The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Old Village Hall renovations complete
Community landmark hosting open house following nearly $2 million investment
It was a long journey, but Mentor’s Old Village Hall is officially recycled.
NMS Inc. recently completed painstaking renovations to transform the Queen Anne-style building at 8383 Mentor Ave. into 21st-century office space.
The company will welcome the public to an open house and reception from 3 to 8 p.m. March 22.
“After a multiyear renovation and restoration of the former Mentor Village Hall building, we are very gratified to have completed this important project,” said Joseph Michalski, an NMS director and the Mentor office manager. “This building is an architectural and historical gem, and very important in the history of Mentor.”
The building served as the community’s government offices from 1888 to 1976. It also has been part public meeting hall and post office, and was used for concerts, lectures and school graduation ceremonies. Various businesses have occupied the space as well.
In December 2013, it was acquired by an affiliate of Chardon-based NMS for relocation of its Mentor accounting, tax and wealth management offices. NMS petitioned the U.S. Department of the Interior to place the building on the National Register of Historic Places, and it was granted in 2014.
The exterior renovations largely involved removing the white paint coating the original red brick. Inside, it’s a mix of modern design with a few remaining signs of the old building. They include the refinished wood flooring, exposed stone wall on the main floor, some wainscoting and the bathroom windows.
The rest of the windows had to be custom-made, and installations posed their own hurdles, said Shawn Neece, NMS managing director. JCI Contractors Inc. of Ashtabula also had to rebuild the second floor, removed by a previous owners’ renovation attempt.
The project totaled $1.9 million, including construction and land acquisition.
Financing was accomplished with the help of ERIEBANK, tax credits from state and federal agencies, and assistance from the city of Mentor via tax abatement, an economic development grant and financing.
“Whenever you undertake an adaptive reuse preservation project, you have to balance the modern needs with historic integrity,” Neece said. “Also, the State Historic Preservation Office and the city of Mentor had expectations and requirements in return for the grants and tax credits awarded on the project.”
A professional office and its employees are a welcome addition to the Old Village neighborhood, said Ronald M. Traub, Mentor economic & community development director.
“The preservation of the village hall is important, because it is a landmark in the city (that) hopefully all residents can relate to and take pride in,” he said.
The Mentor building is home to 16 of the company’s 50 employees.
One of them, Mary Jo Weaver, worked in the building 20 years ago. At the time, she was employed by Picardini & Assoc. accounting firm and there were multiple businesses in the structure.
“In those days, it wasn’t as cool as it is now,” she said, adding that her company moved out in the late
’90s and merged with NMS in 2014. “I’ve made it full circle.”
Renovations unearthed some surprises, including a large 1895 plat map of Mentor Village. Among the prominent property owners listed are Garfield, Morley, Presley, Corning, Cadle and Aldrich.
“It was just thrown behind a bunch of stuff,” said Nick DeCamillo, JCI job superintendent.
It, along with some historic photos of the building, hang prominently in the lobby area.
NMS has a history of such undertakings.
In 2005, the company restored the old Chardon Post Office for its corporate headquarters, and two NMS directors advised and co-developed the restoration and adaptation of the historic Ashtabula Hotel for a medical office building.
When asked whether NMS has its eye on any other buildings, Neece said, “Always.”