Looking south across a basketball court at Cudell Commons, construction of a rebuilt Marion C. Seltzer Elementary School moves ahead (Harrison Whittaker). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
Progress Pics: Depot on Detroit, West Veterans Housing, Seltzer Elementary
Cleveland’s Edgewater, Cudell, and West Boulevard neighborhoods are currently facing a small wave of development, ranging from renovations to new construction. But the path to groundbreaking has been easier for some projects than others.
At the southwest corner of West and Clifton Boulevards, six townhomes proposed by local builder SmartBuilt Development LLC and designed by Sixmo Architecture of Cleveland faced significant opposition from neighbors at a City Planning Commission meeting on May 1.
A rendering of the proposed WestCliff townhomes, facing northwest on West Boulevard (Sixmo Architecture).
The townhome development, called WestCliff, would replace a long-vacant lot at 9903 Clifton Blvd. where a home burned down decades ago. Despite this, opponents cited concerns regarding traffic, parking, safety, density, setback requirements, visual appeal, exterior cladding materials, emergency vehicle access, and the number of additional trash and recycling bins.
The opposition included prominent local figures including Rose Zitiello, executive director of the West Town Community Development Corporation, and Dona Brady, the former city councilwoman for Ward 11 — which at the time encompassed Westown as well as a narrow section extending north to her home on West Boulevard.
“So people walking in there — you can’t question it, because it’s their front door,” commented one next door neighbor, worried about the homes’ impact on neighborhood safety. “But who are those people?”
The former Clifton Cleaners space has undergone a complete renovation into two storefronts (Harrison Whittaker).
While 12 neighbors spoke out against the development, the sole public comment in favor of it came from another adjacent property owner. “Someone’s going to develop this area,” the homeowner stated. He argued that WestCliff’s developers were “easier to work with than anybody else,” referring to a previous development proposal for the site.
Planning commission ultimately postponed its vote, asking the developer to provide better renderings of the development in its neighborhood context. WestCliff will be presented again at an upcoming meeting.
To the west, the former Clifton Cleaners laundromat and dry cleaning facility at 11034 Clifton has been renovated into two 1,100-square-foot storefronts. Freedom Construction Services, LLC of Olmsted Falls was the project’s general contractor.
Construction continues at Depot on Detroit, looking east on Detroit Avenue (Harrison Whittaker).
Meanwhile in the Cudell neighborhood, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) has started construction on a new Marion C. Seltzer Elementary School at 1468 W. 98th St., next to Cudell Commons. The school is being built by Greenspace Construction Services, LLC of Warrensville Heights.
Nearby, the Depot on Detroit transit-oriented development is preparing to rise at 10300 Detroit Ave. — a five-minute walk from GCRTA’s West Blvd-Cudell rapid station.
The $20 million project by Indianapolis-based Flaherty & Collins Development LLC consists of 60 affordable apartments targeted to households earning less than 60 percent of Area Median Income (AMI). Depot on Detroit is being built by John G. Johnson Construction and was designed by City Architecture, both of Cleveland.
A retail building left boarded up by Dollar General is being converted into a daycare center on the north side of Madison Avenue (Harrison Whittaker).
Another notable project in the area is the renovation of a vacant Dollar General store, 9200 Madison Ave., into a daycare activity center for A Step Above Care. The building was left boarded up by the previous owner.
On the east end of the West Boulevard neighborhood, local nonprofit CHN Housing Partners is leading the development of Cleveland West Veterans Housing.
The 62-unit affordable apartment building, 3311 W. 73rd St., will be reserved exclusively for veterans in an effort to combat issues with long-term homelessness and accommodate needs such as mental or physical disabilities.
Cleveland West Veterans Housing begins to rise on the east side of West 73rd Street (Harrison Whittaker).
The development, awarded a 9 percent Low Income Housing Tax Credit from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency, was designed by architects Hiti, DiFrancesco and Siebold (HD+S) of Cleveland. Ozanne Construction Company, also of Cleveland, is the project’s general contractor.
For more construction updates around Greater Cleveland, check out NEOtrans’ other Progress Pics articles.
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