Description. Brooklyn Centre became a part of Cleveland with the annexation of Brooklyn Village in 1894. Although first settled in the 1820s along Pearl Street, the lifeline to Cleveland, a substantial business district developed around the intersection of Pearl and Denison after the extension of a streetcar line 1869. The oldest remaining houses in Brooklyn Centre date from the middle of the 19th century. Most residential development occurred, however, after annexation between 1900 and 1915 and is a mix of one- and two-families and small multi-family buildings. Pearl Road is still the neighborhood?s main commercial street and industrial uses are located in and near the Big Creek Valley and Cuyahoga River.
Assets. Among the neighborhood’s most significant assets are:
- MetroHealth Medical Center which is one of the region’s main trauma centers
- historic residential and commercial buildings and Riverside Cemetery which form the basis for the Brooklyn Centre Historic District
- Pearl Road retail including Aldi’s and the Brooklyn Centre Shopping Center
- good freeway access to interstate 71 and state route 176
- proximity to Brookside Reservation and the Metroparks Zoo
Challenges. Among the challenges faced by the Brooklyn Centre neighborhood today are:
- physical condition of apartment buildings and absentee-owned single and two-family homes on residential side streets
- vacant former Brooklyn YMCA building on Pearl Road at Seltzer Avenue
- poor condition of streetscape along West 25 th Street and Denison Avenue
- lack of direct access to Lower Big Creek Valley and Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail
- hillside subsidence and ongoing property loss along rim of Lower Big Creek Valley
Vision. Continue the ongoing effort to capitalize on the neighborhood?s modestly-priced historic building stock, retail establishments and its location adjacent to the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail to create a desirable residential enclave. Among the other development opportunities and initiatives proposed are the following:
- convert Masonic Temple Building and former East Denison School to housing
- link Brooklyn Centre to Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail via neighborhood connector from Calgary Park through Lower Big Creek Valley
- undertake streetscape improvements along Pearl Road that are complementary to the western route of the Ohio and Erie Canal Scenic Byway
- pursue hillside stabilization measures in areas where erosion threatens public infrastructure components
- develop retail node associated with Towpath Trail and Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad at intersection of Harvard Avenue and Jennings Road
Printable version: can be downloaded here.
Maps (current as of May 2007): Assets, Development Opportunities, Land Use (existing and proposed), and Retail Strategies are available here. (PDF)
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