oh no, that is shocking to hear about the andersons stores closing. i loved those. what next? tony packos???

 

About a year back, packos was supposed to make drive thru locations in certain areas of the city.. haven't heard much on that in a while..

oh no, that is shocking to hear about the andersons stores closing. i loved those. what next? tony packos???

 

About a year back, packos was supposed to make drive thru locations in certain areas of the city.. haven't heard much on that in a while..

 

Well now that you mention it..

 

http://www.13abc.com/content/news/The-Andersons-to-close-all-four-retail-stores-in-Ohio--410785095.html

 

'Packo's is buying the former Del Taco property on Secor Road and converting it to their first ever drive-though location.'

 

I bet they paid a,pretty penny for that spot! Hope they do well, need one somewhere out in perrysburg/maumee!

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/01/26/Upscale-Chop-House-set-to-open-in-downtown-Toledo.html

 

Upscale Chop House set to open in downtown Toledo

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/01/30/Anthony-Wayne-Trail-entrance-to-be-revamped.html

 

Anthony Wayne Trail entrance to downtown to be revamped

http://www.toledoblade.com/Retail/2017/02/15/New-tenants-to-help-rejuvenate-Cricket-West.html

 

New Tenants to help rejuvenate Cricket West

http://www.toledoblade.com/Energy/2017/02/15/Developers-to-build-second-natural-gas-plant-in-Oregon.html

 

Developers to build second natural gas plant in Oregon

http://www.13abc.com/content/news/Toledo-selling-property-its-owned-for-decades-413853603.html

 

Toledo selling property its owned for decades

http://www.toledoblade.com/Education/2017/02/16/Owens-Corning-Foundation-donates-500-000-for-building-trades-school-at-Cherry-Street-Mission.html

 

Owens Corning foundation donates $ 500k for building trade school at Cherry St Mission

Great stuff!

Jumping down the thread a bit, here's an image of the Nasby Building from 1905. Last I checked, about a week ago, exterior work had stopped/been complete and there was no indication of renovation. I think the city has removed the modern facade in anticipation of developer interest. We can only hope someone will renovate the Nasby with the detail and care of the Schofield in Cleveland.

Bonus: The Pythian Building, on which renovations start today, is in the lower right of the image.

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/02/28/Crews-work-to-secure-tower-in-downtown-Toledo-s-Pythian-Castle.html

 

Crews work to secure tower in downtown Toledo Pythian Castle

first time i've seen toledo anything around old ny, and this was in serious old ny, the ear inn, so they had excellent taste to be here!

 

http://m.wtol.com/toledonewsnow/db/347256/content/DYG8J8O9

 

Tronair expansion to bring 100 new jobs to area

Toledo Museum of Art buys apartment complex for $10

 

A local non-profit just bought three acres of land for only 10 dollars.

 

The Toledo Museum of Art closed on the deal yesterday and is buying the Museum Place Residences in the Old West End Historic District.

 

More below:

http://nbc24.com/news/local/toledo-museum-of-art-buys-apartment-complex-for-10

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/04/17/Oregon-eyes-plans-to-create-a-downtown.html

 

Oregon eyes plans to create a downtown

Part could mirror levis commons

YMCA returns to downtown Toledo facility

 

After a 37-year hiatus, Downtown Toledo will once again be home to a YMCA facility with the Monday opening of the Downtown Toledo YMCA.

 

The public is invited to get a sneak peek on Thursday and Friday with tours of the new facility, located in the lower level of ProMedica’s Junction building at 300 N. Summit, formerly the KeyBank building.

 

More below:

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/10/25/YMCA-returns-to-downtown.html

 

ProMedica announces sale of Ft. Industry Square

 

 

ProMedica announces the sale of Fort Industry Square to developer Karp and Associates of Michigan.

 

Karp and Associates have completed projects in southeast Michigan and Toledo.

 

The goal is to restore and preserve the building as a premier residential and retail destination.

 

More below:

http://www.wtol.com/story/37015718/promedica-announces-sale-of-ft-industry-square

Vacant building in North Toledo awarded state tax credits

 

 

Plans to renovate a vacant building in the Historic Vistula District neighborhood into loft apartments and commercial space received approval Tuesday for nearly $1.1 million in state historic tax credits.

 

Kevin and Ambrea Mikolajczyk, owners of ARK Restoration & Construction, were awarded tax credits for a nearly $5.7 million renovation of the former Continental Baking Co. building on North Summit Street.

 

Plans call for restoring the 82,000-square-foot building once used as a bakery to make Wonder Bread and Hostess Cakes into 24 market-rate loft apartments and commercial office development.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/12/19/Vacant-building-in-North-Toledo-awarded-state-tax-credits.html

Goodwill finds new downtown location

 

Goodwill's store on Cherry Street (below) will close after 47 years, and move to Uptown.

 

Goodwill has found a new home in downtown Toledo.

 

Goodwill Industries of Northwest Ohio will move its downtown operations to 1120 Madison Ave. in a stand-alone building across the street from the main Toledo Lucas County Public Library, said Amy Wachob, the company’s president and chief executive.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2017/12/25/Goodwill-finds-new-downtown-location.html

News from last week. Bretz closed and it's not yet clear what the new owners have planned.

 

Bretz nightclub to close

 

 

Bretz nightclub, one of Ohio’s oldest gay bars — if not the oldest — and a gathering place for young gay, lesbian, bisexual, questioning, and transgender people, will close Thursday after a 30-year run.

 

The future of the building at 2012 Adams St. is not immediately clear. Owner Michelle Woda could not be reached Thursday and had informed staff and patrons only Wednesday that the business had been sold and the nightclub would close the next day.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2017/12/21/Bretz-nightclub-to-close.html

News from last week. Bretz closed and it's not yet clear what the new owners have planned.

 

Bretz nightclub to close

 

 

Bretz nightclub, one of Ohio’s oldest gay bars — if not the oldest — and a gathering place for young gay, lesbian, bisexual, questioning, and transgender people, will close Thursday after a 30-year run.

 

The future of the building at 2012 Adams St. is not immediately clear. Owner Michelle Woda could not be reached Thursday and had informed staff and patrons only Wednesday that the business had been sold and the nightclub would close the next day.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2017/12/21/Bretz-nightclub-to-close.html

 

Hopefully it's another gay bar. Adams St and Uptown in general has the potential to become a solid bastion of LGBTQ culture and business for Toledo.

Toledo Food 2017: More downtown dining, Andersons closes, still waiting on Whole Foods

 

"Downtown continues to come back to life, flourishing as it flaunts flavors at restaurants as varied as the Chop House from Mainstreet Ventures, Fowl and Fodder’s second location, Cilantro’s, both the Heights and Brim House at the Renaissance Toledo Downtown Hotel, the newest Barry Bagels franchise, Jera’s Heavenly Sweet bakery, and the already-announced newest location of Balance Pan-Asian Grille."

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/Food/2017/12/30/Year-end-stories-2017-in-review.html

Toledo Art Roundup 2017: Fewer murals, Kehinde Wiley Exhibit at Museum of Art; Artomatic 419 hiatus in 2018

 

 

In the world of art, 2017 was a year of triumphs and challenges, major exhibitions and cultural events, and another year where murals and other public art colored the downtown and its surrounding neighborhoods.

 

The Arts Commission of Greater Toledo put a major biennial community art show, Artomatic 419, on hiatus but ramped up its programming and opportunities for local artists through grant funding programs and a three-day arts and performance festival that brought more than 17,000 people to the downtown area, according to figures provided by the Arts Commission.

 

Even though Artomatic 419, which hosted hundreds of visual and performing artists and was first held in 2006, will not return in 2018, it has not been altogether abandoned, said Arts Commission spokesman Ryan Bunch. This year would have been the seventh time for the event.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/Arts/2017/12/30/Art-inspired-Toledo-in-2017-1.html

 

Tax credits key to Toledo's resurgence spared by federal tax overhaul

 

 

The streetscape of Toledo would look considerably different without the historic tax credits that have helped restore vacant, underutilized, and often decaying buildings in the urban core.

 

The Federal Historic Tax Credit program — used to develop the Berdan and Standart buildings into loft apartments and restore the old Edison Steam Plant into ProMedica's new headquarters, among other projects — was one of several funding mechanisms swept up in the tax reform discussions during the last two months of 2017.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2018/01/05/Tax-credits-key-to-Toledo-s-resurgence-spared-by-federal-tax-overhaul.html

Plate One newest offering in downtown Toledo

By Jay Skebba | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on Feb. 1, 2018 | Updated 1:22 p. m.

 

 

Toledo’s bustling and resurgent downtown has led to several new businesses in the area, and Plate One at 420 Madison Ave. is the latest looking to cash in.

 

Owner and Toledo City Councilman Sandy Spang opened Plate 21 on Rugby Drive in South Toledo in 2009. When the first-floor space inside the Ohio Building became available, she jumped at the opportunity.

 

“I didn’t think I would open a second location, but my son is now my partner, and this opportunity in this building opened up downtown,” Ms. Spang said. “We wanted to be a part of the development happening downtown. It’s a neat space.”

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2018/02/01/Plate-One-newest-offering-in-downtown-Toledo.html

Bretz nightclub purchased by anti-LGBTQ group

Affiliated group bought former abortion clinic, pledged memorial garden to the unborn

By Mark Reiter | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on Feb. 2, 2018 | Updated 11:46 p. m.

 

 

A Christian group with anti-LGBTQ views has purchased the former Bretz nightclub on Adams Street in the UpTown District and plans to renovate the building to use as their new place of worship.

 

In a news release provided by their attorney, The Greater Toledo House of Prayer denied statements made earlier this week by a LGBTQ organization that claimed the former gay dance club was bought by a hate group.

 

"Public statements have been made suggesting that GTHOP was itself involved in the closing of the nightclub, however this is not accurate," the group's board of directors said in a statement. "GTHOP is a prayer and worship ministry, where individuals and worship teams commit to maintaining a climate of worship and prayer in the Toledo community."

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/02/02/Bretz-nightclub-purchased-by-anti-LGBTQ-group.html

 

 

Here's another story about the International House of Prayer, whose affiliate in Toledo bought and closed the club in December.

 

https://www.motherjones.com/media/2013/07/evangelicals-gay-rights-ihop-god-loves-uganda-sundance/

 

 

U-Haul says exterior renovations will be sensitive to residential area

By Mark Reiter | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on Feb. 15, 2018 | Updated Feb. 16, 2018 12:02 p. m.

 

U-Haul Moving & Storage at 3011 Council Street in Toledo.

 

Nighttime motorists can’t help but notice the luminous glow of the U-Haul Moving and Storage Co. as they drive in both directions on I-75 in central Toledo.

 

The huge brick building, which for many years was used as a cigarette factory, has provided a Las Vegas-like brilliance against the dark night skyline near the Detroit Avenue interchange since the rental and storage business opened in 2016.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2018/02/15/U-Haul-says-they-ll-be-good-neighbors-to-those-near-the-downtown-Willis-Day-building.html

Downtown Toledo rental market grows in appeal

ByJon Chavez | BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

Published on Feb. 10, 2018 | Updated 1:22 a. m

 

Over the past year, Ken Marciniak has taken five potential buyers to see a three-story office building at 415 Michigan St. in downtown Toledo.

 

Mere steps away from the Family Court Center and the Lucas County Courthouse, the building is situated perfectly for any business that complements the court system, Mr. Marciniak, a commercial real estate agent with Signature Associates, said.

 

Yet to his surprise, only one of the five parties wanted the building for office use. “The others were people wanting to convert it to apartments,” he said.

 

 

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/Real-Estate/2018/02/10/Downtown-Toledo-rental-market-grows-in-appeal.html

That's great news!

TARTA trustees approve talks to buy former Goodwill for new downtown bus station

B yDavid Patch | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on March 1, 2018 | Updated 12:30 p. m

 

 

The recently vacated Goodwill building at Cherry and Huron streets is TARTA’s latest choice for establishing a main bus station for downtown Toledo.

 

The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority’s board of trustees voted Thursday morning to authorize negotiations to buy the 66,000-square-foot building for its appraised value of $1.52 million.

 

Federal grant money will be used for the purchase and for the building’s renovation, although a formal plan and budget for the latter remain to be developed, said James Gee, the transit authority’s general manager.

 

Continued: http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/03/01/TARTA-eyes-former-Goodwill-building-for-new-downtown-bus-station.html

That's good!

Renovations to close Main Library for almost a year

BLADE STAFF

Published on March 6, 2018 | Updated 11:44 a. m

 

The Toledo Lucas County Public Library system announced Tuesday that the downtown Main Library branch will close for nearly a year for extensive renovations.

 

The work, set to begin in September, “will transform key areas including the first floor, the Children’s Library and the Promenade,” according to a statement. The cafe, gallery, and gift shop will be relocated, multi-function and meeting spaces will be expanded, and technology will be upgraded.

Site Selection Magazine places Toledo third among metros 200K-1M in development projects in 2017, tied with Charleston and Greenville SC with 31 projects. Ahead of Toledo were Omaha (42) and Greensboro NC (41).

 

It placed 10th in the East Central Region, punching far above its weight among the Midwest metros.

 

https://siteselection.com/issues/2018/mar/top-metros-2017-repeat-defenders.cfm

Not development news, but an interesting story:

 

Toledo shipyard gets massive freighters ready for Great Lakes

By Tyrel Linkhorn | BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

Published on April 7, 2018

 

 

High atop the John J. Boland, a 680-foot-long lake freighter, there’s a fevered rush to finish the off-season repairs and get the ship back to the open lakes where it can start making money.

 

“It’s hell week,” said Daniel Hutchison, the assistant vice president of engineering for the American Steamship Co., which owns the Boland. “That’s what we call getting the boats out — hell week.”

 

It’s March 21, and within days the John J. Boland will be loaded with coal at the Port of Toledo and set course for the heavily industrialized Zug Island just south of Detroit.

 

For the past three months, the Boland has been tied up in Toledo, where H Hansen Industries has been overseeing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of work, ranging from hanging new steel inside its cargo hold to adding 12 feet to its already massive unloading boom.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2018/04/07/Big-time-projects-Toledo-firm-fixes-large-freighters-in-shipyard.html

Lucas County Commissioners have struggled to find a suitable location for the new jail. No neighborhoods want it, but downtown parcels are few and expensive.

 

Questions remain in Toledo group's effort to restrict new jail to downtown

ByRyan Dunn | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on April 13, 2018 | Updated 11:45 p. m

 

 

A group of determined residents this week announced plans to try to amend the Toledo City Charter in an effort to require any new Lucas County jail remain downtown.

 

But whether such an electoral measure, should it reach the November ballot and pass, legally could restrict the county’s $180-million proposal to build in North Toledo remains in question. County commissioners recently purchased several parcels along the 5700 block of North Detroit Avenue. The area is zoned for industrial properties.

 

Keep the Jail Downtown Toledo Community Group leaders are trying to collect signatures from 6,000 registered city voters by the first week of July. They aim to place on the November ballot a proposed “law to protect the integrity of neighborhoods in Toledo,” requiring jails in a designated downtown area.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/Police-Fire/2018/04/13/Questions-remain-in-Toledo-group-s-effort-to-restrict-new-jail-to-downtown.html

Fund-raising goal reached for Anthony Wayne Bridge lighting

ByDavid Patch | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on April 13, 2018 | Updated 6:02 p. m

 

 

Video Animation: https://players.brightcove.net/1146616445001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5769872786001

 

The city of Toledo ceremonially presented a $300,000 check Friday to the Ohio Department of Transportation as payment for its share of a dynamic lighting system for the Anthony Wayne Bridge.

 

Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz honored Susan Reams, a former director of what is now the Toledo Arts Commission of Greater Toledo who headed the reconstituted Toledo Alight fund to raise the money.

 

The lighting system “is something that is going to make our city even more liveable, more attractive, and contribute to the ongoing momentum that we have,” Mr. Kapszukiewicz said.

 

The canvass included $50,000 donations from ProMedica, Owens Corning, and Block Communications, Inc. — the latter of which owns The Blade.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/04/13/Fund-raising-goal-reached-for-Anthony-Wayne-Bridge-lighting.html

Outdoor Refreshment Area an added perk for fans

ByBrian Dugger | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on April 12, 2018

 

 

It has been nearly a year since the Downtown Outdoor Refreshment Area began operating in the area bounded by Summit, Adams, Lafayette, and Erie Streets.

 

It has made life easier for those interested in bar-hopping or even to take a beer to go while exploring the downtown area. Buy a beer at a participating business and pour it into a designated cup before leaving the bar or restaurant.

 

To date, 72,000 DORA cups have been distributed.

 

“[DORA] doesn’t bring people to Toledo, but it helps the people who come to Toledo. They can walk around and see the different sites with a beer. It gives them a better chance to enjoy Toledo,” said KC Saint John, assistant general manager at Ye Olde Durty on South St. Clair Street.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/04/12/Outdoor-Refreshment-Area-an-added-perk-for-fans.html

TARTA moves forward with plans to convert former Goodwill building

ByDavid Patch | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on April 5, 2018 | Updated 1:47 a. m.

 

 

The Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority plans to take architects through the former Goodwill building at Huron and Cherry streets next week after closing on the building’s purchase last week.

 

TARTA plans to convert the 66,000-square-foot building at 612 N. Huron to a downtown bus hub. The $1.5 million purchase price is based on an appraisal TARTA obtained after Goodwill shut down its thrift store there and moved its downtown offices late last year to the former Brooks Insurance building on Madison Avenue.

 

James Gee, the transit authority’s general manager, told the agency’s board of trustees Thursday morning he has retained Stough & Stough, a Sylvania-based architecture firm, to develop plans for remodeling the building.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/04/05/TARTA-moves-forward-with-plans-to-convert-former-Goodwill-building-into-downtown-hub.html

Joe E. Brown Park to get basketball courts after all

BySarah Elms | BLADE STAFF WRITERPublished on April 5, 2018 | Updated 8:08 p. m.

 

 

North Toledo’s Joe E. Brown Park will have basketball courts after all, a development that comes about a month after a city employee said they were off the table for the park’s redesign because of the “crowd” the sport attracts.

 

Abby Arnold, Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz’s deputy chief of staff, told city council members Thursday the administration revisited the park’s plans and will be able to include basketball. She said there likely will be two courts, but she isn’t sure how soon they’ll be built.

 

“We’re prepared to go ahead and do that. I just would have to figure out exactly the timing of getting that done, whether it will be this year,” Mrs. Arnold said. “We’re hoping for this year.”

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/04/05/Joe-E-Brown-Park-to-get-basketball-courts.html

1st ocean-going ship of season arrives at port

BLADE STAFF

Published on April 3, 2018

 

Unrelated Federal Kumano on the Maumee River. http://www.fednav.com/sites/default/files/federalkumano2_0.jpg

 

Toledo’s first ocean-going ship of the 2018 Great Lakes season arrived at the local port Tuesday morning to deliver a cargo of pig iron.

 

The M.V. Federal Rideau arrived at the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority’s general-cargo dock after having spent the night at anchor in Maumee Bay because buoys have yet to be placed for the Maumee River channel, according to Joe Cappel, the port authority’s vice president of business development.

 

The ship, flagged in the Marshall Islands but owned by a Canadian company, Fednav, that has a fleet specializing in St. Lawrence Seaway/Great Lakes trades, carried about 24,000 tons of pig iron loaded at Mariupol, Ukraine and destined for one of the Toledo area’s electric-arc steel mills.

 

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/04/03/1st-ocean-going-ship-of-season-arrives-at-port.html

Great news for Ohio! First Solar to build 1 MILLON SF new manufacturing plant near Toledo https://t.co/lNreMlr7df

http://www.13abc.com/content/news/Wonderbread-building-will-soon-be-24-loft-apartments-482456922.html

 

Wonderbread building to become 24 loft style apartments

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/2018/06/16/10th-Street-building-next-Toledo-landmark-eyed-for-development.html

 

10th street building next Toledo landmark eyed for development

http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2018/06/18/Toledo-Zoo-begins-restoration-of-historic-tunnel.html

 

Toledo Zoo begins restoration of historic tunnel

 

Apartments, commercial space proposed at Wabash Street warehouse

By Sarah Elms | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on Oct. 18, 2018 | Updated 7:50 p. m.

 

"Ms. Albright has a proven record of success in the Warehouse District. She moved her home and longtime business, Swan Creek Candle Co., there about 10 years ago and has since renovated several industrial sites into residential spaces near the Toledo Farmers’ Market and Libbey Glass Outlet.

 

"Her latest goal is to turn the warehouse at 125 and 132 Wabash Street into three apartments with room for a commercial office. She couldn’t be reached on Thursday to talk about the project, but she spoke briefly before Toledo City Council at a committee meeting Wednesday."

 

https://www.toledoblade.com/business/real-estate/2018/10/18/toledo-local-business-owner-warehouse-downtown-apartments-sje/stories/20181018125

ToleGO: Bike-sharing debuts in downtown Toledo

ByJay Skebba | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on Oct. 16, 2018 | Updated 5:44 p. m.    

 

 

Ready, set, ToleGO.

 

The long-awaited bike-share program in Toledo made its downtown debut Tuesday, where dozens of cyclists went for a spin around Middlegrounds Metropark. Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz, members of City Council, and other officials and business leaders participated in the ceremony.

 

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/transportation/2018/10/16/toledo-bike-share-program-tolego-debuts-downtown-middlegrounds-metropark/stories/20181016137

Upper River Bridge slated for demolition

ByDavid Patch | BLADE STAFF WRITER

Published on Oct. 12, 2018 | Updated Oct. 14, 2018 2:03 a. m.

 

 

The main span of the Upper River Bridge was designed to pivot to allow tall-masted ships to pass, but it is not believed to have ever opened for that purpose after its construction in 1902.

 

Bridges rarely come up for sale, but this one the Wood County Port Authority couldn’t even give away.

Instead, the former Upper River Bridge that carried the Toledo Terminal Railroad over the Maumee River between Perrysburg Township and South Toledo is slated for demolition starting Monday, with just a few key components to be saved to preserve its history.

 

“Not even a nibble,” Rex Huffman, the port authority’s legal counsel, said Friday. “I have not been made aware of any offers for that bridge.”

 

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/transportation/2018/10/12/upper-river-bridge-maumee-wood-county-south-toledo/stories/20181012139

http://www.toledoblade.com/business/development/2019/01/15/work-continues-to-restore-historic-Pythian-Castle/stories/20190115008

 

Work continues to restore historic Pythian Castle

Edited January 16, 20196 yr by TwoStickney419

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/education/2018/12/12/imagination-station-to-receive-10-million-upgrade/stories/20181212031

 

Imagination Station to receive $10M upgrade

Edited January 16, 20196 yr by TwoStickney419