Historic Wyoming house razed

517 Oak Avenue

To the surprise of everyone, a vacant working-class cottage at 517 Oak Avenue (BIRD'S EYE) in Wyoming was recently razed.

Wyoming City Council was not aware of the pending demolition and did not get the chance to discuss options for saving a significant piece of the city's railroad suburb past.

The two-story frame house, built in 1875, had been offered for sale by the city since July for $1 to anyone who could move it off of the site.

Nothing from the structure was saved.

The city will use the parcel to expand its parking lot for the Safety Services Building and for the Wyoming Avenue business district, and to make improvements to Village Green Park.

The adjacent Encore Bistro & Bar, formerly Sturkey's, closed in November.

Rumors of an urban renewal plan for the immediate area have been circulating, but nothing has been released.

Previous reading on BC:
Deadline for Wyoming house extended (10/9/07)
Own a piece of Wyoming working-class history (7/23/07)

CHCURC: Old St. George will be saved

PRESS RELEASE

We are saddened by the tragic fire last night at Old St. George Church. Old St. George is a landmark building for the Clifton Heights and Cincinnati communities, and one that represents the great architectural history of our city. At this time, it seems as if the damage from the fire has been contained to the steeples. We will work with local fire officials over the coming weeks to determine the exact cause and extent of the damage.

Old St. George is insured against fire damage. At this time, our intentions are to continue working to save Old St. George from demolition. We will continue to work with City Center Properties, a local property development company, to renovate Old St. George for commercial use. In addition, we will continue to work with community groups, the city of Cincinnati, architects, engineers, and fire officials to determine the best avenues to pursue to achieve this common goal.

Clifton Heights Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation
CUF Neighborhood Association
Clifton Heights Business Association
City Center Properties

Peaslee to host meeting on Rothenberg

Over-the-Rhine residents and stakeholders will meet this evening in an effort to save the current Rothenberg School for use as a community learning center.

The community engagement session, to be held at 5 PM at the Peaslee Neighborhood Center, is an opportunity for neighborhood residents to give their input into the kinds of uses and programs they would like to see in the center.

The idea is to create a building that is useful to every neighborhood resident, while maintaining a neighborhood school that could help make the area more attractive for young families.

In September, state architects revised their construction cost estimates and determined that it would be cheaper to tear down Rothenberg and replace it with a brand new structure on the same site at Main Street and Clifton Avenue (BIRD'S EYE).

However, a little-publicized Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) memo in November noted that the costs to maintain an empty Westwood School outweighed any savings they would gain by building a new school there, possibly opening the door for reconsideration of the Over-the-Rhine anchor.

If CPS opts to renovate Rothenberg, a neighborhood group will be formed to explore ideas from the engagement sessions.

The group will then assemble project partners to help fund and implement the chosen programs, and it would take approximately 18 months for renovation work to begin.

This is the third meeting in the effort to save Rothenberg - the first two being purely exploratory - and is the direct result of neighborhood pressure on the CPS board.

The Community Building Institute has been brought in to collaborate on the effort, with executive director Liz Blume acting as facilitator.

More meetings are planned for the future, but no dates have been announced.

Representatives of the neighborhood will also be making a presentation on how the building can be renovated at the CPS board meeting on January 28.

The renovation has the full support of City Council, having been made official by a resolution passed at its October 24 meeting.

The massive landmark has been a neighborhood anchor since it was built between 1911 and 1914.

Aside from establishing a sense of pride in the neighborhood, Over-the-Rhine resident Mary Anne Berry, who is helping to spread information about the effort, believes saving the building will help people establish roots in the community.

"The building is part of the historical heritage of our community," Berry said. "We need to teach children our heritage and our history. What better place to do that than this building."

American Can named local landmark

City Council has approved unanimously the designation of the American Can property as a Local Historic Landmark.

Inclusion on a local landmark list makes the project eligible to receive the Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit.

The tax credit is equal to 25 percent of the developer's rehabilitation expenditures.

Only 100 tax credit certificates can be issued over any one year period*.

The American Can building, built in 1921, is a nearly unaltered building in the Commercial Style and was home to one of the nation's largest can manufacturers, employing as many as 1,000 people by the early 1950s.

The building is the 29th site to be named a Local Historic Landmark.

Developers Bloomfield, Schon & Partners still hope to have the building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A decision on that isn't likely until at least December.

Upon completion, the American Can Factory Square will contain 93 market-rate apartments and 30,000 square feet of commercial space. There will also be a new 20,000 square foot office building, 13,000 square feet of retail on the adjacent Myron Johnson property, and 30 townhomes along Langland Street.

Further reading, photos and maps:
BC: Scooped on the American Can story (7/19/07)
BC: Northside: American Can Factory Square (5/16/07)
BC: Northside: American Can Factory Square (3/17/07)

* Usually issued as applicants come along and not on a specific date.

Own a piece of Wyoming working-class history

517 Oak Avenue

A two-story frame house, built in 1875, is available to anyone willing to buy it and move it off of its lot.

The City of Wyoming is accepting sealed proposals until August 31 for the home, which is at 517 Oak Avenue.

The recommended proposal is expected to be submitted to city council for its September 17 meeting.

The City purchased the property from Marcella Boland in August 2006 for $80,000.

The lot, which is between Sturkey's and the Safety Services Building, is likely to be used to expand the surrounding surface parking lots.

City Council authorized the demolition of the house on June 18 but, following the advice of local preservation experts, created a six-month window to get the property sold and moved.

The city will consider donating it to a historic preservation organization if that organization can finance the move.

WINDOWS LIVE BIRD'S EYE VIEW (looking west)
GOOGLE AERIAL MAP

OTR: Is 3CDC out on the Kaufmann Building project?

3CDC may no longer be involved in the Kaufmann Building rehab project.

In October 2006, the City passed an ordinance allowing them to enter into a contract with Over-the-Rhine Development, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of 3CDC. The City would provide a $450,000 grant from capital improvement project funds to 3CDC. 3CDC would supervise the general contractor work of Otis Taylor (O.W. Taylor, LLC), who was looking to buy the building at 1721-1727 Vine St from Abandoned Buildings Corporation. The money would be spent to stabilize the structure and to study the feasibility of its future use.

Within the past couple of months, the Kaufmann Building has come up again in the Economic Development Committee and in City council. On April 11, 2007, council voted 6-3 to repeal the prior ordinance involving 3CDC. (Ghiz, Monzel and Berding voted against it.)

The old ordinance will be replaced by a new agreement to be made directly with Taylor. 3CDC is no longer mentioned in any of the documents. The $450,000 will come from the same project account in the form of a forgivable loan.

The Kaufmann Building is a four-story apartment building built in 1876 by the Kaufmann Brewery as an investment. Designed by architect George W. Rapp and built in the Renaissance Revival style, it's one of the Findlay Market area's dominant landmarks.

The building has suffered two major fires, has been condemned and has been declared a public nuisance. It has been vacant for many years. Demolition remains a strong possibilty if the numbers for saving it don't work, even though it is in a historic district.

WINDOWS LIVE BIRD'S EYE VIEW (looking west)
Urban Ohio: Save the Kaufmann Brewery!!

(NOTE: This is the first post regarding this project on the blog. The Urban Ohio link above will take you to the Urban Ohio discussion forums for background on this project. The link will open a new browser window.)

Endangered Cincinnati exhibit

The Cincinnati Preservation Association and the Betts House Research Center have teamed up for an exhibit of local endangered buildings, according to this Enquirer article.

The article doesn't bother to mention when the exhibit starts, or when it concludes. There also isn't any info on the Betts House website.

The Betts House Research Center is located at 416 Clark St in the West End. They're open Thursday and Sunday from 11 AM-3 PM, or by appointment.