North Collinwood ‘historic’ modular townhomes OK’d

Final designs for six modular townhomes called Arcade Place
were unanimously approved yesterday by the Cleveland
Planning Commission’s Design Review Committee. They will be
built on a vacant lot on East 156th Street at Arcade Avenue, just
north of the Waterloo Arts District (HEART Design Group).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Six townhomes may not sound like much, but their builder says they’re an “historic” next step toward increasing the amount of modular housing in Cleveland. City officials and some home builders say more modular homes are needed here to address shortages in quality, affordable housing, fill vacant lots, repopulate the city, increase homeownership in Cleveland and build equity.

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Tick Tock Tavern closing after 75+ years

A familiar sign along Clifton Boulevard in Cleveland’s Edgewater neighborhood
will go dark a week before Christmas. Owner John Tripodis is retiring after more
than 30 years of running the famous West Side restaurant (KJP).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

It’s not often that a restaurant survives more than a few years. Rarer still is the restaurant that lasts nearly eight decades. Tick Tock Tavern, which has been at the same location, 11526 Clifton Blvd., in the Edgewater neighborhood of Cleveland since the year before the last electric streetcars rumbled by in 1948, is set to close its doors forever in just 12 days.

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Gordon Square development wins approval

Unlike most Cleveland buildings which are of a gray or beige color, the “Soap Site”
apartments next to Herman Park in Cleveland’s Gordon Square neighborhood won
approval from a city design review panel for being different and for embracing
its surroundings (Dimit). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Projects can move fast in Cleveland when you coordinate with stakeholders and align with the Planning Commission. That’s what happened with a proposed mixed use development in the Gordon Square neighborhood dubbed the “Soap Site” went from a conceptual plan revealed publicly only a month ago, to unanimous final design approval today by commission members.

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Haslams say proposed Browns’ Brook Park stadium, development to net $1.2 billion in benefits per year

The ownership of the Cleveland Browns and their stadium development firm say
that a new roofed stadium will create benefits for the suburb of Brook Park and
all of Northeast Ohio including Downtown Cleveland where the team currently
plays (HKS Architects). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

The Haslam Sports Group, owners of the Cleveland Browns football team and stadium development company Primacy Development LLC, released findings today from a study saying their proposed stadium in suburban Brook Park would benefit all of Cuyahoga County, including Downtown Cleveland. But county officials say they want the Browns to continue playing downtown and aren’t buying the study’s findings.

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Centennial still alive, among Ohio Brownfield winners

The Centennial redevelopment of 925 Euclid Ave. is project that has not seen much
visible activity lately. But it suddenly has some by winning $10 million in Brownfield
funding through the Cuyahoga Land Bank. It was one of 34 such projects to win
funding (KJP). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Without any visible activity in nearly two years, rumors circulated throughout Cleveland’s development community that the roughly $500 million Centennial redevelopment, 925 Euclid Ave. in Downtown Cleveland was dead. Similar rumors circulated about the fate of the Rockefeller Building, 614 W. Superior Ave., and renovations to Rhodes Tower, 2124 Chester Ave., one of the projects in Cleveland State University quieted development master plan.

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Three vacant drugstores, three possible outcomes

A former Walgreens at the busy intersection of West 130th Street and Bellaire
Road in Cleveland’s Bellaire-Puritas neighborhood is due to become a super-
rmarket with a new gas station outside and fresh foods inside (HEART
Design Group). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

In Councilman Danny Kelly’s Ward 11 on Cleveland’s West Side, there are three vacant drugstores. Each is facing a different potential outcome. A former CVS on Madison Avenue at West Boulevard may be replaced by a fire station after a gas station was rejected by the neighborhood. An abandoned Rite Aid at West 117th Street and Lorain Avenue may become a senior center. And a vacant Walgreens at West 130th Street and Bellaire Road could turned into a supermarket with a gas station.

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Ohio City townhomes project gets 2nd shot

Townhomes in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood are about to see construction
after being put on hold for nearly three years. An improving for-sale housing
market is a major reason why as is a new general contractor overseeing
the project (Sixmo). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

A long-planned and contentious townhomes development at 4705 Bridge Ave. in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood is seeing signs of construction activity after being on hold for nearly three years. The project’s revival is due to several factors including an improved for-sale housing market of lower interest rates, more fluid financing for construction and a new construction contractor that was hired.

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