Category Archives: Hardlines Design Company

HDC returns to its roots by taking on a new HAER project!

Cultural Resources Management, HABS/HAER Documentation, Hardlines Design Company, Heritage Tourism
HDC is working with Matt Kierstead, owner of Milestone Heritage Consulting to prepare HAER drawings of the Ely Copper Mine in Vershire, Vermont. Since Milestone has over 25 years of experience researching and documenting copper mines in Orange County, Vermont, the firm is currently working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Vermont copper mine Superfund sites. Matt previously worked on the HAER documentation of the Elizabeth Mine and is currently working on the Ely Mine and the Pike Hill Mine. HDC is assisting Milestone with preparing drawings as part of the Ely Mine Educational mitigation project.

Portion of the draft sheet that shows the Ore Roasting Bed. Ore cars on the upper railroad trestle originally came out of the mines from the left and  dumped their contents onto the roasting bed below. The ore would be in various stages of smoking and being raked, watered, or shoveled into carts heading for the Smelter off to the right.

Portion of the draft sheet that shows a schematic elevation of the Smelter Building and its various additions. Beneath the elevation are historical images of the furnaces that would have been in the building, with approximate locations noted by arrows.

All THAT Teen Center Renovation is Complete!

Hardlines Design Company, What's New
The mission of All THAT (Teens Hopeful About Tomorrow) is to mentor teenage youth in academic achievement, life skill development, and career planning for school and future success. The center focuses on high school graduation, preparation for 21st-century careers, healthy lifestyles, and future hope for participating teens. The Center acquired the 12,000 SF Shady Lane Presbyterian Church building to house the center. The church was designed in 1957 by Holroyd and Myers Architects with H.A. Williams & Associates as the mechanical engineers. The original building consisted of the sanctuary and classrooms to the stairs to the basement, which housed a kitchen, multi-purpose room, and restrooms. In 1962, Holroyd and Myers expanded the building to its current size.
HDC worked with the City of Columbus to replace the leaking membrane roof as well as any damaged Tectum roof decking panels, replace doors to create 1-hour rated corridors on both floors, renovate the Multi-Purpose Room (see video) and restrooms, and convert the rear of the sanctuary into a classroom (see video). Infrastructure improvements included new LED lighting, smoke detectors, and fire alarm system. The entry Foyer to the sanctuary now houses a code-compliant Fire Command Center (see video).

      Left: the original 1958 first floor plan of the church (the lower level is missing), which is the east side of the building. Right: The 1962 floor plans for the addition on the west side.

 

Tarlton Armory Construction Completed!

Hardlines Design Company, Historic Renovation, Uncategorized
HDC conducted the final punch list inspection in August and the Ohio Army National Guard started using the building that week! Items remaining on the backpunch include lockers that had a long lead time and the Guard’s own people setting up the security system.

        Left: Female Latrine in February during demolition with existing wall to adjacent room removed. Right: Female Latrine in August.

      Left: Drill Hall in February. Right: Drill Hall in August with floor sealed and painted floor logo in place.

      Left: Men’s Latrine in February during demolition. R: Men’s Latrine in September.

 

Gardner House Nears Completion with Open House Scheduled for September!

Architecture, Hardlines Design Company, Historic Preservation Specialists, Historic Renovation, Uncategorized
After five phases of construction, the Historic Gardner Homestead is nearing completion with a public reception scheduled for September. HDC initially completed an existing conditions assessment with a master plan for the future renovation. The initial construction phase involved demolishing the first floor restroom and installing a new HVAC system. The second phase consisted of reinforcing the attic and replacing the roof, gutters, and downspouts. The next phase involved exterior brick masonry restoration and repair of the historic wooden windows and replacing the modern vinyl windows. The fourth phase consisted of demolishing the rear porch and excavating the dirt from the south basement. The fifth and final phase involved the rehabilitation of the interior along with structural underpinning of the south basement.
Design highlights include exposing the old wood beams in the first floor ceiling by installing the drywall between the beams, refinishing the original wide plank wood floor in the northeast bedroom, and exposing existing chimney and bearing walls as an accent. Challenges included installing a structural beam in the Meeting Room ceiling to support floor joists that used to bear on a removed wall and meeting accessibility clearances in the small rooms on the first floor by using pocket doors.
     
The Reception Area before and after rehabilitation. New drywall was installed between the original ceiling beams to highlight them.
     
The Meeting Room before and after rehabilitation. The ceiling beam in the background replaces a structural wall that had been previously removed.
     
The second floor northeast room was originally a bedroom but is now office space. The original wide plank wood floor boards were refinished.

Ziti the Noodle Dog Continues to Recover from Back Surgery

Beagles, Hardlines Design Company,
We continue to be incredibly thankful that Ziti is still healthy and active after her surgery almost 2 years ago. In the last few months, the cooler weather seems to have made Ziti even more wound up than usual that even a weekend of agility trials plus agility class once a week can’t seem to dissipate. Ziti ran in the 2025 AKC FastCAT Invitational in October, where she also passed her Fetch Intermediate test, and then ran her fastest time in White Post, Virginia. In her spare time Ziti goes to the park. If you would like a copy of Ziti’s 2026 calendar, click here.
      Left: Her expression says it all in this Mark Baer photo from the Invitational – Ziti loves to run! Right: Ziti posing by a colorful tree in Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park.

Progress Continues at Northcoast Behavioral Health Dietary Building

Architecture, Hardlines Design Company,
The project recently expanded to include replacement of the existing restroom fixtures and partitions, which everyone thought would look very dated when seen next to the renovated office area around it. After demolition was completed in the kitchen areas, work started on framing the new office walls for the new office suite. This included updating the existing window wall while retaining the existing wheelchair ramp, which provides accessible entry to restrooms for workers in the maintenance building in the rear. Construction is anticipated to be completed in Fall 2026.
      Left: Exterior windows and wall being updated. Right: Framing for new offices where the two windows are being updated.

All THAT Teen Center Construction Starts Up Again

Architecture, Hardlines Design Company, Historic Renovation,

After the roof replacement, construction at the All THAT Teen Center went on hold as discussions took place with the City building department on whether the project needed a site compliance plan review. Finally, the building department agreed that since there was an ownership change and not a use change (building was still leased by a church for Sunday services), a site compliance plan was not required. However, since the classrooms were used for after school activities and not Sunday school activities, the examiner required that each classroom have an individual smoke detector in addition to the fire alarm system and rated corridor doors already in the project. After the updated fire alarm plans were approved, construction could finally start on the last phase of the project, which is now scheduled to be completed in January 2026.

   
Left: New classroom walls going up at rear of sanctuary. Center: New restroom partitions in lower level. Right: Multi Purpose Room renovations underway.

Zanesville Historical Marker Moves Forward

Hardlines Design Company, Heritage Tourism, Historic Preservation, National Register Nomination,
HDC was successful in getting the Downtown Zanesville Historic District listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2024, but one final piece of mitigation remained outstanding: the Ohio historical marker. Ohio historical markers started in the 1950s, born from the 1953 state sesquicentennial, to document important people, places, and events, with the first marker placed in 1957 for Akron’s Portage Path, all managed by the Ohio History Connection (formerly the Ohio Historical Society) to tell community stories through Ohio-shaped signs. The program, run on an annual cycle with sponsor-funded markers, now boasts over 1,700 markers, including special ones for the Bicentennial and LGBTQ+ history, making Ohio’s past accessible.
The company that produced the first historical marker is still producing them today. In 1927, E. M. Hawes founded Sewah Studios (his name spelled backwards) in Marietta, Ohio, to create roadside signs and markers for automobile tourists. Hawes researched and developed a cast aluminum process that was lightweight, inexpensive, and corrosion resistant compared to traditional wood, bronze, or ferrous metal signs common at the time. He also sponsored a cash competition where hand lettering artists submitted designs for capital and lower case letters less than 1 inch in size, which did not exist at the time. Hawes chose a winner, made a few changes, and the Sewah script was born. Sewah’s first commission was for over 500 signs for the Ohio Revolutionary Trail Commission in 1929.
One of the original Ohio Revolutionary Trail markers, shot by Dale K. Benington, on April 6, 2010.
The distinctive Ohio-shaped marker was designed by Sewah Studios, who submitted the winning design to the historical marker committee in 1955. They received the contract to cast the first historical marker in Akron and have been producing them ever since. The process consists of hand assembling the letters and images into a pattern, which is then pressed into fine sane to create a mold. Two halves of the sand mold are then clamped together and molten aluminum is poured into the cavity. The raw casting is then sent to the finishing department who adds the colors to the sign.
The Ohio History Connection’s marker approval process simply involves approving text not to exceed a specific word count and images of a specific size. However, the City of Zanesville required graphics showing exactly what the sign would look like, so HDC traced the outline of a historical marker in AutoCAD and mocked up the text and image for both the Zoning and Building permits, which were received in November 2025. The marker application was signed soon after and we are waiting on a proposed delivery date.
     
Proposed historical marker Side A and Side B.

Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church Celebrates Jubilee Opening

Architecture, Building Preservation, Diversity, Hardlines Design Company, Historic Building Restoration, Historic Preservation, Historic Renovation, Projects, Uncategorized,
The Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church received its occupancy permit on November 12, 2025, just in time for the jubilee celebrating its re-opening! Click here for an article and additional photographs of the opening in the Ironton Tribune.

Left: Charissa Durst climbing into the attic during the final punch inspection on 11/7/2025. Center: Contractor Dan Mullins (left) and project manager Lacy Ward (right) with Charissa Durst on the church stoop after the punchlist. Right: Charissa Durst standing at the Jubilee celebration.  All photos by Jason Lucas.