Historic Euclid Beach Arch Could Be on the Move to Former McDonald’s Site in Collinwood

The arches could move to the golden arches Credit: Photo by Lee Chilcote

On a forlorn stretch of Lakeshore Boulevard, across from a vacant grocery store, stands a remnant of the historic Euclid Beach Amusement Park that once drew tens of thousands of visitors with its thrilling rides. The North Collinwood park closed in 1969, but the arch that greeted visitors was saved, and it now sits astride E. 159th St. along a roadway leading to a pair of apartment towers.

Despite being preserved, however, the arch’s future is still at risk. That’s because Cleveland drivers keep hitting it with their cars.

“If you look at it, the west pedestal or pylon has been moved 3-4 inches off its base,” said Ward 8 councilman Mike Polensek, who represents the area. “We put up bollards, and now the bollards are getting hit. If we don’t move it, it ain’t gonna be there much longer … or it will be there, but it’ll just be a pile of rubble along the roadway.”

That could change soon. City officials want to move the structure, which is made of wood covered by a stone veneer, to the lot next door at 15891 E. 159th St., a parcel that was recently donated to the city by McDonald’s. (Yes, the Golden Arches is donating the land for the future park.) Plans have been in the works for years, but now it looks like it’s finally going to happen.

At the city planning commission meeting on November 15th, the city announced the donation and its plans to turn it into the Euclid Beach Historic Arch Park with the arch as the centerpiece. “The city is going to improve E. 159th St., and to do that they must move the archway,” real estate project manager Julian Wilson told the planning commission. “This parcel is ideal because it’s just to the west.”

Suzanne DeGennaro, commissioner of real estate at the Mayor’s Office of Capital Projects (MOCAP) with the city of Cleveland, explained how the project came about. “We’ve been working with McDonald’s Real Estate Company for a couple of months, and we thought it was a long shot, but in the end we were successful in getting them to donate the property,” she said. “It’s the golden arches, and we find it sort of unique that the Euclid Beach gateway is also an arch. It’s sort of an arch for an arch.”

DeGennaro said the reason why the Bibb administration wants to move the arch next door, instead of to a Metroparks trailhead where bikers and walkers could learn about the history of Euclid Beach Amusement Park while traveling under it, is because the historic arch is so delicate it can’t be moved very far. “We looked into dismantling the arch, and it would be very difficult if not impossible to take it apart and reconstruct it, because it would damage its historic nature,” she said.

For his part, Polensek said he would prefer that the arch be moved to Euclid Beach Park, Villa Angela Park, or Wildwood Park. “The question is would the Metroparks accept it,” he said. “They don’t want to maintain it.”

Nonetheless, he maintained that it’s “not a given” that the arch will move to the lot next door, saying only that it’s one of the options being considered.

The councilman and the city have set aside $800,000 to move the arch next year, said Mark Duluk, manager of the division of architecture and site preservation at MOCAP. He said the arch can be moved in one piece, and that it will be placed on a new foundation on the former McDonald’s site. The “cementitious finish” on the outside will be restored according to standards set by the city’s landmarks commission and local preservation consultants, and lighting will be installed to highlight the arch during the evening hours. The park will be built around it.

“We’re excited to be able to preserve this arch in a location that’s close to where it has always been,” said Duluk.

Polensek said it’s amazing the arch is still standing, given that it’s been hit by cars and emergency vehicles multiple times, and that it’s proof that it was built to last. “It’s a tribute to (park founder) Mr. Humphrey and the Humphrey family that it’s lasted this long,” he said.

Polensek said saving the arch (again) is all part of a larger vision for improving Lakeshore Boulevard between E. 156th St. and E. 171st St. The area desperately needs it, especially now that the former Dave’s grocery store is boarded up and empty. The city has plans to buy the grocery store and redevelop the property into a new retail center serving the neighborhood. The councilman also touted other plans including the new Euclid Beach Connector Trail along the lake that’s slated to break ground next year, the conversion of the Euclid Beach Mobile Home Park into public parkland, a new Nottingham-Memorial library, and Habitat for Humanity building 10 new homes in the neighborhood.

Although the former McDonald’s property is going to be converted to a noncommercial use, Polensek hopes to see the area come back as a business destination. “This was once a main commercial shopping area,” he said of the intersection.

Although what that arch park will look like remains to be seen, one thing is for certain, Polensek said: “No vehicles are going to go under it!”