Contributors: Robin Whitney - Senior Vice President of Real Estate & Construction | ProMedica
Callie Dudek - Public Relations Coordinator | ProMedica
Emily Dammeyer - Communications Manager | Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce
Callie Dudek - Public Relations Coordinator | ProMedica
Emily Dammeyer - Communications Manager | Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce
Indicates Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce Member
What happens when more than 20 local firms come together on a project over the course of three years? “Pride,” says Robin Whitney, senior vice president of real estate and construction at ProMedica. “It leads to a great thing.” Whitney started with ProMedica in May of 2014 with her first primary project being the revitalization of the historic Water Street Station. Water Street Station was originally built in 1896 to support the electricity needs due to the invention of Thomas Edison’s light bulb and it is now continuing to fulfill the mission of supporting innovation and creativity through housing ProMedica’s headquarters. “We have deep respect for the rich legacy of the Steam Plant and its vital location along the Maumee River at the mouth of Swan Creek. We’re glad to preserve this piece of history and share it with the community,” says Randy Oostra, president and CEO of ProMedica.
Having been an electricity plant for more than forty years and a steam plant fifty-five years, the building was basically four walls and a roof when ProMedica bought it in 2014. It stood vacant on the riverfront for thirty years. Throughout the architectural planning phase, a firm from Chicago called HKS, with the support of local companies including Mannik & Smith, SSOE, Rudolph Libbe, Laibe Electric, GEM Industrial, OCP Contractors, Spieker Co., AA Boos, Lakeside Interiors, Toledo Mirror, and many others, collaborated to make sure the cavernous space paid tribute to its roots, while accommodating the more than 1,000 employees that would eventually work on the campus. In an advance effort to plan for the move, Whitney began working with the city in 2015 to discuss the parking needs of the space and develop a concept for Promenade Park.
The Steam Plant, as the building at 100 Madison Avenue is affectionately called, is just one piece of ProMedica’s downtown campus. The campus also includes The Junction, the triangular shaped building between Summit and Water Streets, previously home to Key Bank, and will eventually include Edison Plaza. In creating this campus, ProMedica will be connecting their team from across the region that was previously split between more than two dozen locations.
The Steam Plant, as the building at 100 Madison Avenue is affectionately called, is just one piece of ProMedica’s downtown campus. The campus also includes The Junction, the triangular shaped building between Summit and Water Streets, previously home to Key Bank, and will eventually include Edison Plaza. In creating this campus, ProMedica will be connecting their team from across the region that was previously split between more than two dozen locations.
By using local construction firms in the renovation and building phases of the Steam Plant, Junction, Promenade Park and The Depot parking garage, more than 1,000 construction workers and employees touched the project, which is where the element of pride comes in for Whitney. “The community helped to build our campus, and they should all be proud of the work they’ve done.” She continued, “Pride leads to great things. When people are proud of their work, their dialogue begins to change and they will speak well about our city.”
The community was very involved in the design and planning of the park specifically. Promenade Park used to be home to “Party in the Park,” an enormous event in downtown Toledo in the 80’s and 90’s. The park is a nostalgic place for many and the team at ProMedica wanted to make sure that the community felt welcomed in the new park. They developed a stakeholder team including representatives from other firms including HCR ManorCare, Owens Corning, Toledo Design Center, Arts Commission and Toledo Museum of Art. They even invited Becky Powell to the table, who is the daughter of Betty Mauk, a local resident that influenced the early visions of the park in the 80’s. Their goal from the beginning was to make the park a community effort and collaboration of great ideas, while paying tribute to the history of the area. The team focused intently on use and schedules for the space, and brainstormed how to best design a space that could be a versatile entertainment venue. Already this year the park has played host to national music act Maddie and Tae, local stars Crystal Bowersox and Calysta Bevier, and the inaugural Momentum Festival which attracted 17,000 attendees in one weekend.
Scattered throughout Promenade Park are visual and interactive installations from local artists. One piece, called Echo, was designed by Toledo Natives Kristine Rumman and Dane Turpening. The artists repurposed the original smokestacks from the Steam Plant and created steel rings that you can walk through in the park. Even the stairwell of The Depot is a focal point for the campus, transformed by Erwin Redl into a beacon of light called Tower of Light, made up of glass panels and LED lights that are visible from across the river. Also on the wall of the parking garage is a 30’ x 60’ television screen with audio experience installed by Great Lakes Sound. The screen is used to showcase videos about the new headquarters project, historical tributes, concerts at the park and more. Indoors, the work of local firm Graphite Design + Build pays tribute to key figures in the region’s history. Their artwork is featured in each of the Steam Plant’s elevator lobbies.
The expertise of many area firms helped to make the project feasible. Jobs Ohio came through with a revitalization grant and the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority served as a partner in obtaining tax credits that offset some of the burden of reinvigorating a historic space. Each of the bricks in the structure are from the original building, a feat that is not accomplished without the collaboration of many. Whitney cited financial input from LISC, the city of Toledo and the Regional Growth Partnership and real estate contributions from Reichle Klein, Marshall Melhorn and Midland Title. She is especially proud of the number of minority and women owned enterprises (MBEs and WBEs) that worked on the projects. The team exceeded their minimum goal of 15% contribution from MBEs and WBEs on all three projects.
The community was very involved in the design and planning of the park specifically. Promenade Park used to be home to “Party in the Park,” an enormous event in downtown Toledo in the 80’s and 90’s. The park is a nostalgic place for many and the team at ProMedica wanted to make sure that the community felt welcomed in the new park. They developed a stakeholder team including representatives from other firms including HCR ManorCare, Owens Corning, Toledo Design Center, Arts Commission and Toledo Museum of Art. They even invited Becky Powell to the table, who is the daughter of Betty Mauk, a local resident that influenced the early visions of the park in the 80’s. Their goal from the beginning was to make the park a community effort and collaboration of great ideas, while paying tribute to the history of the area. The team focused intently on use and schedules for the space, and brainstormed how to best design a space that could be a versatile entertainment venue. Already this year the park has played host to national music act Maddie and Tae, local stars Crystal Bowersox and Calysta Bevier, and the inaugural Momentum Festival which attracted 17,000 attendees in one weekend.
Scattered throughout Promenade Park are visual and interactive installations from local artists. One piece, called Echo, was designed by Toledo Natives Kristine Rumman and Dane Turpening. The artists repurposed the original smokestacks from the Steam Plant and created steel rings that you can walk through in the park. Even the stairwell of The Depot is a focal point for the campus, transformed by Erwin Redl into a beacon of light called Tower of Light, made up of glass panels and LED lights that are visible from across the river. Also on the wall of the parking garage is a 30’ x 60’ television screen with audio experience installed by Great Lakes Sound. The screen is used to showcase videos about the new headquarters project, historical tributes, concerts at the park and more. Indoors, the work of local firm Graphite Design + Build pays tribute to key figures in the region’s history. Their artwork is featured in each of the Steam Plant’s elevator lobbies.
The expertise of many area firms helped to make the project feasible. Jobs Ohio came through with a revitalization grant and the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority served as a partner in obtaining tax credits that offset some of the burden of reinvigorating a historic space. Each of the bricks in the structure are from the original building, a feat that is not accomplished without the collaboration of many. Whitney cited financial input from LISC, the city of Toledo and the Regional Growth Partnership and real estate contributions from Reichle Klein, Marshall Melhorn and Midland Title. She is especially proud of the number of minority and women owned enterprises (MBEs and WBEs) that worked on the projects. The team exceeded their minimum goal of 15% contribution from MBEs and WBEs on all three projects.
“We’re really proud of the hard work the community put in to making ProMedica’s new headquarters what it is today. We couldn’t have done it without the collaboration of so many fantastic partners. This truly is a project built by the community, for the community.” - Robin Whitney
Please email Emily Dammeyer, Communications Manager, Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce to submit a story for our blog.
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