Two of six new Victorian-style apartment buildings on East 89th Street designed to mimic historic Cleveland homes (Harrison Whittaker). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
Progress Pics: new residential, retail, offices
In May 2022, NEOtrans broke the news that Timothy L. Tramble, Sr., president and CEO of the St. Luke’s Foundation, planned to build 48 housing units on East 89th Street through his firm We Rise Development LLC.
The project, called 89th Rising, consists entirely of rental units. The apartments have been listed at relatively affordable prices in order to target families and young professionals looking to return to the neighborhood.
Each of the structures at 89th Rising features a unique, traditional design (Harrison Whittaker).
In total, the development spans six 8-unit apartment buildings designed by City Architecture to reflect the classic exteriors of homes in Fairfax—where Tramble resides.
This project symbolizes a broader trend of renewed investment in Fairfax, from Innovation Square to the expansion of Cleveland Clinic.
Apartment buildings at 89th Rising echo architectural features present on a historic home to the right, such as turrets, porches, and brick masonry (Harrison Whittaker).
Half of the 48 units are 1-bedroom apartments, while the rest are 2-bedroom, townhome-style rentals. Off-street parking spaces for each of the units are available in garages behind the buildings.
The 89th Rising development follows a plan created years earlier by City Architecture and the Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation to replace large, deteriorating houses with residences that fulfill modern needs.
89th Rising restitches the urban fabric of Fairfax through varied designs inspired by vernacular architecture (Harrison Whittaker).
South of the Cleveland Clinic, infill residential development has replaced many vacant lots with single-family homes.
Compared to rental construction, however, the momentum for new, for-sale homes in Fairfax appears to have slowed in recent months.
On East 100th Street, three infill homes have seen minimal progress in 2025 (Harrison Whittaker).
Despite that, a multitude of developments have reshaped a once-blighted corridor along Cedar Avenue. Millions of dollars of construction is complete or nearly finished on large projects such as Fairfax Market, two medical research buildings at Cleveland Clinic, and apartments and townhomes at Skyline on Stokes in University Circle.
Now, investment has shifted further west in the form of apartments, office space, and retail at African Town Plaza. Additionally, a nursing home expansion is planned at The Gardens of Fairfax.
Signs at The Gardens of Fairfax nursing home announce its expansion (Harrison Whittaker).
African Town Plaza, a mixed-use development which will convert the former Cedar Branch YMCA into apartments, offices, and event space, is already well underway. The project is led by James Sosan, a Nigerian immigrant who now calls Cleveland home.
Next, Sosan plans to to build African Town Retail Plaza, which will add 38 commercial spaces and offices across the street. The building will act as an incubator for small businesses by offering discounted rents to startups.
Across the street (left) from African Town Plaza (right), a new retail plaza is planned (Harrison Whittaker).
Cedar isn’t the only thoroughfare getting a facelift, however. Carnegie Avenue is currently undergoing a Complete & Green Streets makeover which will improve the pedestrian realm through improvements like mid-block crossings and pedestrian islands while still maintaining a high traffic capacity for vehicles.
In total, the redesigned Carnegie will add tens of thousands of square feet of green space, through tree lawns and other street greening, between Ontario Street and MLK Jr. Drive.
A repaved section of Carnegie Avenue in Fairfax added a signalized, mid-block pedestrian crossing with a refuge island (Harrison Whittaker).
Early last year, NEOtrans’ reported a pending sale of the former Lancer Motel at 7707 Carnegie Ave. The sale of the property to The Residency, LLC was finalized in February 2024.
The structure is now being rehabbed into The Residency Studio Apartments.
The former Lancer Motel is reimagined as The Residency Studio Apartments (Harrison Whittaker).
Meanwhile on East 105th Street, where the Opportunity Corridor meets Fairfax and University Circle, the second phase of Innovation Square will soon rise. Earlier this month, its developers won approval for demolition of two vacant buildings on the site, at 2299 and 2303 E. 103rd St.
Planned is a 67-unit, 3-story affordable apartment building by City Architecture, Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation, and McCormack Baron Salazar.
Aura at Innovation Square (center) created 82 apartments on East 105th St. To its left, a smaller Phase II building will add 67 more on a currently vacant lot (Harrison Whittaker).
The $25.6 million project was financed using Community Project Funding Grants, ARPA funds from the City of Cleveland, HOME (HUD) funds from Cuyahoga County, and Project Based Vouchers through CMHA.
Despite being one block closer to the Red Line rapid transit station at Quincy Avenue, Innovation Square Phase II will offer fewer units than the project’s 4-story first phase, Aura at Innovation Square.
Playwright Park, across the newly-extended Hudson Avenue (Harrison Whittaker).
The second-phase apartment building lies directly across the street from Playwright Park, a neighborhood green space which features murals from local artists and pays homage to Karamu House, the nation’s oldest Black theater.
For more development updates across Cleveland’s many neighborhoods, stay tuned for NEOtrans’ next Progress Pics feature.
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