Historic Carlisle-Allen Building

For the architecture and design, Renew has selected LDA Architects of Cleveland. For construction management, they have selected JCI Contractors of Ashtabula. This extensive redevelopment project will include new apartments, offices, and first-floor retail space.  The rest of 2019 will be spent on the planning and predevelopment work for the property.   Construction is planned to begin in 2020.  

According to the Carlisle’s Home Store website: The Carlisle-Allen building was opened in 1927 as a department store by L.T. Carlisle and Miles Allen. The grandiose building offered the first elevator in Ashtabula. By the 1980’s Carlisle’s grew to 14 stores in Northeast Ohio and Northwest Pennsylvania and in 1996 the company was acquired by Peebles. 

Renew is no stranger to developing complex historic tax credit projects of this sort. Renew is led by Chuck Borsukoff and Shawn Neece, who, along with JCI Contractors (JCI) redeveloped the Historic Hotel Ashtabula into medical offices and is currently occupied by Signature Health and own the building through its 4726 Main Avenue LLC affiliate. This 55,000 square foot historic adaptive reuse rehabilitation project is the largest in Ashtabula County’s history. The same team also completed the adaptive reuse of the Historic Mentor Village Hall and the Old Chardon Post Office. Both buildings are now offices for the accounting firm NMS.  In late 2018, Renew, though another affiliate, also acquired the Historic Castle Block property in downtown Ashtabula and has already begun the design and pre-construction process. The property will soon be home to apartments and commercial retail.

Chuck Borsukoff says “Our group is already invested in downtown Ashtabula and own multiple properties, including the Hotel Ashtabula building on Main Ave.  We are pleased to embark on this new development and be part of the resurgence of downtown.”

“Historic rehabilitation and adaptive reuse projects were some of our first development projects and continue to be the keystone of our real estate development activities” explains Shawn Neece. “We look forward to continuing our development activities in Ashtabula.  We are especially appreciative of Jim Timonere (Ashtabula City Manager), Mary Church (Assistant Director of Planning & Community Development), Eddy Eckert (Ashtabula Land Reutilization Corporation Executive Director), and all the other community stakeholders that helped make this a reality.”  

Lorenzo (Ren) Carlisle, great-great grandson of the Carlisle-Allen Department Store founder, commented on the project.  "I am delighted to hear … the plans for the old Carlisle building.  The re-development of the Carlisle building will be a huge boost for Main Avenue and the City.  I congratulate Renew Partners for their commitment to Ashtabula and for their vision regarding a landmark building that has been vacant too long."

“JCI is proud to call Ashtabula home, and pleased to be part of another important adaptive-reuse project downtown,” expresses Charles N. (Charlie) Borsukoff, Vice President.