The Ohio Development Services Agency awarded $33.9 million worth of credits this week to 22 projects scattered across the state.
View full sizeThe Fairmont Creamery redevelopment at the edge of Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood is one of eight Northeast Ohio projects to win state tax credits for historic preservation. The state awarded $33.9 million worth of credits this week in the 10th round of a popular program aimed at bringing attention and investment to under-used historic properties. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Eight Northeast Ohio redevelopment projects, including the transformation of two PlayhouseSquare office buildings into apartments, nabbed nearly $17.9 million worth of state tax credits this week for historic preservation.
Those credits are a key cog in the complex financing mechanisms that give new life to vacant, dilapidated and overlooked buildings. The Ohio Development Services Agency recently awarded $33.9 million worth of credits to 22 projects scattered across the state.
With all eyes on the state budget, which faces final votes today in the state House and Senate, the tax-credit awards came with little fanfare. But the winners were no less ebullient.
"You can tell I've got a little bit of a kick in my step right now," said Rob Namy of Weston Inc., a Warrensville Heights developer that is working with the George Group of Lakewood to turn a tiny building at 1224 Huron Road near PlayhouseSquare into nine apartments.
That vacant office building is a former piano and organ showroom. The redevelopment, which will cost approximately $2.5 million, won $422,001 in credits. Namy described the award as "the first step of several," adding that Weston hopes to start construction within 90 days.
Next door, an obsolete office building at 1220 Huron Road also faces a residential future -- with 80 apartments planned on its upper floors. The Slyman Group, which owns the building, is planning a $16 million overhaul that won $3.5 million worth of tax credits. The apartments will be called the Residences at PlayhouseSquare, according to the state.
The credits offset liabilities such as state income taxes or corporate franchise taxes. In Cleveland, developers often layer them into projects where the rents otherwise would not support the cost of construction. The state estimates that this week's round of credits will support more than $200 million worth of private investment, involving hundreds of construction jobs and nearly 1,000 permanent jobs.
At the Fairmont Creamery building in Tremont -- another winner -- a trio of young developers is working on a deal that also involves federal New Markets Tax Credits and private financing.
Sustainable Community Associates, the developer, plans to fill the empty creamery with 27 apartments and more than 17,000 square feet of offices and retail, plus indoor parking. The $15 million project won $3.1 million in tax credits.
"Returning the creamery to a productive use that strengthens and propels the surrounding neighborhoods will be a powerful example of how sustainable development is transforming Cleveland," Naomi Sabel, a principal with Sustainable Community Associates, said in an email.
Construction on the creamery project could start in the fall and last 12 months.
The other Northeast Ohio winners are:
* Adams Bag Co. paper mill in Chagrin Falls. The $8.5 million project will transform one of the few remaining historic industrial structures along the Chagrin River into offices, restaurants and a microbrewery. The redevelopment won $1.65 million worth of credits -- the first such award for Chagrin Falls.
* Akron Savings & Loan on South Main Street in Akron. Also called the Landmark Building, the property is part of a larger redevelopment project that includes residential, retail and restaurant spaces next to the Civic Theatre. This building could house 86 apartments and more than 18,000 square feet of retail. A nearly $14 million redevelopment, the project won $3.1 million in credits.
* Goodyear Hall in Akron. Part of the former Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. complex on East Market Street, this brick building supports an iconic Goodyear sign. Industrial Realty Group, which owns the old Goodyear campus, plans to fill Goodyear Hall with 109 apartments, retail and offices. The auditorium and gym could be used for concerts, plays and other public events.
Peter Goffstein, a senior vice president with Industrial Realty Group, said the project is financed and construction could start within months. The redevelopment is a $36 million effort that won $5 million in credits.
"A project of this magnitude will live many lives and iterations as it evolves," Goffstein said of remaking the massive Goodyear campus, which encompasses 5.5 million square feet of buildings and 400 acres.
The developer is trying to repopulate the old Goodyear headquarters with office tenants and plans to build a 136-room Hilton Garden Inn hotel southeast of Goodyear Hall.
* Phoenix Block in downtown Ravenna. Coleman Professional Services, a nonprofit group focused on behavioral health and rehabilitation, has purchased part of this historic Portage County building and plans to build 10 affordable residences and ground-floor businesses that employ participants in Coleman's vocational programs. The $2.6 million project won $515,000 in tax credits.
* Saint Luke's Hospital. Tax credits will support the final phase of this long-awaited redevelopment project on Shaker Boulevard in Cleveland. The former hospital, rechristened as Saint Luke's Pointe, now holds apartments for the elderly. The last wing will be filled with classrooms, after-school programs and nonprofit offices.
The Intergenerational School, a public charter school, is the anchor tenant. Other tenants include the Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland, the Centers for Families and Children, Neighborhood Progress Inc. and the Saint Luke's Foundation.
The $15 million to $16 million project, which also involves New Markets Tax Credits and money from a $6.5 million capital campaign, won $506,600 worth of state credits.