by Shea Smith on June 22, 2026
Broadway Lofts officially broke ground June 4, launching renovations to the Koester Block in Marysville.
President of Frontier Development Group Tyler Holloman said developers and city leaders worked together to develop a new vision for the downtown property.
“This is the redevelopment of the historic Koester Block in downtown Marysville. We have worked with the city of Marysville to reimagine what these three unique buildings on the Koester Block could become. And we have started on a redevelopment project to turn the upper two floors into 12 residential housing units, as well as upgrading, making some safety upgrades and some cosmetic upgrades and infrastructure improvements to the five existing storefronts on the commercial level,” he said.
Frontier Development’s construction crews have been busy working on selective demo since the groundbreaking, as well as cleaning up the buildings. Non-historic items are being removed and the spaces are being prepped for the reconstruction project.
The 901 building, which housed the holiday décor and gift store Reflections, was the first building they started with. As of June 8th, the crews had moved through most of that building and moved on to the Masonic Hall building, which is the middle of the three buildings.
Holloman said the planning process had taken years to get all the details right.
“We’ve had to work very closely with the Chamber of Commerce and the downtown Marysville committee. We’ve also worked with the business community. It’s really been a collaborative effort to get to the point where we’re at now,” he said.
Holloman said he believes the city feels, as does he, that this project will be transformational for downtown.
“Not only does it showcase what’s possible through a public-private partnership like this, but it’s hopefully going to be a catalyst for other downtown buildings in Marysville as they watch this transformation happen,” Holloman continued.
“The exteriors of the buildings will be cleaned up, they’ll be brightened up, windows will be repaired or replaced. And we’re excited that once residents start moving into this new housing, that it will have increased foot traffic in downtown Marysville. And hopefully we’ll have a ripple effect on other businesses and other blocks in downtown.”
It’s not just the increased foot traffic that makes this renovation exciting. As Holloman described, these buildings are historic to Marysville. And that was centered in the plans.
“This is a historic tax credit project,” Holloman said.
“We had to develop plans that were reviewed and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service. So it’s a closely monitored project to ensure that the historic fabric that’s existing in the buildings is maintained and the historic nature of the buildings is honored,” he continued.
The buildings will keep their historic appearance, but will be updated for function, including the addition of elevators.
“We will be saving the existing hallways and, as much as possible, we’ll be saving existing doors and trim. We’ll be making repairs to windows that are able to be repaired and the windows that need to be replaced will be replaced in a manner to where they are historically appropriate windows,” Holloman said.
He nixed the idea of vinyl windows and other historically inaccurate replacements, per the plan. When work is completed, the buildings will have to pass certification with the State Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service to ensure that the historic preservation was done properly.
“They’re going to look historically appropriate,” Holloman assured. “It’s just the historic architecture and the character of these buildings is really iconic. It’s fun to be able to kind of bring that back to life.”
Work is expected to continue through the end of next year.
Read the original article on KCLY.