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NEWSLETTER
Our
New On-Line Newsletter:
Over 20 years ago, in the fall of 1989, this newsletter for Steven McQuillin & Associates, was first launched. That first issue, highlighting a preservation plan at Nela Park, the re-opening fo the Forest City Bank Building, the Broadway Building, and a district in Gates Mills, also featured the firm's then-new offices at 3515 Archwood Ave. Appearing twice each year thereafter, this printed version is a compendium of preservation projects in Northeast Ohio. It is hoped this new on-line version can appear more often and feature more articles as well as reach a wider audience. Comments and feedback are welcome. Please feel free to suggest new email addresses for this on-line publication.
Casino Planned for Higbee Building
Rock Ohio Ventures has commissioned plans for Phase 1 of the new Cleveland Casino to be housed in the building once home to the Higbee Company, a longtime Cleveland area department store. Authorized by voters over a year ago, the Cleveland casino is one of four in Ohio. Others are planned in Toledo, Columbus and Cincinnati. Plans in Cleveland call for construction of a new casino on land overlooking the Cuyahoga River at the corner of Ontario St. and Huron rd. but, since that project will take some time, the Higbee Building's first floor, second floor, third floor and basement are under consideration because these spaces can be completed and open to the public within a year.
East Cleveland's Forest Hill Ave. Neighborhood Surveyed
The City of East Cleveland has hired Steve McQuillin to conduct a survey of a neighborhood east of Cleveland's University Circle in an effort to determine whether and what portions may be National Register-eligible. This neighborhood is bounded by Euclid Ave. on the north, Lakeview Ave. on the west, Forest Hill Ave. on the south, and Superior Ave. on the east. It adjoins two great open spaces that are of at least regional significance: Lakeview Cemetery and Forest Hill Park. Lakeview Cemetery was founded in 1867 as the region's first privately owned cemetery and contains the tomb of U. s. president James A. Garfield. Forest Hill Park is the former estate of John D. Rockefeller, the richest person in contemporary world history.
Near East Side Factory Rehabilitated
The Sunshine Cloak Company, 2310 Superior Ave in Cleveland, a 3-story historic industrial facility dating from 1911, reopened last year as a mixed-use office and lab facility under a project implemented by Developer David Perkowski. Plans for the project were prepared by Sandvick Architects. Steven McQuillin & Associates were preservation consultants for the later phase of the project.
Oberlin's
Apollo Theatre Reopens
A movie
theater dating from the early 20th
century reopened October 1, 2009,
following its purchase by Oberlin
College and the completion of the first phase of what is projected as
an $8
million rehabilitation project.
This innovative plan will
transform this historic theatre, long an
Oberlin institution, into a multi-screened venue with its main theatre
space
preserved, http://www.clevelandcinemas.com/cinemadrilldown.asp?intCin=2940
Parchen Building Rehabilitation Underway
Cleveland Architect David Ellison http://dhellison.com/ is in the process of transforming a derelict Civil War era building with unique architecture on Cleveland's near west side into live/work space. The Parchen Building was built right at the close of the Civil War and is a tall highly visible presence along Lorain Avenue. Located within a National Register historic district, it stands at the southwest corner of Lorain and W. 41st St. It is an interesting example of Early Italianate style architecture, with its broad overhanging eaves, simple denticulated cornice and six-over-six windows with arched tops. David characterizes this as Rundbogenstil (Round Arch style) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rundbogenstil, noting the German background of its original owners, Johan and Dorthea Parchen. They operated a cooperage here for some years, perhaps serving the city's near west side brewery industry.
Nela Park Industrial Building to Become Lab, Offices
One of
the larger industrial buildings at General Electric's
Nela Park in East Cleveland, is undergoing a multi-million dollar
transformation into a technology and laboratory space for a GE
operation that
is moving back to the city from its present suburban Cleveland location. This
project will breathe new life into
a facility, abandoned for some years, but which housed for many years,
the
printing operations of GE's lighting division.
VA Project to Resurrect Historic Apartment Entrances
A
project to construct a new medical office building, a
large parking garage and a veterans' residential facility (known as a
domiciliary) will rise on a block west of the Louis Stokes Cleveland
Veterans
Administration facility in the city's University Circle neighborhood. Working
from plans by Kaczmar
Architects http://www.kaczarch.com/,
Veterans Development LLC will be erecting these new structures for the
VA.
The site includes a high-rise
Neoclassical residence known as University Towers, built in 1922 as the
Sovereign Hotel.
This landmark
will be rehabilitated as part of the project by its owner, Famicos
Foundation.
New
House to Rise Next to McQuillin Offices
Ground
is expected to be broken this spring on what is
projected to be an innovative new house project undertaken by Steven
McQuillin.
Located on a vacant lot
directly west of the property at 31156 Detroit Rd. in Westlake, the
single-family residence will complement the Greek Revival character of
the 1838
McQuillin office and residence.
It
will also employ energy-saving principles and demonstrate building with
traditional materials and methods.
Mainly it will serve as an
affordable alternative to the standard
single-family new house being built in this area, often referred to as
the "McMansion" look.
This term refers
to the boxy, vinyl sided houses with fake stone or brick veneer in
front but
faceless secondary elevations, sprawling plans, two-story entry halls,
gargantuan garages and fake chimneys.
Canfield
Assessment Completed
The
Canfield Historical Society this past summer hired
Steven McQuillin to perform assessments of its two properties, the Bond
House,
an early 19th
century frame Greek Revival style, Side Hallway type
former residence, and the Mahoning Dispatch, a Civil War era frame
commercial
storefront building that once housed the local newspaper.
Dayton
Trip Yields Preservation Insights
A few
months ago Steve McQuillin and Ryan Connolly had the
opportunity to visit Dayton at the invitation of the owners of two
early 20th
century industrial complexes, who wished to convert them to residential
and
retail use.
Although the owners
were unable to complete necessary documentation in order to apply for a
state
preservation tax credit on the Ludlow building in time, it is hoped
that this
well-crafted solidly built industrial building will someday be
rehabilitated to
serve the community.
Renovated Offices Completed
On August 7, 2009, the new offices of Steven McQuillin & Associates were unveiled at a party and ceremony. These are located on the third level of an addition to the 1838 Thomas Hurst House that was erected about ten years ago. The new work consists of opening up the ceiling of this octagonal tower-like space to create magnificent views to the north and west, the installation of additional file cabinets and drawers, all in maple, and a new built-in desk with marble countertops in Brazilian Forest Web Brown.
Terminal
Tower Exterior Restoration Nears Completion
This winter owner Forest City will wind up the exterior rehabilitation of the Terminal Tower, a process that has been ongoing for the past several years. Late last year exterior scaffolding was removed and most of the new LED exterior lighting was operating in time for the holidays. Expediting the work through to early completion instead of the five or more years that had been planned was thought to save on costs over the long run.
Key
Bank Cleveland Center Offices Open in Higbee Bldg.
By February or March, offices of Key Bank that had been housed at the May Company building will begin moving into the 6th, 8th and 9th floors of the Higbee Building under a major rehabilitation of the former department store. Founded in 1860, the Higbee Company moved to this location in 1932 as a major component in the then-new Cleveland Union Terminal development. It grew to become one of the region's largest department stores, before it was purchased by Dillard's and consolidated into their retail empire about 20 years ago. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higbee's Dillard's closed this flagship location ten years ago but maintains the former Higbee suburban branches under their name. The first floor reopened a couple of years ago, housing the greater Cleveland Partnership and Positively Cleveland and preserving the major features of this grand former retail space. Previously, the upper floors of the Higbee Building had been projected to be developed for telecom usage, but only portions of those floors were ever devoted to that use.
European
Trip Provides Preservation Insights
Ryan Nagel and Steve McQuillin took a three-week trip to Europe in May and early June of 2009, their second European tour together. They visited Paris for a week, staying in a city apartment and visiting many of the typical attractions, but also Fontainebleau, http://www.pbase.com/adventuresofstar/fountainebleau, Vaux le Vicomte http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaux-le-Vicomte (although it was closed that day after a long walk down a frighteningly narrow two-le tree-lined rural road) and Chantilly
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_Chantilly. Barcelona
was the next stop, after one
of the super-cheap flights on Ryan Air.
The works of Antonio Gaudi
were simply amazing and it was a marvel to
see people lined up and so excited about a tour of an early 20th
century apartment, Casa Mila http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casa_Mil%C3%A0,
which had incredibly sophisticated displays and was a true wonder to
view,
especially its great rooftop.
Barcelona is a diverse and
highly interesting city with many wonderful
architectural landmarks.