CLEVELAND — As planning continues on the Bridgeworks mixed-use project on Detroit Avenue and West 25th Street in Ohio City, developers are asking for help from the city of Cleveland.
On Monday, legislation was introduced in Cleveland City Council calling for a 30-year, non-school tax increment financing (TIF) from the city for the project. A TIF is an economic development mechanism available to local governments in Ohio to finance public infrastructure improvements and, in certain circumstances, residential rehabilitation.
The city says the TIF would divert the increase in future property taxes based on improvements for up to 30 years, but it will not exempt the developer from payment in lieu of taxes. The non-school portion of the TIF ensures that the Cleveland Metropolitan School District will continue to receive the amount of property taxes that would have been payable to the school district if there were no TIF exemption enacted by the city.
Plans call for Bridgeworks to consist of a 130-room hotel, 140 residential units: 40 two-bedroom, 82 one-bedroom, and 18 studio units. There will be 12,000 square feet available for office space, a 210-space parking garage, plus a 120-seat restaurant and bar, 30-seat rooftop patio and other amenities on the 11th floor.
Planners add that on the eastern side of the site, the over 11,000 square feet of park will create an access point for the entry of the "underbridge."
The historic entrance to the streetcar level beneath the Detroit-Superior Bridge will be retained. The existing ticket booth building will be activated with retail for the first time since it closed in 1954.
Bridgeworks was approved by a 3-2 vote by the Cleveland Landmarks Commission in September. The city says the total cost of the project is expected to exceed $100 million, with approximately $73 million "in estimated hard construction costs."
The legislation will move through several city and council committees before a full council vote. The city says it is requesting the developers to reach various city goals or other objectives for the following:
- Minority Business Enterprise/Female Business Enterprise/Cleveland Area Small Business participation
- Fannie Lewis Cleveland Residential Employment participation
- A Workforce Development Agreement for all new jobs
- A Community Benefits Agreement
In 2019, 3News' Russ Mitchell took a look at the former Cleveland subway system. Watch below:
More Headlines: