Our Neighborhood
vision
The MidTown Neighborhood Vision Plan is a place-based, holistic, living neighborhood plan representing a guiding vision of the people, places, organizations, and built environment that will further connect the MidTown neighborhood physically and socially.
A Comprehensive Vision for MidTown's Next Five Years
THE MIDTOWN NEIGHBORHOOD is at the intersection of several neighborhoods - AsiaTown, Hough, Central, Fairfax, and Downtown. Home to a wide variety of individuals, industries, and organizations, the MidTown community benefits from the connectedness of its stakeholders, physically and socially. MidTown’s location, supportive business community and unique programming connect people with job opportunities, helps us to retain a diverse mix of businesses, and create inclusive pathways for growth.
MidTown is a place for connection, belonging, and the joyful celebration of the patchwork of cultures and communities that make up MidTown. In MidTown, prosperity is reinvested in the community, equity and inclusion are fundamental expectations, and innovation helps families realize the opportunities promised to generations before them.
MidTown residents are involved and empowered to be self-sufficient and drive change in the neighborhood. Our many voices are amplified in public spaces and the streets are alive with activity. People of all backgrounds find wellness and healing, lifted by a network of purpose-driven partners...
Now and in the future, there is a place for everyone in MidTown.
NAVIGATE THE PLAN
Our vision will be realized as we work toward achieving the overarching goals defined by the planning process. The 20 strategies below define the approach we should take to realize our shared vision for MidTown. Rather than having a single focus, we see the strategies as interrelated – actions taken toward each strategy have the potential to move our community toward achieving multiple goals.
STRATEGY
Promote Clear
Expectations
for New
Development
STRATEGY
Imagine
AsiaTown as a
Home for the
AAPI Community
STRATEGY
Upgrade Payne
Avenue as
the Anchor
of AsiaTown
STRATEGY
Build
Out the
Innovation
Community
STRATEGY
Celebrate
Local
Businesses
STRATEGY
Elevate
Black
and Asian
Creative Voices
STRATEGY
More
Art and
Color!
STRATEGY
Restore
and Grow
MidTown's Green
Infrastructure
STRATEGY
Dismantle
the Barriers;
Heal the
Wounds
STRATEGY
Create
Community
Gathering
Spaces
STRATEGY
Mitigate Blight,
Vacancy, and
Environmental
Health Issues
STRATEGY
Build
Youth
Resilience
STRATEGY
Strategically
Invest
in New
Housing
STRATEGY
Reduce
Housing
Stress
STRATEGY
Be a Local Hub
of Black History,
Entrepreneurship,
and Celebration
STRATEGY
Get
Work
Ready
STRATEGY
Improve
Neighborhood
Safety
STRATEGY
Connect
and Empower
Neighbors,
Block by Block
STRATEGY
Help
Residents
Reach Their
Health Goals
STRATEGY
Preserve
Legacy
Buildings
The Plan in Action
This community plan was developed during the COVID-19 pandemic, so the final “Plan” needed to be flexible in order to eventually align with a new normal, post-pandemic.
The Vision Plan is presented as a deck of “Action Cards” to ensure that there are always opportunities for new individuals, groups, and institutions to integrate into their own work and champion this important Plan. Every card is associated with one of the 20 strategies above.
As you explore the deck, find cards that align with your interests or the aim of your organization. Use the deck to identify shared interests and priorities, or outline a process or for taking action. Combine cards to make even more meaningful impacts.
In addition to a strategic focus, each card contains the following areas:
Actions
Near-Term
SUPPORT
- All Strategies
- Address Vacancy
- An Innovation Economy
- Build Youth Resilience
- Celebrate Black History
- Celebrate Local Businesses
- Clear Development Expectations
- Connect & Empower Neighbors
- Create Gathering Spaces
- Dismantle Barriers
- Elevate Black & Asian Voices
- Get Work Ready
- Green Infrastructure
- Imagine AsiaTown Plan
- Improve Safety
- More Art & Color
- New Housing Development
- Preserve Legacy Buildings
- Reach Health Goals
- Reduce Housing Stress
- Upgrade Payne Ave
- All Strategies
- Address Vacancy
- An Innovation Economy
- Build Youth Resilience
- Celebrate Black History
- Celebrate Local Businesses
- Clear Development Expectations
- Connect & Empower Neighbors
- Create Gathering Spaces
- Dismantle Barriers
- Elevate Black & Asian Voices
- Get Work Ready
- Green Infrastructure
- Imagine AsiaTown Plan
- Improve Safety
- More Art & Color
- New Housing Development
- Preserve Legacy Buildings
- Reach Health Goals
- Reduce Housing Stress
- Upgrade Payne Ave
MidTown Today
The one sure thing about MidTown at this moment is ... it's changing! In our work to develop this Plan, we collected two critical types of information – quantitative data about the place, and qualitative data built from our own experience exploring the area.
We combined this with the robust input we received through our outreach and stakeholder engagement in the process. At the intersection of this qualitative and quantitative data analysis, eight major ideas emerged - that provide a simple, but comprehensive grounding in our understanding of MidTown today.
1
MidTown doesn’t have a single identity, it’s a PATCHWORK. Because of this, people identify with MidTown in different ways.
2
MidTown is the Intersection of diverse Communities.
3
MidTown has HOUSING, but it is not the center of any single community.
4
There is a need to improve community Health outcomes.
5
MidTown needs to be a pipeline for Jobs that are accessible to people in the local area.
6
Stakeholders agree: MidTown's Location is its biggest asset.
7
There isn't a Place that brings people together [except Dave's]. There needs to be one, and it needs to be Bold.
8
MidTown is Designed to be a passthrough. It can be redesigned.
The MidTown Neighborhood Vision Plan is meant to be a critical catalyzing element for the area. Its vision statement articulates the type of community MidTown strives to be as it changes and grows over time. It documents the qualities of the MidTown area today that are critical to retaining MidTown’s uniqueness and authenticity over time. Born of hundreds of ideas shared by MidTown’s many stakeholders, this plan was revised and polished by the MidTown Inc. team and project Steering Committee and shared here with pride and excitement for what is yet to come.
This Vision Plan can help define the neighborhood in the future.
A Message from the Team
The MidTown Cleveland, Inc. team is excited to share the results of your Neighborhood Vision Plan. Despite the twists and turns of the pandemic, we are thrilled with the input, engagement, and thought partnership from you—our community—in preparing a five-year, actionable plan that is thoughtful, holistic, and community-based.
We know the MidTown neighborhood is at a critical juncture with the acceleration of real estate development and economic growth. What happens in MidTown over the next decade will directly impact not just the residents and employees of MidTown but also the tens of thousands of residents in the neighborhoods north, south, east, and west of us. We recognize that we must act with urgency to ensure that the Neighborhood Vision Plan and the development and plans that follow will reduce disparity and advance racial equity. We thank you for your investment in this process to create a guiding vision that will further connect MidTown’s built environment and community both physically and socially. We can’t wait to partner with you towards achieving the compelling vision laid out in the plan!
Thank You from the MidTown CLEVELAND team!
Jeff Epstein
Executive Director
Joyce Huang
Vice President of Community Development
Richard Barga
Vice President of Economic Development
Paul Deutsch
MidTown Board Chair
Principal - Bialosky Cleveland
Steering Committee
Our steering committee consisted of 36 individuals and thought partners who are from or working in the MidTown, AsiaTown, Hough, Fairfax, Central, and St. Clair-Superior neighborhoods.
Akin Africa
Angie's Soul Food
Keith Benford Jr.
Hough Resident, Artist, E. 66th Street Youth Advisory Council Member
Aparna Bole
MidTown Board, University Hospitals Rainbow Center for Women and Children
Robert "Bob" Brown
MidTown Board, City Planning Consultant
Maria Campanelli
MidTown Board, Children's Museum of Cleveland
Paul Deutsch
MidTown Board Chair, Bialosky Cleveland
Joe Duffy
St. Clair Superior Development Corporation
Alana Garrett-Ferguson
Hough Resident
Anne Goodman
St. Clair Superior Development Corporation (Interim)
Darin Haines
MidTown Board, MCPc
Marsalis Hammons
Cleveland Foundation Service Fellow, CLE Metro School District
Joy Johnson
BBC Development Inc.
Julian Khan
Neighborhood Connections & NeighborUp
Adam King
Cleveland Owns, Board Member of Dunham Tavern Museum
Lillian Kuri
The Cleveland Foundation
Lexy Lattimore
Artist; Community Activist
Reverend Dr. Leah Lewis
Filmmaker, Writer, Entrepreneur
Julie Megyimori
Dealer Tire
Jacqueline Muhammad
Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District
Kevin Nowak
CHN Housing Partners
Catondra Noye
Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation
Rachel Oscar
Campus District, Inc.
Frank Porter
MidTown Board, Former Owner of Central Cadillac
Isaiah Pritchard
Hough Resident, Artist, E 66th Street Youth Advisory Council Member
Kim Scott
City of Cleveland Planning Commission - Chief City Planner
Sonya Shakir
City of Cleveland Community Relations Third District Representative
Khrys Shefton
Famicos Foundation
Ron Stubblefield
Jumpstart, Inc.
Elaine Tso
ASIA, Inc.
Carolyn Watts Allen, Esq.
Hough Resident, Former City of Cleveland Director of Public Safety
Sharonda Whatley
City of Cleveland Planning Commission - City Planner
Anthony Whitfield
Fairfax Renaissance Development Corporation
Tiffany Graham Charkosky
LAND Studio
Evelyn Burnett
ThirdSpace Action Lab
Mordecai Cargill
ThirdSpace Action Lab
Maura Garvin
ThirdSpace Action Lab
Community Participation
Starting in March 2020, our team worked hard to connect with residents, business owners, artists, workers, youth, nonprofit stakeholders, and more in MidTown. Although our original engagement plans changed due to COVID-19, we connected with over 500 people throughout our process both virtually and physically distanced. Early one-on-one interviews gave us a solid grounding in the area, and the creation of two bespoke engagement tools - an online survey and a collaborative virtual map - allowed us to collect ongoing information from stakeholders about the area. Virtual focus group discussions allowed us to workshop strategies specifically related to small business development, leveraging the arts, and amplifying Black and Asian voices with those entrenched in the local issues and environment. We also hosted two virtual Community Updates to keep the community in the loop on our progress.