Meghan Reed, left, Director, TC Historical Society, and Michael Schrock, regional president for the MV for TCF Bank, next to a Youngstown Kitchen which is going to be donated to the TC Historical Society by the bank...by R. Michael Semple

Built in 1957 and notwithstanding a remodel of some sorts in the early 1990s, stepping into the TCF National Bank branch at the northern tip of Boardman is “like stepping back into time.”

Michael Schrock, Mahoning Valley regional president for the Detroit-based bank, kept on, “There are things inside that building that you just don’t see today.”

Like the kitchen there at 3900 Market St.

A stunning teal or shade close to the blue-green color, the cabinets and sink were installed when the building was erected and have served employees well for decades — a testament to the makers of the Youngstown Kitchens line — Warren-based Mullins Manufacturing Corp.

And it’s all coming back to where it was made.

When the building at the intersection of Market Street and Midlothian Boulevard is ripped down in the near future to make way for new retail development, the porcelain and steel equipment will be removed for preservation by the Trumbull County Historical Society in Warren.

THE KITCHEN

Meghan E. Reed, historical society director, said her organization is eager to accept the kitchen, which is in exceptionally good condition considering it has been a working kitchen for decades. Also, as styles changed through the years, most of the Youngstown Kitchens pieces have been scrapped in homes or businesses that were remodeled or demolished.

“It’s very difficult to find an original Youngstown Kitchens set in really good condition like this one is, and one of the key reasons for us in accepting this set is the condition it is in. It is in amazing condition for how old it is, but also just the unique style of it,” said Reed. “It’s a bright teal-blue color. It really pops out when you look at it and the Youngstown Kitchens stamp is right on the front of the cabinet.”

The kitchen is full top and bottom cabinets made of steel and porcelain with an inlaid sink in the unmistakable post-modern style and hallmark winged handles associated with the Mullins line.

“It’s interesting how objects can really show us and identify with a particular area of history. The post-modern style is so reminiscent of the 1950s and these cabinets were so prolific back then that so many people identify, especially locally because they were made here, so intimately with items like this,” Reed said.

Neither Schrock nor John Moliterno, executive director of the Western Reserve Port Authority, which acquired and is redeveloping the property, wanted the the iconic kitchen to end up in the heap of rubble of the soon-to-be torn down building.

The historical society, Moliterno said, was the ideal landing spot.

“It’s a perfect fit because even though Youngstown Kitchens has Youngstown in the name, they were originally constructed in Warren. That’s where they started,” he said. “We certainly didn’t want to see anything happen to that kitchen, and we found a perfect landing spot for it for someone who can use it and show it off.”

When it’s acquired by the historical society, the kitchen won’t be on display immediately because of work happening to renovate the Owen Morgan House on Mahoning Avenue into the Morgan History Center. It hasn’t been decided if the kitchen will be installed as part of the building or preserved as an artifact for display purposes only.

“I think we’re all over here leaning toward keeping it as an artifact and just displaying it whenever it would be part of a larger exhibit, but those questions are still being hammered out right now,” Reed said.

THE BUILDING

The port authority on Jan. 23 took possession of the building that had just gotten too big for the bank, then known as Chemical Bank, with the initial intent for the port authority to move its offices there. The port authority was being squeezed out of its old space, the former Penguin Place building at the corner of Champion Street and Rayen Avenue, to make room for student housing.

But, “as we looked at that building, it simply did not fit for us as well because of its size,” Moliterno said.

Still, the 1-acre site was just too attractive to walk away from. It’s located at an important crossroads in Mahoning County — the busy intersection of Market Street and Midlothian Boulevard that also serves as the northern border of Boardman and the southern border of Youngstown.

“We saw the opportunity because we felt that this corner … was the entrance to Boardman. We also felt that this very same corner was the entrance, to the north, to Youngstown. It was a very important corner to make sure we kept alive,” Moliterno said.

Last month, the port authority agreed to hire ProQuality Land Development of Campbell for $82,000 to demolish the more than 5,100-square-foot building and rough grade the site.

Pittsburgh-based PNC Bank already has a functioning ATM at the site, and an announcement is expected soon on retail development there, possibly two more tenants.

Until the port authority entered the fray, then-Chemical Bank had been looking to leave or remodel the building because it had just become too big for the bank, which through a merger of equals earlier this year is now an affiliate of TCF National Bank.

“There were multiple different avenues. No. 1, take the avenue of upgrading the property, and there would have been costs associated with that,” Schrock said. “The second one would be to just donate it to Boardman Township, which was actually something three-and-a-half years ago that was discussed, and then there was the potential of us selling the property.”

The bank sold the property and land for $10 to the port authority which, Moliterno said, showed the building at least 10 times to prospective tenants. None turned out to be the right fit, which sent the port authority down the path of redeveloping the property.

Meanwhile, TCF is relocating just across the street to the former PNC building that was upgraded with signs and interior remodeling to match TCF’s branding. The new branch will open to customers Monday.

“I think this is a success story for all involved … we were able to donate something to the community, basically at a landmark location to serve back to the community to a wonderful organization who will take that and ensure the property is put to use to benefit both Youngstown and Boardman,” Schrock said. “TCF Bank wins because we’ll be in a location that is a size that is much better for us to maintain and upgraded for our team members.”

“The other win is the preservation of some of that history. I have to tip my hat to John and his team for taking that and understanding the history of Youngstown and the Valley and getting that into the (right) hands so that it can be preserved for the future,” Schrock said.