Vacant Akron fire station to become new community gathering hub

Akron, get ready to say goodbye to Fire Station No. 12 and hello to a new community hub on West Market Street.

Im very hopeful that we will be able to create a space where people will be interested to come, said Jeter Capital Investment President Lana Jeter. We need to bring people back together and make them active in the community.

This comes after Akron leaders selected Lana and Brendan Jeter of Jeter Capital Investments, LLC to redevelop the vacant space into the Wallhaven Hop Shop following a competitive process launched in late 2025.

Weve been investing in the Akron area for now 10 years, and so this is another part of our growth strategy and our plan, said Jeter Capital Investments COO Brendan Jeter.

When News 5 stepped inside the fire station Thursday, we could tell theres still a lot of work to do before the doors are officially opened in late 2027.

Weve never done something like this, said Lana Jeter.

But the Jeters promise itll be worth the wait, especially considering how the project is expected to bring $800,000 to $1,000,000 in private investment and create 12 to 14 full- and part-time jobs.

We are huge believers in Akron. Akron is a great city with a great future. It had a great past, but we totally believe in making it an even better future, and we want to be part of that future. We want to build together this future, said Lana Jeter.

Akron city leaders recently released a statement in which Mayor Shammas Malik said he supports this project, which will eventually feature a bakery, caf, food and drinks, multiple gathering spaces and a potential entertainment space.

I very much hope that it will be a third space for this part of Akron, said Brendan Jeter.

In the meantime, the Jeters hope to start making repairs to the inside and outside of the building as soon as possible.

Then begin the cleaning up so that we can begin the process, especially with Phase 1, which we have the plans for a bakery, said Brendan Jeter.