58 vehicles for sale at city-county auction
WHEELING — An upcoming sale of 58 vehicles and other items owned by the city of Wheeling and the Ohio County Commission is “the largest ever,” according to organizers.
The annual city of Wheeling-Ohio County Commission Vehicle and Excess Equipment Auction is set for 10 a.m. June 7 at the City Operations Center, 10 Hunter Ave., Wheeling. Inspection of items begins at 9 a.m.
Online bidding and viewing of items also is taking place at FrioAuctions.com.
Jim Frio of Frio and Stack Auction Service said he has been conducting the auctions since the early 1990s, and there are more vehicles for sale this year than in any of the past years.
There are three 2014 Chevrolet Impalas from the Ohio County Assessor’s Office for sale that have low mileage. One has 40,000 miles, one has 23,000 miles, and the other has 21,000 miles.
“They will be good cars for somebody,” Frio said. “They are here not because they are bad, not because they have high mileage, but because they are time limited. They just happen to have low miles.”
Also up for auction is a 1989 Lorraine 7½-ton crane, a 2009 Elgin Pelican Road street sweeper, a water tank truck, snow plows and tractors.
There are multiple Ford F-150s and F-350’s, Jeep Libertys, six 2010 Ford Escapes, a 2015 Dodge Charger, three 2012 Dodge Chargers and many other vehicles previously used by law enforcement.
The aluminum patio tables that once sat at Centre Market are up for sale, as well as Cub Cadet tractor and a box trailer.
Tony Peace, director of vehicle maintenance for the City of Wheeling, reported that of the 58 vehicles, 14 come from Ohio County agencies with the remainder being city-used vehicles.
“We can make some money for the city, and our fleet can be updated through that process,” Peace said. “We have the highest number of vehicles we have ever had, and I know we are banking on that money to buy new equipment with — that’s the plan.”
He termed the city’s vehicles “well-used, but well-maintained.”
“That is why we get all the miles and time we do out of them. They are good units,” Peace said. “They have had maintenance meticulously, and anything they need we fix.”
The city’s maintenance workers also work on county cars, he noted, and his employees have maintained the low-milage Impalas from the County Assessor’s Office.
“Somebody is going to get a good driver,” Peace said. “I hate to say it, but those are probably the cream of the crop as far as just jumping in and just driving. If somebody is looking for a work car or a kid’s school car, there you go.”




