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Drug bust, business announcements among most read News and Sentinel stories in 2018

By Evan Bevins 5 min read

PARKERSBURG -- A major drug bust, businesses opening and closing, the Dils Center and the unexpected death of its owner drew readers to NewsandSentinel.com in 2018.

The Oct. 11 breaking news item on a drug raid conducted by local, state and federal law enforcement, resulting in the arrests of 30 people and confiscation of 150 pounds of methamphetamine was the most read story this year on The Parkersburg News and Sentinel's website. The full story the following day outlining what authorities called "Project Parkersburg" was the ninth most read.

Members of the Parkersburg Violent Crimes and Narcotics Task Force -- comprised of officers from the Parkersburg, Vienna and Williamstown Police departments, the Wood County Sheriff's Department and West Virginia State Police -- worked with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of West Virginia and in cooperation with the Arizona State Police and FBI field offices in Tampa, Cincinnati, Detroit and Phoenix.

Teams began gathering at 5 a.m. on Oct. 11 and had 20 of the 30 suspects in custody by 6:45 a.m.

"It was fast. No one came to play games," Williamstown Police Chief Shawn Graham said. "It was all serious and everyone seemed to come through it with no injuries."

Parkersburg Police Chief Joe Martin said it was the biggest drug investigation in the department's history. U.S. Attorney Mike Stuart said the 150 pounds of meth confiscated broke the state record and also topped the largest amount confiscated in an Ohio investigation as well. Officers also claimed four pounds of heroin and $86,000 in currency.

News of Sears closing its Grand Central Mall location was the second-most read story of 2018. It broke on Sept. 18, confirming what many had feared as the Sears Holding Company continued to shutter Kmarts and Sears locations around the country, including the Kmarts in Parkersburg and Vienna.

A liquidation sale followed, and the longtime mall fixture closed its doors for good in December.

While no new tenant has been announced for that space, H&M opened in a portion of the former Elder-Beerman location and Big Lots is moving into the vacant Toys 'R' Us building at the mall complex.

Another new addition -- the Mid-Ohio Valley's first freestanding Starbucks location, at the mall's north entrance -- was the third most-read story of 2018. The news came in February, and the Starbucks opened in mid-October, much to the delight of many coffee connoisseurs in the area.

The death of local musician and entrepreneur Todd Stubbe in July was the fourth most-read story of the year. Already known in the community as co-founder of the Sound Exchange and a performer in Actors Guild productions and musical acts, Stubbe stepped into a different kind of spotlight when he purchased the Dils Center in downtown Parkersburg in the fall of 2017. A January story on his plans to revive the downtown fixture as a banquet hall, office space and music venue rounded out the top 10 stories with the most views at NewsandSentinel.com.

Since Stubbe's passing, his family and friends have dedicated themselves to continuing his vision, starting the Todd Stubbe Dream Foundation, with goals of offering scholarships to aspiring entrepreneurs, preserving and revitalizing historic buildings and landmarks downtown and boosting tourism and economic development in the downtown area.

A late entry to the list was the Dec. 20 breaking news article on Hobby Lobby's plans to open a store in the former Vienna Kmart. It was shared on Facebook more than any other story on the website, rocketing it into the fifth-place spot.

The arts-and-crafts store is expected to open in July.

The Hobby Lobby news was followed on the list by a story originally published in 2017. Architectural Digest Magazine posted a list of the most beautiful public high school in each state, and Parkersburg High School took the honor for West Virginia. The News and Sentinel article ran in September 2017, but it was apparently posted on social media again and shared multiple times this past summer.

At seventh on the list is a February story in which then-Wood County Schools Superintendent John Flint said he intended to file an ethics complaint against Board of Education member Ron Tice and demanded Tice's resignation. Flint alleged Tice was dishonest in dealing with school district personnel and had an agenda to oust him as superintendent.

Later that month, the board voted unanimously against renewing Flint's contract. Will Hosaflook was hired as his successor in May and took over on July 1.

The eighth most-read story was about the arrests of Emily Faith Britton, 28, and her boyfriend, Zachary Scott Miller, 28, of 88 Mound St., Parkersburg, after Britton's 5-year-old child was found wandering along West Virginia 47. They were charged with child neglect creating risk of injury after West Virginia State Police discovered evidence of drug use in the home and Britton admitted they were smoking methamphetamine when the child left the residence.

Both Britton and Miller waived their preliminary hearings and were bound over for grand jury consideration.

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Most Read Stories of 2018 at NewsandSentinel.com

1. Police conduct city-wide drug raid, 30 arrested (Oct. 11)

2. Sears closing Grand Central Mall store (Sept. 18)

3. Starbucks to open location at Grand Central Mall (Feb. 21)

4. Dils Center owner, musician Stubbe dies (July 6)

5. Hobby Lobby plans store in Vienna (Dec. 20)

6. PHS named 'most beautiful high school' by magazine (Sept. 25, 2017)

7. Flint calls on Wood County Board of Education member to resign (Feb. 11)

8. Child found wandering by W.Va. 47 (Nov. 6)

9. 30 people arrested in Parkersburg drug raid (Oct. 12)

10. New chapter in works for downtown Parkersburg's Dils Center (Jan. 21)

Starting at /week.