Former Hoover Headquarters/Plant Sold

Hoover Sale Good News For North Canton

Life is returning to the intersection of Main and Maple streets in North Canton. That with the sale of the former Hoover Company campus announced yesterday.

At an open news conference it was announced that Maple Street Commerce had purchased what was once The Hoover Company’s headquarters and flagship manufacturing facility. The price paid for the 88-acre parcel, including 1.4 million square feet of manufacturing space, was about $5 million.

Maple Street Commerce is a partnership that includes Robert DeHoff, president of DeHoff Development and Prudential DeHoff Realtors, Christopher Semarjian, managing member of Industrial Commerce LTD. in Cleveland, and Stuart Lichter, president and senior managing partner of Industrial Realty Group in Downey, Calif.

North Canton Mayor David Held, who opened the news conference, said the sale, “promises a bright future” for North Canton; adding the city would now be “a better place to live.”

DeHoff followed Held to the microphone.

Addressing the loss of The Hoover Company, DeHoff said the plant had become inefficient for the type of manufacturing the company did.

“This facility is no longer suitable for manufacture of one product, but it certainly lends itself to a number of smaller companies using smaller spaces,” said DeHoff.

“I’m more encouraged today than I’ve been in two years,” DeHoff said; adding that he sees small to midsize companies, “adding to their workforces because their business is strong.”

DeHoff said, “A year from now, two years from now, this building will be teeming with employees, building (products) and servicing customers.”

Picking up on Held’s comments, DeHoff said, “Nothing adds to the quality of life in a community better than a good-paying job.”

Maple Street Commerce will develop a multiple use property at the former Hoover facility which, according to Semarjian, could include 200,000 square feet of warehouse space, 200,000 square feet of space for manufacturing, 100,000-300,00 square feet dedicated to research and technology, 20,0000-40,000 square feet of retail space, 100-400 residential units and a 100-room hotel.
According to the timetable laid out by Semarjian, North Canton can expect to see 200-300 manufacturing jobs created in two to three years; 100-400 office, technology and research jobs in three to five years and 50-150 service and retail jobs in three to five years.

It was announced, by Semarjian, that one tenant, a warehousing company, has already committed to leasing space.

He said that another company is near finalizing an agreement and two more are in the proposal stage.

Semarjian’s company has purchased and developed more than 20 million square feet of industrial and office space in Ohio and Pennsylvania since 1996. Those projects are not typically set in a city like North Canton.

“From my perspective, on the outside looking into this community, you live in a fantastic community,” Semarjian told a crowd of 150 civic leaders, business people and area residents.

“The red brick, the church, City Hall; we very seldom get a chance to be at Main and Main --- Main and Maple,” Semarjian said.

Larry Owens owns the Main Street Grill; the restaurant is across Main Street from the new development. He’s enthusiastic about what he heard Semarjian say.

“I think it’s a very positive thing for the city,” Owens said. “The mixed use they’re talking about, I think is a perfect combination for that property.’

Owens said the businesses that will occupy the former Hoover plant “will be a major asset to The Main Street Grill and other area businesses.” He said the option of offering food delivery to the new complex is being considered.

Owens reaction is exactly what Held is expecting.

“This absolutely will have a positive financial impact on the community and a positive psychological impact on the community,” he said.

“We’ve reversed the trend. Before we were heading down and now we’re heading up.”
Renderings provided by Maple Street Commerce