It may not look like much now, but in a few months, the former Erie Malleable Iron site on West 12th will turn into the modernized \u201cErie Ironworks Square.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a snowy winter, the site superintendent said production is increasing, and they\u2019re moving forward with exterior work on the building.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are working both inside and outside of the building. We have the elevator and stairwell shafts going up inside. We are pouring concrete floors. The outside of the building is starting with the siding, and the metal panels are going up, along with the glass windows going in on the west side and starting on the north side,\u201d said Brian Vanhoozer, Site Superintendent with E.E. Austin & Son.<\/p>\n
When it\u2019s finished, Erie Ironworks Square will lease mixed-use space for businesses interested in calling the building home.<\/p>\n
\u00a0Erie Ironworks Square expected to complete construction in August 2026\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n So far, the Erie County Redevelopment Authority, who owns the property, is looking to set up shop in the building, and last month, FishUSA announced their commitment to building a new 60,000 square foot office at the site.<\/p>\n However, there\u2019s still work to be done before tenants start moving in.<\/p>\n \u201cThe goal is still the end of 2026. We\u2019re hoping to move that forward as much as possible, but we\u2019re doing what we can with what we\u2019ve got,\u201d said Vanhoozer.<\/p>\n A few blocks down the street, work on the \u201cFlagship City Commons\u201d on North Park Row is also moving along.<\/p>\n The CEO of the Erie Downtown Development Corporation, which owns the property, said they\u2019re starting to make vertical progress, putting up steel beams to lay the framework for the new building.<\/p>\n The EDDC just broke ground on the project last summer, but when it\u2019s finished, he said they will start to rent parts of the building to interested tenants. \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe have two hospitality spaces on the ground floor, one facing North Park Row, and one facing 5th Street \u2013 restaurant, bar, and coffee shop kind of places. We have two retail spaces as well, one on the first floor of Marlena Place as well as one facing 5th Street,\u201d said Drew Whiting, Erie County Redevelopment Authority CEO.<\/p>\n