CH holds master plan meeting, invites public to take survey

On Feb. 23, the City of Cleveland Heights held the first of three planned 2016 public meetings to discuss the Cleveland Heights Master Plan. Cleveland Heights is one four cities that is currently working with the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission to develop a master plan. (University Heights is another of the four cities.)

The planning commission has posted an online survey at www.tinyurl.com/clevelandheightspm1survey with information from the Feb. 23 meeting, which took place at the CH Community Center. Residents are invited to complete the survey, and share it with neighbors, on or before March 13.

At the meeting, members of the planning commission introduced themselves and provided an overview of the planning process. The commission is working with city staff and an 11-member Master Plan Steering Committee comprising Heights residents selected by city council. Members of the committee are Michael Ungar, Howard Maier, Jeanne Diamond, Ken Dowell, Allison McCallum, Bill Mitchell, Saroya Queen-Tabor, Julia Kious Zabell, Kristin Hopkins, Yovan "Lou" Radivoyevitch and Chuck Miller.

Patrick Hewitt, the lead planner on the project, presented Community Vision statements and goals that the project team has developed, and invited feedback. The project team analyzed current conditions within the city in a variety of areas, reviewed previous visioning efforts and the survey that the city conducted in 2014, and gathered input from city staff and members of the steering committee.

The Community Vision statements centered around nine themes: Vibrant Neighborhoods, Complete Transportation Network, Environmentally Sustainable Community, Business Friendly, Strong Business Districts, High-Quality Infrastructure, Hub for Arts and Culture, Diverse and Engaged Community, and A Healthy Community. Participants were invited to visit tables staffed by steering committee members, vote for which vision statements and goals they felt were most important, and comment on the goals.

The planning commission will compile feedback from both the Feb. 23 meeting and the online survey, and meet with city staff and steering committee members over the next several months to revise the statements and goals and begin to formulate policies that could help the city achieve them.

Two more public meetings are planned for 2016. In June, the city will host a meeting to gather residents’ feedback on the proposed policies, and, in September, it will host a meeting regarding the proposed implementation of the master plan.

Residents who were unable to attend the Feb. 23 meeting are invited to review documents from the master planning process on the city’s website at www.clevelandheights.com/master-plan and complete the online survey.

Residents can contact the Cleveland Heights Planning Department at planning@clvhts.com, and learn more about the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission and its work at www.countyplanning.us.