SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio — Driving through portions of Shaker Heights, you'll see many front yards have signage that reads 'No Stadium.'
Those signs are in response to University School looking to make field enhancements to its Shaker Heights lower and middle school campus.
University School, an all-boys private school, wants to enhance the main football field by replacing the current grass field with turf for football and lacrosse. It also wants to add a three-lane track, 950-seat bleachers, and install targeted LED lights.
The project is slated to cost roughly $7 million.
There's a resident-formed group called 'Protect Our U.S. Neighborhood' that has garnered 300 signatures from people who oppose the project.
Homeowners, like Myra White and Stanley Jaros, are among those who don't want it.
"It's not that I have an objection to a stadium per se, but think about what a stadium involves," White said. "That's a professional [sound] system they're gonna put in. There are gonna be 80-foot lighting towers. How does that impact a neighborhood? What will the impact be on this neighborhood of fairly narrow streets?"
Jaros said his main concern is parking, as there already isn't enough in his neighborhood and he's had issues with University School families in the past.
"There's actually a sign in their parking lot across the street. It's a big sign. It says faculty and staff parking only, visitors will park on the neighboring streets. During construction, the parents would park in front of our driveway, in our driveway. There was some woman screaming at me once, 'You dummy!' She was parked in my drive. I asked her to leave. 'You dummy. Did you ever notice you live across from a school?,'" Jaros recalled.
His son is a University School alum. In that time, he said the school has been nothing short of great.
What's happening now, though, with the battle to make field enhancements hasn't sat well with him.
"They've sort of got themselves into a box by signing that agreement 50 years ago, and they want to put it someplace. They'd much rather have their own University School field that the kids are playing on instead of saying we're renting space," Jaros said.
There's been a pause on the project, however, as the Shaker Heights City Council unanimously approved zoning ordinance amendments in December and April.
The amendments for conditional use standards don't allow for:
- Group activities before 7 a.m. or after 10 p.m. on weekdays and not before 9 a.m. or after 10 p.m. on weekends
- Outdoor lighting of recreation facilities
Anyone who applies for conditional use must also submit a traffic, parking, landscape, buffer, safety and security plan.
Shaker Heights council member Orlando Alvarez said during the meeting, "This is not a cut and dry type situation. Having said that, I support these amendments because I think what they do is create a criteria and ability for an objective evaluation of all of this when it comes before the city for consideration."
That vote gave Jaros and White a sense of relief.
"I'm very proud of them for what they did," White told me on Wednesday.
Jaros said, "They take it pretty seriously and so I wasn't surprised, but I was pleased."
That April council decision did lead to a lawsuit filed by University School against Shaker Heights.
The lawsuit claims council did not follow proper procedures before making that call.
“Regrettably, the city’s continued drive to enact additional restrictions, while continuing to enforce the interim ordinance, compels this lawsuit,” the initial complaint reads.
University School claims that the emergency legislation was improperly enacted, “at the tail end of a more than two-hour meeting,” providing no advance public notice and without council reading it.
University School’s aspirations have been consistent -- to meet the needs of our students, maximize opportunities for community, preserve our school’s rights and protect its future, and continue to be a valued part of Shaker Heights, the City we have called home for 100 years.
Since the fall, we have been in ongoing communication with our neighbors and the City about our plans. Despite our efforts to engage in constructive dialogue, other parties have been unresponsive and unwilling to engage. After many attempts to follow the City’s own policies and procedures, the City put forward an ordinance to prevent schools from making such improvements previously and otherwise permitted.
Unfortunately, there has been significant misrepresentation about the scope of this project. In fact, our plans were scaled back in the fall of 2025 after early feedback from the City and our neighbors. This field enhancement features a new playing surface, bleachers for home and visiting fans, and targeted LED lighting to allow for 5-7 night football contests in the fall and 10-12 spring lacrosse contests.
We welcome conversations with the City and our neighbors to develop a plan that all constituents can support.
I reached out to the city for comment on the entire ordeal as well as the lawsuit.
A Shaker Heights spokesperson said, "University School has the right and ability to submit a request to the City’s Planning Commission for approval of its proposed field improvements, but it has not done so. The City is prepared to defend itself against the lawsuit US has filed."
While University School told me they have requested approval from the city for its field enhancement project, the city stands firm in that a conditional use permit application has not been filed.
"The City of Shaker Heights has not approved the project, however, citing requirements in an interim zoning ordinance. University School believes the interim zoning ordinance was invalid and that its project should be approved," University School said.
In a rebuttal statement and breakdown of timeline, the city of Shaker Heights sent me the following information.
It is correct that the City adopted an Interim Zoning Ordinance on December 15, 2025, requiring that University School (US) obtain a conditional use permit for the types of changes the school wants to make at their Lower School to create a football field with lights for their high school sports teams. The US proposal comes more than 50 years after the high school moved to Hunting Valley where it has several hundred acres and a football stadium the school has used for about 50 years.
Subsequent to the passage of the City’s Interim Zoning Ordinance, on January 23, 2026, US submitted applications to the City’s Architectural Board of Review (ABR) and Building and Housing Department for approval and permits for their stadium project. The ABR gave approval of the design of the US project. However, on January 27, the City advised US that the City could not approve their building permits until they applied for and were granted a conditional use permit for their project, and that lights are not permitted (unless they seek and obtain a variance).
On February 9, 2026, the Shaker Heights City Council adopted the conditional use permit requirement and ban on lights as a permanent ordinance to replace the interim ordinance. On April 13, 2026, Council enacted some additional permanent zoning changes regulating outdoor recreational facilities at public and private schools, which would include changes such as US is proposing. US filed its lawsuit that same day.
US has never submitted an application for a conditional use permit for approval of its project.
Jaros said he thinks the lawsuit is "bad optics" for University School.
"I can't imagine who came up with the bright idea to do it rather than continue through some sort of a discussion approach," he told me.
White added, "I just think it's going to change the ambiance of this neighborhood and I don't want to be snotty about it. I mean, I'm a great fan of education and not hostile to University School, but I feel like this is just not reasonable."
Both she and Jaros said they wish the school had more of a dialogue with the surrounding neighbors.
Jaros said, "There hasn't been any (dialogue) at all. I don't know with some of them, maybe there has been. Not with me. All we got was a mailing that said, 'Here's what we're gonna do.'"
"It would have been wonderful if the powers that U.S. is had come to the leaders in this particular neighborhood and said, 'We would like to do this. What would make it palatable for you?' None of that open dialogue took place, and it was up to them to initiate it," White said.
She worries the litigation will ultimately cost Shaker Heights residents more money and she deems that "unnecessary."
"I don't like the feeling of being bewildered, and this is just, why are they doing this? This is just bewildering and it's a huge project," White said.
White and Jaros are hopeful University School will explore other options for its field enhancement project.
There will be a conference call between Shaker Heights and University School, each of their respective lawyers, and the Cuyahoga County court on June 18.
