A scissor lift used to get workers to the upper floors of a building is regularly parked by the structure many remember as The Hayloft.

Down the block and around the corner, workers on scaffolding have been repairing a wall of the building at Central Avenue and Seventh Street that houses Wicker Jewelry.

In the 800 block of First Avenue South, a false front has been removed from a building, temporarily leaving a series of dark circles on the wall.

Those projects, plus a few others, are all part of the same effort, which is being paid for in part with a $500,000 state grant.

-Submitted image
The submitted image provided by Allers Associates Architects shows what the building facade of 700 Central Ave. will look like when work is complete.

“The goal is to basically bring back the facades of the downtown,” said Terry Allers, the principal architect and owner of Allers Associates Architects, of Fort Dodge. That firm designed all the facade restorations being completed in this project.

The work is being done on eight storefronts on six buildings, according to Cole Benton, an associate architect and project coordinator for the firm.

All six buildings are in the downtown Fort Dodge historic district, which means there are certain regulations the project must comply with.

Allers said the architects looked at lots of old photos of the buildings as they designed the project.

Here is a summary of the work that is underway or planned.

-Submitted image
New windows will be installed on the North Seventh Street side of the building at 700-702 Central Ave. as shown in this image provided by Allers Associates Architects, of Fort Dodge.

700 — 702 Central Ave.

This building sits on the northeast side of the intersection of Central Avenue and Seventh Street. Wicker Jewelry is on the first floor and there are apartments on the second floor.

“This one is a real challenge,” Benton said.

The challenge, he said, is that the facade is made of sandstone, which is crumbling in multiple spots. Some of that sandstone will be replaced with new material, he said. When the sandstone repair and replacement is done, the building will be repainted.

New glass will be installed in the storefront windows on Central Avenue. New windows will be installed on the second floor on both the Central Avenue and Seventh Street sides.

-Submitted image
This is what the east side of the building at 710 Central Ave. will look like when the work is complete.

The building was constructed in 1880.

710 Central Ave.

This building was the home of The Hayloft for many years.

The plan calls for removing all the wood from the first floor of the front of the building, and installing new windows. Stucco will be removed from the side of the building that faces an alley that was converted to a pedestrian walkway.

On the ground right outside the front door are ceramic tiles that spell “Cigars,” a likely indication that the building, constructed in 1880, was once a cigar store. Those tiles will be preserved.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
A scissor lift stands at the ready in front of 710 Central Ave. recently. It is being used to enable workers to reach the upper levels of the building to work on its facade. The building, which once housed The Hayloft, is one of six downtown buildings getting a facade makeover.

801 Central Ave.

This is the seven-story Snell Building at the corner of Central Avenue and Eighth Street.The facade project will only address the first level of the building.

The steel canopy on the building’s front will be removed. One vertical column on the Central Avenue side will be restored. New storefront windows will be installed and new windows will be placed on the Eighth Street side in spots which were previously window frames but have been bricked up.

The Snell Building was constructed in 1915, during a downtown building boom.

911 Central Ave.

-Submitted image
The front of the building at 710 Central Ave. will look like this when a facade restoration project now underway is completed.

This building was the home of Olson Jewelers for many years. It is now the Fort Dodge office of Ankeny based Snyder & Associates, an engineering firm.

The metal has been removed from the front of the building, and the brickwork is being repaired.

814 First Ave. S.

The wood has been removed from the front of this building, constructed in 1896.

New windows and canopies will be installed. When all work is done, this building will have a distinctive two-tone color scheme on its facade.

Work on all the buildings is to be done by July 31, 2024. Shyft Collective, of Des Moines, is the general contractor. It has a $771,817 contract.

In October 2021, a $500,000 Community Development Block Grant was awarded to the city government and Main Street Fort Dodge for this effort.

The city government is contributing $250,000.

Property owners participating in the project will collectively contribute another $250,000.

A previous Community Development Block Grant awarded in about 2019 helped pay for a facade improvement project on the east end of downtown.

-Submitted image
The front of the building at 814 First Ave. S. will look like this when a facade project is completed. The dark circles left after paneling was taken off the building will be covered.

-Submitted image
The building at 911 Central Ave. already looks a lot like this following the recent removal of metal from its front.

-Submitted image
The first floor facade of the Snell Building at 801 Central Ave. will be the only part of the structure to be renovated. The finished product will look like this image provided by Allers Associates Architects, of Fort Dodge.

-Submitted image
The first floor facade of the Snell Building at 801 Central Ave. will be the only part of the structure to be renovated. The finished product will look like this image provided by Allers Associates Architects, of Fort Dodge.