January 17Jan 17 21 minutes ago, ASP1984 said: Great Lakes Brewing site? No. another project he is apparently proposing. An apartment building with over 100 units behind the Voss building on West 26th. It is going to design review next week so more should be revealed then. The zoning change being requested was tabled. PC wanted more info.
January 17Jan 17 I’m always confused when people complain about height when developers propose something. if you have a problem with the height then propose changes with zoning otherwise it’s allowed so idk what there’s to argue about.
January 17Jan 17 2 hours ago, PlanCleveland said: It was actually for the empty/parking lots on W26 behind the Voss property. I hadn't heard about this yet, but it sounds like it would be an apartment building that would go from Monroe to Chatham on those lots. A lot of the complaints were saying 60 feet is too tall, but Whalen said the current proposal is only for 47 ft. And his 47-foot tall building is already allowed under the current zoning but would have to be set back from West 26th -- or closer to the existing residences to the west. Whalen seeks the rezoning because he would have to go through fewer city hoops that way. The residents don't seem to realize that he can build it larger and closer to them under the current zoning! "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 17Jan 17 39 minutes ago, KJP said: And his 47-foot tall building is already allowed under the current zoning but would have to be set back from West 26th -- or closer to the existing residences to the west. Whalen seeks the rezoning because he would have to go through fewer city hoops that way. The residents don't seem to realize that he can build it larger and closer to them under the current zoning! And then he should!
January 18Jan 18 It is interesting how quickly Dan Whalen has moved in Ohio City since he only recently left his old company. Makes me wonder if he was advocating for Phase 2 of Intro, was shot down by his superiors, and that is perhaps why, among other reasons, he decided to go on his own and aggressively seek projects in OC. I am also curious how he obviously believes he can finance these projects, given that his is a new and untested development company. We have seen more established developers having issues with financing time and time again, delaying projects for long periods of time (can you say Bridgeworks) I am sure he has lots of connections arising out of his former position but still. Of course he still has not actually gotten close to breaking ground on anything yet so maybe we might be reading about customary financing issues in the future. I for one wish him the best of luck. I have said it before...the city should be rolling out the red carpet to young developers like him and Justin Strezzi.
January 18Jan 18 I think it's called drive and leadership. Some developers can be quite conservative in their approach and get stopped by enough roadblocks while others push on through. I hate to use Trump as an example because l detest the man but a guy with his drive does push through obstacles that would stop a lessor developer.
January 18Jan 18 I live a block from the Voss lots and was shocked to see this pop up. I assumed it’d just be parking or outdoor amenities for the for the project across the street. Asking for the 60ft limit without a massing and site rendering definitely scared people. A 47ft building on 26th should be tiered down from Voss nicely though. I hope it can get done- I’ve had some sketchy experiences behind Voss. Whalen seems to be really plugged in to the neighborhoods here and its huge advantage. He’s said he’s lived in Ohio City and now Tremont. I hope he goes big with the hotel. It’s a no brainer. It’s great that downtown has 5 or so hotels in the works but I really believe the demand in that spot in OHC will blow them away.
January 18Jan 18 I've always been curious about the lot at 3620 Lorain Ave next door to the friedrich bicycles building. What keeps a lot like this empty for so long when the neighborhood seems to be at no loss for new projects? That intersection continues to be underwhelming despite energy in adjacent blocks.
January 18Jan 18 1 minute ago, Vested said: I've always been curious about the lot at 3620 Lorain Ave next door to the friedrich bicycles building. What keeps a lot like this empty for so long when the neighborhood seems to be at no loss for new projects? That intersection continues to be underwhelming despite energy in adjacent blocks. Townhouses were proposed there at some point, maybe a decade ago, but it fell through.
January 18Jan 18 McCafferty Center site to be senior housing By Ian McDaniel / January 18, 2025 Affordable housing developer Pennrose, LLC. is looking to build on the success of its other Cleveland-area projects with its next venture, this time on the city’s west side. The national developer is partnering with Ohio City Incorporated (OCI) to construct a 72-unit apartment building geared towards seniors and charging rents between 30 percent and 70 percent of the area’s median income. MORE: https://neo-trans.blog/2025/01/18/mccafferty-center-site-to-be-senior-housing/ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 20Jan 20 On 1/18/2025 at 11:27 AM, Vested said: I've always been curious about the lot at 3620 Lorain Ave next door to the friedrich bicycles building. What keeps a lot like this empty for so long when the neighborhood seems to be at no loss for new projects? That intersection continues to be underwhelming despite energy in adjacent blocks. Fractured ownership between multiple Fridrichs and no vision for the site (including the Fridrichs building, which is in reaaaaally bad shape)
January 20Jan 20 13 hours ago, noname said: Fractured ownership between multiple Fridrichs and no vision for the site (including the Fridrichs building, which is in reaaaaally bad shape) I thought these lots were being sold to a developer?
January 20Jan 20 6 hours ago, Rustbelter said: I thought these lots were being sold to a developer? All the articles about the bike shop closing said he had multiple offers to sell already so I was under that impression as well
January 22Jan 22 https://clevelandmagazine.com/style/shops-boutiques/articles/city-goods-to-restructure-use-of-ohio-city-hangars trust the process I suppose
January 22Jan 22 20 minutes ago, BoomerangCleRes said: https://clevelandmagazine.com/style/shops-boutiques/articles/city-goods-to-restructure-use-of-ohio-city-hangars trust the process I suppose I'm devastated. Love City Goods and we shop there as much as possible. This made that area so unique.
January 22Jan 22 They just unfortunately were never busy. I went to the bar there a few times and it was always pretty empty. A few times I was the only one there. And for the shops I don't think I was ever there and the shops were open since I work during the day and only go in the evening.
January 22Jan 22 Very sad to see them go. It was such a unique space and a great way to help some small businesses grow. I was wondering if this was coming though, it seems like they've been losing tenants for a while now. I think the idea is probably better suited in a much more touristy area though, like in a few of the open produce stalls of the West Side Market to act as a local gift shop sort of place and get more foot traffic. I also don't know if that is the best format for some of these small businesses to actually grow. This was a decent way to get a little extra business for a lot of them, but part of the appeal of shopping with a local small business is the interactions with the owners. Just 2 personal examples, but I used to go to Brittany's Record Shop and buy Legend products at markets all of the time. I would go to Brittany's once or twice a month and ask her what new music she liked, and see the very nice Legend folks and some of the fun stuff they had made, and have a conversation. Talking with them and getting their opinions is what made me a dedicated customer and recommend them to others. But when they moved into City Goods, that part of the business left. I think I only bought 1 Legend hat as a gift, and haven't purchased a record from there. Not because I hated them or anything, it just felt like a connection to the business and great new recommendations weren't there anymore. It's a great idea as a local touristy gift shop and to help some very small businesses get their products infront of people, but I think it also sterilized and removed the feeling of actually shopping with a small business for me.
January 22Jan 22 It seems like a rushed decision to me; not having been owned by OCI for a year and just recently promoting new businesses.
January 22Jan 22 I'm just gonna not beat around the bush and say Cleveland proper can't support retail. Not with it's dwindling population. Suburbanites aren't coming into the city to shop and have indicated for decades they don't want to. These hangars were completely void of customers when I visited them.
January 22Jan 22 OCI lit money on fire by bailing out Chagrin Valley Soap with these huts and that it was driven by interim leadership makes it all the more sad. @PlanCleveland said it best that these sort of local goods work best with the local connections and expertise that the purveyors provide. Instead, the huts offered a diluted experience. Even worse, each hut needed staffed separately. I get why Graham and Co. went with a master lease for all the huts but the retail plan ran contrary to the intended design of the project. Hopefully OCI realizes it should avoid the real estate business and pass it on to someone else.
January 22Jan 22 10 minutes ago, Jukeboxer said: Instead, the huts offered a diluted experience. Even worse, each hut needed staffed separately. We own a bookstore in New Orleans in a business called the Good Shop, which is multiple businesses set up across a few rooms. The "diluted" experience doesnt hamper the retail aspect at all. But this store has a single checkout point, with all of the merchandise in a central retail system (Square), so all the partners who sell stuff in there just need to work the check out once per week (we have an employee who handles it for us since obviously we're not flying back once a week). This cuts WAY down on employee overhead for everyone, and also lets each vendor also focus on other things, if they have additional storefronts across the city, or need to spend time making the goods to sell them. Edited January 22Jan 22 by daybreaker
January 23Jan 23 We'll give them a deserved pass for the positives since inception and activation of what was a sketchy corner. Look forward to see what's next per their statement. Maybe a tie-in with the Transformer Station gallery? “Stay tuned on what's next for The Creative Hangars (the 7 unique structures on the corner of W.28 x Church Ave) as this space will continue to be a source of inspiration and creativity,” City Goods stated on social media. “Cleveland is overflowing with makers, creatives, and doers who already have the next dream in the works! Please join us in cheering them on and in the meantime come out and support the current line-up of incredible brands on-site until 1/31.” Whatever is next should do much better once the neighborhood fills in further, such as big TurnDev's Vibrator project across the street, the Hulett hotel, St Luke's parking lot, and of course Irishtown Bend park. Speaking of the park, ideally the suddenly needly and self-important St Paddy's Day parade folks will join in the rebirth of the area by first releasing their hostage (our Superior Midway bikelane project) and instead set up shop for their shrinking parade closer to a main Irish immigrant landing spot in Cleveland - Irishtown Bend and St Malachi - what a way to reinvigorate interest in the parade (maybe put an Irish historical museum in the vacant ground floor of the Forest City Building at 25th and Detroit).
January 23Jan 23 3 hours ago, AsDustinFoxWouldSay said: I'm just gonna not beat around the bush and say Cleveland proper can't support retail. Not with it's dwindling population. Suburbanites aren't coming into the city to shop and have indicated for decades they don't want to. These hangars were completely void of customers when I visited them. This is such a silly thing to say. There is local retail all over the city that draws shoppers — books, home goods, clothing, antiques, etc. As a suburbanite, I can tell you driving into Cleveland to go to a store is just as easy as driving anywhere else. I shopped at these hangars and I saw others do so too, but a bunch of mini stores may not have been a great format. I also think a challenge is lack of curation that you might get in one store where someone is deciding what all fits. I’m not sure what else you could do with those things. They are neat but the way the neighborhood is building up I wonder if they make sense still?
January 23Jan 23 3 hours ago, Jukeboxer said: I get why Graham and Co. went with a master lease for all the huts but the retail plan ran contrary to the intended design of the project. Hopefully OCI realizes it should avoid the real estate business and pass it on to someone else. Right these were supposed to artist lofts where they legitimately live there also if I remember correctly didn’t they say they did a similar project in Detroit I wonder where that landed Edited January 23Jan 23 by BoomerangCleRes
January 23Jan 23 15 hours ago, daybreaker said: We own a bookstore in New Orleans in a business called the Good Shop, which is multiple businesses set up across a few rooms. The "diluted" experience doesnt hamper the retail aspect at all. But this store has a single checkout point, with all of the merchandise in a central retail system (Square), so all the partners who sell stuff in there just need to work the check out once per week (we have an employee who handles it for us since obviously we're not flying back once a week). This cuts WAY down on employee overhead for everyone, and also lets each vendor also focus on other things, if they have additional storefronts across the city, or need to spend time making the goods to sell them. So essentially like Glenvillage
January 24Jan 24 Also, I attended the design charrette type thing that OCI put on tonight at the Urban Community School. People put their ideas on post-in notes related to five different questions (what is OCI doing right, what other communities are doing things right, what do you want Ohio City to be known for, etc.). Nice turnout, about 30 people. Will be interested to see what comes from it!
January 24Jan 24 I'm confused by this the development corporation bought the City Goods business/brand but they don't own the buildings or land? Since they shut down City Goods, they are taking a total loss on their investment? Maybe I'm misunderstanding? https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2025/01/city-goods-in-clevelands-ohio-city-closing-permanently-at-the-end-of-this-month.html
January 24Jan 24 19 minutes ago, coneflower said: Since they shut down City Goods, they are taking a total loss on their investment? OCI still holds the lease on the buildings and is planning to open something new in the future, though they havent released any specific details on what. I would hope they already have a solid plan in place, or else kicking out paying vendors and then paying a lease while things sit empty for months sounds like a terrible plan, unless overhead costs really were that much extra and not being covered by the sub-leasing to the vendors. But also, buying this space knowing how much costs were exceeding income sounds like a terrible plan. So I dont know. Maybe they had a plan to replace it with a new concept all along, and its taken this long to finalize some of the aspects? Edited January 24Jan 24 by daybreaker
January 24Jan 24 14 hours ago, Paul in Cleveland said: Also, I attended the design charrette type thing that OCI put on tonight at the Urban Community School. People put their ideas on post-in notes related to five different questions (what is OCI doing right, what other communities are doing things right, what do you want Ohio City to be known for, etc.). Nice turnout, about 30 people. Will be interested to see what comes from it! Is there a place to get notified about these things? I probably wouldve gone to this. Since we just moved here, but plan on staying in Ohio City long term, I'd like to start getting involved in stuff like this.
January 24Jan 24 1 minute ago, daybreaker said: Is there a place to get notified about these things? I probably wouldve gone to this. Since we just moved here, but plan on staying in Ohio City long term, I'd like to start getting involved in stuff like this. I honestly can't recall where I heard about this; had I put it in my calendar and noticed it as an upcoming event the other day. I think it was either here on this forum, or possibly from OCI. You can join their mailing list at the bottom of this site: https://www.ohiocity.org ... there's also a calendar there. Welcome to the neighborhood! We just moved to OC in May and love it.
January 24Jan 24 Ya I really hope OCI already has a plan for the space. I'm guessing they do, as I saw Funktiniland is moving to Lakewood. I believe the woman who owns it was one of the original artist loft people, and ran her space on her own by working with other local artists outside of the City Goods bubble. The people I know at OCI are great and they truly want to help and make the neighborhood great. But their leadership seems to have problems with not seeing projects through or continuing to build off of them. They jump from one idea to the next without finishing any of them. Market Ave is a perfect example. They push for years to close it and filled it with seating and activities to do so, then once it was closed off its been completely neglected and empty. The W44/Bridge intersection improvements were great. But they apparently leased from NOACA the flexiposts and planter boxes which were installed by volunteers and gave them back. The intersection is back to being a dangerous mess and there hasn't been a peep since. So NOACA or OCI couldn't just stomach the $500 cost of the used plastic? They could buy City Goods and hire one of the former owners as a new director, but not a few flexiposts, picnic tables, and planters for these spaces? I have to admit it does worry me for the potential partial closure of W29th and it's execution. Edited January 24Jan 24 by PlanCleveland
January 31Jan 31 Boom? Ohio City apartment building planned By Ken Prendergast / January 31, 2025 A 109-unit market-rate apartment building planned along West 26th Street in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood recently passed its first hurdle. But it has more to come, including a rezoning, vacating an alley, design-review approvals and winning over urban neighbors who expressed fears of the multi-family development. MORE: https://neo-trans.blog/2025/01/31/ohio-city-apartment-building-planned/ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 31Jan 31 Could use some clarity in the last paragraph… “Separately, Whalen’s new firm Places Development is leading another development project nearby, a proposed hotel at West 26th and Lorain Avenue to which NEOtrans broke the story. But he said Places will likely go away after that project gets under construction” does this mean Dan is stepping away from his own development company? Is he focusing on different city? does he not have another project in the foreseeable future? Or is the inference that he’ll only work through this new partnership Edited January 31Jan 31 by BoomerangCleRes
January 31Jan 31 Fixed (hopefully) "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 31Jan 31 It looks like Dan introduced Geis's architect to the cutting edge concept of appropriately sized windows. Baby steps!
January 31Jan 31 Some even feared it would be “like New York City” while others worried the development would ruin their property values. Where do they get these people from?!? My hovercraft is full of eels
January 31Jan 31 Vibrator Co building pretty much gone now. And so is the view of Downtown with how low this fog is.
February 1Feb 1 3 hours ago, roman totale XVII said: Some even feared it would be “like New York City” while others worried the development would ruin their property values. Where do they get these people from?!? These NIMBYs are something else. Apparently they like empty, shabby looking lots instead? This apartment looks like a great fit for that site, particularly in light of the Voss property development.
February 1Feb 1 19 hours ago, KJP said: urban neighbors who expressed fears of the multi-family development. this makes my brain break
February 1Feb 1 On 1/31/2025 at 2:56 PM, KJP said: Boom? Ohio City apartment building planned By Ken Prendergast / January 31, 2025 A 109-unit market-rate apartment building planned along West 26th Street in Cleveland’s Ohio City neighborhood recently passed its first hurdle. But it has more to come, including a rezoning, vacating an alley, design-review approvals and winning over urban neighbors who expressed fears of the multi-family development. MORE: https://neo-trans.blog/2025/01/31/ohio-city-apartment-building-planned/ Oh great these guys agaian
February 3Feb 3 https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2025/02/construction-on-multi-million-dollar-west-side-market-transformation-set-to-begin-this-summer.html Construction on massive West Side Market transformation set to begin this summer Happy and thankful the restructuring of ownership and efforts to get the market updates funded and underway seems to be going well so far.
February 3Feb 3 ^ its paywalled, but here is is the deal: The first project will be the East Arcade, the mostly empty produce hall next to the parking lot. It will receive all-new HVAC as well as new vendor stalls to offer a high-quality, 21st-century space, said Mudry. The basement will also be part of the early renovations. A schedule and logistics are being created for the first stage of masterplan implementation.
February 3Feb 3 Mayor Bibb deserves a lot of credit for getting this done. WSM was a disaster under FJ.
February 3Feb 3 On 12/5/2024 at 1:57 PM, coneflower said: That stinks Chipotle pulled out. In my old neighborhood in DC they vacated a similar spot that has since been home to a couple of great small local eateries. Chipotle saved them some money by investing in fixing up the building and preparing it for food service so the new places only had to renovate the look and tweak. I was thinking something similar could happen here but alas. Looks like Chipotle will be taking over Soho Chicken & Whiskey spot and Soho Chicken & Whiskey will be moving.
February 3Feb 3 Oh yeah. Forgot about that. They submitted for a sign about a month ago. I guess it's still not too late to report on it. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
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