Summary

  • Neighbors should use the non-police emergency number or 311 and write down the reference number for their personal records, officials said. This is how the city can put the updated nuisance abatement law to work.

  • Safety concerns brought up by neighbors were often non-emergency issues that could be addressed through 311.

  • Personnel from the Department of Aging gave an overview of resources and programs.

Follow-up questions

  • How can residents at the street or block level address issues of deferred maintenance and disinvestment on their street if they do not qualify for assistance, and even if they do, service could take up to two years or more?

  • How could the meeting format be changed to allow neighbors, public servants and nonprofits in the room to brainstorm collaborative strategies for community building instead of listing complaints that result in blame shifting? I am thinking about this specifically with the question the neighbor had about Cleveland’s Senior Homeowner Assistance Program (SHAP) and the two-year wait they said they have experienced.

  • Are the aging department’s housing resources insufficient for addressing the housing stock challenges, given the programs’ limited budgets and third-party implementation process?

Cleveland Ward 14 community meeting setup

Note: Ward 14 includes Clark-Fulton, Brooklyn Centre, and parts of Stockyards, Tremont, and the Cuyahoga Valley.

Presenters:

  • Ward 14 Cleveland City Council Member Jasmin Santana
  • Second Police District staff
  • Representatives from the City of Cleveland Department of Aging
  • Metro West Community Development (MWCDO) staff

Ward 14 council office staff

To start the meeting, Santana gave a high-level overview of 2026 Cleveland budget, reviewing what council advocated for and what resources are set to come to the neighborhood.

Street resurfacing

  • Street resurfacing. Santana said 11 streets throughout Ward 14 are set to be resurfaced with the money allocated in this year’s budget. The City of Cleveland chooses F- and D-rated streets to be resurfaced. “The streets that are chosen are the worst of the worst. They haven’t been resurfaced in decades. They have potholes. The infrastructure really needs some work,” she said.
    • Santana said she will provide a formal list of streets at a later date.
    • Santana requested that residents contact her office if their street was graded as an F or was otherwise in bad condition, so that they can prioritize it for next year’s budget.

Note: Santana provided Signal Cleveland a tentative list of streets to be resurfaced. She also noted that she dedicated $200,000 for speed tables to help calm traffic.

  • W. 17th from Castle to 2936
  • Holmden Avenue from Scranton to East Concrete
  • Eichorn Avenue from W. 49th to W. 52nd
  • W. 48th from Koch to Field
  • W. 50th from Storer to Koch
  • W. 50th from Field to Kouba
  • W. 50th from Kouba to Clark Avenue
  • Woodbridge from W. 35th to Fulton Avenue
  • Marvin Avenue from W. 41st to W. 44th
  • W. 44th Place from Poe to Hodgson
  • W. 33 Street from Bradwell to Highview
  • W. 36th Street from Denison to Highview
  • Eichorn Avenue from W. 45th to W. 47th
  • Eichorn Avenue from W. 52nd to W. 56th
  • Gedeon Avenue from W. 49th to Dead End

Neighborhood Equity Funds

  • Neighborhood Equity Funds (unrestricted dollars that come from the General Fund that can be spent on special projects)
    • This year, each ward received $300,000, and last year each ward received $600,000. NEF will be used to fund home repairs in partnership with Metro West Community Development Organization.
    • Emily Shelton (healthy homes specialist) eshelton@metrowestcle.org, 216-961-9073 x208–at MWCDO) shared information on behalf of Anthony Peterson (housing director– apeterson@metrowestcle.org, 216-961-9073 x220–at MWCDO) about the program application requirements.
    • Requirements
      • Open to Ward 14 residents
      • Income based – below 50% area median income
      • Any home repair qualifies except exterior repairs (like driveways, garages, siding)
      • Need homeowners insurance
      • Current on taxes or have a payment plan
    • This grant is separate from the paused exterior paint program.

Summer jobs

  • Additional $500,000 added to the Cleveland Office of Prevention, Intervention and Opportunity for summer jobs.
    • Youth workers must be 14 years or older.

Tree maintenance and Summer Sprout program

  • More dollars added to support tree maintenance; two more arborist positions are supported by the new budget; no specific dollar amount was shared.
  • Summer Sprout program update. The City of Cleveland has added the Summer Sprout program to the general fund budget. It was previously funded differently.
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Reporting community issues that require city services by calling 311

Santana encouraged residents to use 311 instead of calling Ward 14 offices to request a city service or report an issue. Santana said she and her office do not mind receiving calls, but said, “We’re just going to be that middle person that’s going to send it back to 311.”

For more information on 311, visit clevelandohio.gov/311.

Dumpster Days implemented to reduce illegal dumping

Ward 14 Dumpster Days will be held on the dates and at the locations listed below from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

  • April 11 – Stockyard, 3358 W. 46th St.
  • April 25 – International Village, 3116 W. 48th St.
  • May 2 – Clark-Fulton/Tremont, West 30th Street and Meyer Avenue.
  • May 16 – Brooklyn Center, 4322 Denison Ave.
  • May 30 – Stockyard, 3358 W. 46th St.
  • June 13 – International Village, 3116 W. 48th St.
  • June 27 – Clark-Fulton/Tremont West 30th Street and Meyer Ave.
  • July 11 – Brooklyn Center, 4322 Denison Ave.
  • July 25 – Stockyard, 3358 W. 46th St.
  • Aug. 8 – International Village, 3116 W. 48th St.
  • Aug. 22- Clark-Fulton/Tremont West 30th Street and Meyer Ave.
  • Sept. 5 – Brooklyn Center, 4322 Denison Ave.
  • Sept. 19 – Stockyard, 3358 W. 46th St.

Dumpsters will be placed at those locations, offering residents a free spot to dispose of items.

Development in Cleveland Ward 14

Lincoln-West High School project update

Santana said the second community meeting for the project will take place at 6 p.m. on April 1 at Lincoln-West High School, 3202 W. 30th St.

The first was held on Feb. 17, when the site plan and visual preferences were reviewed.

Learn more about the community meetings on the CMSD website.

The school will take three years to rebuild, Santana said.

Community open house for new Neighborhood Family Practice

The location is inside the Blanket Mills Building (where this meeting was held). A representative from the new medical office said the open house is at 3466 St. Rocco’s Court in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood on April 16 from 5 to 7 p.m. Find more information here.

Trent Park development updates

Last year, the Cleveland Cavaliers donated money to improve the basketball courts, Santana said. This year, $500,000 was secured to redevelop the entire park, with renovations starting this summer. New park will feature: New playground equipment, a gazebo, picnic tables and gathering spaces.

Prioritizing Stockyard redevelopment in 2026

Santana said sidewalks, tree planting, pocket parks and home repairs are the focus.

Members of the Cleveland Documenters team at City Hall. Top row: Anastazia Vanisko, Larry Gardner, Andrea Jones, Ronaldo Rodriguez Jr, Regina Samuels, Mary Ellen Huesken, Gennifer Harding-Gosnell. Bottom row: Doug Breehl-Pitorak, Kellie Morris, Laura Redmon, Cleveland City Council Member Rebecca Maurer, Sheena Fain, Jeannine Isom-Barnhill, Jotoya Gray, Angela Rush. Credit: Anastazia Vanisko

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Safety and security in Cleveland Ward 14

This conversation on safety and security was led by Sgt. Andy Thomas, badge number #9329, serving out of the Second District police commander’s office. 

Revisited conversation on using 311 for non-emergency reporting, sharing how it is an important tool for officers, particularly with nuisance abatement cases.

Serial breaking and entering suspect

Update on Christopher Robbins, who Thomas called a “serial breaking and entering suspect who has made a career of breaking into businesses at night.”

Four businesses in the Clark-Fulton and Stockyard neighborhoods that he broke into and stole from in the past.

Detectives connected Robbins to four out of 28 break-ins. Police arrested Robbins, he was indicted, and after being released, committed six more breaking-and-entering crimes, Thomas said.

Police arrested Robbins again. Thomas recommended that, once this case goes to sentencing, neighbors who feel it is appropriate should “write letters to the judge to let them know how these types of crimes affect your neighborhood, and what type of sentence you would like to see for this individual.”

Thomas plans to contact MWCDO staff once he knows when the case is coming up to keep residents informed.

Neighborhood resource officers

  • Six officers work to handle chronic quality-of-life issues, for example, locking Clark Field and patrolling at Roses Discount Store, 3250 W. 60th St.

Nuisance abatement law review and reporting guidelines

Santana said the Ward 14 office compares residents’ complaints to the city’s calls for service reports about specific properties. Often, there are only a couple of reported calls about a property. Santana asked residents to follow through with calls to the police non-emergency number (216-621-1234). 

Thomas outlined some provisions of the nuisance law:

The fine for the fifth incident is $500, and so on.

It takes three calls within 12 months about a property to create probable cause that a nuisance is taking place.

A letter goes out to the property owner, and they are then given 10 days to contact the police commander’s office to come up with a plan to abate the nuisance.

If they do not make contact within 10 days, the owner gets fines of $100 a day until they make contact.

If there are additional reported incidents within the 12-month period, fines increase.

The fine for the fourth incident is $250.

The fine for the fifth incident is $500, and so on.

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  • New police unit: Street takeovers and car break-ins. Ten detectives are on the unit, but there are plans to expand it to 20 over the summer, according to Thomas.

Safety issues residents brought up

  • 3288 W. 58th St. – a neighbor expressed concern that there are domestic violence issues at big apartment building.
  • West 37th Street– resident raised a noise complaint about late-night basketball playing.
  • Family Dollar (2704 Clark Ave.) – a resident complained about a high volume of trash and drug paraphernalia.
  • An individual asked if ICE was on Walton Avenue this morning. Thomas said it was not ICE, but rather a strike force involving a narcotics investigation that Thomas was part of.

Neighbors’ questions

  • How can the city expand resources to help neighbors purchase properties that are abandoned or going into foreclosure?
    • Santana said neighbor acquisition is difficult because they do not always have the capital to make needed renovations.
  • Consent decree update: What’s happening? Will it end?
    • Thomas: “A motion was put into court about the consent decree, filed by the Department of Justice and the Cleveland Division of Police, agreeing to end it, so it’s up to Judge Oliver now.”

Support for seniors in Cleveland Ward 14

City of Cleveland Department of Aging – Director Mary McNamara and Hispanic Liaison Emilly Lebron

The Department of Aging serves people 60 years or older and those 18 to 59 with a disability, McNamara said. She shared some other department highlights:

Neighbors’ questions

  • How many homes can you realistically help in this ward through the home repair program if you are already at capacity, and what is the average service cost?
    • McNamara: “The average amount [per job] turns out to be about $11,400, so I, in a given year, can do about 205 to 210 jobs across the city. So that turns out to be somewhere between 12 to 14 a ward that we can do.”
  • Do residents have to use their own contractors?
    • No, the work is covered by Community Housing Solutions, which does assessment and bids for contractors, McNamara said.
  • What about the Senior Homeowner Assistance Program (SHAP) program? A resident said they’ve been waiting two years for assistance.
    • McNamara said it is not a program in her department and she has no control over it. But, she can reach out to the Department of Community Development and get back to the resident with an update.

Metro West Community Development Organization

Updates from Emily Lee, executive director

Upcoming events

  • InvestEd – March 27, noon to 2 p.m., Blanket Mills Community Room, 3466 St. Rocco’s Ct. Intended audience is landlords and investors for a networking session.
  • MWCDO Community Meetup, April 16, from 6  to 7:15 p.m. in Blanket Mills Community Room.
  • Community dinner hosted by MWCDO at 5:30 p.m.
    • Stockyard Elementary on April 20 
    • Blanket Mills Community Room on June 15
  • MWCDO annual fundraiser on June 26 at Tremont City Side Ballroom

Additional resources and connectors in the room:

  • Anthem Care Services/Michelle Samon
  • Joel Wimbiscus, LAND Studio, gathering survey data about Burke Lakefront Airport
  • The Red Cross has a program that helps to connect people lost from disasters.
  • DigitalC discussed internet options.

These notes are by Documenter DaQuavion Roston. Documenter Tisha Barnes recorded audio.

If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@signalcleveland.org  with “Correction Request” in the subject line.

Cleveland Documenters pays and trains people to cover public meetings where government officials discuss important issues and decide how to spend taxpayer money.