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Blogs:
Cleveland Browns:
Links to Browns coverage: Sept. 2, 2010
Marla Ridenour on Sports:
OSU: Why open on Thursday?
Varsity Letters:
Connor Cook of Walsh Jesuit Ready to Lead (VIDEO)
The330:
Jeff Daniels Making Music at Kent Stage
Tribe Matters:
Brown, Lewis called up in addition to Carrasco
First Bell - On Education:
Former Akron administrator seeks top job in Youngstown
The Heldenfiles:
Jeff Daniels Making Music at Kent Stage
Pets:
Find the Hidden Kitten–and Peace Too!
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Cavs change uniforms … again
Akron Zips:
Basketball team faces tougher schedule than usual
Kent State Sports:
Flashes Football Week 1 Preview–Murray State
Akron Docs in Haiti:
Orphans in Fondwa
Buckeye Blogging:
‘The Shoe’ is Open for Business
All Da King's Men:
What Al Gore Has Wrought
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Beck: "Lord Sending Wakeup Calls"
Akron Law Café:
Ohio's Suit Against Bank of America Survives Motion to Dismiss
Car Chase:
SNEAK PEEK AT 2010 GLENMOOR GATHERING
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Love Is In The Air (SING IT!)
Sound Check:
Robert Wilson, Gap Band bassist, dies
See Jane Style:
Fashion Police?
HRLite House:
From the White House – New Federal Approach to Hiring
By Katie Byard
Beacon Journal staff writer
POSTED: 07:52 p.m. EDT, Aug 28, 2009
A dance halls, saloons, banks, rooms for rubber workers — all were part of Akron's first business district at Main and Exchange streets.
Today, the downtown area — boasting buildings from the late 1800s to the 1950s — is on the verge of becoming a national historic district.
A state panel on Friday approved the Main-Exchange District — made up of 15 buildings, including the homes of Bricco restaurant and the Diamond Deli — for addition to the National Register of Historic Places.
Sites recommended by the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board almost always are approved at the federal level. Approval is likely within about 90 days, said Barbara Powers, of the Ohio Historical Society.
''This is a cause to celebrate,'' said downtown developer Tony Troppe, echoing city and state officials.
Not only does the designation acknowledge that the area is something special, but it can also spur redevelopment through the use of federal tax credits, said Troppe and Akron planning administrator Jerry Egan.
Owners of buildings in districts on the register are eligible for a 20 percent federal income tax credit on future rehabilitation, if federal guidelines are met.
Structures can still be razed, although federal money cannot be used for the work.
Troppe said the tax credits can make the difference between a project going forward or not. He is rehabbing the 1877 Kaiser Building at 323 and 325 S. Main, across from Canal Park Stadium in the district. The building long ago housed a German-American family club, as well as a ballroom.
The national register also is a source of local pride, officials said.
''It says this is our community identity,'' said Kim Schuette, spokeswoman for the Ohio Historical Society. ''This is what we were and still are.''
The bulk of the district encompasses properties along the west side of South Main Street, from Canal Park stadium to Cedar Street.
These properties include 1 W. Exchange St., a 1913 building that is home to Bricco and Lux Nightclub. In its early years, the brick structure housed the Stanley Dance Pavilion and movie theater, as well as a shop that sold fruits and cigars.
On the east side of Main Street, the district is made up of the three Main Street properties between Spring Alley and Exchange, including the Kaiser Building, across from the stadium.
The district also includes the eight-story AC&Y Building at 12 E. Exchange. This 1919 structure early on housed the headquarters of the Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad. A new apartment complex for college students hugs this property and is not included in the district.
Chambers, Murphy & Burge Restoration Architects prepared the nomination paperwork for the city.
Downtown has two other historic districts north of the Main-Exchange area — the South Main District and the Main-Market District.
Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.
A dance halls, saloons, banks, rooms for rubber workers — all were part of Akron's first business district at Main and Exchange streets.
Today, the downtown area — boasting buildings from the late 1800s to the 1950s — is on the verge of becoming a national historic district.
A state panel on Friday approved the Main-Exchange District — made up of 15 buildings, including the homes of Bricco restaurant and the Diamond Deli — for addition to the National Register of Historic Places.
Sites recommended by the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board almost always are approved at the federal level. Approval is likely within about 90 days, said Barbara Powers, of the Ohio Historical Society.
''This is a cause to celebrate,'' said downtown developer Tony Troppe, echoing city and state officials.
Not only does the designation acknowledge that the area is something special, but it can also spur redevelopment through the use of federal tax credits, said Troppe and Akron planning administrator Jerry Egan.
Owners of buildings in districts on the register are eligible for a 20 percent federal income tax credit on future rehabilitation, if federal guidelines are met.
Structures can still be razed, although federal money cannot be used for the work.
Troppe said the tax credits can make the difference between a project going forward or not. He is rehabbing the 1877 Kaiser Building at 323 and 325 S. Main, across from Canal Park Stadium in the district. The building long ago housed a German-American family club, as well as a ballroom.
The national register also is a source of local pride, officials said.
''It says this is our community identity,'' said Kim Schuette, spokeswoman for the Ohio Historical Society. ''This is what we were and still are.''
The bulk of the district encompasses properties along the west side of South Main Street, from Canal Park stadium to Cedar Street.
These properties include 1 W. Exchange St., a 1913 building that is home to Bricco and Lux Nightclub. In its early years, the brick structure housed the Stanley Dance Pavilion and movie theater, as well as a shop that sold fruits and cigars.
On the east side of Main Street, the district is made up of the three Main Street properties between Spring Alley and Exchange, including the Kaiser Building, across from the stadium.
The district also includes the eight-story AC&Y Building at 12 E. Exchange. This 1919 structure early on housed the headquarters of the Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad. A new apartment complex for college students hugs this property and is not included in the district.
Chambers, Murphy & Burge Restoration Architects prepared the nomination paperwork for the city.
Downtown has two other historic districts north of the Main-Exchange area — the South Main District and the Main-Market District.
Katie Byard can be reached at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com.
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