Community input needed for transportation improvements

Connecting the Heights and University Circle by alternative modes of transportation (i.e., bicycling, walking or taking the bus or rapid transit) is an important initiative for both Cleveland Heights and University Circle.

Among the advantages of living in Cleveland Heights is its proximity to University Circle’s cultural attractions, its booming construction and job growth, and multiple transportation modes to downtown. But as University Circle continues to build, less space will be available for parked cars.   

Partners in University Circle and the Heights are committed to finding ways to move more people between here and there by bicycle, mass transit or on foot. The Circle Heights Bicycle Network and Missing Links initiatives began in 2010 with a request from the Heights Bicycle Coalition (HBC) for improved connections between Cleveland Heights and University Circle. The idea was quickly embraced by Ed Kelley, mayor of Cleveland Heights, and Chris Ronayne, president of University Circle Incorporated (UCI), and has been moving forward ever since.

Supported by funding from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency, Cleveland Heights and UCI, and with the participation of the Heights Bicycle Coalition and the City of Cleveland, a steering committee hired Baker Corporation, Parsons Brinkerhoff and City Architecture to develop plans for alternative modes of transportation between the Heights and University Circle, and in surrounding areas.

At this stage of the planning, the steering committee is asking for community input. Two public meeting will be held to review plans for the Circle-Heights Missing Links initiative. The first meeting will be on Tuesday, April 17, at 7 p.m. at the Cleveland Heights Community Center. The second meeting will be held on April 18, beginning at 5 p.m. at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History in University Circle.