News 5 is updating you on a massive project in Lorain County: the demolition of the Avon Lake Power Plant.
It is an iconic structure along the lakefront that’s been there for almost 100 years.
The coal-fired power plant opened in 1926. At peak capacity, it provided electricity to about 800,000 homes.
The plant produced its last megawatt in March of 2022.
Demolition started soon after with asbestos removal, which took about a year.
Watch our 2022 coverage of the potential plans for the power plant:
Currently, they said they’re about 25%-30% done with the actual tear-down of the building.
They hope to be done in the spring of 2025.
Because the plant has meant so much economically and historically to the city of Avon Lake and now stands to greatly impact its future – News 5 anchor Katie Ussin is following through on the redevelopment plans.
“What you’re looking at is the East side of the power plant,” said Dan Rogatto, site manager for ALERG, a subsidiary of Chara Solutions, Inc.
Rogatto is overseeing the demolition of the Avon Lake power plant.
He managed the plant from 2008 until the end of 2022. Once responsible for keeping it running, he’s now responsible for bringing it down.
“Which is kind of hard,” said Rogatto. “It’s kind of like tearing down your high school.”
Bittersweet, he said, but exciting.
There are 43 acres, Rogatto said, between Lake Road and Lake Erie. It is a massive project with massive opportunity.
“For the city of Avon Lake this is probably the biggest thing that’s gone on in a long time,” said Rogatto.
News 5 has been reporting on the plant's decommissioning and redevelopment plans for several years and on what residents hope to see at the site.
Watch our previous coverage of the grant Avon Lake received to go toward the power plant earlier this week:
And now, about a year out from the anticipated completion of demolition, News 5 is following through on what to expect next.
The stacks are an iconic part of the power plant. One has already come down. A grouping of remaining stacks is set to come down, but a 525-foot-tall stack standing on the east side of the plant will remain.
Rogatto said it has a cell tenant and also has maritime value to navigators on the water.
Three implosions are planned onsite. The first is expected in May, which is how those stacks will come down.
“Right now, we’re keeping that building, a nice separate building, goes back to the 1920’s,” said Rogatto, pointing to the old transformer building along Lake Road.
One other historic structure will also remain, a building Rogatto referred to as the old screen house right along the lake.
“With the idea that, you know, that could be some kind of restaurant you could actually boat up to,” he said.
The company Rogatto works for will continue to tear down and remediate the property before it’s sold to developers.
“We hope quite honestly that the eastern portion of the site might be able to be developed prior to the rest of the site being torn down,” said Don Lydon, senior vice president of Avison Young Cleveland, the project's development consultant.
Perhaps, even something happening by the end of this year, said Lydon.
“You know, 1200-1500 apartment unit and condo units would be 2,000 people,” he said. “Plus, what you might get in here on a daily basis with office, it would be a huge financial benefit to the city of Avon Lake and surrounding areas.”
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Avon Lake to remake its lakefront, and we want to take advantage of that,” said Mayor Mark Spaetzel.
Spaetzel said while the city has oversight when it comes to zoning and planning commission control, everyone is on the same page, including on the city’s plan to add parkland.
“We’re looking to add up to 23 acres that will be public access for our community, and when we talk to the residents about what they want to see happen here, they want public access to the lake,” said Spaetzel.
And Rogatto wants public access to something else, as well.
The 1926 building's stunning Art Deco-style design elements include light fixtures, the clock, and some control panels.
“We’re trying to work with the Avon Lake Historical Society to retain some things that they’ll be able to keep and possibly put in some type of museum,” said Rogatto.
A 1929 memorial plaque for the architect hangs on a marble wall. It honors John Wolff, who passed away three years after the first unit came online at the power plant.
Rogatto said he’d like to give it to Wolff’s family and welcomes any help from the public in locating them.
“I would,” he said. “I think that’s where this belongs.”
This is a final gift from this place’s past, and its future will give energy to the city in a new way.
Fun fact: Rogatto said the power plant was toured several times by Hollywood production teams as a possible movie set.
