Rafih Auto Group Development OK’d

Rafih Auto Group’s new home plus associated retail and office developments near the Inter-
state 90-Nagel Road interchange were approved by Avon Planning Commission this week,
opening the door to luxury auto dealerships to relocate from Cuyahoga County. The inter-
section of Chester and Jaycox roads is at the bottom of this image (Cresco).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Two luxury car dealerships that first sought to redevelop part of Great Northern Mall in North Olmsted are now heading to Avon in Lorain County instead. It’s the latest symptom of urban sprawl that’s driving high-profile Cuyahoga County businesses into the collar counties.

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Sherwin-Williams HQ boosts office market

Occupancy of the new Sherwin-Williams HQ beginning in the fourth quarter of 2025 gave
a brief boost to Greater Cleveland’s office market which has been sagging since before
the pandemic (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Although the occupancy of Sherwin-Williams’ new 1-million-square-foot headquarters downtown has caused a brief boost to Greater Cleveland’s office market, a new report showed that longer-term, structural changes to the market are causing it to return to more pre-pandemic conditions.

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Bedrock Riverfront development evolves

Construction is happening on Bedrock Real Estate developments in Downtown Cleveland,
from the Rock Block seen here, to the Riverfront. But despite a masterplan approved less
than a year ago, some of the developments envisioned for the 38 acres of downtown land
Bedrock owns appear to be changing (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

According to sources and a recent presentation by Rock Entertainment Group CEO Nic Barlage, Bedrock Real Estate’s Downtown Cleveland Riverfront plans are flowing like the Cuyahoga River, below the ice and out of sight. But the revisions reveal the desire of Rock Ventures owner Dan Gilbert to deliver tangible progress sooner than originally planned.

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West 25th bus lanes to move forward

Despite the opposition of some businesses in Ohio City’s Market District, GCRTA and City
of Cleveland officials pledged to move forward with plans to replace 55 on-street parking
spaces with bus-only lanes and traffic calming features, with or without a hoped-for
federal grant that could be announced as early as next month. (GCRTA).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) officials today said they intend to move forward with plans to build bus-only lanes on West 25th Street through Ohio City’s Market District as part of its MetroHealth Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) from Detroit Avenue south to Old Brooklyn.

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Five affordable senior housing developments emerge across Cleveland

Puritas Senior Apartments rises behind single-family homes on West 145th Street in Cleveland’s
Jefferson neighborhood (Harrison Whittaker). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

As the new year opens to a snowy start, a flurry of local construction activity is bringing four ongoing senior apartment projects totaling over 200 units closer to completion. A fifth, the 55-unit Hough Senior Living, has started site preparation after closing on financing.

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Two buyers getting nine apartment buildings

The largest single property that’s about to transfer to a new owner is the Van Aken
Crossing Apartments spread among three buildings on Van Aken Boulevard and
the light-rail transit Blue Line near Shaker Square in Cleveland (LoopNet).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Ownerships of a total of 177 apartments spread among nine buildings clustered together in two locations on the east and west sides of Cleveland are about to transfer to out-of-state buyers, public records show. While it’s too early to say what that may mean for the futures of those properties and their neighborhoods, they bear watching.

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Hough, Stockyards apartments’ financing closes

Hough Senior Living, on Hough Avenue at East 89th Street, is one of many significant
developments moving forward in this neighborhood, once a national posterchild of
urban decay (HD+S). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

In less than one week, NEOtrans has shared news of multiple significant developments in Hough making progress with a fifth project now moving forward. But the West side need not feel left out, as Cleveland-based CHN Housing Partners announced a west-side project closed its financing this week, too.

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Cleveland Clinic plans Level 1 trauma center

The Cleveland Clinic’s new Neurological Institute on Carnegie Avenue will, among other
services, help the Clinic gain a Level 1 trauma center as early as 2028. But the 1-million-
square-foot neuro building is expected to open in February 2027 (NEOtrans).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Expansion of the Cleveland Clinic’s Main Campus Emergency Department and the addition of its new Neurological Institute may help Greater Cleveland gain its third Level 1 trauma center as early as 2028 and relieve pressure on the region’s existing Level 1 centers. But not everyone agrees to the need.

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Reese Consumer Health seeks Opportunity

A new office building and production facility on Woodland Avenue near the Opportunity
Corridor for Reese Consumer Health will allow the company to take advantage of growth
opportunities (Bialosky). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Last year, Cleveland-based Reese Pharmaceutical rebooted its business and changed its name to Reese Consumer Health. Next year, the company plans to change its headquarters-production location. And in subsequent years, it hopes those efforts will expand its business and add new jobs.

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Developer ID’d for Euclid Avenue project

Property owner The Cleveland Foundation has reached a letter of intent with Signet Real
Estate Group to develop land at the northeast corner of Euclid Avenue and East 71st
Street in Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood. This is an early conceptual rendering
of what is envisioned here (TCF). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

The Cleveland Foundation says it wants to do for East 71st Street at Euclid Avenue what it has done for East 66th Street — transform it. From the foundation’s perspective, that requires demolishing a structure from the city’s industrial past. And the Cleveland Foundation will reveal this Friday a vision of that next transformation.

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Lakeside development edges toward water

The former Westinghouse plant on West 58th Street awaits a $59.3 million redevelop-
ment (Harrison Whittaker). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

In Cleveland’s Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood, a slew of residential and mixed-use developments are set to transform the area south of Edgewater Park.

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More new stuff for Cleveland’s Hough

Now 20 years in the making, this vacant lot on Chester avenue, between East 81st and 82nd
streets in Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood, is finally seeing construction on a major new
residential development (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Each new year is a chance to start anew, and three major projects along Chester Avenue in Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood are taking that opportunity by starting construction. But none is bigger than a project that’s been 20 years in the making.

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Ohio City gets a winter glow-up

From across Lorain Avenue, Ohio City’s landmark West Side Market undergoes $50
million in renovations (Harrison Whittaker). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

While new construction is often the most visible sign of development activity in a neighborhood, a trio of renovation projects is restoring historic structures in the heart of Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood with new retail spaces and modern amenities.

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New strategic plan in the works for GCRTA

    The decommissioning of the old rail fleet – including these Tokyu heavy-rail vehicles on
the Cuyahoga Viaduct near Downtown Cleveland – will be a visible reminder of the several
improvements under way at the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority to better
support Greater Cleveland (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

For a transit agency facing upcoming budget deficits in 2026, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) struck a hopeful tone at the first committee meeting of the year. But due to rising costs of healthcare and static ridership numbers, others are sounding the alarm for immediate change to avoid collapse.

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Medical Mutual redo starts as Project Scarlet

The former Medical Mutual headquarters is going under the knife to be converted from
office building to a mix of residential, hotel and ground-floor restaurant-retail uses. Side-
walks on Prospect Avenue and East 9th Street were closed off and streets narrowed to
allow work to begin (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A clear sign of a project getting underway is when street barriers and fencing go up around that project’s site. In this case, it’s the vacated Medical Mutual of Ohio headquarters, 2060 E. 9th St. in Downtown Cleveland, that’s about to see work get started.

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Safar is a journey from Tick Tock Tavern

Saravanan “Babu” Chandrababu oversees renovations to the former Tick Tock Tavern that
will convert it into Safar and open at the end of this month. With a Cleveland-Lakewood
map mural in the background, the Legacy bar shown here will offer traditional American
foods while two other rooms will offer a fusion of Indian foods in a fine-dining and speak-
easy lounge setting (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Two journeys are represented at the site of the former Tick Tock Tavern that saw its nearly eight-decade-long run end in December 2024. One is that of the tavern and the other is of its new owner Saravanan “Babu” Chandrababu.

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GCRTA’s new trains’ arrival schedule

The first new rapid transit trains in Cleveland since the Reagan Administration are
due to arrive here in June. But the general public won’t be able to ride them
in regular service until the following summer (Siemens Mobility).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Among 45 U.S. cities with urban rail transit systems, Greater Cleveland has the nation’s the oldest train fleet. The first tangible evidence of that changing will arrive in June when the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) is expected to receive its first new rapid transit railcars since 1985.

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Historic mansion serves its last

This 19th-century mansion on Cedar Avenue in Cleveland’s Fairfax neighborhood faces
demolition as the adjacent Gardens of Fairfax Healthcare Center is about to expand
under new ownership (Google). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A nursing home complex is proposed for a major expansion but requires the demolition of two historic homes, including a 19th-century mansion designed by a famous local architect. A permit application for the mansion’s demolition was submitted to the City of Cleveland last month and is still pending.

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GCRTA’s choices: victim or solution

Although University Circle is Greater Cleveland’s fastest growing
   employment district and one of its fastest growing residential areas,
its transit offerings haven’t changed much in decades. The HealthLine
offers less frequent and slower buses than before 2008 and has
only one rail line which skirts the district (NEOtrans).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

If the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) was a human being, it might look like the Black Knight from the 1975 movie “Monty Python and The Holy Grail” after being confronted by King Arthur. In the British comedy, the king had hacked off the knight’s arms and legs, yet the knight continued to fight, claiming “It’s just a flesh wound.”

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Camelot Bakery OK’d for city’s West Side

Camelot Bakery is proposed to be built in phases at the intersection
of Madison Avenue and West 105th Street in Cleveland’s Cudell
neighborhood, replacing their existing, cramped building on the
same site. This is an updated rendering showing a new color palette
and glass-block windows along the first floor of the Madison frontage.
The bus in the background is shown on West 105th Street (Meraki).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

It’s the kind of success story just about everyone cheers for and it’s a story that Cleveland needs more of. It’s the story of a husband-and-wife team growing a business they started, outgrowing their first building in Cleveland to the point they need a new one — and are staying in Cleveland.

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