Julian Building Easement

272 S Front St,
Columbus, OH 43215

 
In December of 2013, Heritage Ohio received a conservation easement on the Julian, a former shoe factory located at the corner of Main Street and Front Street, in downtown Columbus. And anyone who had spent time downtown prior to 2013 remembers what the building looked like.

With a history as a builder of new retail and residential buildings, Casto, the building owner, was embarking on a new venture: namely, a historic rehab. And it’s safe to say that their first Columbus target was one of downtown’s ugliest buildings, the former Julian and Kokenge Building (or Lape and Adler, as it was known for a portion of its history). It’s also safe to say their foray into rehab turned out to be an unqualified success!

To see the building today, you might not realize that the windows are replacements, comprising a design painstakingly replicated to be faithful to the original. And you might not realize the extent of concrete and masonry restoration work that went into repairing the exterior elements.
We were especially excited to promote the building’s amazing transformation in October of 2015 as the venue for our Legacy Circle Reception, kicking off our annual conference. Attendees gathered on the ground floor for networking, and had the opportunity to tour model units.
“We know that preservationists have a keen vision for ‘what could be’ but I think even ardent preservationists had a hard time envisioning just how good the Julian Building could look, after rehab. But the Casto developers pulled it off, and now we all get to enjoy this beautiful historic building once again, gracing the downtown streetscape,” stated Joyce Barrett, director of Heritage Ohio.
For more information on Heritage Ohio’s easement program, contact Frank Quinn at fquinn@heritageohio.org or at 614.258.6200.