City commission approves contract with developer for fire-damaged Wright Company site

DAYTON — The Dayton City Commission approved a $280,000 contract with a Springboro development contractor to help come up with redevelopment plans for the Wright Company factory site.

As News Center 7 reported Tuesday, the Department of Planning, Neighborhoods & Development has requested the commission to approve the spending for professional real estate development consulting services with Dillin Property Group at the 54-acre factory site.

“This contact will allow us to hire someone who every day is thinking about the redevelopment of the site,” Veronica Morris, City of Dayton economic development supervisor, told News Center 7′s Mike Campbell.

>> PHOTOS: Sky 7 shows fire damage to historic building in Dayton

The Wright Brothers formed their company in 1909 and built two hangars in 1910 and 1911. Inside them, they produced 120 airplanes and 13 different models as they taught the world to fly.

The city paid $1 million to buy the Wright Company in 2018. Since then, they had been working to obtain funding to restore the buildings properly and beautify the site when a fire ripped through the vacant buildings in late March, causing major damage.

“This is not a knee jerk reaction to the fire,” Morris said.

News Center 7 reached out to the city earlier this week regarding security that was put in place after the city took ownership in late 2018. A city spokesperson said the city secured the property with perimeter fencing, industrial chains and padlocks.

In June 2022, the city filed a Request for Proposal for “fencing replacements/repairs, lighting, and site repairs.”

“The City selected a contractor, however we could not deploy them until US EPA gave the City site clearance, which only occurred in early March 2023. The National Park Service installed cameras and were on site several times a week for inspections and predevelopment activities,” Toni Bankston, Chief Communications Officer for the City of Dayton, said.

Morris admitted that the flames will force the Dillin to be flexible as they work with structural engineers observing the site.

“They’ll be working with us as we onboard them, and onboard our structural engineer, to actually think about how we can either redevelop the site post-fire or if we have to come up with alternative plans as it relates to the redevelopment without the hangar,” she explained.

>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: ‘I’m hoping the structure can be saved;’ Fire damages historic building in Dayton

Morris told News Center 7 that the commissioners and city planners are using the money from the West Dayton Development Trust Fund for the project. They believe the historic site can ignite change and help transform the area.

“We are really excited, again, to bring Dillon on board just to kind of help us have boots on the ground and really become proactive in how we can actually make this a community hub and make this a place of innovation that Dayton is so known for, in addition to making it a place of commerce and recreation for this resource for the communities in this area,” Morris explained.

Commissioners expect the Dillin Group to come back to them in about nine months with plans that reflect the best way to use the site.

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