Wheeling Streetscape Project

The Wheeling Streetscape Project, a project of the West Virginia Department of Transportation, will beautify Downtown Wheeling and will add ADA-compliant curb cuts, widened sidewalks and decorative brickwork along Main and Market streets between 10th and 16th streets. The project will also add decorative traffic signals, plants and trees.


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 
What makes Wheeling’s Streetscape Project unique when compared to similar projects in other communities?
Although the areas undergoing reconstruction are in the heart of our Downtown, Market and Main streets are state routes, so the project is actually that of the West Virginia Department of Transportation rather than a City project. The City can make requests to the WVDOT with regard to the project. However, the City does not control any aspects of the project.

It seems like work has been going on in Downtown Wheeling for the past several years. Why have the streets been torn up for so long?
Prior to the Streetscape Project starting, the City of Wheeling replaced the underground infrastructure in the areas where the Streetscape Project is occurring. With aging infrastructure - some water pipes were more than 100 years old - it was important to be proactive with upgrades so repairs, which would involve digging up newly paved streets, can be avoided. The actual Streetscape Project did not begin until October of 2022.
When will the Streetscape Project be completed?  
The Streetscape project is scheduled to be completed in the Summer of 2025. Please note that the sidewalks, roadways, signalization, etc. will be finished prior to that date. However, the landscaping/planting of trees will conclude the project and will not be done until the Summer of 2025.
 
Will there always be access to businesses?
Access to businesses will be provided for customers and deliveries. We encourage the public to continue to patronize our Downtown retailers.
 
Will there always be vehicular access to businesses?
As the construction continues, some streets in the City will be temporarily inaccessible to vehicles.
 
What about parking?
The City of Wheeling has instituted free/validated parking in certain areas of Downtown. There will be free on-street parking for a 2-hour period of time in the areas of Downtown Wheeling where the parking meters have been removed and not replaced because of the installation of the new sidewalks that are a part of the Streetscape Project. There will also be free parking for a 2-hour period of time in the 10th Street and Intermodal parking garages on weekdays with a validated ticket. Parking patrons will be required to have their parking garage tickets validated by the downtown business visited and will not be charged a parking fee when exiting the two parking garages.
 
Will I always have pedestrian access?
Pedestrian access will be maintained during construction. Access may be delayed while crews remove old sidewalks and install temporary access. You may be detoured or delayed when the permanent sidewalks are being poured and to allow the concrete to cure and harden.
 
What other kind of disruptions can I expect?
As with all construction projects, there will be noise and temporary inconveniences. In order to complete the work effectively and in a safe manner, some traffic restrictions will be necessary. This includes lane closures during construction, which may reduce traffic to one lane. On-site signage will be posted to advise of detours and lane closures.
 
How should I proceed through intersections when the traffic lights are on flash?
If the lights are flashing red, they should be treated as a stop sign. If the lights are flashing yellow, drivers should proceed with caution only when traffic permits.
 
Will any disruptions limit access for first responders?
Emergency - police, fire and medical response - will be maintained at all times.
 
Will it be noisy and dusty Downtown?
As with any construction project, noise and dust is inevitable. Every effort will be made to reduce inconveniences to the community.
 
What are the construction work hours?
The contractor works between the hours of 7 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Thursday, excluding holidays.
 
Who can I contact to get information about the Wheeling Streetscape Project?
Those with questions can contact the City Manager’s office by phone at (304) 234-3617 or via email citymanager@wheelingwv.gov. City administration will get answers to your questions from the West Virginia Division of Highways.
 
 
PROJECT UPDATES

June 7, 2024

  • Storm sewer work has begun on Main Street between 9th and 10th streets.
  • Market Street storm sewer is complete.
  • Landscaping is progressing on Main Street.
  • Weather permitting, the milling in preparation for paving on Main Street will begin June 17 and will last until June 28.

April 18, 2024

  • Market Street will reopen to one way traffic at the 12th Street intersection in Downtown Wheeling by end of business Monday, April 22. This will allow motorists to access the Wheeling Tunnel from Market Street and eliminate the Lane 7 detour.

March 25, 2024

  • The traffic signalization contractor crews will soon begin working on the cross streets in Downtown Wheeling starting at 10th Street and working south to 16th Street. Please note this is nighttime work and will occur between the hours of 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.
  • Crews plan to resurface portions of Market Street disturbed by the recent storm sewer installation beginning the week of April 15. Market Street is expected to open to thru traffic after trench line paving has occurred. Please note that this paving is NOT the final product as Market Street is currently scheduled for a full resurfacing near the completion of the overall project.
  • Trees, plants and other landscaping on the Main Street portion of the project is expected to begin mid-April (8-12). This work is expected to take approximately six weeks.
  • Storm sewers will be installed between 9th and 10th streets beginning in a few weeks. Traffic will be maintained, but there will be lane restrictions. This additional work as well as other underground utility work is being done in advance of the planned resurfacing on Main Street in June.
  • Please note that work is subject to weather-related changes and unforeseen circumstances.

February 21, 2024

  • Beginning on or about March 1 and is expected to last through the month of March, there will be no parking on either side of Market Street between 11th Street and Lane 7 due to Streetscape storm sewer work. The public is encouraged to park in Lot 6 or in the 10th Street Parking Garage. Please note that the starting date of this closure will be finalized by the WVDOH and announced by them before the actual closure. While Market Street will be closed to thru traffic during this time, the WVDOH and the City are sensitive to the effects of this closure and will make every effort to open one lane of traffic northbound when construction permits. The City is making those businesses and the general public aware of the coming closure to provide as much general advanced notice as possible.

January 30, 2024

  • Thank you for your continued patience and understanding. 
  • Paving of Main Street between 9th and 16th streets has been moved up to June. Installation of landscaping material will begin in March. This is a deviation of the original schedule as significant completion of the Main Street portion of the project has been moved up to this summer. Amenities such as benches, trash receptacles and bike racks will be installed as part of the overall project completion schedule.
  • The completion date of the overall project remains July 2025. Streetscape work will proceed from Main Street up 16th Street to Chapline, Eoff and then move to Market Street.
  • Market Street storm sewer completion is slated for March. To avoid future disruptions significant efforts are underway to ensure Streetscape work is not disrupted once completed. As a part of that effort, 12th Street lane restrictions will continue, the sanitary sewer repair is ongoing, and the Water Department will close out abandoned water services in that area.
  • Sequencing of this work is subject to change as it relates to weather. The work is also subject to WVDOH direction and approval.
  • The Suspension Bridge is expected to be completed in July. Warm weather is necessary for work to be done on a timber truss and wooden bracing.
  • Over the next two to three months, additional storm sewer work will be undertaken in and around Main Street between 9th and 10th streets. In anticipation of the Gateway Center project, underground conduits will be provided. Some additional underground utility work (i.e. electric, fiberoptics, gas, etc.) may also be needed in this area. All this work is in anticipation of the paving of Main Street.
  • Also, not officially part of the Streetscape Project, but now included in the signalization contract is the replacement of six traffic signals at 7th and Market Street and 7th and Main Street. These are in addition to new signalization at Chapline and 14th, 12th and 10th streets. Once completed, this project will have replaced ALL current outdated traffic signals with state-of-the-art signals. The motoring public will see the difference as well as making the pedestrian experience safer.
  • It is important to remember that work is continuing in the winter months. As a result, weather can play an adverse role in the progress of the project. As to the fact that we are currently in the middle of winter, bad weather days can have a ripple effect on the various scheduling components of the project that could reach into this summer and fall.
 

January 16, 2024

  • The portion of Market Street between 14th and 12th streets is OPEN. 

January 12, 2024

  • The portion of Market Street between 14th and 12th streets will open in the coming days.

January 11, 2024

  • The week of Jan. 15, crews are expected to begin working in the vicinity of 10th and Market streets as indicated by the red line on the map. This will result in lane closures. However, traffic will be maintained at all times, although disruptions could occur from time-to-time. Please note that work is subject to weather-related changes.

January 9, 2024

  • Crews continue to install proposed drainage structures from the outlet into Middle Wheeling Creek to the intersection of 16th and Main Street, through the segment of 16th Street between Main and Market, then turning and working north on Market Street. The contractor has completed the drainage work along Market Street from 16th to 14th Street as well as the majority of drainage structures between 14th and 12th Street. 
  • The drainage work incorporated in this project is to aid in sanitary and stormwater separation efforts in the downtown area. Closures of portions of Market Street are necessary to install the proposed drainage due to the size, depth, and location of the drainage structures. Detour signs are posted to identify the alternate route and access to the business of downtown through city streets is being maintained. 
  • Crews will continue sidewalk work along the east side of Main Street through the winter. Crews are working on demolishing existing sidewalks and replacing them with proposed sidewalk, planters and other landscaping. Crews are providing pedestrian detours along the adjacent sidewalks while maintaining access to all businesses. 
  • To date, crews have removed existing sidewalks and replaced them with proposed sidewalks including some of the new streetscape features along the west side of Main Street.
  • Remaining work to be performed includes the completion of the drainage structures along the remaining portion of Market Street; sidewalk replacement along the remaining east side of Main Street, both sides of 16th Street, 10th Street, Market Street, as well as a couple short segments of Chapline and Eoff Street; work associated with removal of existing and replacing with new traffic signals; milling and paving of all streets included in the project; and remaining streetscape activities (trees, shrubs, etc.)