A new plan to restore the long-vacant Madison’s and White-Haines buildings at 72-84 N. High St. may be moving forward after many false starts.
The Ohio Development Services Agency announced today that the project was one of 28 statewide to be awarded Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credits.
It’s the second time that the credits have been awarded to restore the buildings – the Day Companies bought the property in 2014 and began renovation work, but the project stalled and never got back on track despite several attempts at a restart.
Although the parcels have not officially changed hands yet, the developer who applied for the credits this round is Eclipse Real Estate, an affiliate of the Edwards Companies.
Two other local projects received credits – the Broadwin Building, on the Near East Side, which was purchased by developer Eli Adahan in 2017; and the Market Mohawk Center, on Town Street, which is controlled by Connect Realty, a developer with a long track record of historic renovations.
The tax credits, which are awarded by the state twice a year, are used by developers to help close funding gaps for historic renovation projects that would otherwise prove challenging to complete.
See below for more information on each of the local projects, as provided by the Ohio Development Services Agency and the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office:
The Broadwin
Total Project Cost: $17,588,035
Total Tax Credit: $1,755,000
Address: 1312 E. Broad St., Columbus, 43205
This project in Columbus’ East Broad Street Historic District involves what was once one of the city’s finest apartment addresses. The eight-story building suffered from neglect and disinvestment through the end of the 20th century. The redevelopment plan calls for the original apartment configurations to be returned from 54 to 46 units.
Madison’s and White-Haines
Total Project Cost: $60,589,377
Total Tax Credit: $4,416,157
Address: 72-84 N. High St., Columbus, 43215
The Madison’s and White Haines buildings in downtown Columbus are commercial buildings that for more than 60 years held Madison’s Department Store and an optical products company. After decades of vacancy and deterioration, the planned rehabilitation will preserve an important part of High Street’s streetscape with commercial spaces on the ground level and apartments above. In an adjacent vacant lot, the developer plans to construct a new building that will hold parking spaces, commercial spaces, and residential units.
Market Mohawk Center
Total Project Cost: $8,506,900
Total Tax Credit: $842,267
Address: 250 E. Town St., Columbus, 43215
Constructed 50 years ago as part of Columbus’ effort at urban renewal, the Market-Mohawk Center is a four-story office building that will be converted to mixed-use office and residential spaces. Six apartments will be developed on the first floor with office spaces in the remainder of the building.
