Downtown Facade Project is Making the Old Into New Again
By Catherine Stortz Ripley, Constitution-Tribune, September 22, 2010

The east side of downtown Locust Street is getting a facelift of sorts with the 1960s-era tin facades being removed from storefronts to reveal the original architecture of the these century-old structures.

Submitted Photos

CAPTION: The tin facades from buildings in the 600 block of Locust Street came down Sunday, revealing the original character of the century-old buildings. Tin was placed on the buildings around 50 years ago to improve their appearances. Now, the buildings' owners have partnered with Main Street Chillicothe to restore the storefronts to their original grandeur.

The tin from three storefronts was removed Sunday, marking the first phase of a cooperative effort between the buildings' owners and Main Street Chillicothe to renovate the buildings. The project is part of Main Street's facade renovation program, which is funded by the Chillicothe Development Corporation. The buildings are owned by James Beemer and Mike Palmer.

With the exception of a tin facade at the north end of this block, there are just two remaining downtown blocks that still have tin facades according to Main Street Chillicothe Director Crystal Narr. Those areas are the 700 block of Locust and the 600 block of Webster.

The tin facades were installed around 50 years ago to improve the aesthetics of the buildings. Narr said that, fortunately, the facades were installed correctly and had good caps on top in order to preserve the buildings underneath.

There are three storefronts involved in this current facade renovation project, and they comprise the businesses of Essential Kneads and the Healthy Living Store. The tin facade at Heartland Advertising, just north of the current project, was removed several months ago also with financial assistance from Main Street Chillicothe.