Ohio City Inc. Urges City Hall to Create Relief Fund for Businesses Affected by Repeated Cleveland Public Power Outages

Widespread and lengthy power outages over the Fourth of July weekend forced many restaurants on the near west side to close, but that was only the beginning of the financial mess that the heat and storms ushered in. The restaurant owners that Scene spoke with reported losses of food, business, labor and time.

For customers of Cleveland Public Power, it was déjà vu all over again.

“Things happen, there’s weather, power goes out but it just happens more and more, the outages get longer and longer, and there are never any improvements that we’re aware of, so you’re just expected to live with it and deal with, and for most of us, that’s the biggest frustration beyond the immediate financial impact,” says Nolan Konkoski of Soho in Ohio City.

The city-owned utility has been plagued by reliability issues for years. City Hall recently announced work has begun on a transformation master plan to modernize the power company’s infrastructure, but it will be a long and expensive process.

In the meantime, businesses are looking for help.

Yesterday, Ohio City Inc., the community development corporation for that near-west neighborhood, announced that it has formally sent a letter to Mayor’s Bibb’s Office on behalf of local businesses impacted by ongoing power outages. The non-profit urged the City to find ways to provide financial support for businesses repeatedly affected by the outages.

“Local businesses are the backbone of our community, and repeated disruptions to service can have severe and sometimes devastating impact on our local businesses. We’re committed to advocating for the resources and assistance our business owners need to recover and keep serving Ohio City.”

On Tuesday, July 21, Councilman Austin Davis will host a town hall at Urban Community School to examine issues such as what happened, why it happened, and what CPP’s plans are going forward.

Meanwhile, Ohio City Inc. is urging residents to support Ohio City restaurants that suffered losses, such as Real Smoq’ed Barbecue, Soho, Proof Public House, Juneberry Table, Herb ‘n Twine, Heart of Gold, Sacred Tea, Pizza Whirl and Great Lakes Brewing.

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