NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A long-vacant commercial building along Jefferson Avenue is expected to be demolished as Newport News continues efforts to improve and revitalize the corridor.
The roughly 18,000-square-foot building previously housed Unclaimed Freight Company, a furniture store in the Sedgefield area of the city. Neighbor Ron Cupp, who lives across from the property, said the building has been vacant for several years.
“I've been living here 40 years. When I first moved here, it was a great place,” Cupp said.
He said he would welcome the building’s demolition.
“It would be great if they do tear it down. It would make the neighborhood look a little bit better,” Cupp said.
News 3 first stopped by the property in early October after noticing a city notice posted on the building from August. The notice stated that because the owner had not taken action to address the unsafe structure, the city could move forward with demolition on or after Oct. 31.
A city spokesperson later told News 3 that property owner Howard Adkins had consented to having the building torn down.
When News 3 returned Tuesday, construction equipment had been staged on the property. The city did not provide a timeline for when demolition would begin. A spokesperson said she was working to find the information.
News 3 also called Adkins’ other location in Virginia Beach seeking comment. An employee said the message would be passed along, but News 3 had not heard back as of Tuesday evening.
Cupp said the former Burger King next door is also closed and vacant.
“It used to be a better neighborhood,” he said.
The properties sit along a stretch of Jefferson Avenue between Mercury Boulevard and J. Clyde Morris Boulevard that Newport News has been eyeing for future improvements.
Over the summer, City Council adopted a formal plan for the corridor following meetings with residents and other stakeholders. The plan is intended to help guide future growth in the area.
Some residents have raised concerns about the concentration of businesses such as auto shops and vape shops and have called for new investment along the corridor.
In July, News 3 spoke with Heidi Dittmar, one of the residents who participated in developing the plan.
"There's a lot to do around here and there's access to a lot of points in the region. That's why we chose to live here," she said.
Cupp hopes tearing down the former Unclaimed Freight building will be a step in that direction.
“The thing about it, if they tear it down and build something new, it’d be an improvement,” he said.
Click here to see how we use AI at WTKR News 3.
