Virginia Intermont College campus owner modifies plans

The owner of the former Virginia Intermont College in Bristol, Virginia, is rethinking plans for the long-vacant campus after an architect’s inspection of the blighted property.

U.S. Magis International Education Center, led by Chinese entrepreneur Zhiting Zhang, intends to launch a four-year college with a business and possibly medical-related curriculum on part of the 37-acre site, rather than the originally announced Virginia Business College. Some buildings or other portions of the property might be repurposed for residential or commercial use, says attorney John E. Kieffer, who represents Magis.

“The next step will be to finalize the formulation of the college plan and put in an application to SCHEV,” he says. “They’re still working on that.”

Bristol has long tried to get Magis to improve and secure the property, where buildings have been deteriorating since Virginia Intermont’s closing in 2014. In December 2024, four of its oldest buildings were severely damaged in a massive fire, and in January, crews demolished the ruins.

On Sept. 19, the city delivered an ultimatum that the owner meet three demands within 15 days or face legal action. In short order, Magis retained a local architect to evaluate the buildings and hired a security firm to provide round-the-clock security. Kieffer said in late September he was still seeking a mowing contractor, the third requirement.

Says City Manager Randall Eads, “I feel like they’re trying to operate in accordance with what the city has asked them to do, and the city’s going to give them an opportunity to remedy the situation. If they fail to do so in a timely manner, the city will take legal action.”

Virginia Intermont closed in 2014 amid financial struggles. Zhang purchased the property for $3.3 million at a 2016 foreclosure sale and announced plans to reopen it as Virginia Business College. That effort faltered during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the vacant buildings were repeatedly vandalized.

Following the 2024 fire, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation empowering Bristol to petition the court to seize and resell the site to a developer. Eads says that option would have been pursued if Magis had not met the city’s demands.

Magis is assessing what it will take to get the buildings ready for occupancy, Kieffer says. “I would think that some concrete decisions as to which buildings to renovate first would probably be made within six months.”