Plans are coming together in Whitehall for a meeting to discuss reviving the community after a devastating March 6 fire destroyed several businesses and left more than 20 people jobless.

Whitehall Chamber of Commerce President Elizabeth Kidwell and her colleagues are calling every number listed in the Whitehall phone book to spread the word about an Oct. 1 meeting where residents will break into groups to share ideas about the future of the affected area, Kidwell said. The meeting is proposed to be at Whitehall High School.

The vacant lots where businesses once stood are now for sale. The Jefferson Local Development Corporation has made an offer to buy the land, according to Kidwell.

Whitehall Drug, the town's only drug store, was one of the businesses lost in the fire. It is currently operating out of a temporary rented location. But owner Gary Enje said the store will move to a new location with larger space pending approval from state agencies.

The building is on Legion Street next to the Conoco corner store where the Whitehall Baptist Church operated for 10 years. Church members were moving out of the building Thursday into the church's new location at 508 Railroad Street, which it now owns. It rented the previous location.

Pastor Kevin Turman says the move has worked out in favor of the entire community. 

"The whole chain of events has really set off a tremendous blessing for us, for the drug store, and for the community because now we get to keep our drug store here and that's really a tremendous blessing across the board so everybody's thrilled and it's just a great thing," Turman said.

Turman said the pastor who started the Whitehall Baptist Church is now in Greenville, Tennessee. But, when he heard the Whitehall Church was $14,000 of buying the building on Railroad Street, he and the members of his Tennessee church sent a $14,000 check.

The co-owner of the Legion Street Grill, Gabriele Hall, was sitting at her desk in the restaurant's office at about 11 a.m. Friday, March 6 when she heard a boom that shook her from her chair, according to an investigative report issued by the State Fire Marshal's Office after the blaze. Workers and patrons were evacuated from the restaurant and neighboring businesses were notified and evacuated.

Four buildings were destroyed in the fire, including the Legion Street Grill, the Warmoth Office Bulding, the Mint Bar and Cottage Floral and Gifts.

Investigators were able to determine that the fire started in a storage room at the Legion Street Grill.

Insurance investigators examined several freezers in the back of the Legion Street Grill. While one freezer showed more fire damage and had wires and copper lines that were described as "brittle," no direct relationship was drawn between the freezer and the cause of the fire.

An exact cause of the fire was not found, but the State Fire Marshal's Office said in its report that the fire appeared to be accidental.