Downtown Dayton is getting a makeover thanks to Sinclair architectural and mechanical engineering students.
Sinclair has partnered up with Dayton Power and Light and the Downtown Dayton Partnership to renovate the first floor buildings in downtown Dayton.
The First Floor project is designed to help small businesses and benefit the community. Georgene Dawson, the DP&L Operations Manager said, “There is a vibrant resurgence in the residential housing market in the downtown area of Dayton and new and exciting small businesses are beginning to follow and support the retail needs of the growing residential population. Part of the livability of an urban lifestyle is the street level businesses that provide the services, retail and entertainment opportunities that create much of the lifestyle that continues to draw people to these areas.”
Sinclair architecture and mechanical engineering students will learn to collaborate with both each other and also with real professionals. They will be making plans to renovate the empty first floor spaces and then get them move-in ready for business owners.
“Big picture behind the project is to help entrepreneurs find and lease first floor spaces that are kind of ready to go,” said Charles Setterfield, the man leading the students behind the project and the Assistant Architectural Technology professor here at Sinclair.
The program began to form in the summer and received the Regional Economic Development Grant from DP&L at the end of 2015. The RED Grant is awarded to local and regional organizations in support of economic development.
“The First Floor Project is a perfect example of a program that meets those goals by supporting the growth of a thriving first floor business environment within the center city,” Dawson said.
The RED Grant will pay for 50 percent of the project and the rest will come from the Downtown Dayton Partnership. This pilot project will be funded for one year.
This program will be crucial to getting Sinclair students the job experience they need. “When employers call and want to talk to our graduates, I really try hard to recommend people that I know have had good, real experience,” said Setterfield.
The qualifications for Sinclair architecture students getting into the internship program are good technical abilities and work ethic. Setterfield said that he looks for students who show up for class and turn in their assignments on time.
The program started at the beginning of the spring semester and will continue until the end of this semester. It will begin again in the fall semester.
Laina Yost
Intern