Gougler Plant Basement Left Buried Underground

City gives OK for property owner to leave concrete basement beneath leveled site of old factory

It turns out the former C.L. Gougler and Machine Co. factory on Lake Street wasn't completely erased from the landscape following its demolition last year. The concrete basement floors from the 65,000 square feet factory that was demolished in 2012 will remain. The Kent Board of Building Appeals granted a variance to the property owners, Furukawa Rock Drill USA, that allows the company to leave the concrete floors buried underneath the soil. City building code requires all components of a demolished structure, including floors, be hauled from the site. Jeff Crane, president of FRD USA, said officials at the firm wanted to leave the basement floors in as a foundation for a new drive that will be built for the plant, which makes blast hole …

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Editor's Picks: Top Stories of 2012

Editor's Picks: Landmark Gougler Building Demolished

Kent Patch gives you the editor's picks for top 10 stories of 2012.

Editor's note: For almost a hundred years it towered over Kent, but in moments the C.L. Gougler and Machine Co. smokestack was erased from the landscape. The smokestack, along with the plant that employed thousands over the years, was demolished. The building had been vacant for decades and the property owner, Furukawa Rock Drill USA, wanted to turn the area into greenspace. FRD USA did a great job of documenting the process, saving what could be saved (a restored lamp post from the property stands outside the Kent Historical Society) and involving past employees in the factory's final days. For 2012, this story is one of my picks for top 10 stories of the year. RELATED COVERAGE:

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VIDEO: Retirees Watch as Gougler Smoke Stack Tumbles into Oblivion

Demolition of former Gougler Industries factory to be finished by early summer

Harold Snowberger brought down the former C.L. Gougler and Machine factory's massive smoke stack with the push of a button Wednesday. Snowberger, 90, of Kent, pushed the button that set off dynamite at the smoke stack's base, turning the massive column — which stood for almost 100 years — into a mere pile of bricks. "I’m gonna miss it," Snowberger said of the monolith. "I drove down here every morning looking at the stack when I came to work." The life-long Kent resident spent 44 years of his life working for Gougler Machine Co. He started in the foundry and eventually rose to superintendent of the plant. Much of that time he lived on Lake Street in the shadow of the smoke stack. "Every time we drove to Ravenna or any place else we always …

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robert

3:11 pm on Thursday, April 26, 2012

Yes Pat , But this is the way things go in Kent.We remember the Opera House, The Hoards Drug Store,The real water falls etc, etc, etc. Don't blink, because if you do something will disappear !   more ›

Around Town and Gown

PHOTOS: The Faces of Gougler Machine

Hundreds of Kent residents worked at C.L. Gougler Machine Co. throughout the years. Do you recognize any of them?

Perhaps the most visible element of the C.L. Gougler and Machine Co. will disappear into the pages of history today. Demolition of the former factory's massive smoke stack, which has towered over Lake Street for nearly 100 years, is scheduled today for some time between noon and 1 p.m. The demolition is closed to the public. Hundreds more of the less visible yet arguably more important faces of the factory have already gone from this world, though some remain. Gougler industries was one of the largest and most successful manufacturing operations in Kent's history. At its peak, C.L. Gougler and Machine ran 10 different plants across Kent and employed 1,500 people. You can take a virtual tour of the empty factory, before demolition started …

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Matt Fredmonsky

11:31 am on Thursday, April 26, 2012

Looks like a mix of pride, confidence and determination to me.   more ›

Gougler Smoke Stack Closer to Demolition

Crews keep chewing away at old factory, expose base of smoke stack

In a little less than a month a landmark that has loomed large over Kent's landscape for almost a century will disappear forever. Demolition crews working at the former C.L. Gougler and Machine Co. on Lake Street have a target date of April 25 for demolishing the old factory's massive smoke stack. The former factory, which dates to around 1920, has been under demolition since December. Recent coverage:

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VIDEO, PHOTOS: Wrecking Machines Chew up Gougler Plant

Demolition continues at massive complex on Lake Street

It won't be long before little remains of the former Gougler plant on Lake Street. Demolition crews tear down a little more of the massive, former factory each day. Crews finished demolition on the former C.L. Gougler and Machine Co. headquarters building earlier this month. Interior finishes from the former headquarters building were donated to the restoration of the old Kent hotel.

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Before the Dust Settles: Photo Gallery of Gougler Buildings

Kent photographer Brad Bolton toured the old factory and headquarters just a few weeks before demolition work started

We first told you about demolition plans for the old C.L. Gougler Machine Co. factory and headquarters on Lake Street when we broke the news about some of the buildings' interior being donated to the old Kent hotel restoration. We got to take a tour of the old factory and headquarters, and Kent photographer and dedicated Patch reader Brad Bolton spent hours documenting the building with his camera so there would be a record of one of Kent's largest, and most successful, manufacturing plants. Bolton shared with Kent Patch his full photo gallery, so enjoy these 57 images as we take you on a virtual tour of the old factory and headquarters as demolition work is under way to bring these historic buildings down.

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Demolition of old Gougler Buildings Starts

One of Kent's oldest, and biggest, manufacturing sites is coming down

Early demolition work has started on the C.L. Gougler and Machine Co. buildings on Lake Street. The buildings are owned by Furukawa Rock Drill USA, which no longer uses the old factory or headquarters buildings. The factory itself numbers about 65,000 square feet. Both buildings have been vacant for years. Interior demolition work is under way at the old factory to prepare it for the wrecking machines. The city recently issued demolition buildings for both buildings. Some pieces of the old headquarters building were donated to Ron Burbick for the restoration of the old Kent hotel. Jeff Crane, president of Furukawa Rock Drill USA, said he plans to invite former workers at the Gougler plant to watch on the day the factory's massive smoke …

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