POWELL — Downtown Powell is full of iconic, historical buildings.

The Martin-Perry Homestead at 103 E Olentangy St., which is headquarters for the Powell Liberty Historical Society, was built in 1889.

The red barn at 36 N Liberty St., which now houses Board and Brush Creative Studio, was built in 1900 and previously housed Powell Milling Company, where millers refined grains.

The old schoolhouse at 77 South Liberty is now home to a dental office and salon.

All of these properties, along with over 50 others, sit inside Powell’s unofficial historic district, which encompasses a plot in the four quadrants of North Liberty and West Olentangy Street.

Buildings in the historic district must be 50 years or older, per the Powell Historic District Survey which was conducted in 2024-2025 by Columbus-based planning and design firm Designing Local.

Powell used $20,000 from the operating budget to pay for the project, according to Powell Director of Community Engagement Anna Subler.

The survey’s purpose was to determine if the project area could be designated as a historic district in a future zoning code rewrite, which the planning department is currently working on.

In addition to officially establishing the historic district, the code rewrite will include updated downtown design guidelines, which clarify contributing historic properties and enhance historic preservation policies, Subler said.

Has Powell authorized the tear-down of any historic buildings?

Powell’s Planning and Zoning Commission oversees all building tear-downs through a public hearing process that spans several meetings.

The commission has previously approved the demolition of five “potentially historic properties,” Subler said.

110 S Liberty St.

In late 2025, a vehicle crashed into the porch of 110 S Liberty St., causing the porch structure to slowly pull away from the main building.

The building sat on a site that is now slated to become townhomes and eventually mixed-use development.

The property developer at the time, Crawford Hoying, submitted a Certificate of Appropriateness for the historic building’s demolition.

The Powell Historic Downtown Advisory Commission heard the request for a Certificate of Appropriateness at its Aug. 21, 2025 meeting. The commission did not approve the certificate, saying too many buildings were being demolished lately, according to meeting minutes.

But the Powell Planning & Zoning Commission determined the century-old home could not be rehabilitated safely or economically, and approved its demolition.

44 N Liberty St.

This city-owned, roughly 2,000-square-foot building previously served as the home of the Powell Area Chamber of Commerce. After the chamber relocated, the building sat vacant and was used primarily for storage.

It was built in 1920, according to the Delaware County Auditor’s website, which qualifies it for historic preservation. In 1948, it became a Liberty Township Fire Station.

The building came down in April of this year after council approved the demolition to advance the Scioto Street Extension, which will enhance traffic flow and create a public parking lot.

42 and 43 Scioto St.

The Planning and Zoning Commission approved demolition of 42 Scioto St. — a 1,298-square-foot, single-story home — via a Certificate of Appropriateness in late 2024.

City staff found extreme deterioration, and public safety/vandalism hazards made this 1914-built property ripe for demolition.

An Ohio Department of Development grant helped fund the demolition, along with 43 Scioto St. across the street, which was built in 1901. The city used roughly $44,000 for the demolition.

62 Scioto St.

In May, the Planning and Zoning Commission approved demolition of this home per the owner’s request to make way for construction of a new single-family structure.

The 1,630-square-foot, two-story residential structure was built in 1900, according to the Delaware County Auditor.

However, the Certificate of Appropriateness application notes 1900 is typically the year assigned by the Auditor’s office when no other information is available.