ELMIRA, N.Y. -- A badly damaged house in the City of Elmira could be on its way to being restored to its glory days. Elmira City Council will vote Monday night on a resolution that would hand this building at 359 West Church Street over to the Near Westside Neighborhood and Historic Elmira groups.

The Ritz Carriage House as it's known, was owned at one time or another by many well-known people in the city and has history dating back to the late 1700’s.

The current owner of the building owes the city of Elmira more than $28,000 in a lien, but the city is willing to forgive the lien if the resolution passes.

"We're really preventing potential future costs of over $100,000 of razing that building. It's not anything anyone wants to do. We want to preserve that building but we recognize we have to take it a little bit on the chin to make it move forward,” said John Tonello, (D) Elmira Mayor.

The mayor says the two groups who would get the building plan to restore it to its original splendor and use it for office space and possibly upstairs apartments.