Youngstown downtown

My wedding ring, from Brenner Jewelry.

Wednesday was my 42nd wedding anniversary. The picture above (can you tell I’ve been washing my hands a lot?) shows my wedding ring. My wife’s engagement ring and wedding ring match and were purchased back in 1977-78 at Brenner’s Jewelers at the corner of Hazel Street and West Federal Street in downtown Youngstown. I probably knew Brenner’s best because it was just down the street from McKelvey’s where I worked during college. I also had a friend from high school who worked there for a while. I bought my wife’s rings on credit and paid them off by the wedding.

John Brenner started out in the jewelry business training with a Mr. Barkody for five years. He then incorporated his business in 1904 as the John Brenner Jewelry Company with capital stock of $20,000. At this time the store was located at 117 W. Federal in the Kress Building. In 1932 Brenner’s move down the street to its location at Hazel and Phelps in the complex of buildings connected with McKelvey’s. He established a business in diamonds, watches and all kinds of jewelry, enjoying a fine reputation in the business community. In researching this article I found a number of examples of watches and jewelry with the Brenner name. Interestingly, he was also president of the Youngstown Cattle Company, raising cattle and growing fruit on large holdings he owned in Cuba!

The old John Brenner Jewelry Co. in the Kress Building at 117 W. Federal

It was a family business, with Conrad Brenner as Vice-President, and Carl Brenner as secretary and treasurer. Carl Raymond Brenner, Jr. was born in 1931. After military service in the Air Force in Japan from 1953 to 1955, he returned to Youngstown and joined the family business and eventually became president of the business. In time, he expanded their business to three stores in Youngstown and Boardman. Eventually the downtown store closed before the demolition of the former McKelvey buildings in 1982.

“Ray” Brenner was active in the Youngstown community. He served on the boards of the Community Chest/United Appeal, Better Business Bureau, Downtown Board of Trade, Planned Parenthood and the Youngstown Symphony Society. He served as president of the Boardman Youth Center and led the funding drive to build a new Youth Center. He was He was a member The Youngstown Club, the Youngstown Country Club, Elks Club, and the Boardman Swim Club.

He led the business for fifty years, which would be into the 2000’s. His obituary from 2012 mentions how much he loved working with a young man buying an engagement ring. I did not have the fortune to meet him but friends who knew him spoke highly of him. I don’t ever remember TV ads for the store. The phrase that comes to my mind for the store downtown was “understated refinement.” Both young men like me and the wealthy of the city were equally welcomed and well-served by a business that endured over 100 years. Many of my generation will always remember the Brenner name. I carry that memory on my ring finger.

“Youngstown Erie Terminal Building” by Ohio Redevelopment Projects-ODSA is licensed under CC BY 2.0

I wrote recently about student safety patrols. One of the fun “perks” of being a patrol boy was the annual trip to Cleveland to see an Indians game. We took the Erie-Lackawanna Railroad out of the Erie Terminal in downtown Youngstown, located at 112 Commerce Street, where Phelps intersects with it. After those trips as a boy, I never gave the building a thought, even though its six stories were a dominant feature in the Youngstown skyline seen from Youngstown State. I’m sure I passed by it when I was working at McKelvey’s. Passenger rail service continued until January 14, 1977, though it had been dwindling to a few passengers a day for some time.

At one point, it was a very different story. The Erie Railroad had passenger service between New York and Chicago. Youngstown was exploding, growing from 133,000 in 1920 to just over 170,000 in 1930. Until after World War 2, the quickest way one traveled between these cities was rail. Four major railroad trunk lines converged in Youngstown. So in 1922, the Erie Railroad commissioned Youngstown architect Paul Boucherle as architect for a six story building that would serve as terminal for the Erie Railroad’s passenger traffic and offices for the railroad. After completing this rectangular Classical Revival building in 1923, Boucherle moved his own architectural offices into the building.

The building sat vacant after rail traffic ended and the Erie Lackawana consolidated into Conrail. In 1986, it was listed in the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Downtown Youngstown Multiple Resource Area. There are a number of historical buildings that are included in this listing for downtown Youngstown and the significance of listing is to deem the building worth historic preservation, which may qualify those preserving the building for tax breaks.

In the early 2010’s Dominic Marchionda, a native Youngstowner joined with a New York property group to form NYO Property Group. The renovation of the Erie Terminal (now Erie Terminal Place) was one of his first projects, which also include the Wick Tower and the conversion of the Stambaugh Building to a DoubleTree Hotel. In 2012 the renovated building was opened with a cookie shop, brew pub and art gallery on the ground floor and 40 modern apartments on the upper floors. The original wood doors were refurbished, windows were replaced to match the originals, and masonry cleaned and re-pointed. The picture above was taken before work began, and the before and after are stunning.

The property is a popular off-campus alternative for Youngstown State students, located near the Business College and just down the hill from campus. In 2017, the university actually leased five rooms to provide residences for seventeen international students. The building is managed by LY Property Management, which handles rentals. You can get a great glimpse of the apartments and other amenities at the website.

There are questions about the future of the property. In July of 2019 it, along with The Flats at Wick, by YSU, were listed for sale with Platz Realty. The university is in negotiation for The Flats at Wick. No buyer is mentioned for Erie Terminal Place, which is listed at $6.35 million. There are financial issues with the Flats, which is in foreclosure proceedings for default on a $5.5 million loan. Also, Dominic Marchionda, along with former Mayor Sammarone, and Finance Director Bozanich are facing 101 corruption charges for which they were scheduled to go on trial in June of 2020. All three had entered not guilty pleas to the charges. Recently, Judge Maureen Sweeney ruled to separate Dominic Marchionda’s trial from the others and subsequently former Mayor Sammarone plead guilty to two charges. Due to the pandemic, trial dates have not been set.

With college enrollments up in the air as is the nation’s economy, it’s hard to say what will happen next with this almost 100 year old building. It’s a survivor, and one hopes for many good years ahead as the university and downtown continue to grow together.