We won’t know for a while yet what the future holds for property at 231-237 Pennsylvania Ave. West – and there’s nothing wrong with that.

A local development group which includes Bee Courageous at Garden Grub, Sugar Bay and Create Community has come forward with an idea for the parcel. The group is working through all of the legal steps necessary to form a 501(c)3, create the documentation the Warren Redevelopment Authority needs to consider a formal proposal from the group and, at the same time, working to get a comprehensive engineering report completed. And, the group needs to begin lining up financing for a project, too. The group has its hands full dealing with a parcel with a very contentious public history. It’s a difficult task to create a group out of thin air and create a full development proposal at the same time. The task gets tougher still when there’s a ticking clock involved.

That ticking clock is the possible demolition of the buildings at 231-237 Pennsylvania Ave. W.

RDA members also discussed next steps should it choose to proceed with demolition. City officials issued a demolition order late last summer due to several issues that include parts of the buildings being deemed structurally unsound, liability concerns because the properties are uninsured, pieces of the buildings falling onto the sidewalks and vaults used as a delivery system remaining as free space underneath the walkway pads that city officials say pose a danger to pedestrians.

The RDA finds itself in a holding pattern. The board doesn’t have enough information to approve a redevelopment project and doesn’t want to issue a demolition order unless necessary. But

At the same time there are safety issues to consider. The RDA’s March meeting may provide some clarity – but in our opinion the RDA’s decision to sit on the fence is the right one. But the time to make a choice is coming.