GCRTA to add more railcars to order

Greater Cleveland’s new rapid transit trains are starting to look like trains at the
Siemens Mobility factory in Sacramento, CA. These are two halves of a rail car
that will be connected to each other at a hinge to create a single “articulated”
car. Cleveland will get 60 of these starting next year (GCRTA).
CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

In two weeks, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA) will likely authorize completion of its 60-car order of new trains to replace the oldest rail transit fleet in the nation. The Cuyahoga County-based transit agency is hurriedly trying to round up the last funding and complete the order before costs rise further.

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Euclid Avenue building demolition postponed

This century-old structure on Euclid Avenue at East 71st Street in Cleveland’s
Midtown neighborhood is proposed for demolition to avail a future development
site. But the demolition was postponed by the Planning Commission which sought
more information. The site is next to a station on the HealthLine bus rapid
transit (Google). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Neither Mother Nature, the Cleveland Foundation or the Cleveland Planning Commission have so far been able to demolish a century-old building at Euclid Avenue and East 71st Street in Cleveland’s Midtown neighborhood. The tornado-damaged former showroom and warehouse of the Baker Electric Car Company, 7107-7113 Euclid, is in the crosshairs of a nearly four-acre redevelopment site.

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Cleveland leaves door open for Browns to stay

Fifty acres of developable Downtown Cleveland lakefront land, lightly shaded and outlined
in blue, with another 15 acres set aside for public spaces are the subject of a pending offer
to prospective developers. That includes the 22-acre site of Huntington Bank Field where
the Cleveland Browns play roughly 10 home games per season until their lease with the city
runs out after the 2028 football season (NCWDC). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

While it may be unlikely the existing Huntington Bank Field will remain standing if and when the Cleveland Browns leave it, the head of a nonprofit corporation overseeing lakefront development kept the door open for the National Football League team to return if it chooses. But the clock is running for the Browns’ owners to compete with other prospective lakefront developers to respond to a request for qualifications (RFQ) issued last month.

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Cosm gets initial OK from Planning Commission

Rather than submit detailed plans for the Cleveland Cosm to the Cleveland Planning Com-
mission, the project architect sought feedback from pictures of existing Cosm locations
and this rendering of the Detroit Cosm, now under construction at Cadillac Square,
 adjacent to Campus Martius Park (Rossetti). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Bedrock Real Estate, Cosm and a project architect are already moving forward with plans to build a new immersive entertainment and hospitality venue in Downtown Cleveland known as Cosm Cleveland. And those conceptual plans crossed their first big hurdle today with unanimous support from the City Planning Commission.

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Downtown Cleveland adds new retail tenants

The Klutch Cannabis store on lower Prospect Avenue in Downtown Cleveland has
a sign that used the same style as the original Record Rendezvous sign dating from
when the store opened here in the 1940s. The entire 1908-building was renovated
for $1.6 million (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

There is a recent surge of retailers opening in Downtown Cleveland due in part to a growing traffic base coming from several sectors. One is the continued strong residential population growth. Another is the increasing number of return-to-office requirements by employers. And the last is the growing number of year-round entertainment options downtown, based on the hours of operation of the new retailers.

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CSU abruptly ends U-Pass deal with GCRTA

Cleveland State University has long been a close partner to the Greater Cleveland
Regional Transit Authority in many ways, including its sponsorship of the bus rapid
transit-light route along Clifton-Lake through Cleveland and its West Shore suburbs.
But the financially troubled university has left transit riders at the curb by exiting
the U-Pass program (GCRTA). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Cleveland State University (CSU) notified its students this morning by e-mail that it will immediately discontinue its participation in the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority’s (GCRTA or RTA) U-Pass program. This program provided to CSU students vastly discounted monthly GCRTA passes which they could use for other transportation — to work, medical appointments, grocery shopping and more.

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Downtown’s latest high-rise gets finishing touches

The highest swimming pool in Cleveland is now open with more than a month to go
until Labor Day. And right after Labor Day is when the finishing touches on Skyline
776 are due to be completed (NEOtrans). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.

Fifty weeks ago, NEOtrans got a tour of the Skyline 776 apartment tower just as its first tenants were moving in. But those tenants were moving into a 23-story high-rise that was still under construction and recovering from a sudden transition. Nearly a year later, work is still be done on the building, at 776 Euclid Ave. in Downtown Cleveland. But a lot has been done and there is finally an end-date in sight.

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