CLEVELAND—Mayor Frank Jackson and Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald announced a $350 million plan Thursday to bring new development along the banks of Lake Erie.
The pair said at a press conference that some of the major changes will include the potential of a $260 million convention center with a 600-700 room hotel in place of the county's administration building at Lakeside Avenue and Ontario Street. Also discussed was a $95 million endeavor that includes a pedestrian bridge to the lakefront, a 740-space parking garage just northeast of the Convention Center, an overhaul of Public Square, and improvements to the grassy downtown Malls, East 3rd Street and existing bridges over railroad tracks at West 3rd and East 9th streets.
The project would reportedly be financed without direct public dollars. The two men said funds could be tapped with a $17 million federal grant, hotel and casino taxes for bonds and up to $30 million in private donations. The improvements are expected to help connect new developments in the downtown, including a refurbished Public Square. The plans also call for more than 2.1 million sq. ft. of offices, multifamily and retail at North Coast Harbor near two museums and Harbor West, property northeast of FirstEnergy Stadium.