NEWCOMERSTOWN, Ohio — The leaves have fallen off a big tree on Heller Drive in Newcomerstown, but stuck in the trunk, you'll find a bunch of metal files.
The array of files is nod to the history of the property where the manufacturing company Simonds Industries made tools for decades in the Tuscarawas County village.
"It was the backbone of our town," said Newcomerstown Mayor Pat Cadle. "They made tools here and they shipped them from here."
Cadle said the factory closed in 2005, taking away about 250 jobs and a piece of history that was special to residents like Dave Hickman.
"It just slowly dwindled away, so it was sort of sad," Hickman said.
Hickman, who has lived in Newcomerstown for most of his life, remembers Simonds when it was in its heyday.
"When I was a teenager, we would walk from the high school home, and the parking lot was full of cars, so you had to walk around the parking lot. You couldn't just walk through it like they do today," he said.
Several years ago, Newscomerstown bought the property at auction for $2,500. Crews knocked down the 26-building complex, which had become an eyesore following the closure.
Cadle now sees a bright future on the brownfield site.
"The goal has always been housing. That's always been a need," Cadle said.
Newcomerstown, which has a population just under 4,000, has not built a new housing development since 1975, Cadle said.
"We've had a few houses that have been built here and there, but as an organized development, nothing," he added.
But the mayor feels that is going to change with the village taking new housing proposals on 15 acres of the site until Jan. 16.
So far, five developers are showing interest in ideas that include single-family homes, townhomes and senior living.
"Our seniors are leaving because we don't have a place for them to move into," Cadle said.
In October, News 5 reported on a study that stressed Tuscarawas County needs about 3,000 new homes, especially with German-based Schaeffler building a new plant in Dover that will bring 450 new jobs.
"We're a long time coming. It's been a long time," Hickman said.
The mayor hopes a new housing plan for the site will come into focus in 2026, with construction starting in 2027.
For Hickman, who buys and fixes up old houses in Newcomerstown, he would welcome a fresh inventory.
"It's been one of those things that's been an eyesore in the community and it would be nice to see some new housing. It would improve the neighborhood."
