Following the housing crisis of 2008, the number of abandoned houses and industrial and commercial properties in Cuyahoga County climbed sharply. These distressed properties are health and safety hazards, blighting their surroundings and devaluing neighboring properties. Many such structures that are in too far a state of disrepair or too obsolete to warrant restoration have been demolished by the Cuyahoga Land Bank.
Our strategic demolition work makes way for new housing, commercial development and community greenspaces, turning liabilities into assets. A remarkable example of the impact of our work can be seen on a stretch where Cleveland and Newburgh Heights meet. In a one-mile stretch of one street alone, Harvard Avenue, the Cuyahoga Land Bank has demolished more than a dozen structures, including blighted homes, a dilapidated gas station, a former industrial building, a bowling alley, and the former Newburgh Heights City Hall. Today, a number of these parcels have been reused for Newburgh Height’s new City Hall, retail outlets and community greenspaces.
“Transforming blighted properties is key to our region’s vitality,” says Cuyahoga County Council President Pernel Jones, Jr. “The Cuyahoga Land Bank’s demolition work along Harvard Avenue has paved the way for new construction, new homes and other beautification efforts. It’s work is transforming a major corridor in the county.”