This article was published as part of an exclusive content partnership with neo-trans.blog.
Terms of the deal including the property’s sale price were not publicly disclosed. Land bank officials had hinted for months at the upcoming sale but provided few details until now.
Key to the sale was a renovation of the historic Mickey’s building, and is a big step in the redevelopment of the Circle East District. This neighborhood is just east of University Circle — the hub of Northeast Ohio’s educational, medical and arts scenes. On the residential streets nearby, the land bank is engaged in rebuilding this neighborhood from the sewers up.
This 25,000-square foot commercial space, a former Buick dealership that later became the headquarters of Mickey’s rustproofing, provides an attractive, inviting anchor to the new Circle East District. It also will create more jobs and tax revenue opportunities to help stabilize the city of East Cleveland which saw its population collapse from 37,000 in 1980 to 13,000 today. Half of its citizens live in poverty.
County land bank officials said the sale of the building happening simultaneously with the completion of renovations offers much to celebrate. The addition of more than 100 new jobs means new tax income to catalyze growth, energy and interest in this historically disinvested neighborhood.
Verdynt Bio focuses on building science facilities in underserved markets, ensuring that local talent can stay local. Doug Medvetz and Khadijah Hindi, Verdynt Bio principals and Cleveland natives, are returning home to lead the project, transforming the Mickey’s Building into a science innovation hub for future generations.
By investing more than $12 million, SKYLIIT Labs not plans to build out the structure, it will also manage the facility. Land bank officials aid SKYLIIT will pay special attention to amplifying the symbiotic relationship between the project and the people of East Cleveland.
Renovations to the property that were completed a week ago were led by Cleveland-based RDL Architects and Millstone Management Group. Grants came from the city of East Cleveland, JobsOhio, the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority, Cuyahoga County and Bank of America.
The project included several examples of innovative re-use of materials. Architect Chris Maurer of redhouse studio architecture created a public art piece for the front of the building called “Flight of the Council of Interplanetary Cooperation,” where the base materials are bio-cycled — recycled and remediated mushrooms called fungal mycelium.
In the building parking lot, the Land Bank re-used sandstone from an apartment building that had previously been demolished in East Cleveland.
“Through strong partnerships, and the leveraging of creative expertise and resources, we are transforming a vision into reality,” said Dennis Roberts, director of real estate development at the land bank. “The creation of over 100 high-paying jobs by Verdynt Bio is the spark needed to jumpstart investment that will fuel the beginning of the revitalization of this historic city.”
Not everything has proceeded smoothly in repurposing the Mickey’s Building. Loiter Cafe and Marketplace was set to open last month on the building’s first floor. But the land bank sent loiter two notices of default on its lease. Loiter sued.
Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Cassandra Collier-Williams overrode the eviction notices but said on July 11 the café has 30 days to open, court records show. The café said it can’t open until the land bank provides enough electrical power to the building. The land bank has denied the allegations by café owner Ismail Samad.Next up in the Circle East District is the construction of a combination of 22 highly energy-efficient, single-family homes and townhouses. Groundbreaking is scheduled to begin in September.
For more updates about Cleveland, sign up for our Cleveland Magazine Daily newsletter, delivered to your inbox six times a week.
Cleveland Magazine is also available in print, publishing 12 times a year with immersive features, helpful guides and beautiful photography and design.
