NILES — A company with ties to LG Energy Solution, the South Korean company that with General Motors is building a $2.3 billion factory in Lordstown to mass produce battery cells for electric vehicles, has acquired a downtown office building.

Jiniee Hong, a manager with LG Solution Partner LLC, said Tuesday the Niles Professional Building at 2 S. Main St. would be used as test space for automation equipment used at the Ultium Cells plant.

The company purchased the building and property immediately behind the building at 33 W. Park Ave. that contains an old bank drive-thru for $160,000, according to the Trumbull County Auditor’s Office.

The transaction finalized Nov. 4.

Hong said some renovation is needed to the building, but the plan is to be in the space by mid-January. Nine people would work at the office, she said.

No building plans have been filed with the city’s building department. Mayor Steve Mientkiewicz said he knew the building would be used for some sort of activity that relates to the battery plant, but the exact purpose varied from component testing to human resources to executive offices.

The mayor said he hopes to meet with the new owners in the near future.

“We hope this is a contribution to the revitalization efforts that myself and council have taken toward the downtown area,” Mientkiewicz said.

Guy Coviello, president and CEO of the Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber, said his group is working to support LG Energy Solution as “it continues to invest in our community.”

“Like all the companies that are part of the broadening Ultium supply chain, we are determined to create the best experience possible establishing their business presence in the Valley,” Coviello said.

Documents with the Ohio Secretary of State show LG Solution Partner LLC formed in May. The company is registered to Paul Doohyun Yoon of Hudson, but Hong said it has several partners. Yoon is also the registered agent for Fuelab, Inc. and Aimech LLC, according to the state. Both of those companies were formed in early 2019.

LG Solution Partner LLC purchased the properties from Marco DiChiro, who in 2020 acquired them from City Bank Investment Company for $120,000, according to the auditor’s office. The building formerly contained PNC Bank and has tenants now, including Shaker Law Offices, which has been in the location since 1948.

DiChiro had big plans for the old historic building, built in 1930, but things fell through.

He said in July 2020 the plan was to preserve and restore the building, designed by the Cleveland-based architecture firm Walker and Weeks, famous for beautiful bank buildings. In addition, he proposed turning the lower level into a gathering place, from a coffee shop to gallery space to studios for local artists.

Production at the battery cell plant is on track to begin in August.

Now, exterior construction is nearly complete. The building is enclosed and process equipment is being installed, said Brooke Waid, Ultium Cells spokeswoman. Equipment installation, which is about 15 percent complete, will be phased through 2023 for the multiple cell assembly lines.

The plant will employ upward of 1,100 people at full production.