Craig Howell: Ready to celebrate Weirton’s honored citizens

August 8, 2026

It is the contributions of the residents of a city or town – those who are willing to step forward to provide leadership, guidance, and support for others – which helps to make it a community. In Weirton, many of those who have made such contributions are honored annually through induction into the Weirton Hall of Fame. Established by action of Weirton Council in 2008, the Hall of Fame enshrines the names of those honored citizens – past and present – who have made a lasting impact which often is felt for generations. This year's class was announced in May, and will be ...

Craig Howell: Time, patience, cooperation lead to project success

August 1, 2026

The City of Follansbee is able to move forward with some long-needed water infrastructure projects, with the official announcement made Monday during a press conference featuring Gov. Patrick Morrisey and local legislators. To make sure everyone understands the details, Follansbee previously had received approximately $1.3 million through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for improvements to the Hooverson Heights treatment plant. After going through multiple rounds of bidding, the city found it was still $500,000 short. Officials reached out through the avenues available to them, and ...

Do we need another option for a new bridge?

July 25, 2026

While transportation officials, state legislators and members of Congress have been deep into the process of planning a replacement for the Market Street Bridge, with a focus connecting an area in downtown Steubenville with an area of West Virginia Route 2 between Weirton and Follansbee, the Hancock County Commission decided to throw their own thoughts into the mix. As part of Thursday's meeting, Hancock commissioners approved sending a proposal which would use Brown's Island as a corridor for the bridge replacement. I wasn't really surprised when I saw the item on the agenda. As a ...

Craig Howell: Following a path to community leadership

July 18, 2026

As long-time readers know, I've been active with the Weirton Area Chamber of Commerce for many years and one of my favorite parts of that involvement is putting together its leadership programs. Each year, the Chamber organizes two such programs. Youth Leadership Weirton is open to incoming sophomores from Weir, Madonna, Oak Glen, and Brooke high schools. Applications are provided to the schools during the spring, with the program launching each September. For our business community, there is Leadership Ohio Valley. This program begins in early November, with sessions taking place ...

Craig Howell: Spirits of community, volunteerism were on display for holiday

July 11, 2026

Independence Day is a time to remember the nation's history. It's also about community. Our Ohio Valley communities show this each year with a variety of special celebrations, from grand fireworks displays to live musical performances, to street fairs, contests, and more. Typically, I find myself focusing solely on activities in Weirton, but some adjustments made in recent months resulted in my bouncing around a few of our local cities the weekend of July 4. That started in Weirton July 3, with the annual performance by the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra. Usually, I enjoy this ...

The battle to establish, and keep, our country

July 3, 2026

As we move through this weekend full of fireworks, parades, food and the battle over political ideologies, let’s not forget what July 4 means. It was 250 years ago that a group of men representing the 13 American colonies agreed to declare their independence from the British Empire. On July 2, 1776, members of the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, with the finalized draft of the Declaration of Independence adopted (not signed) two days later. It was never an easy decision. Members of the Continental Congress did not go to Philadelphia with the goal of issuing ...