CLEVELAND — New development projects in Cleveland’s MidTown neighborhood are aiming to bring new energy, business, and housing opportunities to the neighborhood. On a tour organized by MidTown Cleveland on Monday, efforts in revitalization and growth were highlighted.
Many of the new projects are focused along Euclid Avenue, Carnegie Avenue, and East 66th Street, aiming to bolster development in the area and focus more energy on the neighborhood, which is located between University Circle and downtown.
New housing opportunities are growing, including new apartments underway at the historic Agora Theater, where office spaces are being converted into residential apartments.
According to Ashley Shaw, executive director of MidTown Cleveland, some existing offices remain at the location, as 50 market rate apartments are being created. Shaw added the music venue itself is separately owned, and remains a music venue.
Along Euclid Avenue, the Foundry Lofts apartment building offers amenities such as an on site gym, and continues to grow with plans to add phase two, which will include over 100 more units, according to a manager at the apartments.
In the Hough neighborhood along the East 66th Corridor, Frontline Development Group, a minority owned and female led real estate development firm, is adding 300 units of housing in the form of multifamily and single family spaces, as well as condos.
According to Sheila Wright, president of Frontline Development Group, the name of the mixed use, mixed income development is the Allen Estates, after civic leaders Carolyn and Robert Allen.
“It’s a lift to the community, it’s the investment that this neighborhood deserves, and we believe it’s going to spark more economic development in terms of home ownership, jobs, so we’re excited about that,” Wright said.
Wright added that there’s considerable investment happening in the stretch between East 66th between Euclid to Superior, and said Allen Estates plans to supply the housing for a lot of the growth happening in the area.
“We’ll be housed, if you will, between two book end anchors, which will be the Cleveland Foundation and League Park,” she said.
The Cleveland Foundation is moving its headquarters from downtown to MidTown, building a new facility on the corner of East 66th and Euclid. The new building will open in January or February.
“The reason why we’re doing that is really to come out and be more accessible here in the community, and have the foundation and the work we do be in and with the community,” said Lilliana Kuri, executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Cleveland Foundation.
Kuri said the foundation chose to move to MidTown to connect downtown and University Circle, to have “one connected city.”
“We really wanted to locate specifically on East 66th Street and help develop both sides of it so we could turn the energy north to Hough along East 66th Street and really leverage the asset rich neighborhood that exists there already,” she said.
There will also be a MidTown Collaboration Center, which will house partners like Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals, among others, to create an innovation center.
Additionally, Magnet, a hub for manufacturing that aims to raise career awareness for the industry in students and adults is located on East 63rd Street, and opens to the public on Friday.
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