WARREN, Ohio – One of the city’s longstanding civic landmarks is entering a new phase. 

Old Erie Lodge #3 has spent the past several years reinvesting in the Warren Masonic Temple while also changing how the building is used and how the lodge engages with the community.

Encouraged by the Grand Lodge and guided by a stronger community focus, the Warren Temple Co. changed the building’s bylaws last year and moved away from routine commercial use of the property in favor of charitable organizations, community groups and public activities, a news release states.

“Our lodge has become younger and much more community-focused in recent years,” said Murad Ghazi Shorrab, president of the Warren Temple Co. and the 223rd worshipful master of Old Erie Lodge #3. “We’ve changed our bylaws, invested heavily in the building and made a deliberate decision that its future should involve serving and engaging the community. We’re not trying to preserve a building by keeping the doors closed.”

Since 2020, the investment has included replacement of the boiler and roof, work on downspouts, brick pointing, concrete facade repairs and other major building improvements. The lodge is now replacing an entire seating bank on the third floor, with additional interior work planned over the coming months.

Old Erie is also updating the building’s security and access systems with cameras and automatic locks. The third-floor Blue Room includes a pipe organ and piano, and the lodge is adding an 88-key Roland Juno keyboard as part of continuing improvements to the space. Exterior improvement plans have also received downtown design approval.

Old Erie Lodge No. 3 traces its history to 1803 and is among Ohio’s oldest Masonic lodges. The original Erie Lodge in Warren was among the early lodges involved in the formation of the Grand Lodge of Ohio in 1808. Old Erie Lodge and associated Masonic bodies acquired the current Warren temple property in 1903.

The effort to open the organization more to the community builds on earlier public outreach. During a 2023 open house, lodge leaders spoke publicly about the importance of remaining relevant, meeting with the community and giving Warren residents an opportunity to see inside an organization that has often been little understood outside its membership, the release states.

Old Erie is welcoming charitable and community organizations into the building and creating more opportunities for the public to enter spaces that historically have been less visible.

Old Erie will welcome the public to its first Craft & Artisan Show at the temple, 112 Pine Ave. NE, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 10. Admission is free, with donations accepted.

The event will bring local makers and artisans into the building for a day of shopping, food and conversation. Participating vendors will offer a varied mix of handmade and specialty goods, including jewelry, rocks and minerals, fossils, aromatherapy products, handmade soap, engraving, lighted scenes, baked goods, crochet items, dog treats, dipping sauces and additional artisan work.

Visitors will also be able to enjoy grilled cheese and soup prepared by the lodge, along with coffee, soda and water.