Brookes Building

The circa 1898 Brookes Building was located at the southwest corner of 5th and Market Street in downtown East Liverpool, Ohio. It was razed in 2016 for a new apartment complex.

History

The Brookes Building was constructed in 1898 ³ and housed Foutts Market on the first floor ² and the Carroll Council No. 509 of the Knights of Columbus on the top floor. ³ Rinehart Clothier opened in 1902 on the first floor, ² followed by the Bon-Ton in 1904 and later Robins & Sant. ³ The Ohio Valley Business College located on the 3rd floor after a fire destroyed their former location, the Reed Building, in February 1905. ^{2 4}

The East Liverpool Community Partnership for Revitalization (ELCPR) began pursuing a developer in 2013 for a residential project that would encompass the Brookes Building and several others along Market Street. ⁶ After several proposals were heard, the Miller-Valentine Group was selected as the lead developer. Initial plans included restoring the Brookes Building into apartments but it was not found to be economically feasible. ⁹ Miller-Valentine instead proposed Market Street Lofts which would consist of 45 below-market apartments ⁶ targeted to those earning 60% of the county’s average median income of $34,000. ¹¹ It would cost $10 million to build.

Miller-Valentine requested $2.2 million in federal housing tax credits and was awarded the full amount in June 2015. ⁶ A certificate of appropriateness was approved on November 2 by the Design Review Board, which granted approval for demolition of the buildings. ⁷ A certificate of appropriateness for the actual construction of the new lofts was granted on December 17. ⁸ On the same day, Miller-Valentine secured $1.5 million in a loan through the Housing Development Loan program via the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. ¹²

Demolition of the Brookes Building for Market Street Lofts began on July 12. ¹⁰

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Sources

1. Bercik, Julie. “Demolition begins in East Liverpool for Market Street lofts.” WKBN-27 14 Sept. 2016: n.p. Web.
2. 15th Annual Tri-State Pottery Festival, June 17, 18, 19, 1982. East Liverpool, 1982. East Liverpool Historical Society, article. 5 Dec. 2016.
3. “Market Street Project.” East Liverpool Historical Society, article. 5 Dec. 2016.
4. “Market Street Project 2.” East Liverpool Historical Society, article. 5 Dec. 2016.
5. “Market Street Lofts project ready to get off the ground.” Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 21 Jun. 2016. Print.
6. “Housing credits granted to East Liverpool project.”Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 18 Jun. 2015. Print.
7. “Board wants changes to building designs.” Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 7 Nov. 2015. Print.
8. “Board approves changes to building’s facade.” Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 20 Dec. 2015. Print.
9. “Local company gets contract for demo work.” Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 21 Mar. 2016. Print.
10. “Razers.”Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 13 Jul. 2016. Print.
11. “Developer has lofty goals for Liverpool project.” Morning Journal [East Liverpool] 3 Feb. 2016. Print.
12. Moses, Molly. “OHFA Board Approves More Than $15.6 Million to Help Finance Affordable Housing for Ohioans.” Ohio Housing Finance Agency, 17 Dec. 2015, press release.