The owners of the venerable Avalon Building, which had a long history in downtown Newark and had been home to 24 residents before fire ravaged it in March, say the building will be demolished.
LEADS, a local organization incorporated in 1966 with the purpose of assisting economically disadvantaged residents of Licking County, issued a release Monday morning saying “the staff and board of trustees debated the decision for several months, reviewing insurance requirements, feasibility of rebuilding the already historic and salvaged structure, and options for the future before coming to the difficult decision.”
A fire alarm sounded around 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 23, in the 124-year-old building at 86 W. Main St., across W. Main Street from the Licking County Library, and a significant portion of the roof structure was damaged by fire, causing the roof on the east end of the building to collapse.
All residents and their pets escaped unharmed. Some lost most or all of their belongings, and all had to find other places to live. The building has sat fenced off from the public and with its roof covered in plastic for the past seven months.
After the fire, Avalon residents received an outpouring of support from the community – offers of clothing, furniture and food, as well as help from the Red Cross and other organizations in their quest to find new homes amid a very tight and increasingly expensive housing market.
Some former residents who found temporary shelter with relatives or friends, or in local motels, were struggling to find a place to live a month or more after the fire.
“As much as we want to save this beautiful, historic building, it unfortunately is not economically feasible,” Nathan Keirns, LEADS chief executive officer said in the release. “We are beyond thankful that all residents were evacuated safely and find comfort in knowing that the Avalon has served the community well for more than 100 years.
“We are grateful to the community for the outpouring of support provided to the residents,” Keirns said. “It is our honor to continue serving the community.”
Keirns said Monday afternoon that it’s possible that LEADS could rebuild on the northwest corner of W. Main and N. 5th streets after the Avalon Building is razed.
“The land has covenants on it through about 2035 that say the land has to be used for affordable housing,” he said. “Another building is possible, but we’d have to apply for low-income housing tax credits and go through that process.”
The release said that LEADS considered many options but determined that saving the structure again was not possible. Keirns said that while the fire damage was limited, the damage caused by water used to fight the fire was significant to the structure and to many of its fixtures, including the elevator.
“At the end of the day, you’d be left with a building that is 120 years old, condemned once, then damaged, then restored and then damaged by fire and water,” he said. “Our board was left wondering whether the building would ever be right again.”
The Avalon, built around 1900, originally housed shops and offices, along with apartments.
“It was condemned in 1998 by the Newark City Health Department due to its poor condition,” the LEADS release says. “The future of the building was uncertain for several years until 2004, when LEADS obtained low-income-housing tax credits to salvage the building and convert it into affordable housing.
From that time and until March, when the fire took place, the historic building housed 20 senior apartments.
The time since the fire has been an emotional rollercoaster, Keirns said. “Initially, we thought fire might affect only one or two units. Then it ended up affecting the whole building. Then we thought that it might be saved. And then we came to the realization that it just wasn’t feasible.”
LEADS will work with a demolition company in an attempt to salvage architecturally significant pieces of the building. Any salvaged items will be shared with the community in some way, Keirns said.
“For sure, we’re going to get bricks,” he said. “We’re also going to get windows with Avalon logo etched into them. … We’re hoping to salvage the sign that says Avalon on it – the one that was at the center of the peak of the roof. Unfortunately, it fell off during the fire and we’re not sure where it is. It’s possible that it’s inside the building.”
Demolition of the building will begin later this year after a contractor is selected and the
necessary permits are obtained, LEADS said in the release.Alan Miller writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.