A piece of Cleveland’s manufacturing history will be honored, writes Karin Connelly Rice for FreshWater, when the 1922 Mueller Electric Company factory building at 1587 E. 31st St. is transformed into Mueller Lofts—51 studio, one-, two-, and three- bedroom apartments in the heart of AsiaTown. In addition to creating a new residential option in the neighborhood, the developers will offer residents a way to have a portion of their rents go back into the community via a volunteer program.

Partners Josh Rosen, Naomi Sabel, and Ben Enzinga of Sustainable Community Associates (SCA) first bought the Mueller building in 2015. (The company is also know for transforming Tremont’s historic Wagner Awning building and the 1930 Fairmont Creamery building.) They then spent the first year stabilizing and exploring the structure before they received $1.745 million in state historic tax credits and $2.3 million in federal historic tax credits to renovate the factory, according to Rosen.

Designed by architecture firm Bialosky, John G. Johnson Construction began converting the historic two-story building to Mueller Lofts last July. The first tenants are scheduled to move in on June 1, and the lofts are already more than 60 percent leased.

“AsiaTown has not seen a lot of loft conversions, and this is the first large-scale conversion,” Rosen explains. “We are super-excited that people are embracing the qualities of the neighborhood.”

Read Connelly Rice's full article in FreshWater.

This article was originally published on April 9, 2018 in FreshWater. For more information on Mueller Lofts, visit themuellerlofts.com.