VINTON, Va. – Vinton's town council has taken another step to develop the former Holdren's Country Store historic property in the town.
On Tuesday night, council members voted to accept a $50,000 Virginia Brownfield's Assistance Fund Grant to pay for environmental testing of the property.
Holdren's Country Store closed in 2014. The property is the original historic site of Gish's Mill.
Town leaders are hoping to transform the property into a mixed-use development, that could offer housing for residents and commercial options to bring in revenue.
"That was one of the primary aspects of why council wanted to purchase the property, to protect that historical building of the town. It's a founding property of the town, and council felt it was important that we needed to maintain that," said Richard Peters, Vinton assistant town manager.
The Holdren's Country Store property was purchased by the town of Vinton back in 2015.