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500s S. Michigan Street Beginning with the 500s block of S Michigan Street and heading north, several neo-classical styled, two- story brick commercial buildings stand close to the street. Many are apart of the once proposed South Michigan National Register Historic District. However, only about half actually have tenants and house viable commercial operations and businesses. The others seem to be used as storage buildings or are currently vacant. The most southern historic structure on this block is the 1923 neo-classical dark -red brick and light terra cotta building located at 530-532 S. Michigan. The Breskin Wall Paper Company and Sample Furniture Company once were operated from these storefronts. Joseph Breskin, the owner of the property in 1923 and man had the structure built, lived in the apartment above. The building was sold to Metropolitan Life in 1933 apparently in a sheriffs sale after the Breskin's had taken out a second mortgage to finance the building. The building now houses the active Hope Rescue Mission. A parking lot is located at the corner of S. Michigan and South Street for use by the Mission's employees. This parking lot and the 'tree lawn" in front of the building could be repaired to look more attractive and to provide a more visibly stable corner. 520 (524?) S. Michigan Street now includes two storefronts; both are one-story buildings that house Store Printing & Design and Lithographic Printers. The store closer to South St has a brick parapet wall with wide and sloped sides and the other has been faced with metal siding. Historic importance of these buildings is less contributing to the area for many changes have occurred to them. They are most likely younger in date as well. Further north on the same block is the building known as the Monarch Printing Company, 516-518 S. Michigan Street. This building was designated a local landmark by the Historic Preservation Commission and the Common Council in 1995. Begun a few years before Breskin's store in 1921, the builder of this two- story structure employed neo-classical details to provide visual interest on the exterior that wrap around the building into the alleyway. Light terra cotta window surrounds with vine motif medallions, projecting cornice, stringcourses, and oval arcade -like openings in the parapet provide a delicate contrast to the richness of the dark brick exterior, One window on the south side of the building reveals that the originals may have been of the 2/2 double hung type. New windows have replaced the originals. Jacob S. Kerner purchased Lot 9 of Martin's Addition in 1916 for investment purposes but did not start to build until 1921. By 1925, the building housed Paul Anderson's Electric Shop, the Monarch Printings Company, and a second floor apartment where Don E. Williams, an autoworker, resided. Kerner was born on 5 October 1860 in Erie, Pennsylvania and married Maggie Weist Kerner (date not noted). When he was fifteen, Kerner began his long career as a fireman. He joined the Young Hoosier No. 4 volunteer firefighters unit in 1875, also worked for the Studebaker fire brigade, and became the Second Assistant Chief in September of 1886 when South Bend established its first paid fire -fighting department. In 1891, he received a promotion to First Assistant Chief, and in 1894, he retired from the force and began work for the American Express Company. He returned to the fire company when he was appointed as Fire Chief in 1898 and he retained that position until 1901.1 After ownership by the Kerner's, the property changed hands several times over the course of the last seventy-five years. In 1925/26, it seems that the property was transferred from Maggie Kerner's name to Isadore and Jacob Mooren. Because of delinquency and default on the land contract, the Mooren's gave up the property in 1932 to Emma Staples, who passed away in 1936. Between 1936 and the 1960s, the property knew many owners before Joe Gendel purchased it in 1963. Gendel employed the storefront for his business, Gendel's Surplus Sales, from 1965 until 1977. Ironically, this building was gutted by fire ' County Survey file; Historic and Architectural Significance Report, August 1995, 2-3. -2-