In an area including Cleveland’s eastern gateway to University Circle and East Cleveland, the Cuyahoga Land Bank is leading a $122 million redevelopment plan that will consist of more than 200 homes to jumpstart transformational development with an estimated economic impact of $60 million in new property value — and aside from additional income and tax benefits, an expected 610 construction jobs will be created.
A commercial building will anchor the district, and Circle East includes a “heavy emphasis on sustainability,” Dennis Roberts, director of real estate development at Cuyahoga Land Bank, says, pointing to rooftop solar power to reduce energy bills, greenspaces and EV chargers.
Roberts says Circle East will become “an entirely new neighborhood” within a 30-acre footprint including 18 parcels on Euclid Avenue. “We think that is ideal for commercial redevelopment, retail and amenities,” he says, adding the five-year plan comes after two studies conducted in 2015 by Case Western Reserve University and in 2020 by Cleveland State University. “This is an ideal place to strategically develop to spur further investment.”
Circle North, an area just north of Circle East District, is another location where the Land Bank is heavily engaged in development. Some Land Bank initiatives include building new homes — completed residences on East 116th Street and Ashbury Road, and three in-progress on Beulah Avenue. “Our strategy at the Land Bank is to find neighborhoods that need government intervention, and we believe with the investment of our time, talent and treasure we can tip that community and get it into a good place to create a market,” Roberts says.
Teaming Up for Transformation
Transformation requires time, commitment and investment.
Since 2009, the Cuyahoga Land Bank has set out to reactivate and repurpose vacant, blighted, neglected and tax-delinquent properties in the county. It acquires the land, stabilizes properties through renovations or new-home construction, sells them to private owners and strategizes for short- and long-term economic development.
None of this happens alone. The Land Bank collaborates with agencies, public officials, community development corporations, private developers and other social service organizations.
Regarding the Circle East initiative, “Nothing of this scale has been developed in a lifetime in this neighborhood,” says Dennis Roberts, director of real estate development. Groundbreaking is slated for fall 2024 for the five-year, $122 million plan.
The Land Bank is catalyzing other new marketed growth, too. For example, they will use their recent $10 million ARPA grant from the City of Cleveland across various wards to build quality affordable housing.
Homebuyer education is another Land Bank priority. They do this through their nonprofit brokerage, Realty Reimagined, which provides a variety of resources and courses, included pre-approval clinics and post-purchase classes where buyers learn about maintenance, insurance and how to become an engaged community member among other topics.
Roberts adds, “We help people with credit challenges or who are new to the homebuying process, and we are actively building a pipeline of buyers to take advantage of the development opportunities coming online.”
