MEDINA, Ohio -- The latest effort in a years-long redevelopment of a Medina neighborhood was revealed Friday (Nov. 8), as Foundry Social opened its doors for a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by public officials from the city, Medina County and the State of Ohio.
Foundry Social officially opens to the public this Saturday (Nov. 16).
The 30,000-square-foot restaurant and entertainment complex at 333 Foundry St. is an extension of business partners Steve Madden, Gene Whaley, Greg Cordray and Brian Fontanella’s High Voltage Indoor Karting, which was opened in 2015.
On a larger scale, Mayor Dennis Hanwell said Foundry Social represents the revitalization of an area of the city that has had a less than positive reputation over the years.
“I’ve been with the city for 30 years, so I remember when it was operational and since it has been abandoned,” Hanwell said of the former Henry Furnace factory. “It was like a maze with no way out when (as a police officer) you were trying to find people. The transformation is amazing.”
Medina Economic Development Director Kimberly Marshall said that transformation has extended to the surrounding neighborhood through a series of public-private projects, including a $117,000 Brownfield Coalition grant and funding to improve roads, intersections and storm sewers in the Foundry-Bronson Street area.
Mix of the historic and new
At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Marshall recalled the history of the Henry Furnace building renovation project, from the 2015 opening of High Voltage Karting to its outdoor track expansion in 2017 to the proposal to fill the remaining space with Foundry Social.
The new entertainment complex will include a full restaurant menu -- utilizing Whaley’s business background in the food service industry -- and a mix of old and new attractions, from bocce ball courts, duckpin bowling, billiards, ping pong and classic arcade games, side by side with modern video games and M.A.D. (Make a Difference) Brewing, Foundry Social’s own microbrew operation.
Fontanella said Foundry Social also plans to have “bring your own arcade console” nights, as well as offer the M.A.D Brewing space to a rotation of independent brewers to feature their beers.
The business partners also expect to hire an additional 25 employees.
Fontenella said he is most impressed with the care given to both presenting a completely new concept and preserving the historic aspect of the Henry Furnace building.
“We love it,” Fontanella said of the location. “We all spent a lot of time restoring it to what it was to create something that is completely unique and different.”
Bethany Dentler, executive director of the Medina County Economic Development Corp., said efforts such as the Henry Furnace factory renovation are a win for the entire region, creating an entertainment destination.
“I feel this is just the beginning of a transformation of this entire facility and neighborhood,” Dentler said.
Read more news from the Medina Sun.