Enhance Clifton update with photos of the new media from today.....

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,4446.msg734758.html#msg734758

Giant Eagle pulls out of Cleveland project, leaving Fifth Church block plans in limbo

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Giant Eagle has pulled out of a planned shopping center on Cleveland's West Side, throwing the future of a gateway block to the city - and the fate of an empty, historic church - back into limbo.

 

City officials and real estate developers confirmed this week that Giant Eagle recently abandoned plans to open a Market District Express on Clifton Boulevard, at West 116th Street. The small grocery store would have been the first of its kind in Ohio and the main attraction at the Shoppes on Clifton, a retail strip proposed by the Carnegie Cos. of Solon.

 

The collapse of the deal is another setback for a neighborhood that has seen myriad redevelopment plans surface, and subside, during the last two decades. This year, it finally seemed as though something might happen on the block bounded by West 116th and West 117th streets, Clifton and Lake Avenue.

 

 

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2014/11/giant_eagle_pulls_out_of_cleve.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

THIS is exactly why nothing should be demolished until finances are in place. THIS is one of the things that makes this city so irritating.

Sorry that this will not happen. I really liked this plan.

 

BTW, part of the fence surrounding this site blew down during the strong windstorm on Monday. This is the fence along Clifton looking east from West 117th:

 

THIS is exactly why nothing should be demolished until finances are in place. THIS is one of the things that makes this city so irritating.

 

The only bright spot for me is that without this project there's now no chance I'll be setting foot in a Giant Eagle.

 

This location would've been far too convenient for me to keep up with my boycott.

THIS is exactly why nothing should be demolished until finances are in place. THIS is one of the things that makes this city so irritating.

 

In this case that church is going down. 

 

as far as the result

 

It's time to GEagle to be a good corporate citizen and remove that deed restriction.  They  have held that parcel hostage for far too long and now have run their course with it to the detriment of the community. 

 

>>>>>>>>>>>

 

"Zone said he is recruiting a replacement anchor tenant for the site and is referring all prospects to Carnegie. He also is talking to Giant Eagle about removing cumbersome deed restrictions from the Fifth Church property.

 

A Giant Eagle affiliate owned the church until 2002, when the company handed the dilapidated building off to the city. At that time, Giant Eagle still operated a store on Clifton. To prevent a competitor from moving in, the grocer placed deed restrictions on the church that make it difficult to build a sizable grocery store on the block. Those restrictions will stay in place until late 2022, unless Giant Eagle agrees to lift them.

 

"I have strong assurance from Giant Eagle that they're willing to lift the deed restriction," Zone said. "I don't have anything in writing, but they have certainly intimated that to me, for sure. That's something we're working on."

I was worried about the stability of Giant Eagle opening a location there... especially with Gordon Food Service and another Giant Eagle just down the street. Hopefully the Clifton streetscape project, and the Cleveland State line will help attract other tenants to this location.

I'm just happy it won't be another Giant Eagle. Let's see a local company open a store here. Heinens or Daves. Or even Acme from the Akron area.

Sorry but if I still lived in CLE I wouldn't go near a Giant Eagle...

I hope this story has a happy ending.

We shall see.

I'm just happy it won't be another Giant Eagle. Let's see a local company open a store here. Heinens or Daves. Or even Acme from the Akron area.

 

I don't see Heinen's going there.  Dave's and Acme are possibilities, also Sav-a-Lot or Aldi's.

^Aldis has a store less than a half mile away on 117th

I'm just happy it won't be another Giant Eagle. Let's see a local company open a store here. Heinens or Daves. Or even Acme from the Akron area.

 

I don't see Heinen's going there.  Dave's and Acme are possibilities, also Sav-a-Lot or Aldi's.

 

There's an Aldi's on W 117 and Madison.

An ACME would be great. I was wondering what the status of that project was since we hadn't heard anything. I don't have a full boycott of GE, just a last resort mentality.

Hopefully we can get a more mixed use project out of this, too.  There's little reason there shouldn't be 2-4 levels of residential above the retail.

Hopefully we can get a more mixed use project out of this, too.  There's little reason there shouldn't be 2-4 levels of residential above the retail.

 

The parcel owner, Carnegie Co. is dead set against residential over retail for financial reasons.  I believe ADA was cited and parking was another issue.

There's 10 grocery stores on the 3 miles of West 117th plus more within a mile of it. Its Northeast Ohio's "grocery store row."

http://www.cleveland.com/sunpostherald/index.ssf/2012/12/clevelands_west_117th_street_h.html

There's 10 grocery stores on the 3 miles of West 117th plus more within a mile of it. Its Northeast Ohio's "grocery store row."

http://www.cleveland.com/sunpostherald/index.ssf/2012/12/clevelands_west_117th_street_h.html

 

Speaks to the population density!

 

I'd love to see ABGE (anything but Giant Eagle), as long as it is high quality and not just a duplicate of a place like Sapell's.   

 

I'd also love to see a neighborhood sports bar.  Residential on upper floors would be great.  I think the developer is being shortsighted in thinking the residential wouldn't work.    That would change with the construction of $500K townhomes right behind it.  People would want to live there!

I would love to see Constantino's move to a slightly larger space from their current location on Clifton a few blocks down.  But to be honest, I'd take any quality anchor.

 

 

Matt Zone made a little statement (from his FB page)

 

I am sure many of you are shocked and upset about the recent news that Giant Eagle is pulling out of the W.117th development. I am too! The comprehensive development of the entire block is moving forward with retail on Clifton and Residential (Brickhaus) on Lake Ave.

 

The Shoppes on Clifton will still be developed as a shopping center on Clifton Blvd. between W.116th - 117th. The developer is in negotiations with several other retailers who are interested in being the anchor tenant. All are grocers. I will NOT name who they are speaking with at this time. The future tenant would occupy the NW corner of W.116th and Clifton. The second building, on the NE corner of W. 117th & Clifton, will be a multi-tenant retail building consisting of a variety of food and service offerings. This pedestrian friendly shopping destination will be a welcomed asset to the neighborhood and a long awaited “Gateway to Cleveland”.

 

I will soon be engaging the stakeholders group (roughly 35 members) who have been working on this project we me and former Cm. Westbrook for some time. Once there is clear direction on who the anchor might be (probably after January 2015), I will be hosting a large community meeting to highlight the new anchor and a concrete timeline.

 

All signs indicate Giant Eagle is being helpful to the city as they exit this project and lift the deed restriction. We can overcome this hurdle. This neighborhood deserves a quality development and you have my commitment to deliver just that for this great neighborhood.

 

 

I would love to see Constantino's move to a slightly larger space from their current location on Clifton a few blocks down.  But to be honest, I'd take any quality anchor.

 

 

Constantino's is a great suggestion!

 

BTW, I'll bet that Starbucks is probably still part of the picture with this development. They are very space-constrained at their current site at West 115 and Clifton.

If it HAS to be a grocer, I think a Trader Joe's would do nicely there!

BTW, I'll bet that Starbucks is probably still part of the picture with this development. They are very space-constrained at their current site at West 115 and Clifton.

 

If they did move, do you think their business will suffer by being on the "wrong" side of the street for a.m. rush hour?

If they did move, do you think their business will suffer by being on the "wrong" side of the street for a.m. rush hour?

 

Interesting point. However it was Starbucks' intention to move to be part of the Giant Eagle project. So I guess they had no concerns.

^it can't be much more of an inconvience than now.

Are we sure they are moving?  The "Starbucks across the street from the other Starbucks"  isn't just a punchline, it is their strategy for handling areas where there is too much demand for their standard sized stores to handle the customer volume.  The idea is they don't want to make one oversized store, they'd rather have two, and keep the "cozy" feeling.  If the Clifton location is that busy, I could see them doing just that.

If they did move, do you think their business will suffer by being on the "wrong" side of the street for a.m. rush hour?

 

Interesting point. However it was Starbucks' intention to move to be part of the Giant Eagle project. So I guess they had no concerns.

 

According to Matt Zone at the last public meeting on the project, the Giant Eagle/Starbucks combination was never confirmed.  It was supposed to be a coffee "section" inside the store.  So could have been a non-company owned franchise (like airports, colleges or hospitals sometimes have), or even another coffee vendor other than Starbucks.

 

I always thought the old Hollywood Video where Anytime Fitness currently resides would have made a perfect Starbucks location.

There are many Starbucks in Kroger locations, but I don't know if they are franchised or not.

There are many Starbucks in Kroger locations, but I don't know if they are franchised or not.

 

Right--I guess my point was it wasn't ever supposed to be a full-blown store, so would not replace the current location.  I have heard other rumours that Starbucks is interested in the now vacated PNC across the street, but for rush hour reasons this wouldn't really make sense for them either..... 

Right--I guess my point was it wasn't ever supposed to be a full-blown store, so would not replace the current location.  I have heard other rumours that Starbucks is interested in the now vacated PNC across the street, but for rush hour reasons this wouldn't really make sense for them either..... 

 

There's an unused parking lot on the SW corner of West 116th and Clifton, next to the closed Charter One bank whose drive-through awaits.....

Right--I guess my point was it wasn't ever supposed to be a full-blown store, so would not replace the current location.  I have heard other rumours that Starbucks is interested in the now vacated PNC across the street, but for rush hour reasons this wouldn't really make sense for them either..... 

 

There's an unused parking lot on the SW corner of West 116th and Clifton, next to the closed Charter One bank whose drive-through awaits.....

 

The rumors are once the NE corner development is finished, that corner is the next to get torn down and redone.  That would make a logical site for a mega Starbucks.

The rumors are once the NE corner development is finished, that corner is the next to get torn down and redone.  That would make a logical site for a mega Starbucks.

 

I recall seeing on CPC's docket that the city also rezoned that entire block all the way south along West 117th. I do see that they've added a retail overlay on its side of West 117th from Detroit to Madison, but nothing north to Clifton. So maybe my memory is playing tricks on me. And I've seen no real estate transfers, although I don't check it every week.

The rumors are false.

 

Any new tenants will occupy the existing spaces.

Cudell Improvement Inc.

Snippets eNewsletter

December 19, 2014

 

Memorial Markers Dedication Sunday, December 21st

 

Councilman Matt Zone and Cudell Improvement, Inc. cordially invite all area friends and neighbors to help dedicate the stone memorial markers that were placed in the planters in the Clifton Commercial District  as part of the EnhanceClifton Project.  Being memorialized are Stanley Mason, Mitchell Andelmo, Basil Bass and John Katsaros.  On Sunday, beginning at Noon, friends will gather near the planter in front of Tick Tock Tavern to begin the memorial.  The group will then process westbound to the two planters nearest  West 117 to memorialize Basil Bass and Mitchell Andelmo.  Then process across Clifton Boulevard  to the planter in front of Twist to honor the late owner, John Katsaros.  At each plaque, there will be a short presentation and a few words from family.  All are encouraged to attend. Many thanks to Jeff Blazek, neighborhood resident and member of  Cudell's Local Design Review Committee, for designing and coordinating the plaque production and to RTA for installing them.

 

MORE:

http://us8.campaign-archive2.com/?u=2051453c50f7fe7b34eb060c2&id=96dcdd8962&e=620a64eb25

From today's e-mailed "Cudell Snippets" of the Cudell Improvement Inc.

 

New Supermarket to be Announced Soon

Councilman Matt Zone announced at Cudell's Annual Meeting last week that Carnegie Companies has a signed Letter of Intent from a national supermarket chain for the Shoppes on Clifton.  Stay tuned for more on it very soon.

 

^ Great news! That intersection will look so much better once they develop that lot.

That neighborhood is calling our for a TJs or a Balducci's, but Id be really pleased if Heinen's drops a store there and classes-up that strip again.

That neighborhood is calling our for a TJs or a Balducci's, but Id be really pleased if Heinen's drops a store there and classes-up that strip again.

 

Heinen's isn't national, and they're unlikely to venture into the city or inner ring before the downtown store actually succeeds.  Perhaps not even then.  Dave's is also local.

 

MY bet is Aldi, Save A Lot (good pun) or possibly Kroger.

Kroger hasn't been in Northeast Ohio since the 80s.

Aldi's is right down the street on W. 117th.  Save-A-Lot is not too far away on Detroit.

Aldi's is right down the street on W. 117th.  Save-A-Lot is not too far away on Detroit.

 

The Aldi's by me recently moved 2 miles.  This one could be too, though 0.7 is kind of short. 

 

"National" narrows things down a lot.

aldi is INTERnational

Giant Eagle has has to relinquish its deed restriction, so I'm wondering what national grocery chain is differentiated enough from Big Bird to not be a competitor to their store farther south on West 117th. Piggly Wiggly?? ;)

I know this is pie-in-the-sky, but could it be Whole Foods? They would certainly be different enough, and the RR store doesn't seem to be materializing.

Giant Eagle has has to relinquish its deed restriction, so I'm wondering what national grocery chain is differentiated enough from Big Bird to not be a competitor to their store farther south on West 117th. Piggly Wiggly?? ;)

 

Someone moving within the area rather than moving in would be another explanation.  No loss to GE if competition does not increase.

I know this is pie-in-the-sky, but could it be Whole Foods? They would certainly be different enough, and the RR store doesn't seem to be materializing.

Someone moving within the area rather than moving in would be another explanation.  No loss to GE if competition does not increase.

 

Both seem reasonable assumptions to me. Whole Foods or a Trader Joe's or something of that angle would certainly be a different retailer. There are tons of grocery stores on West 117th (see my article at the start of this page) and in the surrounding area but few are national. There are two Bi-Rites (West 117th & Madison), an Aldi's (new store), Save-A-Lot (newer store), GFS (even newer store), and even a Discount Drug Mart Food Fair (about as brand-new as GFS). But there may be another one I'm just not thinking of, and Google isn't giving me any answers I don't already have.

 

And I keep forgetting that Giant Eagle has a store on Bunts, too!

I emailed Trader Joe's a couple of weeks ago begging them to open a store in Cleveland. I even specifically mentioned this site and sent them the developers website. If it is a Trader Joe's I am taking credit (even if undeserved) and I would be ecstatic.

This corner is in such a sad state of affairs right now. It appears a sign went up for a take out Chinese restaurant going in near where Big Fun is/was. The number of commercial vacancies that has sprouted up the past 2 years is really discouraging.

 

I remain optimistic that a quick turn around can occur. The Hingetown neighborhood and all the shops/restaurants practically appeared overnight. If a quality anchor grocer is announced, then it's conceivable that quality retail will quickly fill in the other vacancies here as well.

I remain optimistic that a quick turn around can occur. The Hingetown neighborhood and all the shops/restaurants practically appeared overnight. If a quality anchor grocer is announced, then it's conceivable that quality retail will quickly fill in the other vacancies here as well.

 

I'm not as optimistic, but agree this if the anchor is the right kind then yeah, good things should follow.

 

Also an x-factor in this hood is the continued resurrection of Edgewater Park. The "Edgewater" name has been pretty tarnished for so long, it's possible that a negative association could've been partly responsible for the malaise in the neighborhood.

 

Anyhow, proximity to a world class park and beach could do wonders for the entire surrounding area.

I remain optimistic that a quick turn around can occur. The Hingetown neighborhood and all the shops/restaurants practically appeared overnight. If a quality anchor grocer is announced, then it's conceivable that quality retail will quickly fill in the other vacancies here as well.

 

I'm not as optimistic, but agree this if the anchor is the right kind then yeah, good things should follow.

 

Also an x-factor in this hood is the continued resurrection of Edgewater Park. The "Edgewater" name has been pretty tarnished for so long, it's possible that a negative association could've been partly responsible for the malaise in the neighborhood.

 

Anyhow, proximity to a world class park and beach could do wonders for the entire surrounding area.

 

Looking at my area, I've become convinced that development happens proportional to the square of the number of anchors you have.  We have one, Northfield Park, but nothing else has really sprung up and the area hasn't really changed.  (Except perhaps for the horse track expanding Sunday afternoon).

I'm not as optimistic, but agree this if the anchor is the right kind then yeah, good things should follow.

 

Also an x-factor in this hood is the continued resurrection of Edgewater Park. The "Edgewater" name has been pretty tarnished for so long, it's possible that a negative association could've been partly responsible for the malaise in the neighborhood.

 

Anyhow, proximity to a world class park and beach could do wonders for the entire surrounding area.

 

Edgewater Park doesn't do much for me. I like having it and looking at it as I ride by it on the bus. But I'm not a park person. I don't have dogs. I don't have kids. I don't throw Frisbee or fly a kite. But I need groceries. And I suspect a full-service grocery store would do a lot more for this neighborhood than a park.