Article published May 19, 2009
Spitzer Building owners find grounds to empty its offices
Spitzer tenants sent across street
The Spitzer Building became Toledo's first steel-framed 'skyscraper' in 1896. Tenants above the first floor are being asked to move to the former Fifth Third Center.
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THE BLADE
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By GARY T. PAKULSKI
BLADE BUSINESS WRITER
The historic Spitzer Building at Huron Street and Madison Avenue in downtown Toledo has long been popular with small law firms and freshly minted lawyers looking for inexpensive space to hang out a shingle.
But the 10-story building has begun to empty after new owners asked tenants to move to a building they own across the street.
"We've already contacted 90 percent of tenants and only one said they didn't want to move," said Sabrina Crabtree, assistant building manager. Some tenants have left.
Retail tenants on the main floor, known as "the arcade," will be allowed to stay.
The 10-story Spitzer, which became Toledo's first steel-framed "skyscraper" in 1896, lacks a sprink-
ler system, has no central air conditioning, and needs extensive repairs, building officials said.
The owner, San Francisco-based Ergur Private Equity Group LLC, wants to renovate the building, but its best use has not been determined, said Connie Bolak, Ohio property manager for Ergur. Residential condominiums and college-student housing are among uses being discussed.Ergur bought the building for $800,000 on April 13. It had been owned by the founding Spitzer family for 113 years.
While the main-floor tenants will be allowed to stay, building officials have asked 140 office tenants to move across Huron to the former Fifth Third Center, which has reverted to its original name, the Nicholas Building. The sign on that building, however, has not been changed.
Occupancy in that building - also owned by Ergur - dropped to 8 percent for a time this year, but will likely reach 18 percent by
May 30, company representatives said.
The owner is offering similar deals on rents, which top out at about $11.50 a square foot annually.
No deadline has been set for the Spitzer Building to be vacated. But once most tenants leave, the owner will likely give a 60-day notice to remaining businesses, other than those on the first floor.
A large block of space opened recently when Advocates for Basic Legal Equality left for its own building elsewhere downtown.
Despite the Spitzer Building's age, an inspection completed by the Toledo Fire division yesterday found only minor violations, said David Dauer, supervisor of fire prevention.
The nonprofit Downtown Toledo Improvement District Inc. is working with the building's owners, said Tom Crothers, executive director of the organization.
"The Spitzer Building has been thriving for many, many years," he said. "But to be viable in the 21st century, it needs some upgrades."
Lawyer Jerry Phillips, a longtime tenant, expects to leave in a month or two. He is studying a move across the street to the Nicholas Building, but has sought assurances from owners that the building is bringing in enough rent revenues to stay open long term.
"I don't want to move into that building only to have to move again," he said.
The Spitzer Building has been Mr. Phillips' home base since he graduated from law school four decades ago.
"It's been convenient," he said. "All of my clients know where I am. It's a relatively easy place to find. It's convenient for the courts. And there is a certain comfort level going to the same place for 40 years."
Larry Hutton, owner of Madison Bistro for five years, is among main-floor tenants who have not been asked to leave.
Business has been slow since last fall when the U.S. economy dived, he said. Customers who move across the street will likely continue to patronize the restaurant, he said.
"They have to eat somewhere," he reasoned.
"But this is going to hurt. If it's pouring rain, they're not going to come out."
Contact Gary Pakulski at:
gpakulski@theblade.com
or 419-724-6082.
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