WELLSBURG, W.Va. --

The city of Wellsburg is working to find new uses for vacant, rundown sites, and officials said they will apply for a federal grant to help pay for the redevelopment plans. One of the sites is the old Brooke Glass building.

"We want it to be a good visualization when people come into town or when they come into downtown, so the first thing that they see is not an old building that has been vacant for a number of years," said Ryan Weld, chairman of the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

City leaders said they will apply for a $50,000 grant to help develop a comprehensive plan for Wellsburg.

"There are a number of sites in Wellsburg itself, old manufacturing plants, industrial-type plants that we think could be utilized for other areas but have been vacant," said Weld.

The authority already had success in transforming the old brownfield site on Route 2 into a home for Eagle Manufacturing. But it has to tackle issues that come with older buildings before progress is made on Sixth Street.

"There are a lot of environmental concerns at that building. So right now, we're looking at working with EPA, working with the current owners of the building to mitigate those concerns," said Weld.

Authority officials said they want residents to know they plan to bring in new businesses and expand existing businesses. They received community input on the plans last summer.

"We heard from local businesses that are in that area and also individuals that live in that area. We heard everything from a small hotel to a restaurant," said Weld.

Officials said they are now nailing down the costs for cleanup, and then they plan to get potential developers interested in the sites.