The Nasby (aka Madison) Building looks like it's being redeveloped. I visited Toledo for Christmas, and there were many big projects going on downtown. I got some construction pics too.

 

While it's sad that one of America's best pre-WW2 intersections is majority vacant (Madison and Huron), the Nasby Building was recently sold, and it looked like renovations were underway. Thankfully, the atrocious mid-century facade was being removed, revealing one of the most beautiful historic facades of any building I've ever seen. It seems like the new owners plan to preserve its historic detailing! The Spitzer and Nicholas buildings still need plans though. Hopefully this intersection can be fully revived. Madison and Huron are remarkable urban streets with great density and great architecture. Almost all of it is still pre-war! It feels like you're taking a step back in time when walking on these streets of Toledo.

 

Also, the Fiberglas Tower renovation project was moving full steam ahead! There were construction crews the week of Christmas, which if you've ever been to Downtown Toledo during the holidays, is pretty remarkable. Downtown Toledo basically shuts down between Christmas and New Year's Eve with the exception of bars and nightclubs. Most of the big Toledo offices were closed for the week.

 

The old Steam Plant also looked like it was nearing completion on exterior renovations. The new steel smokestacks look much better than expected and fit in with the building fine. It is going to be beautiful when it's done, but the parking garage on Summit is hideous. I now see why it was so controversial that Promedica wanted to build that parking garage. It's an eyesore and missed opportunity.

 

Renovations had also just begun on the historic Berdan Building! This was great to see. It looks like it could be done as early as 2018. The building had been vacant for over 30 years, so the environmental damage was extensive. Thankfully it's being wholly saved!

 

A few entire blocks of historic buildings around the Mud Hens stadium had been renovated. Detailing was expertly preserved and the late 1800s buildings looked fantastic on that section of St. Clair Street.

 

Demolition of the mid-century landmark Hotel Seagate had been halted. The building has undergone a "full gut" and is ready for conversion back into a hotel, which is needed. The nearby Seagate Convention Center is likely to be renovated soon. Toledo's three biggest hotels are within walking distance of it, but the Hotel Seagate is vacant. It would make a great mid-century boutique hotel like is common in California. Also of note is that Marriott recently purchased the hotel next to One Seagate and converted it into an upmarket Renaissance Hotel!

 

It also looked like renovation had started on the Secor Building. It is being converted back into a hotel! These hotel renovations in Toledo are much-needed since the city didn't have any modern properties with updated decors.

 

I didn't even get started on all the new coffee shops and restaurants!

 

*One thing readily apparent is the big Rust Belt Pride movement in Toledo. Shops like Rust Belt Coffee and Holy Toledo are capitalizing on it. It's not millennials saving Toledo (we left for greener pastures), it's Gen Z! I saw tons of teens and early 20-somethings. What's happening in Toledo is exactly the same as what's happening in Detroit. Unlike millennials, many Gen Z kids are sticking around and even opening businesses through crowdfunding. Detroit and Toledo could be America's next boomtowns. Toledo is ripe for a tech boom, and it has ten times the quality of life of its West Coast counterpart, Oakland, for 1/10th the price!! Oakland is a much crappier, uglier, more boring, more hipster, more crime-ridden version of Toledo, but with the housing prices of Manhattan. Rust Belt cities would be smart to go after Oakland tech start-ups, since most of the them are about to priced out of their leases! Any Great Lakes city is a BIG improvement over Oakland. Nobody is going to voluntarily leave the friendly, happy confines of San Francisco, but they'll leave Oakland in a heartbeat. Toledo and Detroit have the best positioning of any Rust Belt cities for a start-up boom due to access to Canada and DTW's international flights. DTW is why Toledo has a real chance of recovery. That's one of the best international airports in the United States.

 

It's similar to how SFO is vital for San Francisco to be a tech start-up hub. Without all those non-stop and international flights, Silicon Bay would struggle. Case in point, Austin. Its airport is holding it back despite being loved by the tech industry. They have very limited access to investors in San Francisco and New York City. By contrast, Toledo has excellent access to every financial market in North America, and even Europe.

 

In short, Toledo could be on the cusp of a major turnaround. Gen Z kids are not falling for the same traps as Gen Y millennials who moved to the saltwater coasts (who have had to either figure out how to manipulate the system or are looking at buying homes elsewhere). Gen Z is the big potential Rust Belt market. Overpriced, overrated hipster cities like Oakland, Portland, etc. could be considered "uncool" in the very near future, if not already. Cities like Portland, Oakland, Austin, Denver, etc. jumped the shark a long time ago. First-tier cities like SF, NYC, DC, and LA will always have big draw with every generation, but many of the "hot" second tier cities are overpriced and under-deliver on urban amenities. This is the opening for Toledo.

 

Toledo still has an impressive downtown loaded with outstanding historic architecture.

Nice.

 

https://www.bygonely.com/old-toledo-ohio-1900s/

7 hours ago, ColDayMan said:

Nice.

 

https://www.bygonely.com/old-toledo-ohio-1900s/

Not that it matters,.. but the toledo yacht club pic in that post is not correct.   Love the link though!

Edited April 14, 20205 yr by TwoStickney419

On 4/13/2020 at 6:33 PM, TwoStickney419 said:

Not that it matters,.. but the toledo yacht club pic in that post is not correct.   Love the link though!

My tenuous historical connection to the Toledo Yacht Club is that I live in the house in the Old West End built by Emery Potter Jr., a longtime patron of the TYC and whose name is on a championship trophy that was returned to the club a few years ago after many decades when it was thought lost. 

 

https://www.toledoblade.com/MattMarkey/2013/07/28/Treasured-trophy-returns-to-Toledo/stories/20130728046

 

From the story:

 

"Emery Davis Potter, Sr., was a political heavyweight who is believed to have opened one of the first law offices in the city of Toledo. He served as a circuit court judge, common pleas court judge, was twice elected to Congress, served in the Ohio House of Representatives, the state senate, and was mayor of Toledo from 1846-48.

His son, Emery Davis Potter, Jr., was raised in Toledo and graduated from the University of Michigan Law School. He practiced law in Toledo, specializing in work for the railroads, and represented the Michigan Central Railroad for 50 years.

Potter, Jr., was also instrumental in the development of numerous Toledo parks, and he implemented legislation to help create the Toledo Public Library.

Potter, Jr., was also a prolific yachtsman who started sailing at age 10, and he regularly sailed Long Island Sound and Nantucket on family vacations. After helping incorporate the Toledo Yacht Club in 1878, he commissioned the Emery D. Potter Trophy in 1884."

 

Edited April 15, 20205 yr by westerninterloper

38 minutes ago, westerninterloper said:

My tenuous historical connection to the Toledo Yacht Club is that I live in the house in the Old West End built by Emery Potter Jr., a longtime patron of the TYC and whose name is on a championship trophy that was returned to the club a few years ago after many decades when it was thought lost. 

 

https://www.toledoblade.com/MattMarkey/2013/07/28/Treasured-trophy-returns-to-Toledo/stories/20130728046

 

From the story:

 

"Emery Davis Potter, Sr., was a political heavyweight who is believed to have opened one of the first law offices in the city of Toledo. He served as a circuit court judge, common pleas court judge, was twice elected to Congress, served in the Ohio House of Representatives, the state senate, and was mayor of Toledo from 1846-48.

His son, Emery Davis Potter, Jr., was raised in Toledo and graduated from the University of Michigan Law School. He practiced law in Toledo, specializing in work for the railroads, and represented the Michigan Central Railroad for 50 years.

Potter, Jr., was also instrumental in the development of numerous Toledo parks, and he implemented legislation to help create the Toledo Public Library.

Potter, Jr., was also a prolific yachtsman who started sailing at age 10, and he regularly sailed Long Island Sound and Nantucket on family vacations. After helping incorporate the Toledo Yacht Club in 1878, he commissioned the Emery D. Potter Trophy in 1884."

 

That's pretty cool!  I'm the bar manager at the club and I also clean the place and do setups for events held there.   Anxiously waiting for the shut down to end so we can get back to business as usual, especially now that it's the start of the boating season.. Already have had some of our biggest events of the year canceled ?

 

 

 

 

1900s

 

 

 

a downtown kresge's (here from 1904-1971) -- around 1941 

 

 

 

jamie farr -- woodward hs