Sandusky provides $500K for Cooke Complex project

SANDUSKY — The public contribution represents a small but necessary ingredient to reinvigorate the Cooke Complex in downtown Sandusky.During Monday's public meeting, city commissioners committed $500,000 in local funds to help offset an $8.5 million privately funded investment backed by Rick and Meghan Hogrefe. The overall financial outlay has increased from an earlier estimate of $6 million.The California couple with local roots — Rick graduated from Margaretta High School in 1979, and they maintain a downtown Sandusky residence — envision the Cooke Complex, formerly the Cooke Building, as a premier commercial center. It's one of several local projects they've undertaken, spread across Sandusky and Bay View, collectively totaling about $20 million. The Cooke Complex at Columbus Avenue and Market Street in downtown Sandusky.Most notably, the Cooke project involves:• Repairing the facade to its late 1800s appearance• Turning the storefront at 119 E. Market St. into a grand entrance• Connecting the first-floor stores into an arcade, of sorts, where people can easily access all of the building's businesses• Retaining the second floor's design as much as possible; They'll lease out units to businesses.• Restoring the third floor into a ballroom and theater for intimate performances and public events• Improving egress to all floors while adding an elevator• Merging this area with the former Huntley Building, now known as The Marketplace at Cooke; Inside there, the Hogrefes want to convert interior portions into a small downtown mall, food court and more.An $8.5 million project to restore the Cooke Complex, formerly the Cooke Building, in downtown Sandusky involves modernizing its theater area for intimate performances and public events. Rick and Meghan Hogrefe, pictured with Register reporter Andy Ouriel this past February, believe they can open the structure by 2020.The building's upper portions have remained vacant for many years, requiring an almost three-year timeline, which started in March, to resurrect several areas.Rick and Meghan believe they can finish the project — one they're both extremely passionate about — by next year, with an opening date pegged for late 2020."There is so much historical value with this building, and we want people to, once again, be proud of it," Meghan said.Rick doubled down on her assessment."We need to bring this building back," Rick said. "If we succeed, I believe we will have accomplished something great not just for us but for the entire city."Matt Lasko, the city's chief development officer, explained why he pitched this proposal to commissioners, who ultimately gave their approval."We know the Cooke Building is a local and state icon in terms of its historic significance, and it sits at one of the most prominent intersections in all of the city," said Lasko, referencing Columbus Avenue and Market Street. "To ensure that building is preserved for the next 100 years is critical for us in terms of maintaining our downtown integrity." Sandusky city commissioners provided $500,000 in local funds to help offset an $8.5 million project to revitalize the Cooke Complex, formerly the Cooke Building, in downtown Sandusky. Pictured is one room in the building taken this past February.Making sense of the dollars and centsA project to revitalize the Cooke Complex, formerly the Cooke Building, in downtown Sandusky into a new commercial center costs about $8.5 million. Most of the capital investment comes from Rick and Meghan Hogrefe, private developers overseeing work on numerous other buildings throughout Erie County.By a 5-1 vote, Sandusky city commissioners on Monday approved withdrawing $500,000 from a special account, solely generated by Chesapeake Lofts residents through property taxes, to help subsidize project costs. Commissioner Greg Lockhart voted against the proposal. Commissioner Wes Poole didn't attend Monday's meeting.The Chesapeake Lofts account is separate from Sandusky's $24 million everyday operating budget and can only go toward projects supporting downtown-based construction and infrastructure improvements. The Hogrefes also want state and federal tax credits to further offset their contributions.Investing in the Cooke Complex continues a recent trend in which public dollars went toward conserving storied structures. Most recently, earlier this year, the city secured state tax credit dollars for repopulating two vacant structures in downtown: the Feick and and Biemiller buildings."Downtown is in the midst of a significant resurgence and a lot of momentum," city chief development officer Matt Lasko said. "Our historic building stock, although a positive in terms of attracting investment and providing character, is also costly to renovate and preserve. We know for these projects, to ultimately be renovated and preserved appropriately and reoccupied, it is going to require a significant third-party subsidy in the form of both city assistance at the local level and state and federal tax credit assistance."Sandusky city commissioners provided $500,000 in local funds to help offset an $8.5 million project to revitalize the Cooke Complex, formerly the Cooke Building, in downtown Sandusky. Pictured is one room in the building taken this past February.Reach reporter Andy Ouriel at ouriel@sanduskyregister.com and follow him on Twitter @AndyOuriel.