Grafton Hill Apartments I: Oldies but Goodies.

There was some mention and discussion last month in Dayton Most Metro and For the Love of Dayton about the proposed new apartment tower on Riverview, in Grafton Hill This would be the first market rate high-rise in Grafton Hill since the opening of Park Layne in 1970, and the first new housing since the 634 Apartments (which I think might be subsidized) opened in 1973.

Grafton Hill always seemed pretty unusual as it has such big old houses, including colonial revival and mock Tudor; a little Oakwood, practically on top to downtown. This is pretty unsual for cities in this region, where one finds similar neighborhoods a few miles out from the CBD, not this close-in.

I can think of only a few cities in the US that have something like this, like Hancock Park in LA, or maybe Russsian Hill in San Francisco.

The collection of apartments in Grafton Hill is also a bit unusual, as this is one of the few areas within the city that has some substantial and upscale apartment construction beyond the generic Dayton fourplexes.


Roaring Twenties Apartment Living

The apartment house era in Grafton Hill began in after WWI, mostly on the streets bounding the neighborhood. The most impressive is the 10 story Commodore, the first elevator building in Grafton Hill, and the first high-rise outside of downtown. A good illustration of what a grand neighborhood this once was. In other places this would be a primo address. And the balcony buildings on Grand and Forest and Forest and Palmer are perhaps the most delightful, with the light brick, iron railings, and vaguely Spanish feel. Also on Grand, Chicago-style courtyard buildings. This massive three-building ensemble arranged around a courtyard, with an early adaptation to the automobile with the underground garage. I like the corner “French door” windows with railings at the corners. Closer to Salem, The Deluxe Apartments. This terra cotta extravaganza with a decorative brickwork façade treatment is a perhaps closer in style to the generic Chicago-style courtyard building. Others included the Plymouth (1923), at Central and Plymouth, which was the first large apartment building on the interior streets of Grafton Hill. And Dolly Manor. Built in 1929 this was probably the last building to go up prior to the Depression (and note the neighboring relic of old Salem Avenue).


And that is it until 1944. If anything was built nothing survives from the 1930s and early WWII era.