AKRON, Ohio -- The National Park Service has added Akron’s Kenmore Boulevard Historic District to its National Register of Historic Places.

Tina Boyes, executive director of the Kenmore Neighborhood Alliance, announced the designation at the organization’s final “Kenmore First Friday” event of the year. It is the first such designation for an Akron neighborhood business district.

The Kenmore Boulevard Historic District runs from about 872 to 1030 Kenmore Boulevard and includes 2181 14th Street SW, 2200 15th Street SW and 940 Florida Avenue.

The designation makes properties in the district eligible for historic tax credits, which can have “catalytic economic impact,” according to Ohio’s Office of Strategic Investments.

Boyes said the impact could be even greater when combined with Kenmore’s so-called “Opportunity Zone," which delays capital gains taxes on property investments. A project by Ederer & Associates at 952 and 956 Kenmore Boulevard is already in the works, she said.

“We know how daunting commercial revitalization can be,” Boyes said. "But when you factor in all the city, state and federal incentives and the increased neighborhood retail demand coming... Kenmore Boulevard suddenly becomes an attractive place to invest your money,” Boyes said.

The alliance began looking into the designation last year, when Kenmore was also named one of Akron’s 11 Great Streets Districts, where organizations can apply for competitive facade grants and infrastructure improvements.

The designation application was supported by the Kenmore Historical Society and received funding from the City of Akron and Ohio Historic Preservation Pipeline Initiative. Ohio’s Historic Preservation Office approved the nomination in March, and the National Park Service approved it on Friday.

Ward 9 Councilman Mike Freeman spoke Friday about the effort by citizens to achieve national historic recognition.

“This really is something that has happened because some people had vision," Freeman said. "Seeing that which is possible, not with the eyes, but with the heart.”

Lauren Burge, historic architect and principal at Perspectus Historic Architecture, the Chambers, Murphy & Burge Studio, was the author of the district’s nomination.

Burge said Kenmore’s properties reflect early 20th century architecture, with entrances leading to the sidewalk for pedestrians and streetcar riders.

“Most of the contributing buildings to the Kenmore Boulevard Historic District were constructed within a 20-year period between 1908 and 1928 and retain their materials and workmanship, imparting the overall feeling of an early 20th century ‘streetcar suburb’ commercial district," Burge said.

Streetcar lines developed in 1901 to connect new suburban developments to factories in Barberton and Akron. That same year, the Akron Realty Company began developing Kenmore to be what they termed “the choicest residence sections for both the busiest cities, as well as for all the factories between them.”

Kenmore’s streetcar line stopped operating in 1947, but its legacy continues with the tree-lined center median of the boulevard.

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