There were newspaper articles and “BREAKING NEWS” TV reports when downtown Wheeling’s Main Street was finally paved in late June last year, and local residents also were able to see for themselves how the actual “streetscape” would appear.
Some day, anyway.
The excitement, in fact, was palpable because of the years that had passed since W.Va. Route 2, or Main and Market streets in downtown Wheeling had been paved. The “streetscape” was born from a conversation held in 2015 between former mayor Andy McKenzie and former Mountain State governor Early Ray Tomblin and was initially about a $10 million project.
The price ballooned once vaults were discovered under sidewalks, after a number of design changes were requested, and after delays were caused by a debate over two-way traffic on Main and Market. Triton Construction out of St. Albans, W.Va., was awarded the $32 million project and the work officially began in September 2022.
According to Wheeling City Manager Bob Herron, Triton crew members will finish later this year.
“It’s been a very long haul, that’s for sure, but I think people are seeing what our Main Street looks like so they are looking forward to the rest of it,” Herron said. “It’s going to look nice, and it’s going to make a positive difference in our downtown area for years to come. We’ll have a downtown area with a lot more outdoor dining, and the brand-new sidewalks will help our downtown residents, too.
“When we first started discussing a streetscape project, we had no idea it would be this big of a project, but once it’s all finished, I think people will believe the wait was worth it,” the city manager said. “Downtown Wheeling still is a very large employment center, probably the largest in the Upper Ohio Valley, and there are a lot of activities, too, so that made it even more difficult.”
The state-funded project currently is progressing along Market Street, and then the concentration will shift to the downtown areas connected to the exit and entrance points for W.Va. Route 2.
“There are the cross streets with 14th and 16th streets, and there is still work to do along 10th Street near Market Plaza, and then there is a portion of Chapline and Eoff streets that will be done along with the area near the entrance to (W.Va.) Route 2,” Herron explained. “That’s when that part of roadway there at the intersection with the onramp and Chapline Street will finally be resurfaced.
“That area near the onramp is pretty bad and has been for a while, and the state has filled some of the potholes in that area the past couple of years,” he said. “There’s also the area of 12th Street from Main Street downtown Water Street and Heritage Port that was not included in the original project with Triton (Construction), and the City has that under a ($145,000) contract with Savage Construction for this Spring.”
Smooth Sailing
A number of underground infrastructure projects took place along Main and Market streets during the two years leading up to the streetscape, and zero paving has been performed anywhere in the downtown area since the initiative was announced nearly 10 years.
That will change once sidewalks, curbs, bump outs, bioswales, landscaping, and access ramps are completed.
“The paving that will take place in those areas is part of the streetscape and Triton will do those roadways when it’s time according to their overall plan for the project,” Herron said. “There’s a major electrical project that’s taking place near Chapline and 16th (streets) right now, so that has added to the inconvenience to that area as far as traffic is concerned, but it’s best to get it down now before the new sidewalks and ramps are completed.
“The former Columbia gas building on that corner is under renovation for Helping Heroes, so that will be another addition to the downtown area once they are finished and up and running,” the city manager explained. “Since the project began, most of the focus has been on the traffic patterns on Main and Market streets, but the areas I mentioned always have been included in the main streetscape design and it’s a very positive thing that we are approaching the time for those areas to be addressed.”
Herron was hired and began as Wheeling’s city manager in 2002, and before that, he served in the same or similar positions (1992-2002) in Conneaut, Ohio, and in Belleville, Michigan from 1987-1992. In each of those communities, Herron gained experience with roadway renovation.
“That’s why I knew it was going to be a very difficult and involved project, and I knew it was going to be toughest in the beginning,” he said. “Plus, we had a lot of underground infrastructure we wanted to get completed before the actual streetscape began, so yes, this has been quite a process for everyone to endure.
“But I believe people have a feel for it now, and they know what to expect when they come downtown,” Herron added. “There’s more work to do, but it’s going to be completed by the end of the year, and then people will be able to appreciate what all of the work, the detours, and the delays have been about since this all got started two years ago.
“We’ll all looking forward to when all of the construction is done and when we get our downtown back.”
