ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Revitalizing Downtown Dayton
Published: March 15, 1998 Here are some of the plans and recent developments affecting downtown andnear downtown:
KEY PROJECTS
* Riverfront: Downtown leaders last week unveiled a $24.4 milliondevelopment plan for the banks of the Great Miami River. The plan includes ahuge river water fountain, renovating Van Cleve Park, a farmer's market, acanal walk along Patterson Boulevard, an ice skating rink, a harbor for smallnon-motorized boats, public art and an events tent. Officials hope to beginconstruction in 1999 and have the project finished in time for the 2003anniversary of powered flight.* Minor League Baseball: Dayton plans a $22.7 million minor league baseballstadium on East First Street between Sears Street and River Corridor Drive.Investors hope to move a Midwest League Class A baseball team here by spring1999.
* Tool Town: Business and government officials are putting together afoundation and board of directors to establish a tooling and machiningindustrial park. Tool Town would include a training program and marketingservices for businesses. The $45 million project would be on East MonumentAvenue between Webster and Keowee streets. The board is being assembled now,but there is no timetable for construction.
HOUSING
* Loan Pool: Eight banks agreed this month to create a $33.7 million loanpool for downtown housing projects.* Arcade: A housing developer from Madison, Wis., is interested in thevacant, historic Arcade in the center of downtown, but city officials refuseto disclose any details.
* Lazarus: Second & Main Ltd., a group of local businesses that bought theold Lazarus Department Store building downtown, continues to work on aredevelopment plan that would bring housing and a performing arts center tothe site. Initially, the plan also included an office tower, but that nowseems unlikely. The project, which so far remains just a plan, is estimated tocost about $116 million.
* The Cannery: A trio of local developers is working on a 120-unit housingproject in six buildings at Third Street and Wayne Avenue. Stephen Greer, DaveWilliams and Beth Duke plan to transform the 275,000 square feet of warehousespace into shops, offices and apartments. Go Home, a store in the OregonHistoric District, will move into The Cannery in the spring and the developersare talking to a brewer about locating there. Developers declined to disclosethe project price tag.
* Condos: Improved Solutions for Urban Systems, a trades training programfor high school students, plans to renovate 224 N. St. Clair St. into 14condominiums. The group plans to start the $1.5 million project this summer,said Ann Higdon, ISUS president.
HOTELS
* The Doubletree: City Hotels USA bought the 100-year-old hotel at thesouthwest corner of Third and Ludlow streets and is spending $7 million torestore it. It has 185 rooms and is scheduled to reopen this year.* The old Holiday Inn: Montgomery County and Dayton officials plan to splitan $800,000 demolition bill and then turn the property at 404 W. First St.over to Temple Partners to build a 50-room, $7 million hotel. The parties arestill working on a development agreement.
* Crowne Plaza: HDI Ltd. of Dayton bought the hotel at 33 E. Fifth St. for$4.6 million in 1996 and then invested $3.5 million renovating the 284 guestrooms and other areas. The project was completed in 1997.
GOVERNMENT PROJECTS
* Sinclair Community College: Two new buildings will open on the collegecampus this fall. The $16.5 million Center for Interactive Learning is in theheart of its downtown campus while the $13 million Automotive/EnvironmentalTechnology Facility is just across the Great Miami River at the corner of WestFifth Street and Edwin C. Moses Boulevard.* Volunteers of America: Dayton and Montgomery County officials have ajoint proposal to move the Volunteers of America's planned halfway house from214 S. Wilkinson St. downtown to a new building at the city's HumanRehabilitation Center on South Gettysburg Avenue. The deal is expected to cost$2.5 million to $3 million, and is awaiting approval from the Volunteers ofAmerica. The downtown facility is to open in June, if not relocated.
* RTA: The Miami Valley Regional Transit Authority is to renovate theAmerican Building at the southeast corner of Third and Main streets. The $10.9million project includes renovating five floors for RTA administrativeoffices, expanding the passenger waiting area on Main Street just south of thebuilding, and adding retail space along Third Street and an Open Market areabehind the buildings. The office space is scheduled to be completed in thespring of 1999 and the passenger area in the fall of 1999.
OTHER PROJECTS
* Planned Parenthood of the Greater Miami Valley: The agency spent $1.4million renovating its building at 224 N. Wilkinson St. The agency hasremained open throughout. The project is expected to be completed next month.* 40 West 4th Centre: New owners of the former Miami Valley Tower officebuilding at West Fourth and South Ludlow streets put $3 million intorenovations and finished in 1997.
* Engineers Club of Dayton: The club at 110 E. Monument Ave. is undergoinga $3.5 million renovation.
* Reynolds and Reynolds: The company spent $6 million renovating twohistoric terra cotta buildings on South Ludlow Street between Fourth and Fifthstreets. The buildings opened in 1996.
* CODE Credit Union: CODE built a new credit union office at 355 W.Monument Ave. in 1996.
* America's Packard Museum: The museum at the corner of South Ludlow andFranklin streets is undergoing a $500,000 expansion. A Packard Club memberfrom Atlanta bought the 16,000-square-foot building next door and donated itto the museum.
* Banc One Corp.: In 1996, the company dealt downtown Dayton a blow when itpicked Kettering Business Park over downtown for its credit card processingcenter. The center is expected to employ 2,000 people.
* Dayton Daily News: Cox Ohio Publishing announced in December 1996 that itwould build a $90 million printing and distribution plant in Franklin. It willmean a loss of 350 job loss for downtown, as production workers and truckdrivers, move to the new plant. The company, however, plans to renovate andupgrade its downtown facilities at East Fourth and South Ludlow streets, whichwill continue to house the newsroom, administrative offices and otherdepartments, after the printing plant opens in 1999.
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