Cleveland City Council has awarded a $3.9 million forgivable loan to Burten, Bell, Carr Development Inc. (BBC) for the reimagining of Buckeye Road.   

Approved June 25, the loan will help stabilize 10 vacant mixed-use commercial buildings and parking lots on the east side commercial corridor. The refurbishment is part of a Black-led arts, culture and technology district proposed for the struggling enclave. 

Leading this transformation effort is BBC, a community development corporation covering a four-square-mile block of Cleveland neighborhoods. Cleaning up empty structures along Buckeye Road brings the larger plan one step closer to reality, noted BBC Executive Director Joy Johnson.

“There has been a lot of work behind the scenes,” Johnson said. “These buildings have just been sitting there, so we’re working on stabilizing them.”

Some of the structures have been vacant for years, requiring environmental testing, asbestos removal and additional infrastructure improvements. Although Mayor Frank Jackson’s administration had earmarked the $3.9 loan, the subsequent leadership turnover delayed funding, Johnson said.  

With dollars in hand, BBC is fast-tracking restoration of four buildings currently in the best condition. Among them is Moreland Theater at 11820 Buckeye Rd. – the vacant movie house is also the intended cornerstone of an arts district centered on Black creators and entrepreneurs. Preservation of the theater will encompass roof repair, improved stormwater management and foundation renovations. 

Meanwhile, Johnson and her team are pitching the community on the arts and innovation concept. Black creators and entrepreneurs would lead the charge, ideally introducing workforce-building new technologies in art production.

“If there is a technology for printing, we would teach people how to use it,” Johnson said. “There is a workforce development component, plus an entrepreneurial component because we are helping artists monetize their intellectual property.”

If all goes to plan, a lively arts enclave would attract the recession-proof businesses – coffee shops, laundromats and more – crucial to a healthy community, added Johnson.

“You just don’t open a gallery and then it’s profitable,” Johnson said. “If we have this draw – this cool Black arts and technology experience – that’s an anchor for coffee shops. The neighborhood needs a catalyst so the private market can fill in the gaps.”

BBC covers the Central, Kinsman and Buckeye neighborhoods, as well as portions of Fairfax and Union Miles. The organization has implemented master plans throughout its coverage area, including Buckeye, in an area struck by decimated housing wealth due to the Great Recession and late-aughts foreclosure crisis.

The Buckeye plan calls for construction of new and affordable housing, improved internet and transit service, and additional parks and public spaces. A $2 million joint initiative from Fifth Third Bank and nonprofit Enterprise Community Partners supports residents purchasing rehabilitated single-family and two-story homes, along with money for existing homeowners to make needed repairs.

New owners would live in one unit while providing a quality affordable home to another family, preventing resident displacement while building wealth for themselves, said Johnson. BBC is also applying for funding to rehabilitate 20 area apartments into affordable rental housing.

Other recent improvements to BBC’s coverage area include a Buckeye Road repaving and new streetscapes west of Moreland Boulevard. Arts investments are part of this picture as well – a project spearheaded by BBC and Ward 6 councilman Blaine Griffin envisions a 700-foot-long mural on Woodhill Road.

Continued activity will only elevate a community that has been down far too long, Johnson said.

“When people drive down the street, they’ll see that vibrancy as well as people like them who are committed to the neighborhood,” Johnson said. “People want to see a reflection of themselves in the community – that their commitment is not in vein.”