June 11 Urban Design and Historic Preservation Commission meeting
Covered by Documenter Jess Fijalkovich (see her notes here)
The City of Akron is seeking to demolish a portion of the former Firestone Tire and Rubber Company Plant 1 building that was built in 1910 because it can’t find a buyer to renovate the building and because it contains “high levels of contamination and asbestos,” according to city planners.
The building, at 1200 Firestone Parkway at the north edge of the Firestone Park neighborhood, was listed as an Akron Historic Landmark in 2013, then added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2014. The city has owned the property since 2010.
The rear three wings (an aerial view of the building shows that it is made up of four side-by-side wings) will be demolished, while the entire front of the building, including the iconic clock tower, will be preserved.
Vandalism another factor among city concerns
Bradford Beckert, the city’s business retention and expansion manager, spoke to the commission at its June 11 meeting and also said the building has been vandalized.
“I’ve been associated with this building for all my life,” Beckert said at the meeting.
The City’s Historic Preservation Ordinance requires the Urban Design and Historic Preservation Commission to consider four things before approving or denying a Certificate of Appropriateness for demolition.
They are:
- The historic landmark is so deteriorated that its integrity has been irretrievably lost.
- The structure is a secondary one that lacks historic or architectural significance or does not occupy a major portion of the historic landmark.
- Retention of the historic landmark is not technically or economically feasible.
- The commission, after thorough investigation, determines that there is no feasible alternative to demolition.
The commission was unable to vote on the city’s demolition application during its June 11 meeting because only three of seven commissioners were present and they lacked a quorum to legally vote. Commissioners plan to revisit the request at their next monthly meeting on July 16.
Structure built more than 100 years ago
The 114-year-old Firestone factory and office building, according to the application, started with a footprint that was 19 bays wide, 18 bays deep and four stories tall. Soon after completion, additional bays and a fifth floor were added. Bays are areas or spaces that help define the interior of a building – they are typically the spaces between structural supports or walls that provide access into rooms or enclosed spaces.
Sometime before 1916, a new entrance was placed at the base of an eight-story clock tower, which resulted in the existing 46-bay, five-story front facade.
It wasn’t clear from the meeting how much the demolition would cost, how long it would take or who would pay for it.
In October 2023, the city said it was seeking $12 million in grants for several demolition projects including the Firestone building, the Word Church and 125 vacant homes.
Ohio set aside $150 million for a statewide initiative aimed at development and revitalization for sites that are not considered brownfields.
“Brownfields are defined as an abandoned, idled, or under-used industrial, commercial, or institutional property where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by known or potential releases of hazardous substances or petroleum,” according to the state.
It’s not clear if the Firestone Plant 1 site would qualify as a brownfield site or not.