On Prospect Avenue, renovation of the former Medical Mutual headquarters at the Rose Building is currently underway as part of Project Scarlet. (Harrison Whittaker). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
Progress Pics: Project Scarlet, Electric Building, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
As Downtown Cleveland faces a wave of foreclosures and a slowdown in ground-up developments, a collection of major renovation projects are quietly renewing hope for the future of the central business district.
Three of those projects are clustered on and around Prospect Avenue — where the under-construction Cosm venue will fill a gap in the sports-oriented Gateway District.
At 2060 E. 9th St., the $120 million Project Scarlet will renovate the former Medical Mutual of Ohio headquarters at the 10-story Rose Building into 154 apartments and ground-floor retail. The adjacent six-story Sloan Building is planned to become a 123-room Marriott Tribute hotel.
On the south side of Prospect Avenue, renovation of the Electric Building into residential units is reaching completion in stages (Harrison Whittaker).
The mixed-use project is being developed by Spark GHC of Solon with Cleveland Construction Inc. of Mentor as its general contractor. Construction is already underway and is expected to wrap up in summer 2027.
Across the street at 700 Prospect Ave., the $70 million office-to-residential conversion at the historic Electric Building is nearing completion, with several floors of apartments already available to lease.
Units on floors 2-5 are already listed, with floor 6 scheduled to begin leasing on April 1. The remaining units on floors 7-9 will become available in stages as the development nears completion by the end of May.
The Gilded Age Rockefeller Building on West Superior Avenue may be rescued via a public-private partnership (Harrison Whittaker).
The Electric Building’s renovation was led by K&D Group, also with Cleveland Construction as its general contractor.
Across from the west end of Prospect Avenue at 614 W. Superior Ave., K&D Group already has plans to restore another historic downtown structure. Joining city and county land banks, the 1910-built Rockefeller Building may be rescued through a public-private partnership.
The 17-story, 261,264-square-foot structure has been deteriorating since a previous redevelopment plan fell through. The previous owner’s failure to properly secure the building led to the theft and damage of historic furnishings.
Across the Shoreway in Downtown Cleveland, expansion of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is well underway (Harrison Whittaker).
Another pair of renovation projects are underway on the quieter north end of Downtown. At 751 Erieside Ave., the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s $175 million renovation and expansion has made significant progress.
Its 50,000-square-foot addition will include a student center, offices, and new space for concerts and community programming. The expansion was designed by PAU of New York and is being built by Higley Construction of Cleveland.
Meanwhile, renovations are underway at the 529-foot Erieview Tower, where 12 of the building’s 40 floors are being converted to residential use. Future plans include a hotel and luxury apartments under Marriott’s W brand.
This aerial photo of Erieview Tower was taken from the window of a commercial plane en route to Cleveland Hopkins Airport (Harrison Whittaker).
The tower, located at 1301 E. 9th St., will retain 12 levels of renovated office space on its upper floors. The adjacent Galleria mall, which remains largely vacant, will remain as commercial and retail space.
The project is being led by Kassouf Development of Cleveland and built by Independence Construction of Brecksville.
For more construction updates around Greater Cleveland, check out NEOtrans’ other Progress Pics articles.
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