Posted January 25, 20169 yr This development pre-dated UO by a couple of years so we don't have a thread on it. But now it's the subject of redevelopment talks.... Redevelopment could add spark to University Square shopping center January 24, 2016 By STAN BULLARD More may be in store for troubled University Square Shopping Center than a new owner after the special servicer on loans, a Minneapolis-based unit of UMB Corp., recently secured ownership of the vertical mall and attached parking garage in University Heights. A search is on for a new owner who will redevelop the property at 14060 Cedar Road for its highest and best use — a slightly different approach than the typical sale to satisfy a mortgage — because another principal is involved in the process and needs to take a long-term view of the property. That group is Lapis Advisers LP, a San Francisco firm that invested in pass-through bonds that the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority issued to finance the property’s parking garage. Lapis is working with UMB in the selection of what’s best — and who’s next — at University Square. ...Regional and local real estate developers already have approached Lapis, UMB and the city about how they might reinvigorate the property, Hatch said. She and University Heights Mayor Susan Infeld declined to identify the developers they have talked with, but several have mentioned adding housing to the property. MORE: http://www.crainscleveland.com/article/20160124/NEWS/160129919/redevelopment-could-add-spark-to-university-square-shopping-center "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 25, 20169 yr When was this originally built? Too bad it predated Urban Ohio because it seems like a project posters on this board would love: a dense, vertical shopping development. But now it seems to be mostly dead. What killed it? Is it the urban nature? No one in the suburbs wanted to use its multi story garage?
January 25, 20169 yr ^2003. Basically poor design execution killed prospects for the inline retailers. Anchors with visibility have held on.
January 25, 20169 yr Oddly located, as nothing around it is all that dense. Seems designed for walkup and transit-oriented use but few in its market have those options. Locate this thing downtown, or hook a rail line to it, or surround it with high rises, and I bet it's wildly successful.
January 25, 20169 yr Oddly located, as nothing around it is all that dense. Seems designed for walkup and transit-oriented use but few in its market have those options. Locate this thing downtown, or hook a rail line to it, or surround it with high rises, and I bet it's wildly successful. You see development similar to University Square all over the place in DC, for example, but yes, the difference is they are all integrated with transit and/or are located in highly walkable areas.
January 25, 20169 yr Oddly located, as nothing around it is all that dense. Seems designed for walkup and transit-oriented use but few in its market have those options. Locate this thing downtown, or hook a rail line to it, or surround it with high rises, and I bet it's wildly successful. You see development similar to University Square all over the place in DC, for example, but yes, the difference is they are all integrated with transit and/or are located in highly walkable areas. Exactly. I always think of DCUSA as being pretty similar. Although I lived within a block when that was built in DC, it was a nightmare to drive in and out of as the surrounding streets didn't support the scale of the development. So in that regard I love University Square, because once you are familiar with the layout it is easy to get in and out of, plus you can literally park right in front of the store!
January 25, 20169 yr The current design is built to street but somehow manages absolutely zero street interaction. The parking deck is confusing and not easily navigated. That said, it has serious potential with two anchor tenants (Target and Macy's) any Retial center would love to have. I'm not so sure about adding housing. Seems to me that a Lowes could get squeezed in there and would fill a major gap in that chain's coverage area
January 25, 20169 yr I'm glad to hear this. I'm one of the few people that actually LIKE University Square. Yes, there are horrible structural design flaws to be fixed and I wish the building had been built to up to the sidewalk. But I think the idea of multilple stores in a more verticle structure was a good idea: much better than the old May's on the Heights big box that was born during the blossoming of the suburbanization/automobile era of the 1950s... Once you use the US parking lot a couple times, it's not that confusing. There are signs everwhere. I'm glad a new owner is looking to upgrade the facility rather than tearing it down, which I feared-- particularly in light of that typically big-box, strip at Oakwood just up Warrensville. Target and Macy's are solid anchors. I hated that T.J. Maxx left. I wasn't too fond of the Giant Eagle that used to be there because it wasn't run properly. However, hopefully another new store or two can come back into a fixed-up US. I've always enjoyed the conveninence of the place and even found it visually pleasing from the street.
January 25, 20169 yr While the article focuses on Warrensville Center Road, the NOACA report also includes improvements to Cedar Road -- all in the vicinity of University Square...... University Heights seeking grant to make Warrensville Center Road safer for pedestrians By Jeff Piorkowski, special to Sun News on January 25, 2016 at 9:18 AM, updated January 25, 2016 at 9:19 AM UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio -- The city is taking steps to make Warrensville Center Road a more friendly place for pedestrians and bicyclists. At its meeting Jan. 19, City Council elected to seek a grant from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency for up to $150,000 in funding for the proposed improvements. "The changes that we're talking about were recommended by NOACA," said Mayor Susan Infeld. The city had requested that NOACA draw up a report, the results of which were made public in December. The report, in the short term, calls for two changes. MORE: http://www.cleveland.com/university-heights/index.ssf/2016/01/university_heights_6.html "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 26, 20169 yr The current design is built to street but somehow manages absolutely zero street interaction. The parking deck is confusing and not easily navigated. That said, it has serious potential with two anchor tenants (Target and Macy's) any Retial center would love to have. I'm not so sure about adding housing. Seems to me that a Lowes could get squeezed in there and would fill a major gap in that chain's coverage area It's be I interesting to see a Loews fit into that old Tops space, or maybe even expand on it. I'd like to see residential or office at the top few levels of what is now inline retail chains/vacant stores. The confusion of the parking deck doesn't matter as much is you close it off to only tenants who after a few times know exactly how to get to their destination. The ground floor retail across from Applebee's should be opened up to face Cedar. I'd argue that the Cedar Center area is fairly walkable especially with all the multifamily residences and college students nearby.
January 26, 20169 yr Is there precedent for a home improvement superstore to locate in a vertical center like this? I wouldn't think the layout would suit the professional guys with their conversion vans, etc. And isn't it standard for those places to have a Garden Center? For both of these reasons I'd think the top floor would be the more obvious choice for a Lowe's but I don't know if that old JoAnn's space is large enough. I like(d) the center as a concept. The execution was, like folks have said, a little off. It completely ignored the street, although it was never the most walkable area and that ship has sailed given what South Euclid ended up settling for at Cedar Center North. It was a Tops, not a Giant Eagle that was on the 2nd floor of University Square. They shut down when Tops closed all stores in the region. That had to have been a blow.
January 26, 20169 yr There's vertical Home Depots in major cities. Let's be one of them. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 26, 20169 yr There is a Home Depot in a similarly built structure near Uptown Chartlotte For US, I was thinking the rooftop parking deck, or part of it, could serve as the garden center component
January 26, 20169 yr Is there precedent for a home improvement superstore to locate in a vertical center like this? I wouldn't think the layout would suit the professional guys with their conversion vans, etc. And isn't it standard for those places to have a Garden Center? For both of these reasons I'd think the top floor would be the more obvious choice for a Lowe's but I don't know if that old JoAnn's space is large enough. I like(d) the center as a concept. The execution was, like folks have said, a little off. It completely ignored the street, although it was never the most walkable area and that ship has said given when South Euclid ended up settling for at Cedar Center North. It was a Tops, not a Giant Eagle that was on the 2nd floor of University Square. They shut down when Tops closed all stores in the region. That had to have been a blow. Giant Eagle took over a lot of those old Top's spaces. Indeed they were supposed to take over the one at Meadowbrook (which is why Get Go is where it is) but never did, leaving one of their older and dingier stores in service. That shopping center is really getting killed.
January 30, 20169 yr Another article on possibly adding housing to University Square... http://www.cleveland.com/university-heights/index.ssf/2016/01/housing_may_be_coming_to_unive.html "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 15, 20169 yr I like it! I wish it could be built up to the street corner but I understand Macy's probably didn't want that. I suspect they want to ensure visibility from passing vehicular traffic (even though pedestrian traffic produces more sales) and to make surface parking visible. I like the "outlot" stores placed in front of and attached to the Macy's. And the number of housing units sounds meaningful, rather than just a cosmetic 50 or 100 units. I hope that some will be for-sale units, or at least rent-to-own. Either way, I think they will fill up fast. If they do, we may see copycats at other struggling malls around the region, like Richmond, Severance, Tower City.... ;) BTW, note the massings on the south side of Cedar. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 15, 20169 yr Screenshots of the University Square graphics... UniversitySquare-siteplan by Ken Prendergast, on Flickr UniversitySquare-overhead by Ken Prendergast, on Flickr UniversitySquare-WarrensvilleElevation by Ken Prendergast, on Flickr UniversitySquare-CedarWarr-Elevation by Ken Prendergast, on Flickr UniversitySquare-Cedarelevation-apartments by Ken Prendergast, on Flickr UniversitySquare-courtyard by Ken Prendergast, on Flickr "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 15, 20169 yr So it looks like: 1. The building facing Cedar Road will be gutted and selectively demolished/demolished entirely for new residences. 2. The building south of Macy's will be gutted and selectively demolished/demolished entirely for new residences. 3. The parking garage, which needs complete rehabilitation, will be partially torn down to make room for more light on the residences facing Cedar Road. And somehow trees will fit on the upper deck? 4. Macy's will see wrap-around retail. Can you actually get inside any of the former mall? And how was it originally configured? It's got a confusing layout.
March 15, 20169 yr I like the residential building along Cedar. Right now that stretch is just a 3 story blank wall. There is glass along the first floor but it's covered up inside and not real storefronts. Replacing it with residential will liven up the entire development and make it more inviting. Thumbs way up.
March 15, 20169 yr I'm not sure there is a developer lined up to do this - maybe the current owner just paid for plans in hopes of luring a developer?? Reason I'm not sure is that literally just today the Passov Group sent out a flyer marketing this property with this language: "PROPERTY HIGHLIGHTS Passov Group is excited to present an incredibly rare opportunity to purchase and redevelop an ideally located property in University Heights (Cleveland), Ohio. University Square is poised to become a prime landmark mixed use project with existing infrastructure of over $80 million plus a current income stream."
March 15, 20169 yr Looks great! I always felt like this area could use more residential density to complement the retail density
March 16, 20169 yr This is one of the most imaginative suburban concepts I've seen in a long time. Millennials have flocked downtown for urban, apartment living while inner ring suburbs with only single family housing units to offer have languished. If this project comes to fruition, I can see a lot of folks in their late 20's/early 30's who don't want to pay downtown rents snapping these units up in a hurry. Legacy Village and Beachwood Place are down the road. University Circle is 10 minutes away, and downtown is not much further. And John Carroll and Notre Dame College are right in the neighborhood; all the elements are in place for a vibrant, youthful neighborhood in an east-side, inner ring suburb. As KJP noted upthread, this could really be a blueprint for Severance and Richmond Town Square as well. I know this forum is called UrbanOhio, but why not encourage the burbs to make some of the best aspects of urban living their own?
March 16, 20169 yr As KJP noted upthread, this could really be a blueprint for Severance and Richmond Town Square as well. I know this forum is called UrbanOhio, but why not encourage the burbs to make some of the best aspects of urban living their own? Absolutely! There's no reason the suburbs cannot be at least partially urban as well. Young families will most certainly be moving to inner ring burbs. I've never understood Severance true demise since it's surrounded by condo's, townhomes and apartments.
March 16, 20169 yr I have always liked University Square as an alternative to traditional suburban development, and all of Cedar Center has always had a transitional layout, in that the main buildings are close to the street--not as close as in a traditional commercial development but not as far back as in the kinds of development that are more typical today. In both Cedar Center South (University Heights) and Cedar Center North (South Euclid), both of which have been rebuilt during the past dozen years, much of the parking is in back, and the Whole Foods in Cedar Center South even has some rooftop parking. Wrapping the retail around the multi-level garage at University Square was a good idea, but the garage was poorly designed and the pedestrian connections between the various retail components, while they exist, are awkward and hard to figure out. Some of the retail space has never been occupied, and I don't think any of the original tenants who have left--JoAnn, Tops, Famous Footwear, etc.--have ever been replaced. The Macy's and Target stores both seem to do a good business, though. Fixing the garage and adding a residential component could add to the odd appeal of both this particular development and Cedar Center overall.
March 16, 20169 yr I like it! I wish it could be built up to the street corner but I understand Macy's probably didn't want that. I suspect they want to ensure visibility from passing vehicular traffic (even though pedestrian traffic produces more sales) and to make surface parking visible. The cops probably did too. Hiding the parking lot is problematic in cities and inner ring suburbs.
March 16, 20169 yr Absolutely! There's no reason the suburbs cannot be at least partially urban as well. Young families will most certainly be moving to inner ring burbs. I've never understood Severance true demise since it's surrounded by condo's, townhomes and apartments. Except those residential dwellings are all car-dependent and isolated from the retail center by big parking lots and a ring road. University Square's proposed redevelopment has the residential attached to the retail component and connected to it by attractive walkways, sidewalks and placemaking. It's much more pedestrian friendly. And while the parking structure is hidden, the parking access isn't hidden. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 28, 20169 yr Absolutely! There's no reason the suburbs cannot be at least partially urban as well. Young families will most certainly be moving to inner ring burbs. I've never understood Severance true demise since it's surrounded by condo's, townhomes and apartments. Except those residential dwellings are all car-dependent and isolated from the retail center by big parking lots and a ring road. University Square's proposed redevelopment has the residential attached to the retail component and connected to it by attractive walkways, sidewalks and placemaking. It's much more pedestrian friendly. And while the parking structure is hidden, the parking access isn't hidden. This has been my problem with going to that Target, trying to figure out how to get to the parking is extremely confusing. Hopefully this makes it to fruition. Having the built in population will likely make those storefronts more valuable too.
March 24, 20178 yr It's been a year since there's been any discussion on this project. It appears to still be alive but only in the idea stage.... Lofts, apartments eyed for University Square redevelopment ED WITTENBERG | CONTRIBUTOR [email protected] Mar 13, 2017 University Square, the struggling shopping center at Cedar and Warrensville Center roads in University Heights, may be redeveloped with a housing component. University Heights Mayor Susan Infeld said Lapis Advisers, a San Francisco-based investor that is the majority holder of bonds tied to University Square, has a vision for redevelopment of the site with both housing and retail. “The owners have suggested housing, as they believe there is enough retail in the area and additional retail is not needed to meet the needs of the community,” Infeld said. “I actually agree with the assessment.” MORE: http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/news/local_news/lofts-apartments-eyed-for-university-square-redevelopment/article_e33e987a-07fd-11e7-9fc0-cbd250f7b854.html "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 24, 20178 yr I would love to see something like this come to fruition. I think University Square was a good idea but somewhat poorly executed. A redevelopment like this could correct the original mistakes. It would be great if Macy's and Target would remain in place.
March 25, 20178 yr I would love to see something like this come to fruition. I think University Square was a good idea but somewhat poorly executed. A redevelopment like this could correct the original mistakes. It would be great if Macy's and Target would remain in place. Definitely! Exactly what needs to happen there.
March 28, 20178 yr Long-sickly University Square shopping center could see bond revamp by summer, setting stage for redevelopment: https://t.co/aozmy6bvsr "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 4, 20186 yr Debt-resolution legislation, letter of intent w/ developers indicate that things finally might be looking up for University Square, a vacancy-plagued shopping center in University Heights. https://t.co/8N537dAM4z #CRE "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 4, 20186 yr Agree the proposed demolition is vital but not loving all the surface parking fronting Cedar. Just exchanging one kind of pedestrian dead space disaster for the same thing in a different form. Knowing the powers that be in UH they will not have a problem with it just as long as something gets built. The mentality is "oh boy somebody actually wants to build something in our city...we will take what we can get no matter if it is a lowest common denominator development". This will be especially true in this instance since the resolution of the debt issue is so complicated and longstanding.
October 4, 20186 yr ^What is really sad is during the past 15 years, as a result of the original redevelopment of University Square and the redevelopment of Cedar Center, UH and South Euclid could have had a great quarter mile street wall on Cedar. Instead we got what we got.
October 5, 20186 yr I think that proposal would be more of a disaster than what is there now to be honest. They need to renovate the retail between Macys and Target and turn it into residential units. New residential units are lacking in the "First Suburbs" ring. Given the location they'd be a hit.
October 5, 20186 yr I think that proposal would be more of a disaster than what is there now to be honest. They need to renovate the retail between Macys and Target and turn it into residential units. New residential units are lacking in the "First Suburbs" ring. Given the location they'd be a hit. The pie in the sky plans floated by Passov showed residential lining Cedar. That would have been fantastic. This is just standard fair suburban retail.
October 5, 20186 yr I am a frequent customer of both anchor stores at University Square and will be glad to see improvements to the property. The original plan for the redevelopment of the May's on the Heights site was a great idea, but it was poorly executed. I hope the new leadership in University Heights will insist on a better re-design than what was shown in today's Plain Dealer.
October 5, 20186 yr That's one of the least exciting, least creative things I've seen in a while. At least the Osborne's are nailing it on one end of the spectrum.
October 5, 20186 yr If anybody has any interest google images of 50th and France in Edina, MN (an upscale inner ring suburb). With proper leadership this could have been the intersection of Cedar and Warrensville as a result of the millions spent at Cedar Center and University Square the past 15 years.
October 5, 20186 yr A friend of mine tried to start a sports business on the top floor and the property owner wouldn't come down enough in price to let him try to make a go of it. He found an old warehouse in Euclid instead. That top floor location has never been rented. The owners were too smart. The development at this corner makes me think that South Euclid and University Heights have taken the approach that new suburban auto-dependent construction will solve their problems. (See also the University Heights side of Cedar-Taylor.) That approach will always suffer from someone building something newer just-down-the-road. Look at Severance Town Center, Golden Gate, Beachwood Mall, Legacy Village, now Oakwood Commons and Pinecrest, next -- ? I would argue that they should pursue development more like E. 4th downtown, Coventry and Cedar-Lee business districts in Cleveland Heights -- walkable urban development with a residential/business/retail mix. Don't expect people to come from Solon to shop and dine here. We have some good examples in the area -- could someone look at the Cleveland Heights (east) side of Cedar-Taylor and the University Heights (west) side and compare the per-acre tax revenue? I bet Cleveland Heights wins. And I bet that the Coventry, Cedar-Lee, and Cedar-Fairmount business districts bring in more taxes-per-acre than almost anywhere fronting Mayfield Rd.
October 5, 20186 yr I think that proposal would be more of a disaster than what is there now to be honest. They need to renovate the retail between Macys and Target and turn it into residential units. New residential units are lacking in the "First Suburbs" ring. Given the location they'd be a hit. The pie in the sky plans floated by Passov showed residential lining Cedar. That would have been fantastic. This is just standard fair suburban retail. Thing is, I don't think they're pie in the sky The structure is there already. Subdivide those former stores, cut in some windows for the units and have units facing cedar and facing the south. Cordon off the hard to navigate garage so that residents park on the upper levels and patrons park on lower levels, add some residential amenities with retail on the ground, then boom you have a mixed use building. Would probably be a big discount vs building the same from the ground up. You're 60% there already.
October 5, 20186 yr Mov2Ohio[/member] That's what they did with a dying mall north of Orlando. But I don't remember the name of it. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 9, 20196 yr Medical building owners want city's help dealing with University Square's 'specter' https://www.cleveland.com/university-heights/index.ssf/2019/01/university_heights_74.html "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 9, 20196 yr 10 hours ago, KJP said: Medical building owners want city's help dealing with University Square's 'specter' https://www.cleveland.com/university-heights/index.ssf/2019/01/university_heights_74.html They state that they are failing because of University Square, but it reads more like they want to capitalize off of University Square's current state; use it as leverage. Overall just a very whiny sounding argument. Why now? The worst argument was, 'University Square sucks, so we deserve digital signage'.
January 10, 20196 yr They bought it 18 months ago. University Square has been in its present state for years, so it's not like it went down hill and this has been a surprise to them. They knew what they were investing next to. Besides, the shopping center isn't dragging down the whole area like they say, as there will soon be some new development across the street in South Euclid.
January 10, 20196 yr They sound deranged. Is Whole Foods suffering for being yards away from University Square? Businesses struggle for many reasons; this is unlikely to be one.
July 3, 20195 yr https://www.cleveland.com/community/2019/07/university-heights-mayor-brennan-says-the-process-of-redeveloping-university-square-has-begun.html New Developments Today at University Square. Looks like things are slowly moving in the right direction.
July 3, 20195 yr I'm sure whatever this proposal is, it has got to be better than the last one of tearing most of the building down and replacing it with stand-alone restaurants.
September 20, 20195 yr Movement. Change may be good, but I'm not sure this is the right approach. Quote A new site plan shows a reimagined University Square, still anchored by Target and Macy's. Developers Brian and Lance Osborne hope to buy and reconfigure much of the long-troubled shopping center. https://www.cleveland.com/realestate-news/2018/10/osborne_brothers_emerge_as_pot.html Dropping the top two floors of the garage is probably for the best and will reduce maintenance expenses. Target will lose its second floor entrance and will likely need to reconfigure its registers. Otherwise, this is still a suburban-style, car-dependent shopping center concept. Not the best approach for long-term sustainability but clearly not everyone agrees. Tearing down the building between Target and Macy's and replacing it with suburban-style "outbuildings" will accomplish their goal of reducing retail capacity. This is very early in the redevelopment process, so this plan will likely change. Edited September 20, 20195 yr by Foraker Deleted duplicate image.
Create an account or sign in to comment