$50M Mixed-Use Planned for Euclid Corridor

His son David tells GlobeSt.com that Bowen's company has bought almost 2 acres near Chester Avenue for a first phase that would include the 70,000-square-foot medical building, 150 senior homes and 14,000 square feet of retail. The site was formerly owned by Key Gas Components, and some environmental clean-up is expected. "We're applying for state dollars to do a phase two environmental study," David Bowen says. The city is partnering on the application for a grant of more than $190,000. "We anticipate that once the phase two is complete, we will go through voluntary clean-up, as long as we get the covenant not to sue."

The city also has a parcel of land close by, David Bowen says, that could be joined with the first property to add another 84 senior homes and more retail. The area is in demand because there's not much developable land left near the hospitals. "This is the next best spot," he says. "When you look at the workforce and the numbers of traffic in the area, this corridor has some of the highest traffic in the city." There's also a dedicated bus line that runs along Euclid that is like an express train, he says, with changing lights that react to the bus to keep it from stopping. There has been a push to reinvent the area, with more than $750 million being invested in this section of the city in the past two decades, according to Midtown Cleveland Inc.

There have been some questions from various local groups about the proposed project, questioning adding new housing to a commercial area. However, David Bowen says he thinks the concerns are based on the belief that the housing would be subsidized. "That's not what we're envisioning," he says. The housing would likely cost about $150,000 per unit to build, he says. At this time, he says no specific tenants are signed up to join the project.