October 24, 2021 -- If you’ve ever been to Baltimore or Chicago and looked at the waterfront, you might have thought, "Why can’t we do this along Lake Erie?"

“Well, we can do this,’’ said Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish. “Chicago and Baltimore each have a couple of miles of lakefront access. We can have 30 miles of lakefront access. … The opportunities are endless.’’

GCP recently spoke with Budish, Euclid Mayor Kirsten Holzheimer-Gail, and Bay Village Mayor Paul Koomar about what the county and those cities are doing to increase public access to the lakefront. Other Cuyahoga County cities along Lake Erie are also working on similar projects.

Holzheimer-Gail said Euclid started with a series of meetings with residents and businesses to build a community-based plan for what the lakefront should be. “It took a lot of persistence, it took a lot of creativity, it took a lot of partners to do this,’’ she said.

In 2013, Euclid built a fishing pier on the lakeshore at Sims Park and started planning a 3/4 mile all-purpose trail. The trail plans included erosion mitigation, reclaimed some of the historic beaches and, most importantly, opened up access to the lake. The mayor said the trail is mostly along private properties. “We have 1,400 residents in the high-rise towers and nearly 100 other stakeholders that we had to get on board. It took a tremendous amount of community engagement.’’

Early on, she said lakefront access was talking about just a marina. But during a public engagement, the idea of a trail came along. “Without the residents who agreed to the permanent easement, who agreed to this project being built, it would not have happened. This private-public partnership makes this project happen. Again, it’s about building trust.’’

It also took stitching together a funding plan that included money from federal, county, city, and state sources, as well as private donations and support from other community partners. “By the end of the year we will be substantially done with phase two of the trail, which will include a paddle-craft beach and new lakefront park,’’ said Holzheimer-Gail. “We’re seeing new investment in the area. People are coming to visit from all over.’’

And, she added, “We’ve seen new houses being built in the new project area and adjacent areas. We’ve seen new investment in our downtown. Citywide it’s shown that when there’s an investment in the community, there’s pride in the community.’’

Mayor Koomar talked about Bay Village’s Cahoon Park Lakefront Master Plan, which aims to increase Lake Erie access that’s somewhat limited to the public. The plan also addresses erosion issues at the park, which abuts Cleveland Metroparks Huntington Reservation. The new Cuyahoga County library in the park will have a trail to the lakefront.

And, Koomar noted, “Cuyahoga County’s plan fits in very well with what Bay Village wants to do.’’

“The key here is connectivity,’’ said Budish. “There’s a lot of things that are going on right now, a lot of things that are done, they just need to be connected.’’ For instance, he talked about north/south routes in the county that connect to the lakefront and need to be upgraded to help more people get to the shoreline.

“It creates entertainment, dinner, and lunch opportunities like the East Bank of The Flats and Merwin’s Wharf and it fosters economic development. … Millennials love it, and we want to attract and keep them in the region,” said Budish, who easily gives credit to other entities - including NOACA, Cleveland Metroparks and other cities - for getting this work done and moving ahead. “I’m especially pleased with having mayors Gail and Koomar talking about this; they are fantastic leaders on this effort. It’s very doable,’’ noting that there are barriers, including having a lot of private property along the lakefront. But property owners, he noted, are very interested in help with erosion protection.

Budish said while eventually his goal is to see the entire Cuyahoga County lakefront connected, he thinks the next focus area will be connecting downtown out to East 55th Street.

Budish noted he has talked with U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur about connecting walking and bike paths across the entire Lake Erie shore.

How can the private sector help with these efforts?

“If you are along a project area, get involved and be active in that,’’ said Gail, noting that if K&D - the owner of the four high-rises abutting part of the Euclid trail - was not involved, “this project would not have happened.’’