FAIRMONT, W.Va. (WBOY) — The Council of the City of Fairmont Tuesday announced plans to introduce an ordinance to obtain ownership of the former Fairmont Box Factory through eminent domain.

The council will introduce the ordinance to obtain the building located on 12th Street Ext. during its Tuesday, Oct. 24 meeting, according to a press release.

This comes after “several months of unsuccessful negotiations with the property owner,” the city said.

If approved, the City of Fairmont said it plans to demolish the “dilapidated and vacant” building and redevelop the property for a new city park with a trailhead and amenities for the upcoming West Fork River Trail Extension.

Back in August, the city purchased land from CSX, which allowed 500 feet of trail to be constructed. The city is trying to expand the trail by 2.5 miles to eventually stretch from Norway Trestle near Edgeway Drive to 12th Street.

The City of Fairmont said the area is part of the larger Parkersburg to Pittsburgh (P2P) corridor and the Industrial Heartlands Trail Corridor, and Fairmont is one of only four gaps remaining in the state of West Virginia.

The current owner of the Fairmont Box Factory building purchased it during a 2010 tax sale, according to the city. The last time it operated as a factory was in the early ’80s, and before it became a box factory in 1936, it served as a glass factory constructed by the Monongah Glass
Company and was later owned by Hocking Glass Company.