A plan to turn the site of the former Harry E. Davis School into new living and working space got final approval from Cleveland’s Planning Commission just before Thanksgiving week. The school building has been vacant since 2012.
Churchill Gateway will offer more than 50 apartments and townhomes, “that appeal to small and growing families while also providing training and support service space,” according to the project’s Ohio Housing Finance Agency proposal.
NRP Group's Scott Skinner explained that the project would be intended for residents who make between 30-60 percent of the area median income because that’s what the neighborhood indicated would help the most.
Community Programs
Additional pieces of the development will provide space for community gathering and training.
“Residents (as well as those living in the broader community) will benefit from locally delivered and easily accessible workforce and professional development services,” reads the project’s Ohio Housing Finance Agency proposal.
The project’s presentation to the Cleveland Planning Commission mentioned 3,000 square feet for University Hospitals to create a “UH Opportunity Center,” which will have community programming for pregnant women, young mothers, and seniors nearby.
Pass-through road
Part of the project will be a new road through the current school campus that will connect Churchill and Orville avenues.
NRP Group told the planning commission the intention is to make it a private road with a permanent easement to the city, allowing public traffic to use it.
Early plans show north and southbound driving lanes, flanked by parallel parking and sidewalks on both sides.
“With this plan that you see in front of you, we really do think that this will look, feel and operate like the mid block connection we think you all are looking for,” said Skinner.
Future Development
The plans approved so far only account for a small part of the site’s five acres, leaving plenty of additional room for future developments, according to NRP Group.
The project falls into Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson’s Neighborhood Transformation Initiative, which looks for development proposals that will have lasting impacts in their communities.
See News 5 Cleveland's previous coverage of another project within the Neighborhood Transformation Initiative here.
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