Description. Riverside takes it name from its location along the eastern side of the Rocky River and its valley. Most housing is single-family and dates from after World War II. There are a couple large multi-family developments located off Puritas and Rocky River Drive in the neighborhood. Well over half of the neighborhood?s area is occupied by Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The airport was first built in 1925 when City Manager William R. Hopkins obtained the city council's agreement to issue bonds to build an airport. This area has undergone many recent changes. Cleveland and Brook Park have swapped land to accommodate the long-needed airport runway expansion and FAA regulations regarding acceptable noise levels for residential areas near airports have necessitated the removal of many single-family homes from just north of Interstate 480. Some of these areas have been redeveloped for industrial parks.
Assets. Among the neighborhood’s most significant assets are:
- excellent access to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport
- access to interstates 71 and 480
- proximity to NASA Glenn Research Center
- office and business parks near the airport
- proximity to Cleveland Metroparks’ Rocky River Reservation
Challenges. Among the challenges faced by the Riverside neighborhood today are:
- further development of available land in the Cleveland Business Park
- need for reinvestment along Rocky River Drive south of Puritas Avenue
- need to consider Hopkins Airport more from an economic development standpoint
- preservation of the existing character of Old Grayton Road
Vision. Although a large amount of residential structures have been removed from the Riverside neighborhood relatively recently, the remaining residential units in the neighborhood are solidly maintained, the re-located baseball diamonds are well-received, and new construction at the CMHA Riverside Estates is uplifting that portion of Rocky River Drive.
However, most of the southern part of the neighborhood is simply more suitable for further industrial and office development. Future initiatives in Riverside should include:
- taking advantage of the close proximity to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and NASA Glenn Research Center to attract future development
- continued discussion as to how much (if any) new retail to promote along Rocky River Drive
- determining a streamlined process to more quickly develop land in Cleveland Business Park
- consideration of tighter design review procedures for any further mixed-use developments near Old Grayton 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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