Take a last look at the once-glorious Akron Brewing Co. complex.
It’s coming down next week.
Workers will start removing the “Akron Brewing Co.” sandstone sign atop one of the red-brick buildings on Saturday to preserve it.
Contractors are scheduled to begin tearing down the structure Wednesday — a process that’s expected to take several weeks.
The building is one of many that are standing in the way of a new interchange with South Broadway/South Main Street and Interstate 76/77.
The gradual disappearance of the looming silhouette will be noticeable. The giant red brick building hangs tightly onto the edge of Akron’s most heavily traveled section of the expressway, with more than 124,000 vehicles passing daily.
The Ohio Department of Transportation is retooling the interchange and roads to improve safety along the highway. The total project has been estimated at $149 million.
The giant sandstone “Akron Brewing Co.” sign will go to the Thirsty Dog Brewing Co., located nearby on Grant Street in Akron.
Thirsty Dog worked with the Summit County Historical Society to arrange to take ownership of the sign, which will be displayed at the Grant Street brewery.
“We want to preserve it for the next 100 years,” said John Najeway, co-owner of Thirsty Dog.
As an established organization with deep roots in the community and a mission of caring for Akron’s heritage, the historical society essentially vouched for Najeway, who runs a for-profit company and, in adopting the sign, will be entrusted with caring for an iconic piece of the city.
“I think that ODOT wanted to be sure that there was a legitimate, bona fide organization to take care of these things, especially because there was no bidding involved,” Dave Lieberth, who chairs the historical society, said of the organization’s work as an underwriter of sorts.
Making the project feasible is Vince Labriola, who owns a construction company in Norton. Lieberth, who consulted the city’s project manager and ODOT on pricing, said Labriola has offered to move the letters, attached to blocks of the building weighing between 500 and 1,000 pounds, for $5,000.
“That is significantly less than what we were originally quoted for by ODOT’s contractors,” Lieberth said. “I’ll just tell you it was more than $20,000.”
The Akron Brewing Co. is one of the last pre-Prohibition breweries standing in Akron.
The brewery dates to 1902 when more than 50 saloon owners got together to form their own operation. They were upset with prices charged by the former Burkhardt and Renner breweries.
Akron Brewing produced White Rock Export Beer and later Wurzburger Beer.
Prohibition killed the operation. After Prohibition, the Akron Brewing complex housed Beatrice Foods, Sumner Butter and, most recently, Tasty Pure Food Co.
There was an Akron Brewing Co. that formed after Prohibition but it had no affiliation with the earlier brewery.
Reporter Doug Livingston contributed to this report. Rick Armon can be reached at 330-996-3569 or rarmon@thebeaconjournal.com. Read his beer blog at www.ohio.com/beer. Follow him on Twitter at @armonrickABJ.