HAMPDEN – Months after the town voted against the purchase of 500 Main Street, the property remains unused and unkempt with no apparent plans for redevelopment.

While residents have taken to social media pages to discuss the continued poor condition of the structure and grounds, a representative of the Planning Board reported “no knowledge of any movement or plans for 500 Main Street” when queried by Reminder Publishing.

Officials had presented a warrant article at the May 14 Annual Town Meeting to enter into a purchase and sale for the land and building, known as the old Cumberland Farms property, but the motion failed to pass. The Advisory Committee unanimously voted to take no action on the item, in part due to restrictive parameters requested for the proposed sale by the owners.

The half-acre of land across the street from Memorial Park has a listed sale price of $100,000. According to property data obtained through the town’s online geographic information system and the Hampden County Register of Deeds, V.S.H. Realty Inc. of Framingham has owned the parcel since 1970 when it was purchased for $15,000. The 3,600-square-foot commercial building was originally constructed in 1965. Currently, the parcel is assessed at $49,300.

The possibility of purchasing and repurposing the property into open space was suggested in the town’s Open Space and Recreation Plan update in 2017 developed by the town’s Open Space and Recreation Plan Committee and the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission. Residents agreed to appropriate up to $18,000 in Community Preservation Act funds to conduct a feasibility study regarding turning the area into a riverfront park along the Scantic River. According to the Open Space and Recreation Plan, a foot bridge could have also allowed access to Minnechaug Mountain.