YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corp. has expanded its commercial property portfolio on Glenwood Avenue with its acquisition of a former popular nightspot.
Ian Beniston, YNDC executive director, said the organization has not determined a use yet for the former Park Inn. The Glenwood Avenue restaurant and nightclub, which closed in 1994, was a regular venue for The Fabulous Flashbacks, a popular band that played covers from the 1960s and ’70s.
YNDC paid $225,000 for the three connected buildings and adjacent parcels, which it acquired in February.
“The general goal is to get the building stabilized, then figure out what’s a sustainable plan for it,” Beniston said. “The main building needs a new roof, which the wheels are already in motion to make that happen. But beyond that, we need to get a full plan before we invest too much more into it.”
The Park Inn property joins several commercial properties YNDC owns along the Glenwood corridor, including the former Foster Theater, Glenwood Business Center and Glenwood Plaza.
“We have been incrementally developing, stabilizing and revitalizing the Glenwood corridor and the surrounding neighborhoods, so we’ve been attempting to acquire and assemble as much of the vacant and underutilized property as possible to include the Park Inn property,” Beniston said.
Glenwood Avenue business owners – whether they have been there for decades or are new to the area – are invested in the corridor, which made “a huge difference,” said Stephanie Gilchrist, Youngstown economic development director.
Beyond YNDC’s investments, Glenwood Grounds Café opened three years ago in a building across from Glenwood Plaza, whose tenants include Savannah Joe’s, QuickMed Urgent Care and Glenwood Fresh Market.
Other businesses along the artery include the Youngstown Playhouse, which has operated its main theater there since 1959, and an assortment of retailers and service providers. Ryan’s Chair Barber and Beauty Salon at 2935 Glenwood is operated by Gilchrist’s husband.
The city is in the process of renovating the former Bottom Dollar Food store as a community marketplace. “They’re moving faster than we thought, so that’s happening sooner than later,” Gilchrist remarked.
Investments in the Glenwood corridor are important not only because it leads to downtown Youngstown but because of the proximity to the former Idora Park property and new housing development in the surrounding neighborhoods by YNDC.
“That whole corridor is just filled with history and so much potential,” Gilchrist said.
Redevelopment of the Park Inn property likely will involve a residential element, Beniston said. Research of historical records showed housing on the second and third floors of the buildings at one point.
“We’re working with a third party right now to develop a stronger understanding here of the market viability for very specific commercial and other services on Glenwood to determine what we may be able to locate and site where,” he said. “That’s something we’re working on developing a stronger data driven understanding of.”
The Foster Theater property is proving to be a tougher nut to crack, Beniston acknowledged.
YNDC bought the former adult theater in 2021 and announced plans to develop retail frontage and loft-style apartments on the property. “The costs are a challenge,” he said.
Gilcrest said she would like to see what is referred to in economic development as “a 15-minute walkable city,” in which everything residents might need is within a 15-minute walk, developed on Glenwood as well as the city’s other main corridors.
“The Glenwood corridor is underestimated by a lot of folks,” she said. They don’t realize “the beautiful landscape and homes that are being built within that corridor,” due to YNDC and the city, that can be seen coming in from Boardman Township and via state Route 62.