The Ohio Development Services Agency has awarded an additional $3.7 million in tax credits for the second rehabilitation phase of the historic Fort Industry Square on Summit Street in downtown Toledo, the agency announced Wednesday.
Including Fort Industry Square, the agency awarded tax credits to 28 historic rehabilitation projects around the state totaling $31.2 million. The tax credits are intended to “assist private developers in rehabilitating historic buildings in downtowns and neighborhoods,” the agency said in a news release.
Also included was a $1.3 million tax credit for the renovation of the former Westminster Presbyterian Church and adjacent warehouse, located at the intersection of Superior and Locust streets in Toledo’s Vistula Historic District.
Paul Toth, president of the nonprofit downtown development corporation ConnecToledo, said such tax credits are integral to making historic rehabilitation projects financially viable.
“There is no way that these projects would move forward without those tax credits being available,” he said. “I can say without any question that they are the difference between developing and not developing these buildings.”
According to the ODSA, the aim of the state tax credits is to incentivize the development of vacant historic buildings that are currently doing little for the economy, eventually spurring further interest and investment in the surrounding area.
“Ohio communities are filled with charm. You see it in the historic buildings that line our downtowns and neighborhoods,” said Lydia Mihalik, director of the Ohio Development Services Agency, in the news release. “Working with local community and business leaders, we’re removing blight in neighborhoods and transforming these buildings into new places for Ohioans to live and work.”
Companies and developers do not receive the tax credits until construction is complete and program requirements have been met.
The other historic rehabilitation project in northwest Ohio awarded a tax credit was the renovation of Empire Hotel in Tiffin. The hotel, built in 1874, will receive a $1 million tax credit as part of a roughly $6.1 million project to return the building to its original use.
Fort Industry Square was purchased from ProMedica in December, 2017 by Lansing, Mich.-based company Karp and Associates Inc. The company has previously redeveloped the former Standart-Simmons building on Erie Street and the Berdan Building on Washington avenue into 190 total lofts and apartments.
This latest project aims to turn the buildings on 116-152 Summit St. which were rehabbed 40 years ago but have since vacated and fallen into disrepair, into mixed use spaces for residences, businesses, office space, and entertainment.
The second phase of the project will convert the seven buildings from 114-132 Summit into 59 loft apartments and 29,811 sq. feet of commercial space. This phase is anticipated to cost roughly $33.8 million, according to documents submitted from Karp and Associates to the ODSA.
Karp and Associates received a $5 million tax credit from the same agency last year for the first phase of the project, which was estimated to cost $26 million and is renovating 3 other historic buildings into 40 residential units and more than 37,000 sq. feet of commercial space.
The company has also applied and been approved for 10 federal tax credits — one for each building— under the Federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives program.
This first phase of the project is currently under construction. With the tax credit secured, the second phase should be underway soon, Mr. Toth said.
Originally built in 1873, the Westminster church served its original purpose until 1909, when it was bought by St. John’s Catholic College and used as a gym for their basketball team. While the church’s warehouse has since been used for distribution, the church itself has been vacant for 42 years.
The $1.3 million tax credit awarded for the church and adjacent warehouse is phase one of a larger effort by Fred Treuhaft — a lifelong Toledo resident — to revitalize the Vistula Historic District, located along the Maumee northeast of downtown.
The historic credits are an integral part for the funding of the project,” he said. “When you renovate these historic structures, the cost is considerably higher than other renovations.”
Mr. Treuhaft purchased eight buildings in the neighborhood with business partner Blake Underwood, an owner of the technology firm Nemsys. They have plans to eventually convert the area into what they’ve called Gateway at Lower Town, complete with murals, restaurants, and a pedestrian walkway.
The church and warehouse renovations are estimated to cost around $11.9 million and will convert the space into offices for Nemsys and associated companies. Mr. Treuhaft said he expects construction for the project to be complete by the first quarter of 2021.
Mr. Treuhaft has applied for federal historic tax credits and plans to apply for the next round of state tax credits to offset the cost of the project’s second phase.
Ultimately, both Mr. Toth and Mr. Treuhaft hope that these developments will add to the vitality of the neighborhoods they occupy.
“We’re excited about achieving and obtaining the tax credits this time around,” Mr. Treuhaft said. “All of that is going to spur activity in downtown Toledo.”
First Published August 6, 2020, 12:11 p.m.
