The Highlands Development is expected to bring a lot more business to the area, but some city officials said it may be taking business away.

Some city officials are upset after hearing that two city businesses may be leaving the city of Wheeling to move to the new development.

According to Councilman Barry Crow, Bob Robinson Chevrolet and Straub Honda are two businesses that are thinking of taking their dealerships to the Highlands.

While county officials said the dealerships want to see their businesses grow further in the Highlands, Crow said he is upset that the businesses are thinking of making the move because it will end up costing the city big bucks.

"That's never good news when you have that type of business leaving," said Crow. "Because they're really anchors, not only on 16th Street, even part of 17th Street."

"We know it's a difficult situation downtown, " said County Administrator Greg Stewart. "Part of the transaction may include that we will assume ownership of parts of these properties, so that we can become more active and help start to redevelop parts of downtown."

NEWS9 spoke with Bob Robinson Thursday eveing, and he said there is no contract in place, but add that these are just talks.

He also said he loves having a business in downtown Wheeling, but adds that he gets pressure from the manufacturers to set up shop along major highways.

NEWS9 contacted employees at Straub Honda, and they said they have no comment at this time.

Natalie Pasquarella, NEWS9