Building Comes Down As New Development Planned

    The teardown of a commercial building along SR 19 south of Umatilla is expected to pave the way for a larger commercial development in the area. City of Umatilla officials this week confirmed the site at the corner of Mills Street and SR 19 is being planned as a new light industrial development.
   The building torn down in the past week was most recently home to a vape shop, but over the years has housed a grocery store, a fishing bait shop, a flooring store, and a gun shop among other things. It was the last remaining building in the area that also once housed another commercial building and at least one home.
   Now, the site is expected to be developed in line with the adjoining industrial park that sits just east of the location.
   “It’s planned for… light industrial units similar to the ones in the park behind it,” said Umatilla City Manager Scott Blankenship this week. “If they do it right, it should look nice.”
   The announced plans are the latest in the ongoing expansion of both commercial and residential development on the southern edge of Umatilla. Beyond the industrial park next to the new site, further east down Mills Street serves as a corner of the now-underway Magnolia Pointe development, where an estimated 500 homes are under development. West of the location, on the west side of SR 19 beyond the Florida’s Natural plant, the City of Umatilla is developing another industrial area. This location, on the site of the town’s former wastewater plant, will serve as another potential jobs center for the area. The city has made it a priority to develop areas that could serve as jobs centers within the community, with hopes of allowing more residents to live and work close to home.