Cincinnati’s Terrace Plaza Hotel, a 1948 International Style building on Sixth Street downtown, took another step toward being designated as a local historic landmark.
After more than a dozen preservationists gave public comment supporting the designation, the Cincinnati Historic Conservation Board voted 5-1 to recommend that status despite reservations from some board members about whether the increased protections would make more hurdles for redevelopment efforts.
At the time of its construction, the Terrace Plaza was a landmark building in many ways. It was the first International Style hotel in the U.S. and one of the first hotel projects here after World War II. It was one of the first hotels to have fully-automated elevators and other high-tech touches.
It was also where a trailblazing architect got her start. The then-24-year-old Natalie de Blois designed the building for Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, now a famed Modernist design firm.
“In the 1940s to have a woman design a building was extremely rare,” Cincinnati Historic Conservator Beth Johnson told the conservation board.
The building already has federal historic landmark status, though Johnson pointed out that status offers little protection for the building. The local designation would require developers to gain approvals for changes that vary from historic preservation guidelines.
Cincinnati City Councilman David Mann is the applicant for the historic designation. He says the building is a significant part of Cincinnati history and needs protection from demolition or significant changes.
Though a marvel in its day, the building has since fallen into disrepair. The hotel portion has been vacant since 2008, though a couple of first-floor retail tenants remain. A parade of owners hasn’t been able to keep up with the structure. Current owners JNY Capital, who bought the building last August, are now answering for numerous code violations on the property that have resulted in almost $60,000 in fines. The city is reportedly mulling a public nuisance lawsuit against JNY over the building.
Last year, a chunk of the building’s facade came loose, plunging to the street and striking a car, and in January, pipes burst and soaked Batsakes Hats, a first-floor tenant on the corner of 6th and Vine Streets.
There is also a legal battle between JNY and another developer who has designs on the building. Developer Anderson Birkla, which has sued JNY and the building’s former owners, had been working to purchase the building prior to its sale to JNY, going so far as to draw up plans for a $61 million, mixed-used redevelopment of the property. That plan, however, calls for stripping the Terrace Plaza’s unique windowless brick facade — a move preservationists say would destroy the character of the building.
Birkla’s lawsuit currently sits with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio Judge Michael Barrett.
Ulmer & Berne attorney Brad Kaplan is representing JNY. He says his clients aren’t planning on tearing the building down or punching windows into the building’s distinctive blank brick facade — but they also don’t want to be subject to more regulations because that would entail gaining extra permits every time they make alterations to the building.
Kaplan asked the board to delay recommending the historic designation until JNY finishes a development plan, likely in late March. In the meantime, the owners are spending “a tremendous amount of money” stabilizing the building and fixing code violations, Kaplan said.
HCB Vice Chair Thomas Sundermann was the sole vote against the historic designation, citing concerns that more restrictions on the building will keep it vacant.
“We have this building taking up half a block of downtown sitting vacant,” he said. “What I don’t want to do is handcuff people in the development role.”
But other board members argued that isn’t the HCB’s role, and that the board should consider only whether the building meets historic significance standards necessary for local landmark designation.
“A lack of vision shouldn’t be a reason not to preserve an important part of our history,” board member Allison Mackenzie argued.
Mann agreed. He also said he believes the building can be redeveloped even with historic protections in place, citing Cincinnati’s “hot market” for boutique hotels.
“I’ve spoken to a lot of folks who understand the difficulty of developing a building like this,” he said.
Supporters also pointed out that the historic designation would make it possible to get state and federal tax credits for historic preservation, which can cover as much as 45 percent of a project’s cost.
The HCB’s vote is just the first Mann’s proposal needs to be applied to the Terrace Plaza. The Cincinnati Planning Commission and Cincinnati City Council must both approve the designation.
Related Stories
What Does It Mean if Cincinnati’s Terrace Plaza Hotel Becomes a Designated Local Landmark?
Downtown’s Historic Terrace Plaza Hotel Awaits Final Landmark Designation Decision from Cincinnati City Council
This article appears in Feb 20-27, 2019.
