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Columbus Landmarks Publication

The annual list of Most Endangered Sites

to create awareness and stimulate redevelopment of historic properties.

This list represents an immediate opportunity to achieve our vision for Columbus: a thriving, creative city that values and protects its architectural and cultural legacy and is committed to equity, sustainable growth, and design excellence.

2024 Most Endangered Site

Holy Rosary & St. John Catholic Church

Site Address
648 S Ohio Avenue, Columbus, OH 43205 (Old Oaks)
Building Date
1898
Franklin County Auditor File Parcel ID
010-066909-00

The Holy Rosary & St. John Catholic Church was designed by the Columbus architecture firm David Riebel & Sons. The church, built in 1898, is designed in the High Gothic style with distinctive high towers, rich masonry detailing, and large stained-glass windows which were donated by the parishioners and bear their names. Also on the property are a Rectory (built in 1899), a Parish School built in 1905, and a Convent built in 1950.

David Riebel was the first architect of Columbus City Schools and designed over 40 school buildings.

The Catholic diocese closed the parish providing services on May 12, 2024. The fate of these historic structures remains uncertain at this time.

2024 Most Endangered Site

Mifflin School House no. 5 

Site Address
3680 Westerville Road, Columbus, OH 43224 (Northeast/Walnut Creek)
Building Date
1907
Franklin County Auditor File Parcel ID
010-158461-00
Ohio Historic Inventory (OHI) Form(s)
Filing(s): August 1, 1975 FRA-2044-11

The circa 1920 Mifflin District No. 5 Schoolhouse on Westerville Road is an example of early schoolhouses that are quickly disappearing from our communities. The diminutive brick structure features a tall distinctive central tower with exposed rafter tails at the roof overhang.

A development proposal to construct multifamily housing and parking lots on the site has been approved by the Development Commission, making the fate of this historic building uncertain.

Ram Upreti, a representative of the Vedic Welfare Society, spoke to the tour group and gave some context for the organization’s decision to sell the building, which he said has been a central gathering place and spiritual home for the region’s large population of Nepali-speaking Bhutanese. Numbering over 30,000, many of the refugees who have settled in Columbus spent years – and sometimes decades – in refugee camps in Nepal after being forced out of their native Bhutan.

In 2018 the group bought the Westerville Road building for $165,000 and will soon sell it for $450,000 to the developer of the apartment complex, enabling the congregation to purchase a five-acre piece of land in the Reynoldsburg area that will better serve the growing community.

2024 Most Endangered Site

Ohio State Hospital East

Site Address
181 Taylor Avenue, Columbus, OH 43203 (King-Lincoln Bronzeville)
Building Date
1971
Franklin County Auditor File Parcel ID
010-021300-00
Ohio Historical Inventory (OHI) Form(s)
Filing(s): August 15, 2012 FRA1011719

The 16-story tower of the Ohio State Hospital East on Taylor Avenue, built in 1971, exhibits recognizable elements of Modern Design – vertical bays of plate glass windows, dark porcelain steel panels, and a strong base clad in rusticated stone.

The tower was designed by notable African American architect, Leon Ransom, Jr.

OSU has plans to demolish this Mid-Century Modern tower – an iconic landmark for the Near East Side.

2024 Most Endangered Site

Sugar Shack

Site Address
1551 N Fourth Street, Columbus, OH 43201 (Indianola Terrace)
Building Date
1896
Franklin County Auditor File Parcel ID
010-007499-00

The Sugar Shack is an example of typical 1920’s commercial mixed-use buildings found in many urban neighborhoods. Businesses are on the first floor with apartments above.

The building has been vacant a long while and may face demolition due to growing development pressures in the Weinland Park community.

In the 1920’s it was known as the Chapman Building and housed a grocery store. In the 1960’s it became the Sugar Shack, a popular local destination and live music venue.

2024 Most Endangered Site

The Spaghetti Warehouse

Site Address
397 W Broad Street, Columbus, OH 43215 (Franklinton)
Building Date
1891
Franklin County Auditor File Parcel ID
010-010128-00
3D Scan of Building (Ralph Wolfe, Matterport 3D)
Public Link to 3D Scan
Ohio Inventory Index
Filing(s): June (4) 1975, code: 56 FRA-623-16; July 1988, code: FRA-623-16; September (30)-1994, code: FRA-623-16

The Spaghetti Warehouse in Franklinton was originally an 1890s ice storage warehouse, known as the Crystal Ice Manufacturing & Cold Storage Co. A solid masonry structure, built to accommodate heavy loads, it also has decorative features such as recessed window openings and a brick corbelled cornice.

Weiler confirmed that the plan remains to tear the historic structure down, although what the final development will end up looking like is still undecided

The building suffered a partial roof collapse in 2022 and remains vacant. Development pressures for this property are strong, and the building is in danger of demolition.

Let’s keep discovering and saving our city’s history, one landmark at a time!

Join us on the Advocacy Bus Tour and create awareness of architectural heritage at risk.

Nominate a historic building at risk today and help ensure our city’s architectural heritage is preserved for future generations!

August 31, 2024 in 2023 Most Endangered Sites, Most Endangered Sites

2023 Most Endangered Sites

Columbus Landmarks Publication The annual list of Most Endangered Sites to create awareness and stimulate redevelopment of historic properties. This list represents an immediate opportunity to achieve our vision for…
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