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