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Price Stores Building Uncovered as Restoration Work Begins

September 15, 2020 By Andrew Walsh 3 Comments


price stores restored original brick facade

A previous article on Dayton Vistas looked at the tantalizing possibility of “uncovering” two historic buildings that have been obscured under modern claddings for decades.

Over the past few days, Columbus-based The Windsor Companies has done just that with the Price Stores building at 52 S. Jefferson Street as they begin the next phase of development for the Fire Blocks district downtown.

The Romanesque Revival structure was completed in 1915 and was originally known as the Home Telephone Building.

The Home Telephone Company later became part of the Ohio State Telephone Company, which itself became Ohio Bell in 1921.

price stores old building

The modern orange aluminum siding had been a distinctive feature of the structure since 1972 when it was installed at a cost of $100,000.

price stores today

After removing the panels Windsor found that “the brick was preserved and is in really good condition” which bodes well for its goal to “take that building back to its original era of significance.”

A couple more images of the newly-uncovered brick facade.

price stores front

price stores looking nw

The negative part of this story is that the clothing retailer Price Stores, which had occupied the building since 1950 and specialized in men’s clothing, bridal, tuxedos and prom attire, is vacating the space and relocating to Centerville.

Price Stores sold the structure to Windsor in early 2017 and leased the space back, but soon did not need as big of a footprint while the developer had other plans for the building. (While no official plans have been released, a boutique hotel has been mentioned as a possible use.)

Although these historic preservation projects and new downtown developments are undoubtedly a positive trend, many lament the loss of the type of retail businesses that once anchored downtown.

Another example is the Reed-Steffan Building on W 5th St where redevelopment has included the demolition of the building next door and the possible departure of longtime tenant the Dayton Chess Club.

With so much of downtown being converted into luxury housing that sits out of reach of the vast majority of Daytonians and commands higher rents for retail spaces, we risk losing these quirky, independent businesses that make downtown interesting.

But now that the Price Stores Building has been uncovered, we can turn our attention to the second site from our 2018 article, which appears to be possible due to the Dayton Public Schools offices moving across the street:

reynolds dps downtown

Sources:

Dayton Through Time, Curt Dalton

Related Posts:

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    Lost and Found Buildings on Jefferson Street
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    Uncovering Old Buildings in Downtown Dayton
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    History of the Soon-to-be-Redeveloped Journal Herald…
  • Work Underway at Graphic Arts Building?
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Filed Under: New Developments Tagged With: Centerville, Fire Blocks District, Home Telephone Company, Ohio, Ohio Bell, Price Stores, Windsor Companies

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Stephen says

    September 17, 2020 at 11:46 am

    I rented my prom tux from Price back in 2007.

    What a building lay hidden under that facade.

    I’ve notices a recurring pattern in these downtown redevelopment articles. All the firms are Columbus based. I don’t understand. Do we not have any local developers who are willing and able to execute these projects?) I know there is an urban development boom in Columbus right now, so perhaps there are simply more hungry young developers with more experience who are starting to stretch out.

    Perhaps we never saw the potential right in front of our own noses? Sometimes it takes an outsiders eye to see opportunity i suppose.

    Reply
    • Michael David Austing says

      September 19, 2020 at 4:38 pm

      I agree, Stephen; Dayton needs to utilize local firms for this!

      Reply
  2. Mike Austing says

    September 19, 2020 at 4:37 pm

    My granddad took me to Price Stores when I was 13 years old for my first suit. Beatlemania was just starting here in the U.S. and I really wanted a Nehru jacket suit! Gpa told me, “I’m buying your suit; you’ll get what I pay for”!

    Reply

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I'm Andrew Walsh, a writer and academic librarian. I research Dayton history, architecture, preservation, and urban redevelopment.

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