A pair of redevelopment projects tackling prominent historic buildings in Newark are now moving forward.
A plan to renovate the Newark Arcade at 29-35 N. 3rd St. was awarded Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credits from the Ohio Development Services Agency earlier this summer. Fifteen apartments in the building will be renovated, as will the historic storefronts and terrazzo floor of the glass-roofed arcade itself, which was built in 1908.
The credits were awarded to the nonprofit Newark Development Partners, which owns the property and is working with Schooley Caldwell and Newark-based Northpoint Ohio Architecture on the project.
The second project is a redevelopment of the former White-Westinghouse factory and warehouse located less than a mile to the west, at 325 W. Main St.
The multi-phase project calls for demolishing one of the buildings on the ten-acre site and redeveloping the rest of the complex with a range of uses in mind, including apartments, artist studios, event spaces, a coffee shop, and a restaurant.
Seth Stout, Co-Founder & Director of Operations for the developer, A4 Ragtime Band Development, said that the coffee shop is on track to open in January, while the apartments should be complete by late spring of 2022.
The first phase of the development, which is being called Newark Station, is already open – sand volleyball courts and an outdoor events center have been built on the empty land that occupies the western edge of the site. A volleyball league has been established and regular concerts have been occurring over the summer, and a larger festival is planned for September 24-26.
Stout said that work on future phases, including the restaurant, art studios, and a rooftop bar, could begin before next summer.
The developer is also working with the City of Newark to create a new park along Racoon Creek, in place of the large building that is slated for demolition.
“We are getting closer to finalizing the demo plan for the portion of land that will become the park,” Stout said. “At this time we do not have a set timeline but our goal is to have the building down by the end of the year.”
See newark-station.com for more information, and for more information on the Newark Arcade, see wedignewark.com.