West Des Moines firefighters worked several hours on Nov. 2 and Nov. 3 to put out a fire at a vacant office building at 1247 Eighth St. The fire was ruled arson. Photo by Emily Blobaum

A 17-year-old West Des Moines male has been charged in connection with a Nov. 2 fire that heavily damaged a vacant office building at 1247 Eighth St., West Des Moines police said.

The male, whose name is not being released because he’s a juvenile, has been charged with second-degree arson, police said. No one was injured in the fire.

Firefighters were called to the blaze around 4 p.m. on Nov. 2. Smoke from the fire drifted to nearby Interstate Highway 235, causing a slowdown in traffic. Firefighters remained at the property until early the next morning to ensure the fire did not reignite.  

Developer Joe Cordaro has owned the property and adjacent parcels since 2018. Cordaro plans to redevelop the parcels with a project that would include two four-story buildings with ground-level retail and office space and apartment units on the remaining floors. The two buildings would include a total of 83 apartments and 24,000 square feet of new commercial space.

The site plan for the $17 million project is expected to be voted on by the West Des Moines City Council at its meeting on Monday.

Cordaro was in the process of razing the vacant, two-story office building when the fire occurred.

The project, originally announced in fall 2019, has been delayed by the pandemic — and now the fire, said Cordaro, who expects to begin construction on the new buildings in spring 2021.