Campus District E. 22nd St. Project Wins $1.5 million of Funds From NOACA

This is an artist's rendering of what East 22nd Street would look like after the enhancements project is completed. This rendering is looking northbound near Prospect Avenue, with Trinity Cathedral on the right side. Image courtesy of City Architecture.

A major funding milestone was reached last month towards bringing new bike lanes, pedestrian improvements, landscaping and lighting to East 22nd Street from Euclid to Orange avenues. The Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) Governing Board approved $1.5 million for the Campus District’s East 22nd Street Enhancements Project, which has a total estimated project cost of $5.8 million. The City of Cleveland, as the sponsor of the project, has committed $485,000 of local matching funds. Additional funding is being sought for the project from state and federal sources with 2015 as the target year for construction.

Councilwoman Phyllis Cleveland, Ward 5, working with Campus District, Inc (CDI) and Mayor Frank Jackson’s administration, prioritized this location for street improvements because of resident needs and desires by the area’s anchor institutions.

“I’m pleased to learn of the NOACA award of $1.5 million of Transportation Enhancement funds," Cleveland said. "It demonstrates that the community’s input into the process gave this project higher priority and their voices were heard loud and clear.”

Community residents of the nearby Cedar Estates have consistently expressed interest in making neighborhood streets more conducive for biking and walking. It was first identified through the 2010 Collaborative Campus planning process spear-headed by Cuyahoga Community College Metropolitan Campus, then next in the Promise neighborhood planning lead by Sisters of Charity Foundation, and importantly through the 2011 Transportation for Livable Communities Initiative (TLCI) study.

From the TLCI Study, also funded by NOACA, the planning consultant City Architecture did preliminary designs for the project which can be found at http://www.noaca.org/presentations/e22campusplan.pdf.

This transportation enhancement project will build on the recent and past investments of more than a half billion dollars by Cuyahoga Community College’s Metro Campus, Cleveland State University, and the St. Vincent Charity Medical Center. The project is expected to spark further investment along East 22nd Street, including the now-vacant former Juvenile Court Building.

NOACA, which is the five-county regional transportation planning and funding organization, has been working on creating more desirable conditions for walking and biking through its TLCI work and is developing a countywide bike plan to be unveiled in 2013.

“NOACA is pleased to contribute $1.5 million in transportation enhancement funding to the East 22nd Street Enhancement Project in Cleveland’s Campus District," said Grace Gallucci, the new executive director of NOACA. "This funding will implement recommendations from the East 22nd Street Corridor/Campus District Transportation and Redevelopment Plan, which was prepared with the help of a $75,000 NOACA TLCI planning award. The project will expand transportation choices for everyone who uses East 22nd Street, and that is an important step toward revitalizing downtown Cleveland.”

Jacob VanSicle, executive director of Bike Cleveland, the region’s bike advocacy organization said "We are excited to see funding being provided for the transformation of E. 22nd Street into a multi-modal boulevard that will safely accommodate people on bikes between CSU and Tri-C. As more people are turning to active forms of transportation like biking, it is essential that we continue to re-imagine our streets as places that make riding a bike stress-free. Repurposing road space for bikes is essential in creating an active vibrant neighborhood."

 

Bobbi Reichtell

Bobbi Reichtell is the new executive director of Campus District, Inc. She can be reached at 216-344-9200, or by email at breichtell@campusdistrict.org.

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Volume 2, Issue 11, Posted 11:40 AM, 11.05.2012