Alliance City Schools, with the support of community partners, plans to restore a majority of the Glamorgan Castle to a floor plan similar to the original and convert the bottom floor into a premier meeting place for businesses and community members to utilize.
Formerly the administrative offices for Alliance City Schools, the building, which was built in 1904, has remained empty for over a year after extensive water damage caused the district to relocate staff to Alliance High School. The District acquired the building in 1973. Over the past five decades, the building has been remodeled and renovated to create an office environment and in many ways it has lost some of its historic design. The Board of Education hopes to change that.
“The Glamorgan Castle has a long and rich history in Alliance and we hope to ensure it’s available to the community and public for many years to come,” said Suzie Dennis, the president of the Alliance Board of Education. “The proposed plans for renovations will help ensure the building is readily accessible to the community. If completed, the Board of Education believes it will be a place the community can be proud of and one that will be enjoyed by many.”
The restoration and renovation plans include transforming the basement of the Glamorgan Castle into a meeting and gathering space for businesses and organizations to utilize. It will include a meeting room and a conference hall The Board of Education plans to restore the remaining parts of the Castle to its original floor plan to help preserve the historic nature of the building. The expected changes will allow the Castle to embrace its historical value while being more accessible for tours, weddings, parties, gatherings and other community events
While Alliance City Schools will primarily be responsible for securing the resources for the cost and implementation of these renovations, the Alliance Area Chamber of Commerce and the University of Mount Union have agreed to partner in supporting, planning and utilizing the space in a way that is beneficial to the community.
“Since the 70s, the Castle has been home to the administrative offices for Alliance City Schools,” Gress said. “We have been able to keep the building strong with the help of the Castle Crusaders, but it’s not a functional space for an administration building. Our plans of transforming the building into a meeting space and returning much of the rest of the building to a floor plan similar to its original, we will better be able to honor the history of the building and have the ability to open it to the public far more than we have over the last few decades.”