WILLOUGHBY, Ohio — It was a fire so large that the smoke showed up on our Power of Five radar.
The uninhabited apartment building under construction at the Chagrin Riverwalk along Mentor Avenue in Willoughby caught fire and burned to the ground in February 2023.
Now, almost exactly two years later, that building is finally complete.
"You think back to two years ago when there was just two elevator towers standing and that was all that was left for quite a few months," Joe Carmigiano, director of property management at the locally owned Marous Management Services, said. "After the building was turned to rubble, this is touching."
RELATED: Nearby residents evacuated after large apartment fire in downtown Willoughby
Carmigiano told News 5 that the layout is identical to the original.
"It was an easy decision to rebuild," Carmigiano said. "Ownership knew what they wanted. This was a legacy project. They have planned on doing this for quite some time and nothing was going to stop them."
The 166 completed units are on top of the 199 units in the western part of the complex and another 66 units in the eastern part of the complex.
And when it comes to the need for apartments in Willoughby, Mayor Robert Fiala is emphatic that the demand is there.
These new units are part of the estimated 1500 units they're adding near Downtown over the past few years.
"Downtown, what we’re finding is the younger generation prefers rental units versus owner-occupied," Mayor Fiala said. "Our downtown survives primarily on people who can get here quickly and easily. There's no quick or easier way to get here than walking. It’s a real asset to our merchants, bars and restaurants."
The first batch of residents are slated to move into the new building on Monday.
To learn more about the apartments, CLICK HERE.
