Cleveland Heights Council will vote on controversial low-income housing project

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio (WOIO) - Developer TWG needs a signed development agreement this week and Cleveland Heights City Council will vote Monday evening on the 52-unit, $14.7 million low-income housing project planned for Noble Road on the East Cleveland border.

“This is the old McDonald’s lot and now it’s time for something new,” said Reverend Jimmie Hicks, Jr., a former Cleveland Heights City Councilman who’s partnered with TWG. “It will be a fourteen million dollar shot in the arm that will now allow other businesses to be enticed to come to this neighborhood because they see, they see investment.”

Meetings on the Noble Station project have been vocal, with Cleveland Heights architect Paul Volpe wondering if it will elevate the neighborhood.

“How does it fit, how does it work, does it contribute to revitalization?” Volpe asked. “Does it have an impact on economic development and community development?”

Critics of the plan say it lacks any amenities like a restaurant to revitalize the struggling neighborhood.

“People want mixed-use, people want commercial development, people want businesses,” said Jimmie Hicks III of Start Right. “But there’s no guarantee in any of that, and bringing in residents is something that will pay off for the city.”

“When people say ‘low income’ in their minds they’re thinking ‘no income.,” said Hicks, Jr. “This is a development that is going to be bringing in people who don’t make, who are making starting salaries.”

While some neighbors opposed low-income housing, others say the neighborhood needs a boost.

“We need this type of investment in our community,” said Richard Brown, also of Start Right, who lives on Woodview Road, a street that borders the project.

But everyone agrees on one thing.

“This area of the city has been neglected for far too long,” said Hicks III.

Council meets at 7:30 at Cleveland Heights City Hall.

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