The Cleveland Metroparks has announced that it will spend an estimated $17.6 million over the next three years on improvements and enhancements at the six lakefront parks it acquired from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources last year. New projects costing upwards of $9 million could break ground in 2014.
At Edgewater Park, beyond ongoing sand maintenance and bathroom upkeep — Herculean feats, make no mistake — one of the dramatic proposed enhancements is a revamped parking lot and a reconfigured bike trail connecting the park’s upper and lower levels. The notoriously steep hill will be less steep and closer to the shoreway, in current renderings.
Discussions are also underway, hidden deep within the Metroparks’ board meetings’ audio files, about re-imagining the lower level between the parking lot and the beach. CEO Brian Zimmerman and the profit-hungry board of commissioners naturally intend to include food service in some form. Commissioner Dan T. Moore, the military-helmet-pad magnate, continues to assert that restaurants and alcohol are money-making cure-alls. Zimmerman has been quoted (by Scene) prophesying “cabanas” at Euclid Beach, so there’s no reason not to expect something similar at Edgewater.
Upgrades may be completed as early as 2015, according to Sean McDermott, CMP’s director of design services. It’s unclear whether or not tickets will be required for entrance, but stand-up paddleboarding and beach chairs and umbrellas will figure into the recreation equation as early as this summer. The CMP marketing team has cooked up “The Hub at Edgewater” for its campaign to appeal to young adults, which campaign (and its product) will be sponsored at roughly 50 percent by NEORSD. More on this to come.
On the East Side, McDermott told James Ewinger at the PD that “a large century-old retaining wall at Euclid Beach will have to be removed because drain holes have undermined it.”
When Scene questioned CMP about infrastructural repairs at Euclid Beach for a feature story in December, we were directed to the media relations director, Sue Allen, who told us she “[didn’t] know anything about that.”
Allen has not yet responded to requests for comment about the cost and timeline of the retaining wall’s removal.
This article appears in Feb 26 – Mar 4, 2014.
“Commissioner Dan T. Moore, the military-helmet-pad magnate, continues to assert that restaurants and alcohol are money-making cure-alls.” Just write the f*cking story, why do you have to go through a thesarus to read this sh*t.
Er. For which words in that sentence did you need a thesaurus?
Food Trucks!
I saw Brownsville station there, almost a riot, cop pulled a gun on us……..
Had a swell time
That hills not steep, people are just lame!
Improving our beaches and making them a safe place for all is fantastic. Charging citizens to get to the beach would be a crime!
I think (hope?) that the charging discussion is about renting paddleboats and such.
This park is so lame now. Too much big brother around the park. No more of Edgewater.
That place has been cleaned up so much since the Parks took it over! I welcome anything to make it nicer. A bar and restaurant with a large deck and live music would be awesome. Its about time we did something with this beautiful lakeshore. I am hoping the boating beach gets cleaned up along with the swimming beach.
Too bad the pictured men look a lot like Kasich and Jackson! Other than that good article.