George’s third billboard lands on Opportunity Corridor

To make way for the Irishtown Bend Park, this huge billboard on the blighted building
on which it sets at the southeast corner of West 25th Street and the Detroit-Superior
Bridge will be demolished and replaced by three billboards as a result of a court
settlement. The third and final billboard location has been identified (Google).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A George family-owned billboard that metastasized into three as a result of a 2023 court settlement has found its third and final landing spot in Cleveland. That third billboard site is a piece of a city-owned parcel on the Opportunity Corridor near Quincy Avenue that is unlikely to be developed with any other uses, according to a city official. Title to the land will be transferred to the Georges.

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CWRU’s South Residential expansion stops

The first two phases of expanding Case Western Reserve University’s South Residen-
tial Village were completed in time for this Fall Semester. But they now appear to be
be the last phases, A third phase proposed across the street is not being pursued due
to there being a sufficient amount of student housing (William Rawn Associates).
 CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

As Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) approaches its 200th anniversary, just two years away, the growing college has just one megaproject on its syllabus for Cleveland’s University Circle — the $300 million Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building. So CWRU’s bicentennial legacy is to do what it has often done — prudently build when it needs to, not when it wants to. Even so, news of what the university is not building may come as a surprise.

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León to lead Cuyahoga Land Bank

Ricardo León today officially became only the second president in the history
of the Cuyahoga Land Bank (CBL). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Ricardo León gained something by losing something. He lost the prefix “Interim” prior to his title of “President” of the Cuyahoga Land Bank, a private, nonprofit government entity whose mission it is to acquire properties, return them to productive use, reduce blight and increase property values in Cuyahoga County.

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Bridgeworks can finally build – up to two stories

In the coming weeks, work crews will start to appear at the northeast corner of West
25th Street and the Detroit-Superior Bridge near Downtown Cleveland to demolish
existing, vacant buildings and begin the construction of Bridgeworks — at least
partially at this point (GLSD). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

After four years of going through multiple design iterations, it somehow seems natural that Bridgeworks finally got the OK today from the city to start construction — but only up to the second floor. To build above that, the project’s development team is going to have to come back to the city for design approval of the building’s top five floors. The team pledged it would do so — quickly.

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Realities behind Amtrak’s ‘new’ train to Florida

Amtrak has a shortage of these bilevel train cars on its western long-distance trains
because it cut maintenance staff during the pandemic. Amtrak hasn’t fully reinstated
them and has dozens of cars awaiting overhauls and other routine work. So Amtrak
is taking the bilevel cars from its Chicago-Cleveland-Washington DC service, seen
here, to keep its western trains running. Normally, Amtrak visits Cleveland in the
pre-dawn hours except when trains are very late, as was the case here on July 17,
2023 (KJP). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

While Amtrak’s press release about the creation of a direct-but-temporary Chicago-Florida passenger rail service through Cleveland touted it as an achievement, the reality behind it is actually quite different. According to several sources, the direct service is being implemented to rescue Amtrak from its own shortcomings — both internal and external.

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Library Lofts turning next page at Circle Square

Workers on Sept. 12 were busily attaching exterior panels to the 11-story Library
Lofts development at Circle Square in Cleveland’s University Circle. This week,
the first residents are moving in. In the background at right is The Artisan apart-
ments, part of Circle Square and the tallest structure in University Circle (KJP).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

With a partial occupancy permit from the city awarded, arriving residents are opening the book on Library Lofts — the latest building to be offered at the Circle Square district of Cleveland’s University Circle. Like a novel with a thick plot, progress on the apartment building-over-public library has taken lots of turns, though it’s not done yet. But this page-turner is almost there. And what a poetic conclusion it may turn out to be.

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Bridgeworks – one more review ’til they’re through?

Bridgeworks’ development team hopes this is the last rendering in the design-review
process before work crews can descend onto its site in Cleveland’s Ohio City neigh-
borhood to prepare it for construction. That will be determined later this
week (GLSD). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

It’s been said before — many times; many ways. No, not “Merry Christmas.” But “We hope this is the final design for Bridgeworks.” And the Bridgeworks development team hopes to start site preparations by the end of next month with construction to follow — perhaps by the time chestnuts are roasting on an open fire at Christmas, by the way.

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East Stokes skyscraper concept wins approval

A wider rendering of the proposed East Stokes Tower than the one NEOtrans intro-
duced three days ago when we broke the story of the latest high-rise slated to be
built in Cleveland’s University Circle. The new, mostly residential tower would
feature top-floor amenities, lots of ground floor retail and second-floor
offices (SCB). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Cleveland’s City Planning Commission today gave unanimous support to the conceptual design of a proposed mixed-use high-rise in the University Circle neighborhood. If the project is able to move swiftly through the design-review process, the proposed 24-story East Stokes Tower at the southeast corner of Chester Avenue and Stokes Boulevard could see construction start as early as spring 2025.

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Asiatown mixed-use development plan revived

Proposed for both sides of Payne Avenue in Cleveland’s Asiatown neighborhood
are 120 affordable housing units atop ground-floor commercial and community
uses in two buildings. This development concept was proposed by the same
architect that was involved the last time a similar development was planned
 here three years ago (MA Design). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Three years after a development team planned a mixed-use project at the closed Dave’s Market, 3301 Payne Ave., in Cleveland’s Asiatown, some members of that development team are back to invest in that site again. This time, a $42.3 million development is proposed with a more focused approach on affordable housing in two four-story buildings with ground-floor commercial and community uses.

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Metroparks, GCRTA to aid soccer stadium project

A pedestrian bridge over the rapid transit tracks and station, leading toward the
proposed new soccer stadium at right, could be aided by actions underway at
the Cleveland Metroparks and the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit
Authority (CSG). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

In two different ways, two Greater Cleveland public-sector organizations are stepping up to support the Cleveland Soccer Group’s (CSG) effort to build a $150 million, 12,500-seat soccer stadium just southeast of Downtown Cleveland. Tomorrow, the Cleveland Metroparks’ board will vote on whether to acquire land for the stadium while the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) is pursuing an amendment to its long-range plan to add a rapid transit station to serve the stadium area.

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New skyscraper planned for University Circle

East Stokes, a massive, 24-story apartment tower over ground-floor retail
and several levels of parking, is planned for the next phase of the Circle
Square development in Cleveland’s University Circle (SCB).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

The development team for Circle Square, a district bringing more than one million square feet of mixed-use development to market in Cleveland’s booming University Circle, is about to introduce its latest addition to this booming district. And that addition, at the southeast corner of Chester Avenue and Stokes Boulevard, will challenge Circle Square’s The Artisan for the tallest building in Cleveland’s “second downtown.”

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Two apartment buildings in Hub 27’s first phase

Pivotal Housing Partners and St. Mary Development Co. plan a pair of five-story
apartment buildings near West 25th Street in Cleveland’s Clark-Fulton neighbor-
hood. This five-story building concept is from one of Pivotal’s other planned
locations, this one in Buffalo, NY, and is similar to a sketch included in its
application for Ohio housing tax credits. A conceptual rendering has yet to
be publicly released (Pivotal). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A revised plan is moving forward to fill in more of the development gap along West 25th Street between Cleveland’s booming Ohio City neighborhood to the north and the growing La Villa Hispana community to the south. In between is where the latest development, Hub 27, is poised to rise and join other existing, underway and planned developments at the north end of the Clark-Fulton neighborhood.

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Burke Airport closure studies released by city

Burke Lakefront Airport’s proximity to Downtown Cleveland is hailed by some
and cursed by others. It’s a marketing tool to companies seeking to stay, expand
or relocate downtown. Or its 450 acres of underutilized space on a Great Lake
could be repurposed with a variety of other uses ranging from recreation to
residential (KJP). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Two reports laying out the steps for potentially closing Burke Lakefront Airport in Downtown Cleveland were released today by Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb’s Administration. While Bibb said the reports show there are more benefits to closing Burke than costs, he and other city officials caution that no decision has been made to close the airport, so no steps have been started in that direction yet.

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Slavic Village redevelopment plans progress

Details about the first phase of Village 55, represented by the three buildings at right
from a rooftop patio across Broadway Avenue in Cleveland’s Slavic Village, are
becoming clearer as it seeks financing. The project intends to rejuvenate the
intersection of Broadway and East 55th Street (HDG).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A Cleveland-New York development partnership is seeking financing for a significant remake of the heart of Cleveland’s Slavic Village at Broadway Avenue and East 55th Street. And an application for Low Income House Tax Credits (LIHTC) is bringing more clarity to the partnership’s redevelopment plans that were first revealed publicly by NEOtrans in May 2023.

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Clinic’s megaprojects construction are on time

Construction workers labor atop what will be the Cleveland Clinic’s largest-ever build-
ing — the new Neurological Institute rising on Carnegie Avenue. It is one of several
major building projects underway right now at the Clinic’s Main Campus near Uni-
versity Circle in Cleveland (KJP). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Cleveland Clinic’s three major construction projects at its Main Campus near Cleveland’s University Circle are progressing on or close to schedule, according to a Clinic spokesperson. However, at this point, it appears that any follow-on projects at or near the Main Campus may not be happening for a while, according to two sources familiar with the Clinic’s capital planning.

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Port OKs $170M financing for major projects

The $128 million first phase of Valor Acres, on the site of a former Veterans Admini-
stration hospital in suburban Brecksville, won financing today from the Port of
Cleveland’s board of directors. Up to $93 million in bonds were provided to
help build nearly 437,000 of housing, retail and offices (DiGeronimo).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority’s board of directors today approved $170 million in bond financing to fuel a series of high-impact projects, including a large redevelopment of land that contained a former Veterans Administration facility, a major manufacturing expansion, and refinancing bonds for a nonprofit school that will free up more resources for more renovations.

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Great Lakes Brewing revisits Scranton Peninsula move

Something similar to this concept for development on Cleveland’s Scranton Peninsula
could again be part of the Great Lakes Brewing Company’s future after abandoning
plans to move to a site in suburban Avon. This vision dates from 2017 when the
microbrewer bought land along the Cuyahoga River for an expanded production
plant and tasting room (Coburn). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

NEOtrans has learned that one of Ohio’s oldest craft brewers is not only seeking to remain in Cleveland but is dusting off old plans to move its production facilities to Scranton Peninsula in Cleveland’s Flats. Sources familiar with the Great Lakes Brewing Company’s (GLBC) plans said that if public assistance can be found to provide enough developable land for the company’s expansion, it will likely relocate there.

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Walton Apts seeks to restore Clark’s walkability

The Walton Apartments, a proposed 52-unit affordable housing development for
seniors, is planned on a vacant lot on Clark Avenue, next to a Rally’s fast-food
restaurant at Fulton Road. City planners said they hoped the project will lead
more although few developments have been economically feasible here in
recent years (RDL). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A planned affordable senior housing development at 3517 Walton Ave. in Cleveland’s Clark-Fulton neighborhood won universal praise Friday from the City Planning Commission. In fact, the commission considered it a potential game-changer for the neighborhood and especially Clark Avenue which, in this growing La Villa Hispana community, is lined with car-centric land use patterns, making it pedestrian-unfriendly.

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Tremont townhouses on Towpath put on slow path

The proposed Jefferson Hill Townhomes in Cleveland’s Tremont were on a roll
but the City Planning Commission urged the developer to get more feedback
from the neighborhood before coming back them for approval of their plans.
This view looks southerly from the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and
the Towpath Trail (Payto). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A unique townhouse development, one of the first that would be built directly facing the Towpath Trail, was on a fast path toward design approval and a zoning change. But City Planning Commission members decided that that path was a little too fast for it and urged that the developer and its architect go back and get more input from the neighborhood first.

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Metroparks’ sailing center officially announced

The Patrick S. Parker Community Sailing Center at the East 55th Street Marina in
Cleveland is about to begin construction thanks to the generosity of numerous
Cleveland-area individuals and organizations (Cleveland Metroparks).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Cleveland Metroparks today officially revealed plans for the Patrick S. Parker Community Sailing Center, a community center coming to the East 55th Street Marina in Cleveland. The Sailing Center will be the first of its kind along Lake Erie in Ohio, providing unprecedented public access and sailing opportunities to the region.

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Samsel Supply to close its doors after 66 years

Samsel Supply Co.’s former properties along Old River Road in Cleveland’s Flats were
recently planned to be redeveloped with a wellness hotel. But the maritime supply
company that thrived within those venerable buildings for decades will be no
more (Google). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

When they sold their properties on Old River Road in Cleveland’s Flats East Bank to a developer nearly three years ago, Samsel family members had declined to answer where they would relocate their commercial supply business, Samsel Supply Company. No one else in local real estate circles seemed to know either. Turns out the reason was a simple one that few had considered — they’re not relocating. They’re closing.

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New family clinic coming to Clark-Fulton

On the ground floor at the northwest corner of the Northern Ohio Blanket Mills is the
proposed location for a Neighborhood Family Practice community health center. It is
the third and largest commercial tenant for the former textile factory which opened
this with 60 low-income apartments on the second and third floors (Iryna Tkachenko).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Cleveland’s growing demand for affordable health care and having one of the worst infant mortality rates in the country is behind a new clinic planned for Cleveland’s Clark-Fulton neighborhood. Cleveland-based Neighborhood Family Practice (NFP) is proposing to open a community health center in the newly refurbished Northern Ohio Blanket Mills at 3466 St. Rocco Ct.., just off Fulton Road.

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Huntington Bank Field name to outlive Browns’ current stadium lease

For the next generation of sports fans, the Cleveland Browns’ home turf will now be
called Huntington Bank Field, even if the team moves into a new stadium in Brook
Park (Cleveland Browns). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

At least we now know what a Brook Park multi-purpose stadium would be called, if the owners of the Cleveland Browns football team decides to build it. While most terms of the naming rights deal were not disclosed by the Haslams Sports Group and their National Football League franchise, we do know that it will outlast the current stadium’s lease which ends after the 2028 football season.

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Hough MLK Plaza redevelopment advances

Planning for the redevelopment of MLK Plaza in Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood
is advancing with the application of financing and the creation of renderings for the
first phase of the project (RDL). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

While Northern Real Estate Urban Ventures, LLC (NREUV) is getting ready to break ground this week on its first Cleveland development, it’s already putting together the pieces for its next project here. The redevelopment of MLK Plaza, 9300 Wade Park Ave., in Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood would replace an aging, mixed-use complex with modern, low-income housing over ground-floor programming and common areas.

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