photo by: Derek Redd

The Wheeling Coffee and Spice Co., in business since 1896, is up for sale in downtown Wheeling.

WHEELING – The Wheeling Coffee & Spice Co. — its building, equipment and all — is on the market. Realtor Jay Goodman said he has already received a “large number of inquiries” for the purchase of the building, which housed a business with its roots dating back to the late 1800s.

The popularity of the listing is not surprising for Goodman, who knew there would be a great interest in the building due to its prominent location and how established and well-known Wheeling Coffee & Spice Co. was.

Goodman explained he was approached by a client he had previously worked with “around the end of September” who had intentions of selling the building. The listing has been available since Sept. 28, with Goodman already conducting showings of the building for potential buyers.

He explained the unique features and historical significance of the building have been the main points of interested parties.

The top selling point for Goodman is the history that comes with the building. Its construction predates West Virginia itself.

What had been operating as Joseph Speidel Grocers became the Wheeling Coffee and Spice Co. in 1896. The Burns coffee roasters the business used until recently were installed in 1886 and were the oldest operating Burn roasters in North America.

Joseph Lokmer bought the business in 1977 and, following his death in 1981, his wife Mary Ann ran the business until her death in 2019. The David family purchased the business that same year.

A sign on the front of the business said it had been temporarily closed for renovations. Members of the David family could not be reached for comment as of Tuesday evening.

The price for the building is $600,000, according to the online listing. All business fixtures, inventory and equipment are included in the offering.

Since the building is located in the Wheeling Historic District, it is on the National Register of Historic Places, which makes it eligible for historic tax credits, Goodman added.

“These historic tax credits have fueled a lot of the redevelopment downtown, and this building is a prime candidate for that in every way,” added Goodman. “I’m sure that many of the people I’ve talked to about the building that want to do a larger redevelopment project are attracted to that.”

On whether redevelopments will be done to the building, Goodman said the opinion among potential buyers of whether to keep the building as a coffee shop or use it for another purpose is “split.”

“Some want to continue the coffee concept there, and some are just interested in the real estate being such a prominent and central location in downtown,” said Goodman. “Those that just want the real estate, I assume, are looking at the building for some redevelopment.”

The historic elements of the building also mean the building is “not brand new by any stretch,” said Goodman. He explained any buyer must conduct some “due diligence” when managing the property.

“Buyers have to consider the condition of the building and the extent to which it needs to be redeveloped and renovated,” said Goodman. “There’s an age on everything in there.”

This aging includes parts of the roof leaking, upper floors that are unfinished and older mechanical components such as the plumbing and electrical. Goodman pointed out that the building does have HVAC and new furnaces.

“Some things just have to be updated, and the buyer needs to figure out how much it’s going to cost to do everything they want,” said Goodman. “Some things have been updated, and the building functions completely fine for its current purposes, everything just has some age on it.”

Adding that the”‘potential is there,” Goodman highlighted the building’s square footage as another upside to the location. With the building listed as 17,978 square feet, Goodman emphasized the size as a contributing factor to the unique appeal of the building.

The uniqueness stems from the property having frontage on both 14th Street and Main Street. The prominence of the storefront also ties back to the desirable visibility and location of the building for Goodman.

“There are four separate storefronts, so a buyer could really set it up,” said Goodman. “There’s potential to create four separate businesses with these different storefronts, so that’s a unique feature.”

With the large size of the building and prominent location combined with tax credits that can pay for redevelopment, Goodman says “any number of businesses” would be attracted.

As the sale of the building is still in the “early stages,” Goodman expects even more offers to come in as more people begin to see the property and “digest the information” surrounding the sale.

“There’s tons of upsides and potential in this building,” said Goodman. “I’m sure that’s why I’m getting a lot of calls.”