A plan to overhaul a section of Ohio City is moving forward. The hill that leads from Ohio City to the Cuyahoga River is called Irishtown Bend. It has a view of The Flats West Bank and downtown Cleveland and right now it’s covered in overgrowth and crumbling into the water. A landslide there could block shipping on the Cuyahoga River.
Tom McNair with Ohio City Inc. says people have wanted something done for years.
“No longer is it just a liability, but really it’s a tremendous opportunity to connect our neighborhoods down to the waterfront,” said McNair.
The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority has a plan to stabilize the slope at a cost of about $50 million.
The very first renderings of new plans for Irishtown Bend after the stabilization, were revealed at a community meeting, Tuesday night.
The final project will incorporate ideas from two different renderings and could include a welcome center, a cultural walk, picnic pavilion, amphitheater-style steps, walking paths and a playground.
Several vacant public housing buildings nearby will be torn down, but Riverview Towers on W. 25th Street will be incorporated into the project.
“Irishtown Bend has the opportunity to be the first waterfront park in America directly connected to public housing.”
The only people displaced by the project will be a small group of homeless people who live on the hillside. There is a plan in the works to help relocate them.
The project will create a smooth transition from Ohio City to The Flats. People enjoying a morning at the West Side Market or dinner at Town Hall can walk around back and utilize the outdoor space and take in the view.
A permanent decision about plans for the park could be reached by August, but it will be years before we see anything like the renderings with our own eyes.