Q. What is
the Fort Piqua Hotel renovation/ library relocation project?
A. The renovation of the Fort Piqua Hotel is a unique,
once-in-a-lifetime project. The goal is to restore the 1891
structure to functionality and prominence in the downtown, and
at the same time provide a facility for the expansion and
modernization of the Flesh Public Library. The grand ballroom on
the fourth floor would be restored so that it may be used as a
banquet facility for private gatherings and conference area with
both large and small meeting "break-out" rooms. The
building would also lease a limited amount of space to
commercial businesses.
The project is veritable
labyrinth of layers, each having complexities of its own. It is
a challenging architectural design project and it can come about
only through a convoluted financing package which must receive
support from all levels of government in order to be
successful.
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Q. Who
owns the hotel?
A. The Fort Piqua Hotel is owned by the Piqua Improvement
Corporation (PIC). PIC is a public/private partnership between
the City of Piqua and the City's business/industrial community,
authorized by the State of Ohio to conduct economic development.
The State requires that 40% of the PIC Board of Trustees be
elected or appointed city officials.
The mission of the Piqua
Improvement Corporation is to assist the City's Economic
Development Department in its work to retain existing
business/industry and recruit new business/Industry, while
promoting the City of Piqua as a good place to do business.
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Q. Why is
the city involved in renovating a hotel and leasing to the
library?
A. In 2001 the Piqua City Commission conducted a strategic plan.
The top priority project from that plan was the renovation of
the hotel. This project is important for economic development,
especially in the downtown. It is also viewed as a key
contributor to overall quality of life in the community.
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Q.
How is the rehabilitation of the Fort Piqua Hotel being funded?
A. The funds are from a fairly complex combination of sources.
Some of the funds are already fully secured, and some are still
tentative. They include:
a. City of Piqua funds - the city has set aside $1.7 million
that has tentatively been earmarked as "Hotel funds."
In addition there is $800,000 in excess workers comp and
insurance reserves that the commission may commit to the project
as well as $300,000 in street funds for right-of-way
improvements. These funds are all subject to final approval by
the City Commission.
b. State of Ohio Grants - the city has secured $400,000 from the
state of Ohio for roof repair plus $1.3 million for the clean-up
of environmental issues. The state cultural facilities
commission has tentatively approved $210,00 for the museum
component of the project. Also, the Community Development Block
Grant fund can contribute up to $360,000 in "formula"
funds, and an additional $250,000 in a special "Targets of
Opportunity," grant.
c. Library lease - The library lease is $135,000 per year. This
amount could be used to repay an up-front loan of approximately
$1.7 million, over a 20 year period.
d. Federal Historic Tax Credits - A limited partnership has been
formed for the sole purpose of taking advantage of historic tax
credits for the project. The federal government permits tax
credits of 20% of the project costs for restoration of
historical structures. Since the city pays no taxes, it cannot
benefit from tax credits. However, a limited partnership can
sell the tax credits to investors, to offset up to $2 million in
construction costs.
e. Federal New markets Tax Credits - The federal government also
permits tax credits up to 35% of approved project costs for
projects in "low to moderate income" census tracts, in
some cases. These tax credits are competitive in nature and thus
less certain than the historic tax credits. However, they may
generate up to $2.6 million for the project, through the limited
partnership.
f. Federal grant - the city has made application for a
"Save America's Treasures" grant for $330,000. The
city will be notified this summer as to whether or not Piqua's
application is approved. Senators Voinovich and Dewine have both
written letters of endorsement for Piqua's project.
g. Local grants - The city will make application for grants from
local foundations. In addition, a local "Hotel Library
Legacy Alliance" will undertake a fund raising initiative
as the project draws near.
h. State Historic Tax Credits - the Ohio State legislature is
currently considering legislation for state tax credits, similar
to the federal tax credits addressed above. If lawmakers approve
this funding, it could generate up to $2.5 million.
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Q.
What is the cost of the redevelopment project?
A. The Architect's original estimate was $11.3 million which
included 10% contingency. He recently submitted a $12.3 million
estimate which includes 15% contingency. The actual cost will be
known for certain only after the city receives bids on the
construction, scheduled for late in 2005.
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Q. Who
is the architect for the Fort Piqua Hotel rehabilitation?
A. Jeff Wray and Associates from Dayton, Ohio. Mr. Wray has
established a reputation built upon the successful completion of
unique and complicated historical building renovations.
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Q.
Who is the general contractor for the Fort Piqua Hotel
rehabilitation?
A. The contractor will not be identified until plans are
complete and bids taken for construction. The contractor will be
the bidder determined to have submitted the lowest and best bid
for construction.
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Q. Does
the building have the structural integrity enough to support
books?
A. Currently, no. However, one major task in the design is
"beefing-up the structure" to assure that the floors
can safely support all of the stacks of books.
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Q. Is
it really a site of historical significance?
A. In its zenith, the hotel has hosted political leaders,
presidents, and other persons of national prominence. A few such
patrons of the hotel include the Cincinnati Redlegs baseball
team in 1908, John Phillips Sousa in 1912, and Harry Houdini in
1917.
In politics, Ohio was a pivotal
state in the 1912 presidential election and the hotel played an
important role. Progressive/Bull Moose Party candidate and
former president Teddy Roosevelt spoke at the hotel on May16,
1912. He was followed four days later by the Republican
incumbent William Howard Taft. Democratic candidate Woodrow
Wilson never made it to the hotel, but his campaign train
stopped two blocks away where he made a short impromptu speech.
The 1912 campaign at the hotel also included speeches by future
presidential candidates (1920 election) Republican Warren G.
Harding (October 1912) and Democrat James M. Cox (May 1912).
Ohio was the focal point of
national prohibition with both the Women's Christian Temperance
Union (WCTU) and the Anti-Saloon League being formed in the
state. The hotel hosted meetings of the local chapter of the
Anti-Saloon League in the 1890's as well as regional meetings of
the WCTU. In October of 1896, Populist/Democratic Party
candidate and ardent prohibitionist, William Jennings Bryan
spoke at the hotel. The hotel witnessed the full circle of the
movement with the ending of prohibition in 1933 and the
establishment of the city's first new bar, Der Rathskeller, in
its basement.
Though the Northern Civil Rights
Movement is often a neglected part of our national heritage, it
had a presence at the hotel. In 1947, the NAACP staged a sit-in
at the bus station lunch counter in the hotel to protest the
"whites only" service policy. Congressional candidate
William M. McCulloch supported the protest. McCulloch would go
on to twelve terms in Congress, and become a primary sponsor of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The sit-in would end restaurant
segregation in the entire city.
The hotel was a center for early
technology. The size of the hotel created the need for the
community's first sewer line, allowing Piqua to become one of
the earliest small towns to have a municipal sewer system. The
hotel had its own electricity generation system to power over
nine hundred lights in the hotel. The hotel had more electric
lights that the rest of the city combined.
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