Ohio City mixed-use project may feature downtown ad firm

It was only a matter of time before the 1.7-acre Hingetown site
of the Cleveland Vibrator Company was acquired for redevelop-
ment. It is surrounded by recent, in-progress and planned high-
value, multi-story developments (Google).
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An exciting mixed-use development is in the works for the Hingetown section of Cleveland's Ohio City neighborhood, according to multiple sources. Although still in a preliminary stage, the development's concept at this point involves putting the offices for a fast-growing downtown company on the lower floors of a new building with apartments on the upper floors.

Two sources say the site is 2828 Clinton Ave., the current location of one of the region's most well-known and oft-photographed businesses -- the 94-year-old Cleveland Vibrator Company which will relocate from the site. The downtown company seeking to move to the site is The Adcom Group, a full-service marketing and communications firm, according to two other sources.

However, Adcom CEO Joe Kubic would not confirm specifics at this time.

"I personally, along with some other partners, are in the process of buying some commercial property in Ohio City," he wrote in an e-mail. "We haven’t yet finalized our plans for it though. It is certainly a possibility that Adcom may relocate there at some point, but we are happy in our current location as of now."

Adcom is headquartered at 1370 W. 6th St. in downtown Cleveland's Warehouse District, above Starbucks Coffee.

The Adcom Group's Warehouse District HQ
is becoming constrained by the company's
rapid growth. The communications and
marketing firms anticipates further growth
and needs more office space (Google).

Two sources also say that The Snavely Group of Chagrin Falls will likely be the developer for the proposed mixed-use project. However, President Pete Snavely Sr., Vice-President of Marketing Polly Snavely and Vice-President of Development Pete Snavely Jr. have yet to respond to a Feb. 19th e-mail seeking comment for this article.

This would be Snavely's second Hingetown development. Last year, at the corner of Detroit Avenue and West 25th Street, it completed construction of The Quarter -- 194 apartments above 30,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. The commercial space is fully leased and the residential units are 93 percent leased, according to The Quarter's Web site. The $60 million development also involves the renovation of the historic Forest City Bank Building on the other side of Detroit with ground-floor commercial uses and 38 affordable apartments above.

One of the most well-known signs on the West Side is this one
at the corner of West 29th Street and Clinton Avenue in Ohio
City's Hingetown section. The manufacturer of industrial equip-
ment to resolve material flow challenges is already looking for
a new home in the area (Google).

Through 2828 Clinton Inc., Cleveland Vibrator owns 14 parcels totaling 1.715 acres, according to Cuyahoga County property records. The site is bounded by West 28th and West 29th streets, as well as Church and Clinton avenues. The proposed development reportedly does not include the Ohio City Firehouse, 1455 W. 29th, which was converted into offices and the Rising Star Coffee Roasters cafe. There is also no information to indicate whether the development site includes a residential property and the Banana Blossom Thai Cuisine at West 28th and Clinton.

Sources do not have information yet as to how tall the proposed mixed-use building might be or when demolition and construction might begin. Contrary to Kubic's statement, other persons close to the project say time is of the essence. Adcom reportedly expects to double in size in the coming years and needs more space soon.

Adcom was founded in 1990 and today has more than 110 employees although Kubic wouldn't clarify how many. The employment data comes from news coverage last year about 100-employee Adcom's purchase of fellow ad firm Arras Keathley that had 10 employees.

The Cleveland Vibrator site is reportedly under a sale contract but has yet to close. Terms of the deal were unavailable. In total, the land and buildings on the 14 parcels are appraised by the county at a combined value of $510,000 for tax purposes. Cleveland Vibrator has already begun a search for its new location and hopes to find a new home nearby soon, a source said.

Its current site is surrounded by new developments, in addition to Snavely's Quarter. Northward, across Church Avenue, Hemingway Development is building its $60 million, mixed-use Church & State project, featuring an 11-story building and a 6-story building. In the opposite direction, across Clinton Avenue, Casto will soon begin constructing its $22 million, 119-unit Dexter Place apartments. To the east, across West 28th, the $24 million West 25th Street Lofts were renovated a few years ago with 83 apartments over 9,600-square-feet of commercial space.

END