It's a unique opportunity to learn about effective maintenance and rehabilitation of historic buildings on college campuses -- and there's no cost to attend.

On December 7, Preservation Ohio is co-sponsoring "Keys to Successful Rehabilitation and Maintenance of Historic Campus Buildings," to be held on the campus of Antioch College in Yellow Springs.  Included will be an overview of the Getty Campus Heritage Grant program.  This seminar is ideal for anyone with responsibilities toward older buildings on Ohio's college campuses, and the organizations and groups that support those collegiate resources.

Speakers at the event represent an outstanding selection of leaders in historic rehabilitation in Ohio, including:

Bob Loversidge of Schooley Caldwell Associates
Nancy Recchie, Benjamin D. Rickey & Co.
Lauren Burge, Chambers, Murphy & Burge Restoration Architects
Larry Vance, Masonry Contractor
Gail Wallace, Restoration Works
Michael Chan, Durable Slate Company

For more information on this seminar, including required registration information, please click here to view the workshop flyer, or contact Preservation Ohio at: info@preservationohio.org.

Photo Credit: Photos: Oberlin College/rickyrhodes/Creative Commons License

The following is from a press release that came across our desk recently – and it seems like just the “creative class” venture that could end up serving as one of the catalysts for revitalization in a traditional Ohio downtown.

“Linda Fisler, owner of Artistic Harmonies, and Gerry Dennis, owner of 1 Floor Up building are pleased to announce the beginning of an artist colony in Downtown Middletown. Artistic Harmonies successful First Friday shows are expanding and will become Artistic Harmonies Art Studios.

Approximately 2200 square feet will be developed overall, with Phase 1 development starting construction on Monday, Nov. 13th. Phase 1 is already completely has been completely rented. Artists joining Linda Fisler (Impressionist oil painter) in this endeavor are Jeff Michel (Pottery artist), Jim Heupel (Realist oil painter), and Steve Weigold (Photography). Within a month these artists will take occupancy of their studios. “

Phase 1 consists of 4 nicely sized studios, a common area that will consist of additional gallery space, workshop space and photo shoot locations. Additional photo shoot locations will be available throughout the building due to its historical decor and restoration.

Phase 2 development will include the addition of an elevator (to 1 Floor Up and future development on the 3rd floor and basement) and additional studio space. "We are hoping to attract a diverse collection of artists. I'd like to see musicians/songwriters, writers, ceramists, you name it." Linda Fisler said. "We have already started a list of artists who are interested in renting studios in Phase 2. We are attracting artists not only from Middletown, but from Hamilton and Franklin as well. I'd like to thank Gerry for his support and "we can do that" attitude. He's just the best!! "

The new venture will be housed in the building pictured here. For more information on Linda and Artistic Harmonies, as well as photos of the interior, a floor plan and more, click here.

Similar ventures are in operation across Ohio; some in larger communities, some smaller. Many of them, including Summit Artspace in Akron and to Artspace in downtown Lima, are house in historic buildings that provide ample open space, tons of character, and proximity to urban amenities.

Photo:  Artistic Harmonies building, downtown Middletown/John Beagle/Creative Commons License

Saturday’s edition of the online New York Times included this feature article entitled “In Cincinnati, Life Breathes Anew in Riot-Scarred Area.”

The area in question is Over-the-Rhine, an area of over 1,000 brick nineteenth-century buildings that is as troubled as it is priceless. The article discussed the past years of tension, but it also strikes a hopeful tone, profiling groups such as 3CDC (known more exactly as the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation) working to generate reinvestment in the neighborhood.

Moving forward will require a delicate balance of interests, particularly if the historic character of the neighborhood is to be a guiding factor. Recently announced plans to add a parking garage to Cincinnati’s famed Music Hall, for instance, generated both positive and negative reviews, according to this article in the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Earlier this year, the National Trust for Historic Preservation listed Over-the-Rhine on their list of the country’s most endangered historic sites – the third Ohio listing in fifteen years.

Photo:  Over-the-Rhine with Downtown Cincinnati in background/ekalb/Creative Commons License

This week we take a look at blogs dealing with historic preservation, downtown revitalization and economic development topics in three Ohio communities.

Its not every place where civic leaders quote Charles Dickens.  Kent360 is the blog of Kent City Manager Dave Ruller, who regularly writes on topics important to his community.  Often, his work includes commentary on the ongoing downtown revitalization effort in Kent.  This summer, for instance, he penned a story entitled, "Kent Downtown: A Tale of Two Cities" which discussed those efforts.   Click here to read this story and visit Kent360.

The work of bookseller Alan Wigton to preserve and promote his community of Mansfield is profiled in his Square Log, which discusses "...Mansfield, my bookshop, real estate, historic preservation and appleseed."  Appleseed refers to Johnny Appleseed, who made Mansfield his home for many years.  Mr. Wigton is the current Chair of the City of Mansfield Historic Preservation Commission.

First Dickens, then Johnny Appleseed, and then a.... dog named Sadie?  A dog, however, with a unique perspective -- being the pet of two successful real estate agents.  The new blog entitled "Sadie's Take on Delaware Ohio" looks at the advantages of relocation and investment in Delaware, county seat of the state's fastest-growing county.  This blog includes running commentary on Delaware's downtown revitalization, and can be accessed by clicking here.

The potential for environmental, cultural and heritage tourism is on the minds of Western Ohioans this Fall, as one region celebrates Ohio’s newest byway and another seeks to duplicate that effort.

With 52 miles of winding roads, the brand-new “Old Mill Stream Scenic Byway” travels through Putnam and Hancock Counties on its route from Ottawa to US Route 30 (the Lincoln Highway). Visitors to the route experience small towns and villages, and also pass through Findlay, hometown of the Marathon Oil Company and The University of Findlay. The route takes its name from the song, “Down By the Old Mill Stream,” which was written by Tin Pan Alley songster Tel Taylor – who hailed from Vanlue. The old stream in question is the Blanchard River, which parallels the byway.

Click here for more information on the Old Mill Stream Scenic Byway from the Ohio Department of Transportation.

Many miles to the south, the residents of the Oxford area are working toward creation of new byway in the western portion of Butler County, according to this recent article in the Oxford Press. Initial work includes identifying the ideal byway route as well as reviewing potential attractions and amenities. Like its counterpart to the north, the potential exists for bringing new business to existing merchants, as well as encouraging downtown and community revitalization.

While there are many definitions given for a scenic byway, the standard national definition is that it is a route that is recognized for its archeological, aesthetic, cultural, natural, historic and/or recreational qualities.

Photo: Blanchard River near Findlay/Public Domain

Great music.  Great architecture.

North Central Ohio is quickly becoming a center for acoustic and jazz music, as historic concert settings host the best in statewide and regional entertainment.

In Bellville, a town of 2,000 residents in southern Richland County, the music of choice is acoustic, folk, and Celtic… with a bit of alternative rock thrown in the mix. Many of these concerts are the product of the Highlands of Ohio Folk and Celtic Music Society, which has been bringing performers to three venues in Bellville since 1999. Their website profiles past performers and highlights upcoming concerts, including a December 9 performance by “Pitch the Peat,” a four-member group playing Irish-themed music on guitar, banjo, flute, accordion, fiddle and “bodhran.”

Bellville itself is a perfect backdrop for unique music. In the middle of town stands the 1879 Bellville Bandstand, a local landmark of Victoriana – so pristine, in fact, that other communities have used it as a model for their own bandstands. The venues include the All Souls’ Unitarian Universalist Church, a 1897 Richardson Romanesque, sandstone building featuring imported German stained glass windows and an 1873 Felgemaker Organ, and also the Bellville Opera House, housed on the second floor of the Bellville Village Hall and a regular feature in haunted Ohio literature. Both buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Then, on November 26 at 2:00 p.m., the Second Annual Holiday Concert with “Swing Machine” will take place at the Galion Theatre in Uptowne Galion, just twenty miles northwest of Bellville. The concert is part of the Jazz For a Sunday Afternoon Series, which brings the best in big-band and jazz music to Galion several times a year. The venue for this concert is the 1949 Galion Theatre, an art moderne building which has recently been restored – including the amazing, neon marquee, one of the last of its kind in Ohio.  While in Uptowne Galion, be sure to stroll the streets and visit its numerous speciality stores and restaurants.  For more information on this concert, please contact Preservation Ohio at: info@preservationohio.org.

Photos:  Bellville Bandstand/AaronTD/Creative Commons License -- Galion Theatre, Preservation Ohio File Photo

Proposed Ohio Historic Tax Credit legislation was the subject of hearings yesterday before the Ohio General Assembly – with testimony taken on both versions of the proposal (House and Senate).

Like the Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit, state historic tax credits are designed to stimulate economic development in areas with existing infrastructure and resources, to leverage private investment in older buildings, and also to create jobs. Now in place in at least 24 of the 50 states, these tax credits often represent a “make or break” consideration for investors considering projects in traditional downtowns and communities. In Missouri the credits have produced $1.50 in state tax revenue for every $1.00 of tax credit, as well as $2.00 in other benefits – meaning that the Missouri program not only pays for itself, but actually generates revenue for state government (according to Missouri Preservation).

According to a news release from the Ohio Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, testimony presented at the hearing came from an official with the Ohio Department of Development, a successful preservation architect from Cleveland, and information provided by a sponsoring legislator.

Last year, a version of the tax credit passed the Ohio House but never made it to a vote in the Ohio Senate. The House and Senate versions differ in key respects, however they both center on the provision of a credit for owners of income-producing properties (similar to their Federal counterpart).

To read a copy of the two currently proposed versions, click here and here.

Photo: Central Hotel, Galion, renovated with use of Federal Rehabilitation Tax Credit/Preservation Ohio File Photo

The backroads of Hocking County saw trucks loaded with iron columns and other bridge pieces in the summer of 2006. The disassembled Zoarville Station Bridge (ZSB) was on its way to Logan, Ohio, for reconstruction.

“Historical Integrity” is the mantra at 14 Gallagher Street, better known as the Columbus Washboard Company. The Makers of Hand Forged Iron work in the back of the warehouse in Logan, but not on washboards. They are restoring an 1868 iron bridge that was originally erected over 100 miles northeast of Logan, near Dover, Ohio.

Doug Lockhart of Makers is excited to talk about the project and show the restoration process. The team of six men has been installing 245 rivets per column, or 3000 rivets—BY HAND. Once the restoration work is completed in Logan, the columns will again be loaded on trucks for the trip back to Dover, where the bridge will be re-erected by Christmas. To stay on schedule, this requires replacing one rivet within two minutes.

Why so much care and consideration for one bridge?

The bridge is one of a kind with international significance. Albert Fink, a Civil Engineer from Darmstadt, Germany, found 100 ft of the bridge in nearby woods and created a new design using the existing structure. In 1905, it was placed over One Leg Creek (now Conotton Creek). It is the only known Fink Through-Truss bridge in the U.S. and the only bridge designed with hollow columns, according to Lockhart. (For more history on Fink and the bridge, visit http://www.tuscazoar.org/ZSB.htm.)

If you find yourself in Logan in the next few weeks, stop in on Gallagher Street for the final stages of reconstruction on the ZSB before it makes its way back to Dover. And don’t forgot tour the Washboard Factory while you’re there!

Photo: Zoarville Station Bridge, used with permission