Panel OKs bid to demolish Wright brothers’ 1st bike shop

DAYTON, OHIO >> The Dayton Board of Zoning Appeals has approved the city’s request to demolish a 129-year-old historic building that once was the site of the Wright brothers’ first bike shop.

The city wants to tear down the site because the building has deteriorated to a point where it no longer can be maintained and redeveloped, the Dayton Daily News has reported. Public safety concerns also have been raised by some who fear the building could collapse.

Though agreeing that most of the building should be demolished, the Dayton Landmarks Commission rejected the demolition request in September. The panel instead recommended that the city readvertise the property and encourage its renovation in a way that preserves the historic facade.

Preservation groups also had opposed the city’s plan. They argued that keeping the building’s facade and incorporating it into a redevelopment project would make the project eligible for historic tax credits.

The city appealed the Landmarks Commission’s decision to the zoning appeals board, claiming it erred in its application of architectural design standards. The board voted 5-1 last week to reverse the commission’s decision and gave the city permission to raze the property.

The shop first was built in 1892 to serve as the Wright brothers’ first bike shop. Soon thereafter, Gem City Ice Cream Co. bought the property and housed it until 1975, when it was sold to another company.

The Wright brothers, Wilbur and younger sibling Orville, were aviation pioneers and generally are credited with building the first airplane. They started their work on flight several years after they built the shop that will be razed.

The brothers made their initial powered flight with the Wright Flyer in December 1903 at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.