Cars pass through the intersection of Main and Broadway in Peru on Thursday, Sept. 28. Staff photo by Alex Bracken
Cars pass through the intersection of Main and Broadway in Peru on Thursday, Sept. 28. Staff photo by Alex Bracken
MIAMI COUNTY — The Miami County Economic Development Authority voted to purchase the First Farmers Bank & Trust building located on the corner of North Broadway and West Main Street for $150,000 at their meeting Wednesday, July 10, with plans to redevelop the building consistent with Peru’s downtown revitalization plan.

According to Peru Mayor Don Sturch, the city became interested in purchasing the building as soon as they learned it was available. Sturch contacted the economic development authority and began negotiating a price with First Farmers Bank & Trust, eventually entering the agreement which was approved at the meeting.

First Farmers Bank & Trust and other occupants will continue to occupy the building for at least the next 12 months, while the authority and the city work to find a private developer. According to Jim Tidd, executive director of MCEDA, the bank’s operations gradually shifted to their locations on Canal Street and North Broadway Street, leaving them with less use for the building.

According to property records, the building is approximately 36,000 square feet and has three stories. The building currently has two offices on the upper level, which include Wabash Valley Abstract and attorney Thomas Keith.

Peru Mayor Don Sturch said the building’s prime location and size could make it an important part of the city’s efforts to improve the downtown.

“We felt it was really important to gain control of this iconic building here in Peru so we could find a private developer to come to the building, and still assure that the reuse of the building would align with the goals and the objectives that were set up in the 2022 Downtown Revitalization Plan,” Sturch said.

Sturch added that the city has not identified a specific use for the building, but that they will be working on exploring those in the coming months. The economic development authority is looking to finance the purchase over two years, with semi-annual payments aligning with their tax increment financing (TIF) dispersals, Tidd said.

Regardless of what the building becomes, Sturch said the purchase of the building by MCEDA will allow the city to guide its future.

“It will be a great asset to the city, and we’d like to maintain the historical significance of that building so I think it was good that we gained control of it,” Sturch said.