Topic: Toledo: Lagrange Neighborhood Development

[Bonjourtoledo]

Uptown, Lagrange (Polish) and Warren-Sherman neighborhood are located in between downtown and the Old West End neighborhood; here are some various photo shots of this area:

Map of Uptown


The former Hillcrest Hotel which is now the Hillcrest with a combination of apartments and condos



Looking south on 16th Street in Uptown


Mercy College in Uptown


St. Vincent Mercy Hospital in Warren-Sherman and the time progression pictures of under-construction of the new Hearts Center










Abele Funeral Home in Warren-Sherman


Uptown's "mini" downtown along Adams Street


Central Catholic High School in Warren-Sherman


Beautiful restored house converted into law firm offices


St. Mary's Assumption Church in Warren-Sherman


The new Lagrange Library which opened in early 2005

[conovercourt]

Is there any retail in the mini downtown? Any clubs, bars restaurants?

Thanks for educating me on a city I have passed through hundreds of times.

[Bonjourtoledo]

Yes, there are some restaurants, dry-cleaners, bakerys, retail stores and social agency offices; in the Uptown area there will be a popular tavern opening up called Ottawa Tavern which was burned down back in 1999 from another part of the city and they wanted to reopen a legendary jazz-theme tavern up again.  There are some that are empty but in my opinion I think it's the best location to open a small business since residential population is increasing and high energy costs.

[ink]

Love the Hillcrest! Great pics!

[Bonjourtoledo]

Love the Hillcrest! Great pics!

I was going to move in there several years ago, but they don't take big dogs.  Poo on them!  

[Wheelingman]

I love these neighborhood tours.

[Bonjourtoledo]

Finally more snapshots of Lagrange neighborhood are here; Enjoy!:

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 3/16/07 Blade:

$1.3 million Lagrange renovation announced
Shoppes on Lagrinka to be ready by fall
By CLYDE HUGHES
BLADE STAFF WRITER

The row of buildings in the 2800 block of Lagrange Street, in the heart of the Polish International Village, doesn't look like much - with peeling paint, tattered interiors, and fading "For Lease" signs in the windows.  Yesterday, city of Toledo and Lucas County officials crowded into one of the empty buildings and joined representatives of Lagrange Development Corp. in announcing a $1.3 million renovation of four turn-of-the-century buildings that corporation officials hope will become a destination point. 

The project, called The Shoppes on Lagrinka, will take six months to complete and will be ready for occupancy by the fall, said Terry Glazer, president of the corporation.  Mr. Glazer said he has received roughly 60 calls about the buildings, but business owners wanted to see renovation work in progress before committing.  That work begins this week.

Mr. Glazer said Lagrange Development cobbled together nine funding sources and 13 funding programs in raising the money needed to renovate the structures.  The city of Toledo, for example, contributed nearly $300,000 in grants for the project. The Toledo office of the Local Initiatives Support Corp. loaned Lagrange $200,000 to buy the buildings. KeyBank also provided a $376,000 loan and other help.  Mayor Carty Finkbeiner praised Lagrange for its determination to make the project a reality and credited the neighborhood for its cleanliness.

More at http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070316/NEWS16/703160340/-1/RSS10

[UncleRando]

North Toledoans work on plan to uplift their community
Neighbors want better quality of life
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081115/NEWS16/811150317

A neighborhood with high-quality schools, and state-of-the-art family resource centers and parks.  A neighborhood where it is safe to live, work, and play.  A neighborhood with good jobs.  North Toledoans are working, step by step, with a new Quality of Life plan to bring those amenities to where they live.

Residents in the roughly five-square-mile area bound by Cherry Street, the Maumee River, I-75, and Manhattan Boulevard have completed the neighborhood's first such plan.  The plan focuses on five key areas - schools, parks and community facilities, safety, housing, and jobs and economic development.  "We're just getting started," said Beth Lewandowski, a North Toledo resident and vice president of the Lagrange Village Council who worked on the plan.

The neighborhood, through Lagrange Community Development and North River Community Development - the groups work together as United North - has been working on the plan for over a year.

[C-Dawg]

Lagrange (aka LaGrinka) is by far Ohio's largest Polish enclave and at one time was the largest in the United States. It's a solid neighborhood with a brutal economy right now (due to auto industry), but it has a strong preservation movement and community leadership.

Lagrange land use plan to be unveiled
Article published February 16, 2009
Neighborhood meeting scheduled Monday night
By JC REINDL
BLADE STAFF WRITER

Toledo planning officials are set to unveil a preliminary land use plan for the Lagrange neighborhood and will seek input Monday night from neighborhood residents...

...The plan identifies large swaths of Lagrange Street and Stickney Avenue as urban village overlay districts, which require new development to conform to the size and character of the area...

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090216/NEWS16/902160333

[Columbo]

What's in a name? Lagrange says a lot
Area wants to lose 'North' in Toledo
Article published May 21, 2009
By CARL RYAN, BLADE STAFF WRITER

Can you "rebrand" a neighborhood?  Organizers in North Toledo think so.  Last night 150 people attended a meeting in the Zablocki Senior Center to kick around new names for their part of the city.

Two North Toledo improvement groups - the Lagrange Development Corp. and NorthRiver Development Corp. - are behind the renaming effort.  The two organizations, which are in the process of merging, are following through on the recommendation of a neighborhood study that calls for giving North Toledo a new name.

Terry Glazer, Lagrange Development's executive director, said the goal is not to eliminate familiar and historic names such as "Lagrange" and "Vistula."  "We're not trying to get rid of them. We want a better name for all of North Toledo. How dull is 'North Toledo,'" he said.

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/article/20090521/NEWS41/905210394

[Columbo]

Two reports about a proposed renovation of the Ohio Theatre in the Lagrange neighborhood:


Toledo Blade: Rehabilitation to begin at Ohio Theatre in February

WTOL-TV11: Ohio Theater receives fundraising assistance

[Columbo]

State OKs $100,000 to redo Ohio Theatre
BLADE STAFF
Published: 2/16/2012
 
The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission said Wednesday it has approved $100,000 for United North Corp.’s refurbishment of the Ohio Theatre on Lagrange Street in the Polish Village.

The 964-seat theater has been shuttered since 2009, when it was purchased by the community development corporation.

MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/local/2012/02/16/State-OKs-100-000-to-redo-Ohio-Theatre.html

[Columbo]

Senior housing proposed for former St. Hedwig School
BY JENNIFER FEEHAN, BLADE STAFF WRITER
Published: 12/6/2012

Since school let out for the last time in the spring of 2005, St. Hedwig School in North Toledo’s Polish Village only has been used sporadically by community groups.  Now the community development corporation United North Inc. is floating a plan to purchase and convert the 1901 school into 41 apartments for low-income seniors.  While the convent and two garages on the site would be demolished as part of the estimated $7 million project, the historic St. Hedwig Church and rectory would remain under the ownership of the Catholic Diocese of Toledo.

Toledo’s Plan Commission is scheduled to discuss the proposal when it meets today.  Specifically, United North is seeking a major site plan review, a zoning change from “duplex district” to “multi dwelling residential,” and approval to vacate two alleys between Bronson Avenue and Dexter Street.  Plan commission staff have recommended the changes with some conditions.  The overall concept, they say, is a good one for the Lagrange Street neighborhood.

Under the plan, the school would be converted to 23 apartments on three floors with the top floor used as a community recreation room.  A walkway would be built to connect the building to a new three-story structure that would contain 18 units for a total of 41 apartments.

READ MORE: http://www.toledoblade.com/North/2012/12/06/Senior-housing-proposed-for-former-St-Hedwig-School.html

[Columbo]

More about the senior housing proposal for the former St. Hedwig School from Toledo News Now.  Toledo's Plan Commission approved the zoning changes for the project.  More about this along with a video report on the project at the link below:

Toledo News Now: St. Hedwig School may get new life

[Columbo]

The State of Ohio's Historic Preservation Tax Credit Program announced a new round of awards earlier this month.  The Ohio Theatre in the Toledo's Lagrange neighborhood received one of the tax credits awarded in this latest round.  Below is the text of the award from the Ohio Development Services Agency press release:

Ohio Theatre (Toledo, Lucas County)

Total Project Cost: $8,568,900
Total Tax Credit: $1,368,500
Address: 3112 Lagrange Street, 43608

The Mark of Zorro premiered on the Ohio Theatre’s opening night in February 1921, complete with a live orchestra.  After entertaining area residents for decades, the doors of the vaudeville and movie house have been shut since 2009.  The local community development corporation, United North, purchased the facility in 2010 and will undertake improvements and an addition, allowing the theatre to reopen.  The project is targeted as a catalyst for the surrounding Lagrange Street Business District, which currently faces a 25 percent vacancy rate.  United North estimates that at least 50 jobs will be created as a result of reopening the theatre.

[Columbo]

More about the nearby $1.4 million historic preservation tax credit awarded by the state for the Ohio Theatre project from the Toledo Blade.  Also below is a photo of the Ohio Theatre's exterior and a rendering of the proposed facade renovation from an earlier January 2012 article 'Rehabilitation to begin at Ohio Theatre in February':

Toledo Blade: Renovation would give historic Ohio Theatre site many uses

[C-Dawg]

Awesome news! I love Lagrange. The narrow streets and density give it a ton of potential. There also are still a lot of commercial buildings standing. It wasn't hit as hard with arsons as the South End or West-Central Toledo (South End still probably has potential, not sure about West-Central Toledo). Lagrange, Vistula, and East Toledo are where the city should be focusing urban development (along with saving all the abandoned buildings in the core). Those neighborhoods still have the narrow streets and high density of a once outstanding city. They just need more people!