After four years of hopeful speculation, Wheeling Mayor Glenn Elliott announced this afternoon that a $30 million project soon will begin on the Schmulbach Building that will repurpose the 12-story structure into more than 100 loft apartments along Market Street.
The Wheeling-Pitt Lofts will feature 128 one- and two-bedroom apartments at market rate following a two-year process that will begin this year, explained Steve Coon, owner of Coon Restoration Sealants. The increase of units was made possible by reducing the number of two-bedroom apartments.
In a press release distributed by the city, Mayor Elliott said, “With the Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Building, we have arguably downtown’s most magnificent building—a 12-story, 144,000 square foot, historically significant work of elegant architecture that for many years was the tallest building in the State of West Virginia,” he said. “Few cities with populations of 30,000 or less have anything comparable, and it is imperative that we do what we can to save it.”
The Schmulbach Building, opened in 1907, is better known as the former headquarters of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel, but most of those 144,000 square feet have been silent for more than seven years. Two of the 12 floors are up to code as far as fire suppression, plumbing, and electrical, and some offices have grey carpet, some have red, and others sky blue. Access Infrastructure, LLC, a real estate investment firm based in Columbus, Ohio, now owns the structure.
Before Coon Restoration cleaned out the structure, a walk through was experiencing time travel while strolling through each floor where the steel companies conducted business. Those offices, vacated in 2015, were left scattered, and family photos and knickknacks remained on the desks.
“When I worked with Ohio Valley Steel, I had a lot of meetings in the building when it was still a very active place,” said Erikka Storch, president of the Wheeling Chamber of Commerce. “It’s a very large building, and right now it’s hard to picture it as a place with 100 or so apartments, so that’s why I can’t wait to see the finished product.
“The construction jobs this project will create will be great for this area’s trades, too, because the pandemic has delayed so much of what looked like a busy future a year ago hasn’t panned out that way,” she said. “And it’s not just the Wheeling-Pitt Building, but also the construction of a new parking garage in downtown Wheeling.”
Does a McDonald’s Define Rebirth?
The addition of 128 new apartments in downtown Wheeling will increase the supply in downtown lofts to close to 200 units. More than 70 are inside the Boury Lofts on the corner of 16th and Main streets, and there are 16 one- and two-story lofts on the top two floors of the Stones Center.
The Woda Group, owner of the lofts at both locations, has repeatedly reported significant waiting lists. Storch, also a member of the W.Va. House of Delegates, hopes the demand spills over to the new development.
“If that building fills up like the others have, the amount of new people would instigate new business, and I would hope some of the owners of some of the boutiques we have here in Wheeling might consider expanding to the downtown because of the influx of foot traffic,” she said. “If you look in cities where something like this has happened, a Starbucks seems to follow, but so do a lot of businesses that those residents will visit because of convenience.
“Who knows? We could get a McDonald’s again in downtown Wheeling. I know nothing about that, but it’s usually Starbucks and McDonald’s that are the consistent things that follow developments like this one,” Storch explained. “Today’s announcement was very encouraging about new business growth in downtown Wheeling.”
Wheeling Councilman Dave Palmer agreed with the Chamber president.
“I believe the addition of these living spaces only will enhance the prospect of other businesses locating in our downtown because of the increase of foot traffic,” the Ward 6 Council representative said. “It’s going to be fun to watch the renovation process and then to see the difference that this makes.”
But Wait! There’s More!
Not only will the building’s first floor include commercial space, but Wheeling’s mayor included in today’s press conference that a new parking garage will be financed by city taxpayers and will be located along Market Street as well. In fact, Mayor Elliott also said during the press conference that if the city did not fund the construction of the parking garage, the project would not have happened.
In previous reports, Wheeling City Manager Bob Herron said such a garage would cost as much as $11 million for as many as 400 parking spots. No updated information concerning the cost or the number of spaces was included during today’s announcement.
“Thanks to Mr. Coon and Dr. Johnson, we have a viable proposal before us to restore this critical building to productive use with a $30 million investment—by far the largest economic investment in the history of downtown Wheeling,” Elliott said. “To make this project a reality and to accommodate additional projected growth in downtown, the city is prepared move forward with a new parking structure at the corner of 11th and Market streets. Without such a public-private partnership, this project will not happen, and the future of this majestic building would be in jeopardy.”
Storch agreed with the need.
“That’s because, if 100-plus apartments are filled with more than 200 people, the new parking garage absolutely will be needed,” Storch said. “Plus, employees of The Health Plan may want to park there, too, because it will be right across from their headquarters. I know a lot of people don’t want to believe it, but there is a need for parking in downtown Wheeling right now.
“It’s a good day for the future of our downtown,” she added. “With the pandemic, I think a lot of people in bigger cities have figured out how to do their jobs from home, so maybe this will present those people an opportunity to bring those big-city salaries here to live in one of these new apartments. That’s what is happening across this country, so why not here in Wheeling?”
