Quite a few of the buildings in the heart of Alliance, in eastern Stark County, haven’t been in use for a long time. So they still look a lot like they did a century ago. And that may be one of the reasons why the city is seeking a historical district designation for its downtown.
Richard Lott is Community Development Director for Alliance. He says the city and the Alliance Historical Preservation Commission are applying for the historic designation to give would-be property owners and developers access to federal and state historical restoration tax breaks, as an incentive to redevelop the properties.
And he says, the fact that buildings have never been updated makes them attractive to investors. “Downtown Alliance kind of reminds me of the Over-The-Rhine in Cincinnati. It’s an area that appears to have been neglected for the most part. So you see a lot of the original architecture, the architectural detail, the characteristics of the buildings. So that’s actually kind of great.”
Over-the-Rhine in Cincinnati is a nationally known success story for historical redevelopment.
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