Posted: 1:00 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 23, 2014
Middletown’s building renovation
projects moving ahead
By Ed Richter
Staff Writer
MIDDLETOWN —
Millions
of dollars are being invested in downtown Middletown
by entrepreneurs who are looking to
transform once vacant and, in some cases,
dilapidated buildings and storefronts into office space, apartments,
microbrews, educational facilities and arts studios.
All
of the projects are in various stages of development, according to city
officials and the investors, but hope springs eternal that once completed they
will be the building blocks of a new center of commerce and residential
activity.
Here
is a short update on each building project:
The former Middletown Journal building
The
building, located at Broad and First, formerly owned by Cox Media Group Ohio,
is currently being transformed into the home for several businesses, including
an antique shop, a hot yoga studio, a fitness gym and possibly a dance studio,
according to owner Gary Montesi.
In
addition to building an apartment for himself and his two children, Montesi
said the first floor of the building will become the home of Middletown
Antiques. Montesi said Kathy Bowermaster expects to open her store in the next
few months after moving from her former location on Central Avenue.
“There’s
a strong possibility that we’ll have the place 80 percent full within the next
year,” he said.
Montesi
believes once renovations are completed that he’ll have about $1 million
invested in the project. He also said he has spent a lot of time getting the
building cleaned up and said that restoring the 9-foot by 8-foot windows has
been very time consuming.
Montesi
received a facade grant to repair the building’s exterior windows.
“I
love that building,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to rehab a building like this
to put in loft apartments with high ceilings and windows. It’s going to be
neat.”
The Goetz
Tower
The
Goetz Tower, located at the southeast corner
of Central Avenue
and South Main Street,
was acquired by the group headed by Mike Robinette and David Gose. The group is
working with historic building restoration experts Steve Coon, David Jursik and
Joe Parsons.
Gose
said the partnership had applied for state and federal historic renovation tax
credits in September that will be awarded in late December.
Robinette
said the building, which houses a Fifth Third Bank branch, will include 24
market-rate apartments as well as 2,000 square-feet of retail/commercial space
when the project is completed. He said interior demolition and renovations
could begin as early as March. As of Friday, he estimated the cost of the
project to be about $2.5 million and about half of the cost will be offset by
the historic tax renovation credits.
Rose Furniture
Building
Robinette’s
partnership group also includes the ownership of the former Rose Furniture
building at 36 S. Main St.
The
building, located at 36 S. Main
St., was heavily damaged by rain in the fall of
2013. Robinette said half of the demolition work has been completed behind the
facade which also included the removal of asbestos. However, he said the back
portion of the building, which was originally going to be saved, will now be
coming down after the asbestos is removed.
“We’ve
got the testing done and we have received quotes from contractors to do the
work,” Robinette said. “We hope to get that work completed by the end of the
year.”
Robinette
estimated the total costs for this project at about $500,000.
Cincinnati State
Several
downtown buildings were acquired by the city, some of them were once owned by
the late Perry Thatcher, then by the city, and were acquired by Higher
Education Partners who in turn made it the home of the city’s branch of
Cincinnati State College.
The
buildings that include the former Cincinnati Gas & Electric Building, 1 N.
Main St., the former First Financial Bank, 2 N. Main St., the former Butler
County Job and Family Services building at 1021 Central Ave., and the former
Middletown Senior Citizens Center at 140 Verity Parkway.
Jean
Manning, the college’s vice president of marketing and communications, said the
Middletown
campus and its programs are growing as enrollment has.
Manning
said the sixth floor of the campus’s main building at 1 N. Main St. was renovated and two
floors have yet to be completed.
She
said the building across the street at 2 N. Main St. that formerly housed the
First Financial Bank office, recently received a new digital sign. However,
there are no plans for future use of the building at this time, she said.
At
the former Butler County JFS office on Central Avenue, Manning said a portion of
the building will be used as a welding lab.
“We
have an RFP (request for proposals) out for architectural design services that
is due Dec. 1,” Manning said. “I really hope we can fast track this by Dec. 15
to get an architect on board.”
She
said the college received a $35,000 Duke Energy grant for the new welding
program.
Manning
said that building is envisioned to be a “bridge” facility for students wanting
to enroll as well as an outplacement center for graduates to transition into
careers. In addition, it may be used for people to be tutored and/or be tested
to obtain a GED certificate.
As
for how the rest of the building will be used, Manning said starting in
December, there will be several “listening session” for the community to give
its feedback on future uses.
As
for the former senior center, Manning said the college and Higher Education Partners
are still talking about future uses. She said there have been some plans drawn
up to use the building as a student center and for some administrative offices.
“Nothing
has been decided,” she said.
The Manchester Inn and Sonshine Building
The
92-year-old Manchester Inn hotel on Manchester
Avenue has been closed for more than three years.
Since
acquiring the hotel, Illinois
investor William Grau and his ownership group have made repairs to the
building’s leaking roof and treated it for mold. In addition the various metal
awnings that once adorned the building have been removed to prevent water
damage to the structure.
The
city was asking $325,000 for the Manchester,
but accepted Grau’s $1 offer earlier this year. Grau also acquired the adjacent
Sonshine Building for $1 as well. He plans to
invest $10 million into the property.
The
former hotel was also nominated to be included in the National Register of
Historic Buildings, and he has applied for state Historic Preservation Tax
Credits to help with the redevelopment.
He
plans to renovate the Manchester
back into a hotel along with a restaurant, banquet facilities and office space.
According
to Denise Hamet, the city’s economic development director, Manchester Hotel,
LLC is in negotiations with major brands for hotel and restaurant/catering
franchises. In addition, the group is completing the design phase in
preparation for tax credit application submission due March 31, 2015.
Hamet
said Grau’s other group, Snider Building LLC, which was the previous name of
the Sonshine Building, is in negotiations with
several microbreweries to partner with, or obtain a franchise for, the
microbrewery/brewpub. The group is also completing the design phase in
preparation for tax credit application submission due March 31, 2015.
Once
renovations are completed the building will have a 100-plus seat brewpub on the
first floor; small brewing system with canning/bottling lines and storage on
the first floor and lower level. In addition, there will be meeting/event
rooms, offices and storage on the second floor.
Former Bank
One Building
Local
artist and businessman Chris Walden, who leads the Windamere LLC group,
purchased the former Bank
One Building
at 2 N. Main St.
for $140,000.
City
officials said at the time of the purchase that Windamere LLC will be involved
proposing to use the building as a gallery and to host small events, which will
be consistent with the arts and education focus of the downtown district.
Walden could not be reached for comment for this story.