Age is a topic in politics more now than ever before, and that’s because of the ages of the two candidates for the U.S. presidency. President Joe Biden is currently 81 years old, and the Republican nominee, and former president, Donald Trump just turned 78 on June 14.

But it’s an unfair question to ask Magruder about a decision he’ll make in three or four years from now, right? Especially when the man hasn’t even been sworn into the mayor’s office, right?

But it’s a question a lot of folks are already asking themselves because, yes, Magruder is 76 years old, and yes, each term is four years long. So, yes, that does mean he will be 80 years old when his first term is complete, and that is the main reason for the all of the premature curiosity.

So, will he run for re-election in 2024?

Magruder: I can honestly say right now I have no idea if I’m going to run for re-election in 2028, and if I even tried to answer that question right now, I’d only be guessing for a lot of different reasons. Listen, I’m 76 years old and I am in very good health. I love being out and about with people all of the time, but I also don’t know what tomorrow might bring my way. No one does.

That’s not a decision for now. That’s a decision I’ll have to make about three years from now. But I can tell you that if people want to talk about some of our decisions, I’m not going to hold a grudge or call anyone wrong. I’m going to want to talk about it to see if there’s a better way. That’s how a leader leads because we’re all in this thing together.