City of Kent working to acquire Star of the Mill from KentWired.com on Vimeo.

The city of Kent is working to acquire the Star of the West Mill building at 162 N. Water St.

The city of Kent held a City Council meeting on Wednesday and a consensus was made not to let the former flour mill be torn down.

Since 1879, the former flour mill was the work place of many generations and held such valuable historical significance since.

The facility closed in September and relocated to Willard, Ohio.

Tom Wilke, the economic development director for the city of Kent, mentioned the city is in discussion with the owner of the mill for future plans.

“We’ve had conversations with the owner of the mill,” Wilke said. “They think it reached its useful life as a flour mill and it needs to be something else if it’s going to be something else.”

Wilke also mentioned the city is in communication with Kent State University on turning the facility into a potential learning center.

Though the property will not be purchasable for several more months, the city assured itself the land will not go to waste.