“We're working towards a public green space and event space,” Main Street Development Director Christina Caudle said Wednesday.

The address is home to the former Roanoke Restaurant, which has been left unsafe and in a state of disrepair.

Caudle is working with engineers to see whether the arched, three-window facade can be spared to serve as a grand entry way into the green space which leads to the municipal parking lot behind it. “Parking should not be an issue,” she said. “If we develop it correctly we will have the opportunity to have events like outdoor dining, seasonal farmers markets and art crawls.”

The long-term plan, she said, is to provide a safe place to draw the public. “We want to develop it nicely.”

With the city funding the demolition of the building, the project to develop the green space will be a privately funded endeavor with the non-profit Main Street Roanoke Rapids working on grant funding for the effort.

The potential, Caudle said, is to give the city an urban green space. “It will provide a community meeting space and bring more people to benefit the businesses. This is a good effort to improve the property.”