A renovated motel on Superior Avenue that for more than 15 years has served people moving from streets or shelters to more permanent homes closed its doors this week. 

FrontLine Service, which staffed the building, had already planned to move people out of the space due to mounting costs, state funding cuts and aging infrastructure. The timeline accelerated last week after construction on the second floor caused ceiling tiles to collapse, said Corrie Taylor, chief executive officer of FrontLine. 

“We made the determination that … we were going to have to close immediately and move the remaining residents out of the building,” said Taylor, who added that she was worried about safety if residents and staff stayed in the building.  

The old motel, called North Point Transitional Housing, had space for about 150 adults. Most lived there for several months at a time while working and saving money for housing. About a third of the spots were reserved for young people who needed emergency shelter. 

Maintenance issues limited the usage of the building in recent months, so only 25 residents lived at North Point as of last week. All were routed to other housing, Taylor said. Some are on an expedited track to move into their own housing, some are staying with family and friends and others will go to shelters, according to a spokesperson with Cuyahoga County. 

Still, the loss of the facility is a blow to the greater social service ecosystem, said Josiah Quarles, director of organizing and advocacy for the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless. North Point’s central location and intensive casework helped people obtain housing efficiently, he said. And residents appreciated the separate rooms offered in the former motel.

“It’s a resource that provides, you know, a modicum of privacy and dignity that you can have in a shelter situation,” Quarles said.

Members of FrontLine’s staff worry the loss will create a gap in housing resources targeted at 18- to 24-years-olds, which North Point served, said John Jones, an employee at FrontLine Service and an executive board member of the SEIU District 1199 WV/KY/OH, which represents employees at FrontLine Service. Jones said the population is highly vulnerable. 

“There are people at North Point who may have just come out of chemical dependency treatment or something along those lines,” Jones said. “Or who’ve had difficulty maintaining work because of their mental health background.”

North Point could return in some capacity next year, Taylor said. FrontLine Service plans to apply for funding from Cuyahoga County and the State of Ohio to run North Point again in 2026, though it expects to receive fewer dollars from the state next year. The agency is searching for a new, smaller building that can house the program. 

North Point workers who were laid off can move into other open positions at FrontLine Service, Taylor added. 

Longstanding maintenance issues 

The City of Cleveland owns the North Point building, which was built in 1957. Maintenance issues have been going on for years, Jones said. In February, union members asked FrontLine to address issues like leaky pipes and mold. After that, the city began making repairs, Jones said. 

“Maybe we wish the city would have responded a little faster than they did,” Jones said. “But they are responding now, to their credit.”

Taylor said the city has tried to keep up with the varying issues, but the age of the building seemed to multiply them. At one point, she said, the city put in a new boiler — but that added pressure to old pipes, causing more leaks.  

Advocates said that the situation at North Point raises concerns about how Cleveland is maintaining its own properties – a pointed question at a time when the city itself says it’s cracking down on negligent landlords. 

“If the city is supposed to be enforcing these policies for other landlords, how can they do that when they are neglectful in their own responsibilities to the most vulnerable populations?” Quarles, with NEOCH, said. “It’s crazy.”

In a statement, the city acknowledged that major repairs at North Point are necessary and said it has already completed some of them, like the replacement of boilers, chillers and HVAC systems.

“Our shared goal has always been to provide a safe and supportive environment for those who rely on this housing,” a city spokesperson wrote to Signal Cleveland. “…We remain fully committed to continuing our planned repairs of the building so that more clients can be served in the future.

The city also asserted that the environmental conditions at North Point have resulted, in part, from the lack of timely routine maintenance and repairs by FrontLine. The nonprofit is responsible for repairs at the building that cost less than $1,000.

Taylor said that FrontLine has already spent far more than it budgeted on North Point’s building and utility costs this year.

Funding issues come to forefront, too

Before the urgent maintenance issues last week, FrontLine Service was facing a funding shortage to keep the program operating. 

High water bills – likely attributed to the building’s water leakage issues, Taylor said – meant that North Point’s annual budget dried up earlier than expected this year. In mid-September, FrontLine asked Cuyahoga County for $145,000 to get through the rest of the year, adding that it had been working with the city on necessary repairs at the building. North Point would close by Oct. 17 without the cash, the nonprofit told the county. 

A little over a week later, 19 staff members who worked at North Point received layoff notices for Oct. 17. In a press release, the union said the county refused to provide the needed funding.  

“This funding shortfall will shutter beds for many community members in crisis and eliminate jobs for many of the dedicated employees at FrontLine Service,” the press release said. 

Jones said staff recognized that North Point would likely ultimately move to another building. But the union hoped the facility could at least operate through the end of the year instead of closing suddenly. 

In response, a Cuyahoga County spokesperson wrote in a statement that it had grave concerns about the conditions of the North Point facility. Last week, the county said it would only consider extending funding if Cleveland officials made written assurances that the North Point building is “safe, stable and habitable for long-term use as a long-term shelter,” according to a letter Cuyahoga County officials sent to the city. 

The same day the county sent the letter, the ceiling began to crumble.

“While we were open to continuing funding if the safety of the building could be assured, we learned earlier today that FrontLine is no longer seeking funding to operate the existing facility because of a ceiling collapse in the building due to extensive water damage,” a spokesperson for Cuyahoga County wrote last Thursday.