CLEVELAND — The future of one of Cleveland’s most popular neighborhood’s is up in the air.
For years EDWINS Leadership Institute has become a staple in Cleveland’s Shaker Square. It provides opportunities for former inmates to learn the culinary world.
The community has been passionate about the historic location with different opinions on how to handle its future.
Brandon Chrostowski has led the business and has proudly called Shaker Square home.
“Shaker Square has really become part of our lives. This is where we walk, this is where we talk and our kids know it, they see the trains and they put the penny on the track. I mean, we love this square,” said Chrostowski.
But he’s concerned about plans to purchase the property from a bank for about $12 million.
Chrostowski believes the property is worth about half of that, and the money is a major misuse of public funds.
“Just blocks away, we have homicides on the rise, lead is an issue, we have extreme poverty that we’re not really focusing on, and instead we’re giving millions to a bank,” said Chrostowski.
The plan comes from outgoing Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress and the Burten, Bell, Carr Development Corporation, which is trying to purchase the property to pay off the mortgage debt of the square’s owners.
The parties involved attended a public meeting hosted by the ward’s councilwoman. Things got a little testy at times between residents and local leaders, but Joy Johnson of Burten, Bell, Carr made her pitch.
“Who do we want to drive the bus? Do we want someone local that you can come down to our office or pick up the phone and say ‘hey, I don’t like how you’re running such and such at Shaker Square,’ or do we want to roll the dice and see what happens when the bank doesn’t get their $12 million and time passes and our tenants move out?” said Johnson.
Teri Hamilton Brown serves as the project consultant, and has concerns about the current condition of many Shaker Square buildings.
“We’re really concerned about the merchants. And so, I believe some people have talked about leaky roofs. It’s not only leaking into some, but we can’t move new tenants into some of the second story spaces because they can’t be improved because the roof is still leaking,” said Brown.
While supporters of the project also argue that delaying the sale increases the chance of going to a sheriff’s sale and only makes the property more expensive.
“If we don’t move forward now, the question is when are we going to move forward? Right? When are we going to actually see improvement? Because the clock is ticking,” said Tania Manesse, CEO of Cleveland Neighborhood Progress.
But as Chrostowski challenges some of the claims, he agrees the square needs some work, but says there is no need to rush, and that Shaker Square is actually in the best condition it’s been in years.
“The rhetoric that’s being used is all fear driven. ‘Shaker Square is in a moment of crisis?’ This is the best it’s been for us in eight years,” said Chrostowski. “We’ve (had) $18,000 dollars’ worth of damage on our rooftop at EDWINS too. They paid for it, so we’re not being neglected. In fact, we’re being cared for better than in year’s past.”
