The City of Wheeling’s exempted homeless camp near the maintenance trail in the Fulton neighborhood has been closed and the cleanup came with a significant cost. According to information from the City Manager’s office, $41,350 will be drawn from municipal funds to cover the work completed Dec. 2-3.

Wheeling enacted an ordinance prohibiting camping on public property in November 2023. In early 2024, the City Manager established an exempted area where the unhoused could camp legally. That site was relocated in November 2024 to the area that closed this week. Over time, numerous problems have occurred at the exempted area and public funds have been, on several occasions, used to clean up the area. Unsanitary and dangerous conditions were created within the area by the people occupying the exempted area. In addition to the unsanitary conditions created by its occupants, this exempted area was the source of numerous citizen complaints, public concerns and criminal activity expressed by nearby residents and businesses. These issues were documented by various City departments. It was abundantly clear that an exempted camping area was not working and was posing a threat to the occupants, citizens nearby and the public in general.

A notice announcing the closure was posted at the camp on Oct. 22, 2025, indicating that the site would officially shut down at 5 p.m. on Dec. 1. Also on Oct. 22, the notice was distributed to local homeless service organizations, including the YWCA, Catholic Charities, Street Moms, the Wheeling Housing Authority, the Continuum of Care West Virginia and The Life Hub. The City of Wheeling supported the creation of The Life Hub and continues to back its work. 

There is no intention of creating another public area exempt from the public property camping ban ordinance.