'A Fresh Face' For Wheeling
From The Intelligencer
Wheeling News-Register
March 3, 2007
by Tim Taylor
WHEELING — The thick plastic tarp that has adorned the old Posin’s building, 1306 Market St., for months has been removed to reveal a rejuvenated facade.
More than $125,000 and months of hard work have brought the facade of the old Posin’s building back to life, “portraying a streetscape that is more in tune with the the period in which the building was built,” said John Hazlett, president and chief executive officer of First Commitment Corp. An affiliate of the First Presbyterian Church, 1307 Chapline St., First Commitment Corp. was established in 1999.
According to Hazlett, SMG Architects of Wheeling took on the renovation project last December. Specializing in a custom approach to projects, SMG was able to preserve the historical Wheeling building for future use.
Featuring new windows, fresh paint and a less bulky profile thanks to removal of the aluminum entranceway, the building has new facial features as well as fresh interior makeup.
“The construction is about done; we only have a small section of the interior left to complete, but we’re intending on leaving that up to the future tenant to finish as they see fit,” Hazlett said.
Although Hazlett has been in negotiations with a possible tenant for the building, he would not comment on who that might be because nothing official has been signed.
First Commitment Corp. bought the Posin’s building in 2000, but lacked sufficient funding to renovate it until $50,000 in federal dollars was awarded in 2005. Administered by the city, the money is part of the Downtown Facade Program. The forgivable loan program is aimed at encouraging business owners to stay in the downtown area while eliminating or preventing slums.
First Commitment also has invested some of its own money to see that the three-story building would be renovated properly.
Property owners wishing to receive federal dollars must own a building that is of historic value and located in Wheeling’s downtown. All loan applicants must meet stiff criteria and be approved by the members of the city’s Downtown Wheeling Facade Committee before federal dollars are received.
Since 1999, a three-building chunk of real estate on Market Street has been purchased by First Commitment Corp. in order to fill the needs of nonprofit organizations in the area.
“Office space in our buildings is readily available for area nonprofit organizations at a much lower cost than they would find in other places,” Hazlett said.
