Design + Build

Peter B. Lewis bldg - photo Bob PerkoskiPeter B. Lewis bldg - photo Bob Perkoski

Here's something you won't find in Phoenix: A grand public mall flanked by Beaux Arts-style architectural gems built some 100 years ago. Stretching back to Daniel Burnham's grand Group Plan of 1903, the Cleveland skyline has been graced with epic structures boasting dignity, symmetry and grace. Complementing the historic architecture and design, today’s design and building community are looking at new ways to re-envision the city, from the redesign and update of Public Square to making connections from the city to the lakefront through green space and the proposed pedestrian bridge. 

City links: Cleveland Heights gets ambitious with Taylor Tudor reconstruction proposal
Cleveland Heights' Taylor Tudor project will renovate three 1928 three-story brick Tudor buildings into residential units and retail space, while also launching an effort to create a vibrant, connected neighborhood around Cain Park.
Cleveland Heights Cinder Path, Oakwood Drive earn historic recognition
Cleveland Masterworks: The 1938 Bradford Cinder Path, deemed a Cleveland Heights historic landmark, and the Oakwood Drive Historic District—named to the National Register of Historic Places in 2021—both received markers last week.
Loganberry Books celebrates 20 years in historic building
This week, Loganberry Books celebrated 20 years in its current location—the former Nash Motors dealership, among other former iterations. Read about how she turned a huge warehouse into the warm, inviting bookstore it is today.
Amasa Stone Chapel: a tribute to a 19th Century Cleveland legend
In 1907 the daughters of railroad magnate and philanthropist Amasa Stone commissioned New England architect Henry Vaughan to design a chapel as a tribute to their late father. CWRU's Amasa Stone Chapel—an example of Gothic revival architecture.
Euclid Avenue Opera House: One of the most beautiful theaters in the country in the 1800s
The Euclid Avenue Opera House was known for its elegance and was considered one of the finest in the country. Led by John Ellsler and his stock theater group before Marcus Hanna bought the property, the Hanna Theatre is considered its successor.
The Severance estates: Three farms encompassing 200 acres in the early 20th Century
Cleveland Masterworks: In the early 1900s, three members of the Severance Family developed three majestic estates in Cleveland Heights. While some signs of the manors still exist today, most people know the Severance Town Center on most of the land.
Preservation celebration: Historic preservation projects honored by Restoration Society, AIA
The Cleveland Restoration Society and the American Institute of Architects will host the annual Celebration of Preservation to honor local restoration projects in Northeast Ohio. Read about some of the honorees here.
Tudor Arms Hotel: A swanky gothic revival cornerstone in University Circle
Cleveland Masterworks: The 1930s Tudor Arms building. designed by Frank Meade, has seen a rich history, from its origins as the exclusive Cleveland Club, to a hotel and nightlife hotspot, to the current modern-day hotel.
Tour the past: County opens Veteran’s Memorial Bridge lower deck, hosts talk about future plans
The subway level of the Veterans Memorial Bridge will be open this weekend for tours and a discussion about creating a public "Low-Line Park" on the level that was closed in 1954.
Warner & Swasey Observatory: A hilltop gem turned architectural relic
Cleveland Masterworks: In 1919 Worcester Warner and Ambrose Swasey built an observatory on a hill in East Cleveland, intending to use it for their own interests. In 1920, the partners in Warner & Swasey Company decided to gift the land and the observatory to Case School of Applied Science. For 60 years the facility was used for groundbreaking astronomical research before the city's light pollution forced it to close. Today, the observatory sits abandoned, decayed, and vandalized—a ghost of its former glory.
The Caxton Building: A haven for artists and entrepreneurs for 120 years
Cleveland Masterworks: Cleveland architect Frank Seymour Barnum designed the 1903 Caxton Building for a group of successful entrepreneurs who wanted to accommodate the needs of printers and artists. With its Romanesque design with great architectural detail, reinforced concrete floors, large windows, and its signature water tower perched on the roof, the Caxton continues to be a small business haven to this day.
The Little Blue Cottage and Forest Hill: Real estate offices of Rockefeller development
Cleveland Masterworks: The Forest Hill Historic District in Cleveland Heights is one of the first planned communities in the country, with homes designed by Andrew J. Thomas for John D. Rockefeller's development. Now the Abeyton Realty office needs repairs.
New purpose: Longfellow Elementary gets new life as affordable housing
CMSD's 1924 Longfellow Elementary School in Collinwood, designed by Cleveland schools architect Walter McCornack, was saved from demolition by the Cleveland Restoration Society and has been repurposed as affordable senior housing.
Harold Burdick: Eclectic architect in the Heights
Cleveland Masterworks: Harold Burdick was known for designing 28 houses in Shaker Heights and worked on the design of the Federal Reserve building. But he might be most noted for the futuristic design of his own home in Cleveland Heights.
Woodhill Homes project earns $10 million HUD boost
The ongoing Woodhill Homes development project in the Buckeye-Woodhill neighborhood—a six-phase, six-year $250 million development project by Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA), the City of Cleveland, and Boston-based The Community Builders (TCB)—just received a boost through a $10 million HUD Choice Neighborhoods Supplemental Funding Grant.
Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry is using solar power to house the homeless
Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry and PadSmart have just launched a pilot program to build energy efficient solar-powered homes to provide those experiencing homelessness with affordable a new affordable housing option.
The Garfield Building: Home to two banks, a jeweler, apartments, and a top-notch steak house
Cleveland Masterworks: Designed by Henry Ives Cobb and constructed in 1893, the Garfield Building on Euclid Avenue and Bond Street was designed with banking facilities in the basement level. Today, the building hosts apartments and the Marble Room restaurant.
Building on hope: I_You Design Lab aims to give the displaced a sense of home
When his classmates in architecture school were dreaming of building skyscrapers and office towers, Sai Sindondit was dreaming of creating affordable, sustainable, and functional permanent communities to house displaced populations—from the homeless to refugees and disaster victims. With the launch of I_You Design Lab, he has started to fulfill that dream.  
Continued evolution: Natural History Museum will reveal renovations, new exhibits this week
The Cleveland Museum of Natural History has unveiled the most recent renovations in its $150 million transformation project that will update and expand its both its offerings and physical square footage. 
St. Hubert’s Episcopal Church: All are Welcome at this historic house of worship
Cleveland Masterworks: Originally built in 1893 on the banks of the Chagrin River, St. Hubert's Episcopal Church served wealthy Clevelanders on retreat at Kirtland's Little Mountain. The church has moved several times over the past 130 years, but continues to welcome everybody at its current Kirtland Hills location.