EAST CLEVELAND, OH — After years of dealing with crumbling pavement, an East Cleveland businessman is giving the state an ultimatum: tell the community when Euclid Avenue will be repaired, or demonstrators will shut the busy thoroughfare down.
“Our streets look like they've been bombed,” said Art McKoy, owner of Superfly Barbershop on Euclid Avenue. “They look like they've been torn up, bulldozed, you name it and no one comes to fix it.”
McKoy said after a decade of watching cars and buses weave around giant potholes, he had had enough.
Last month, he wrote a letter to Gov. Mike DeWine asking for action. He wants the governor to come to East Cleveland, meet with businesses and residents, and let them know when the state will fix Euclid, which is partially maintained by the state.
If he doesn’t get a response, McKoy said he and other demonstrators will shut down Euclid during rush hour.
“If we have to feel the pain, they're going have to feel the pain,” said McKoy. “Shut it down. And we don’t want to have to do that. That's the last thing we want to do, but we can't take it anymore.”
He blames Euclid’s condition for the loss of customers totaling thousands of dollars.
“I used to have customers that come all the way from Elyria, Twinsburg to the shop,” McKoy said. “They loved the area, but they're not going to deal with these damned streets.”
But help could be on the way.
A proposed state budget calls for $10 million to fix East Cleveland’s roads and buildings.
Mayor Sandra Morgan said nearly all the money would go toward fixing a one-mile stretch of Euclid between Superior and Shaw.
“It will be transformational for Euclid Avenue,” said Mayor Sandra Morgan. "We resurfaced Euclid Avenue some time ago and then they had to rip up portions to fix pipes. This time we’re going to be intentional. It will mean infrastructure work both above and below ground.”
Morgan, who hopes the budget will be signed next week, believes work on the street could begin next spring.
She said the city would continue looking for money to repair other sections of Euclid Avenue as well.
