Dec. 12 – The owner of the former Shuler and Benninghofen Woolen Mill has received $3.5 million in Ohio historic tax credits to redevelop the industrial building into an apartment complex and retail space in Hamilton.
Hamilton City Manager Craig Bucheit called the award “a huge win for the community.”
“This announcement brings a very important project closer to reality – one that will add 100 homes to address our city’s housing shortage and spur the revitalization of an important corridor,” said Bucheit, a Hamilton resident who grew up in Lindenwald. “This kind of progress is a big deal for Hamilton and it’s exciting to see this project moving forward.”
This is the latest in a series of Hamilton projects that have successfully received millions of dollars in historic tax credits from the state. Spooky Nook Sports Champion Mill, The Well House and, most recently last summer, the Municipal Hotel project have all benefited from the program.
Cincinnati-based Bloomfield Schon plans to invest $29.1 million to transform the building at the corner of Pleasant Avenue and Williams Avenue — less than two miles from downtown Hamilton — into a 100-unit apartment complex and commercial space . Housing became a focus for Hamilton after Bucheit’s first State of the City address earlier this year. The city had seen an influx of apartments in the city’s downtown and urban core areas, with developers renovating old buildings, such as Third+Dayton, or building new apartments, such as Rossville Flats.
The Shuler and Benninghofen Woolen Mill, which closed in 1967, was a textile mill that made woolen goods such as blankets and wool felt used in papermaking. Since the factory closed, the building has been used primarily for warehouses, light manufacturing and retail, but has been largely vacant in recent years.
Work on the building will include installing a new roof, installing folds and replacing missing or damaged masonry units.
It is believed that this project will enliven US 127/Pleasant Avenue through Lindenwald. Bucheit said for this neighborhood, “This is extra special.”
“I am so excited for all the residents, especially the members of (People Reaching Out To Others: Celebrating Our Lindenwald), (PROTOCOL Chairman) Frank Downie, and everyone who has worked so hard to defend this neighborhood over the years, Bucheit said. “Waking up this morning to a dusting of snow and hearing this news today must feel like Christmas came early.”
The State Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program provides up to 25% of qualified rehabilitation expenditures incurred during a rehabilitation project. Hamilton has seen success in projects that received historic tax credits from the state of Ohio, including $1.6 million for the $16 million The Well House Hotel project and $6 million for the $61.6 million hotel project that will replace the former city building of Hamilton will redevelop.
Ohio Rep. Sara Carruthers, a Republican from Hamilton, helped secure $1 million in state capital funds for the Shuler and Benninghofen project.
This round of historic tax credits for conservation projects included 37 projects, with more in Butler County in addition to the Shuler and Benninghofen projects.
The former Hamilton YWCA building, a three-story masonry structure in the city’s historic German Village district. The building has been vacant since the YWCA moved two years ago after constructing a new building on Grand Boulevard. Cincinnati-based developer Lauck Properties purchased the former YWCA building earlier this year, receiving $540,000 for a $5.46 million redevelopment project.
Brad Lauck, owner of the development company, told the Journal-News he plans to create between 36 and 42 apartments.
Many of the building’s 1930s period features have been retained, including the original patterned brickwork and ornate stone carvings on the outside and floors, stairs, doors, panelling, cladding and a fireplace on the inside. Most of the windows are original, some have stained glass accent panels.
In Middletown, the Middletown Building and Deposit Association has a $12.25 million project at 11 S. Main St. and has received $2 million in state tax credits.
The project will rehabilitate a prominent, vacant 1930s high-rise building in downtown Middletown. The art deco building is one of the city’s main attractions. The former bank building will be renovated into 21 market-rate apartments on the top floors with office space on the first floor.
Many of the historic architectural features will remain in the first floor banking hall, and distinctive exterior features, including ornamental metalwork, lighting and brickwork, will be repaired and retained.
“By preserving our historic buildings, we preserve the unique identities of Ohio communities,” said Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. “Through the tax credit program, we are ensuring that future generations can experience the character and stories that shaped our state in the spaces where they took place.”
