Cuyahoga County Planning Commission Weblog

Members of the new Cleveland Heights Bicycle Coalition asked Cleveland Heights City Council to make the City more sustainable and bicycle-friendly, and to paint sharrows on five of the City's busier streets. They also presented a 500-signature petition.

The City of Cleveland Heights hired Camiros, Ltd. of Chicago to conduct a sustainability audit of the City's zoning code. The planning firm will review the code and recommend ways to remove obstacles to sustainable development.

Update: a Sun Press editorial says that other communities should consider similar approaches.

Officials in Cleveland Heights are working on a new strategic plan for the City. It was last updated in 1993 (PDF). A draft should be available later this month. A group of Cleveland Heights residents launched Sustainable Heights, an outgrowth of the Cleveland sustainability summit.

Grant Deming's Forest Hill Allotment Historic District in Cleveland Heights was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 13. It is the seventh and largest historic district in the City.

Update: the Sun Press published additional details.

About 90 people attended the community meeting about the future of the Oakwood Club in Cleveland Heights. Nine attendees formed a steering committee that will look at ways to preserve the property as greenspace.

Update: the Sun News has more details about the meeting.

The 144-acre Oakwood Club property in Cleveland Heights is up for sale, with an asking price of approximately $6 million. The area is zoned for single-family housing, and a Sun News editorial says that the site should remain as greenspace. A community meeting about the property will take place on February 3.

Members of Oakwood Club and Mayfield Sand Ridge Club voted to combine the two country clubs. The 144-acre Oakwood Club property in Cleveland Heights will be put up for sale. The nearby Acacia Country Club property in Lyndhurst may also be available.

The Home Repair Resource Center in Cleveland Heights is rehabilitating a second home, a 1,380 square-foot house on Edison Road.

On Monday, the City of Cleveland Heights held the third of three public meetings on the Cedar Fairmount Traffic Study. City Architecture will submit its final report and recommendations to City Council next month.

The proposed Grant W. Deming Forest Hill Allotment Historic District in Cleveland Heights is pending approval by the Ohio Historic Site Preservation Advisory Board. The City and Ohio Historic Preservation Office will hold a public meeting about the proposal on October 26 at the Superior Schoolhouse.

The first house renovated by the Home Repair Resource Center in Cleveland Heights will be unveiled and open to the public from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. today. The Westover Road house was purchased by its new owners in April. Home in the Heights will next rehabilitate a house on Edison Road.

The City of Cleveland Heights has completed the conversion of three two-family houses into side-by-side condominiums through its East Derbyshire Road Rehabilitation Project.

Panelists at an Urban Land Institute event last week spoke about collaboration in University Circle. At the Heights Observer, Cleveland Heights City Council candidate Mary Dunbar wrote about the the opportunities for Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights created by the rejuvenation of University Circle.

South Euclid Mayor Georgine Welo, University Heights Councilman Kevin Patrick Murphy, and Cleveland Heights Councilman Mark Tumeo spoke at a panel discussion on regionalism last week.

Architect Mehrdad Yazdani presented his design concept for the new University Circle rapid transit station at a recent public meeting in Cleveland Heights. Construction of the $10 million project is scheduled to begin in fall 2010.

Cleveland Heights City Council candidate Toby Rittner asserts that the City needs a new comprehensive master plan and economic strategy, saying that it "should encompass all residential neighborhoods and commercial corridors and include specifics for physical and economic development, with benchmarks to measure the plan's success on a yearly basis."

The Home in the Heights subsidiary of the Home Repair Resource Center in Cleveland Heights recently sold its first renovated home, a house on Westover Drive that had been vacant for more than two years.

In a Plain Dealer op-ed, Mayor Beryl Rothschild of University Heights says that her city would gain "absolutely nothing" from a merger with Cleveland Heights.

The Inglewood Historic District in Cleveland Heights was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 15.

Cleveland Heights Councilman Mark Tumeo's suggestion to begin talks about a possible merger of Cleveland Heights and University Heights continues to elicit a wide variety of reactions.

Prompted by the recent proposal from Cleveland Heights Councilman Mark Tumeo, this morning's Sound of Ideas program on WCPN was devoted to a discussion of municipal mergers and collaborations. Mayor Rothschild of University Heights remains strongly opposed to the concept.

Cleveland Heights Councilman Mark Tumeo said he has received good feedback about his proposal to begin examining a potential Cleveland Heights-University Heights merger. He also advocated for the concept in a Plain Dealer op-ed.

The Home Repair Resource Center in Cleveland Heights has begun rehabilitation of the first house obtained for the organization's Home in the Heights program. The house on Westover Drive in the Forest Hill neighborhood will be sold when work is completed.

At a recent University Heights Charter Review Commission meeting, a Cleveland Heights councilman introduced a proposal to begin discussing a possible merger of the two cities. The Charter Review Commission did not comment on the topic, but Mayor Rothschild of University Heights is not interested. Mayor Kelley of Cleveland Heights has raised the subject of combining fire departments.

Some Cleveland Heights residents are concerned about the City's lack of public review for proposed residential demolitions.

The Cleveland Heights Home Repair Resource Center will soon begin rehabilitating the first of 12 homes it plans to complete this year. The houses were acquired by the City from HUD, and will be sold when the renovations are finished. The City of Cleveland Heights also recently revised its downpayment assistance program.

The City of Cleveland Heights is still looking to redevelop the Top of the Hill site at Cedar Road and Euclid Heights Boulevard, but officials are proceeding cautiously because of the poor economic climate.

Mayor Brewer of East Cleveland proposed building a 12,000-seat amphitheater in his city's portion of historic Forest Hill Park. The idea would require approval from the Forest Hill Park Advisory Commission, and at least one of its three members is opposed to the concept. Others question the need for additional concert venues.

The Heights Observer shares additional information about the East Derbyshire Road Rehabilitation Project, an effort by the City of Cleveland Heights to stabilize a neighborhood by converting duplexes to condominiums.

Crain's Cleveland Business looked at the storefront renovation programs in Cleveland Heights, Gates Mills, and Parma.

This week's episode of WVIZ's Applause visits three houses: the straw bale house on Cedar Road in Cleveland Heights, architect Robert Maschke's modernist home near the West Shoreway, and Tremont's Clarence Court townhouses designed by Dan Bickerstaff.

The Plain Dealer explored the history of the 85-year old Alcazar apartment/hotel in Cleveland Heights.

At a public workshop last month, consultants presented three concepts for improving the Cedar-Fairmount business district in Cleveland Heights. Participants favored an option that calls for widening the sidewalks along Cedar Road and narrowing the street.

Mark Souther writes about the start of an endeavor to add Grant Deming's Forest Hill Allotment in Cleveland Heights to the National Register of Historic Places.

The City of Cleveland Heights has started offering 100% tax abatements over seven years for new residential construction.

Planning continues for a trail network that would link Lake Erie and the City of Cleveland to the Heights area.

Commissioner Jones scheduled two public forums to discuss the Medical Mart and convention center plans. The first will be held on September 2 at the Cleveland Heights Community Center, and the second will be on September 4 at the Middleburg Heights Community Center.

There are currently three community gardens in Cleveland Heights, and increased community interest could lead to more.

Update: a Cleveland Heights resident wants to convert some unused city-owned properties into community gardens.

The first condominium created from a two-family house on East Derbyshire Road in Cleveland Heights was just placed on the market. Two others will be completed late this month.

The City of Cleveland Heights will work with the nonprofit Home Repair Resource Center to rehabilitate vacant houses acquired through HUD's Dollar Homes initiative. City officials estimate that 40% of the 27 houses acquired or being acquired are beyond repair and will be demolished, but the remaining 60% will be refurbished.

The Sun Press examined the causes of population declines in Cleveland Heights, Shaker Heights, and University Heights and how leaders have reacted to the changes.

The Heights Observer provides more details about the recent public meeting on potential changes to the Cedar-Fairmount area.

Cleveland Heights residents would like the Cedar-Fairmount district to be more pedestrian-friendly. Planners are evaluating several options, including narrowing Cedar Road from six to four lanes. A second public workshop will be held in September.

The new issue of the Heights Observer includes a look at the Severance Center area, an essay on the prospects of a Cleveland Heights-University Heights merger, and more details about the transportation and streetscape planning process in the Cedar-Fairmount district. The City of Cleveland Heights is currently conducting a stakeholder survey.

The sluggish residential real estate market is making it difficult for developers to sell new condominiums in inner-ring suburbs. Several cities are offering incentives to spur investment, and developers are trying to entice buyers. Rysar is offering a free Smart car to purchasers at the Bluestone development in Cleveland Heights. Other developers have pulled out of projects. Al Neyer canceled the Terraces on Lee Road in Cleveland Heights. Experts predict that the market will rebound.

On Thursday, OneCommunity announced the official launch of a wireless Internet cloud covering most of University Circle and parts of Cleveland Heights and East Cleveland. They also rolled out Linked Communities, a new web portal for the University Circle area.

The Inglewood Historic District in Cleveland Heights may be added to the National Register of Historic Places.

The City of Cleveland Heights intends to start searching for a developer for the Top of the Hill site within 40 to 60 days. The City's Planning Commission approved development guidelines (PDF) for the area in January.

Pre-construction sales of condominiums at The Terraces on Lee Road have not been proceeding as well as anticipated. Builder Al. Neyer, Inc. is considering several options, including scaling back the mixed-use project. Executives with the company will discuss the development with Cleveland Heights officials.

The Cleveland Heights Planning Commission delayed voting on proposed design guidelines for the planned Top of the Hill mixed-use development because some members want to see more detailed guidelines.

The new Cedar-Lee parking garage in Cleveland Heights opened earlier this month. Its construction is in conjunction with the mixed-use The Terraces development.

The City of Cleveland Heights will purchase a two-family house on East Derbyshire Road, renovate it, and sell it as condominiums. The work is part of the East Derbyshire Road Rehabilitation Project.

The City of Cleveland Heights supplied $18,750 to match a recent $75,000 TLCI grant for a study that will look at ways to improve traffic and pedestrian access in the Cedar-Fairmount neighborhood. The study will also examine the impact of the proposed redevelopment of the Top of the Hill site.

The Cleveland Heights Landmarks Commission designated the 1896 Elizabeth Keyes Churchill House on Chestnut Hills Boulevard as a Cleveland Heights Landmark.

On Monday, several Cleveland Heights councilmembers spoke out against the proposed I-90 interchange at Nagel Road in Avon.

Cleveland Heights City Council passed a resolution implementing the East Derbyshire Road Neighborhood Improvement Project, which will use $700,000 of federal funds to offer grants and abatements to potential homeowners. The neighborhood mostly consists of duplexes, and the City hopes to increase the level of owner occupancy. Euclid, meanwhile, has begun demolishing abandoned houses.

The Cleveland Heights Historical Society and the Cleveland Heights Landmark Commission will host a discussion about the Shaker Lakes (PDF) on August 28 at 7:00 p.m. in the Superior Schoolhouse.

In the second installment of their "A Region Uniting?" series, the Plain Dealer looked at the potential for merging suburban communities in Greater Cleveland. They used Cleveland Heights and University Heights as an example, and compared the demographics of their proposed mergers with existing cities.

The City of Cleveland Heights posted the market analysis and feasibility study (PDF) that was prepared to assess land use alternatives for the Top of the Hill property at Cedar Hill. The study will be presented at two public meetings next month.

(via FutureHeights)

Project for Public Spaces Vice President Cynthia Nikitin will speak about placemaking and revitalizing neighborhood commercial corridors on May 23 at 7:00 p.m. at Forest Hill Church in Cleveland Heights. The session is free and open to the public.

Last Tuesday, the Cleveland Heights-University Heights school board rejected all bids for the 10.9 acre Millikin site near Severance Town Center. The site was appraised at $2.5 million, but the highest cash offer was $500,000. The district plans to try to get fair market value for the land and return it to productive use. However, a growing number of neighbors are urging the board to preserve what they call "the city's last wilderness area."

The Cleveland Heights-University Heights Board of Education received proposals from four parties interested in redeveloping the 10.9 acre Millikin School property near Severance Town Center. Kingsbury Development Corp. hopes to redevelop the building as 16 townhouses, Mosdos Ohr Hatorah school wants to relocate there, New Community Bible Fellowship would like the site for its ministry, and Ken Hadden of Heights Garden Center wants to partner with the District to build housing while training high school students.

The Cedar Lee Special Improvement District is sponsoring a Cedar Lee streetscape community design charrette (PDF) on Saturday from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. at the Cleveland Heights-University Heights Main Library on Lee Road. On March 8 at 7:00 p.m., the City of Shaker Heights will host a public meeting about transit-oriented development and the Van Aken-Lee area.

Construction will begin next month for the parking garage portion of The Terraces development on Lee Road in Cleveland Heights. It should be completed this fall. Work on the residential and retail section is scheduled to begin in the fall and for completion in 2009.

Cuyahoga County's first straw bale home is under construction on Cedar Road near Norfolk Road in Cleveland Heights. Volunteers are helping to build the bungalow designed by the firm of Doty & Miller. At today's energy costs, the insulation should pay for itself in seven to ten years.

Developers of the Terraces at Meadowbrook (the project formerly known as Domain on Lee) will unveil their designs for the mixed-use development on Tuesday evening at Cleveland Heights City Hall. The $25.7 million project in the Cedar-Lee district will include condominiums, retail, and a parking garage.

Last month, the Cleveland Heights Landmark Commission designated the Community of Living Hope church on Caledonia Avenue as a Cleveland Heights Landmark.