Connect Real Estate looking to redevelop 107-year-old building at 174 E. Long St.
A vacant Downtown building could be turned into a mixed-use apartment complex with micro units.
Brad DeHays, project developer of Connect Real Estate, wants to turn 174 E. Long St. into 45 apartments with ground-floor retail.
Connect Real Estate owns the six-story building, at E. Long and N. 4th streets, and the 36,909-square-foot project is estimated to cost $12 million. DeHays has requested $1.2 million from the Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit, according to the application. Construction would start Dec. 1 if the project receives the tax credits. The project would create 32 permanent jobs and 88 construction jobs, according to the application.
“We need the tax credits to move forward,” DeHays said.
Of the 45 apartment units, 35 would be micro studio apartments, and 10 would be one-bedroom units. The micro units would range from 300 square feet to 380 square feet, with studios ranging from 380 to 440 square feet. The one-bedroom units would range from 600 square feet to 660 square feet. Monthly rents for the micro units would range from $1,050 to $1,100, and the one-bedroom units would range from $1,300 to $1,400. DeHays owns the parking lots around the building, roughly 150 parking spaces.
The building was constructed in 1912 and housed Standard Oil of Ohio’s regional headquarters from 1917 to 1955. It has sat vacant ever since the Central Ohio Area Agency on Aging moved to 3776 S. High St. in 2016. The building was previously slated for demolition by Continental Real Estate.
Connect Real Estate had a lot of interest in the ground floor retail and has selected an unnamed tenant. The apartments would be in a bustling part of Downtown, across the street from Pins Mechanical Co. and a stone’s throw from two existing complexes, the Normandy and the Neilston, and two new ones being built.
“It’s really good synergy,” DeHays said. “I think that area there is really convenient.”
“Introducing new residents and commercial use at the corner will also add vitality to the surrounding neighborhood and is likely to spur additional development to support the new occupants,” the application said.
Connect has been doing the work on the building, including removing cladding to expose the historic façade.
Connect Real Estate has two other Downtown micro unit projects, Microliving at 260 S. 4th and Microliving at Long and Front. Microliving at 260 S. 4th is fully leased at 52 units and Microliving at Long and Front plans to start leasing this summer.
DeHays also applied for $250,000 from the Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credit to transform Winders Motor Sales Co. at 182 E. Long St. into a single-tenant commercial office building, according to the application. The 10,556-square-foot project is estimated to cost $1.55 million. DeHays would not comment on who the tenant is.
Also applying for tax credits are:
‒ Dwight McCabe, principal of the McCabe Companies, who is seeking to redevelop the 158,819-square-foot L. Hoster Brewing Co. complex at 477 S. Front St.
The project is estimated to cost $70 million and McCabe has requested $5 million in tax credits, his second request. He is working with Columbus architects Schooley Caldwell on the plans, which include apartments and possibly condos, a 140-room boutique hotel, event space, offices and retail space. This would create 276 permanent jobs and 159 construction jobs.
‒ Columbus developer Eli Adahan, who is seeking $1.75 million in tax credits – his second request – for the vacant Broadwin apartment building, 1312 E. Broad St. The 85,831-square-foot project is estimated to cost $17.58 million to revert the space back to the original layout of 46 apartments, down from 54.
‒ Dean Adamantidis has requested $250,000 in tax credits to convert the F.E. Avery and Sons Garage, 1199 Franklin Ave., into a mixed-use space. The 32,676-square-foot project is estimated to cost $3 million. The development would include up to 7,500-square-feet of commercial tenants and 14 apartments on the second floor.
The state is expected to announce credit recipients in June.