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A major renovation is underway at Fort Industry Square, which means the collection of buildings filled with Toledo’s history dating back to the early 19th century may soon have a new modern, lifeless and less historically significant aesthetic that might only make a shallow nod to the past.
The rehabilitation efforts are, in part, thanks to ProMedica. In 2016, the green overlords bought the buildings from 116 to 152 on North Summit for $4 million, as part of their $60 million investment in downtown real estate intended to create a “healthier Toledo.”
Less than a year later, the health care provider flipped the real estate deal, selling the properties to Karp & Associates, from Lansing, Michigan, for an undisclosed amount. Now, the new owners are undertaking to transform the building, which was first built around 1800, into much-needed apartments and commercial space.
As the “progress” of redevelopment paves the way for a new Toledo, you can acquire your own piece of local history during an online auction of nearly 400 items, including doors, stained glass windows and iron fixtures, all harvested from Fort Industry Square.
The auction of these crucial and iconic pieces of local history runs through Friday, September 13, and some of the prices are a total steal!
Here are some of our favorites. Get ‘em while they’re hot, and still exist in Toledo!
Gwen Stefani probably wasn’t thinking of historic Toledoans when she sang: “I still love to wash in your old bathwater.” But who knows? Maybe she was. No Doubt was weird, and you could be too if you bought these two old bathtubs.
Nothing says “I impulsively bought this from an online auction” like decorating your studio apartment with a fixture like this. Ostentatious? We’ll take it as a compliment.
Are you trying to keep your guests in, or out? It doesn’t matter. Nobody will want to leave your iron fortress once you install these antique gates!
Rawr! Loudly roar “I’m the king of my own jungle” with this bold accessory that is equal parts gaudy and ugly. Tacky takes courage. Show it off!
Tiffany Inspired Solid Brass Clock
Will you regret this purchase? Only time will tell. Ha! Get it? It’s a clock.
Vintage Brass Movie Theater Ticket Window
This is actually really cool. I don’t have any jokes about this. I hope a pretentious art-house cinema in Brooklyn buys it!
Weren’t these just made to be highlighted in the next issue of Dwell? I can’t wait to read about how someone with no connection to Toledo bought these stained glass windows online for a total steal. I bet these unattributed pieces of local history would look ahh-maze-ingggg in an upstate New York vacation home.
