The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
‘CLEAN CANVAS’
Former Cantina, Tony J’s bar tumbles down
“Obviously, you want to remarket, rebrand the district. You remove the blight and create a clean canvas that is suitable for redevelopment.”
An old establishment on the southside was demolished Oct. 12 as the vision for the future continues in Lorain.
The building formerly known as Tony J’s bar, and later Cantina Sports Bar, at the corner of East 28th Street and Oakwood Avenue, was reduced to rubble as the neighborhood looks to move on and build something new
Ward 6 Councilman Rey Carrion said the business was a big
part of the steel mill days.
“The old Tony J’s, it was a staple in the community,” Carrion said. “This was the Cheers of South Lorain.
“All kinds of nationalities came here; Puerto Ricans, Mexicans ... it didn’t matter,” he said. “Not only was it a bar, they did a lot of.holiday and community events.”
— Ward 6 Councilman Rey Carrion
“It was a place where people felt comfortable coming in and socializing,” Carrion said.
The bar couldn’t maintain enough business with the shutdown and reductions at the steel mills, he said.
“It’s just like with everything else here,” he said. “This area had like over 100 bars. But with the closure and shutdown of the mill, these places just could not sustain the business.
“This place has been closed for at least 15 years. In the past year, we tore down El Patio, the Mexican Restaurant, this one today, and Puerto Rican Home structure came down last week, it was 1603 E. 28th St., so we will continue to move forward.”
Looking forward
Carrion said the demolition is part of the goal for his ward.
“Obviously, you want to remarket, rebrand the district,” he said. “You remove the blight and create a clean canvas that is suitable for redevelopment.
“We have been working really hard in this sector of South Lorain, 28th Street, to make it a cultural district. One that focuses on the nationalities, the restaurants and the arts. It’s a little bit different than what the waterfront is doing, as far as the entertainment.”
Carrion said what the southside has planned is really part of what the city as a whole is trying to develop.
“I think with the whole city in general, it takes time; it was a steel town for many, many years,” he said. “I think you can adapt and find a new identity while still keeping the origins and your history.
“We’re looking at restaurants and businesses that are into the arts. It’s a service-oriented business focus. There are many restaurants, shops and health care venues that we want to see.”
Gateway
Max Upton, director of the city’s Department of Building, Housing and Planning, said Lorain is applying for a Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency Transportation for Livable Communities Initiative planning grant that will go toward the improvements in South Lorain.
“That will be an $85,000 grant,” Upton said. “The application will be submitted later this week.
“This road (East 28th Street) feels like a super speedway. It doesn’t look like it was built for a neighborhood and what South
Lorain is going to become; it was built for what South Lorain was.”
Lorain Mayor Jack Bradley said the improvements to East 28th Street will be similar to what is happening on Broadway.
“You saw what happened with Broadway, in downtown Lorain, and it became a commercial corridor with various restaurants and shops and people walking,” Bradley said. “Well, that’s what we envi
sion for 28th Street because this is the gateway into the city of Lorain.
“So, if we could connect 28th Street with Broadway, then we could have a complete corridor of commercial restaurants, and peo
ple entering our city would actually enter from 28th Street all the way down to Broadway.”
Upton said there will be 46 other demolitions that will happen by the end of the year.