Upper Chester plans stirring near University Circle, years after Cleveland project stalled | cleveland.com

But now, quietly, Upper Chester is stirring.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently signaled that it is willing to change those deed restrictions, making a project possible. And a developer says the time is right with strikingly low interest rates and other financing that might dry up in a year.

City officials express a similar sense of urgency. They're vetting a proposal from the Finch Group, the Florida developer that has been chasing Upper Chester for half a decade. The company's plans, for the $94 million first phase of the project, call for 295 apartments, a grocery store and senior housing.

"Now is a good time to move on this," said Chris Warren, chief of regional development for Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson. "We would not want to delay this two years, because who knows what the climate will be two years from now."

The Finch Group, which owns the nearby Park Lane Villa apartments, is targeting 38 acres of Upper Chester, bounded by East 93rd and East 101st streets and stretching north from Chester toward Hough Avenue. The city of Cleveland owns much of the land, once occupied by houses and low-income apartments.

via cleveland.com

Posted via email from OneCoolGod at University Circle UMC