Ambitious 500,000-Square Foot ‘Gayborhood’ Growing in Lakewood

Posted by: Laura DeMarco on Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Studio West 117 includes clubs, sports, dining, art, living space and more.

Fieldhouse. Gallery. Restaurant. Bar. Club. Retail shops. Teaching kitchen. Business incubator.

And soon: Residential units. Healthcare center. Retirement community.

What, exactly is Studio West 117?

“We’re building an ecosystem,” says developer Daniel Budish of the nearly 500,000-square foot development he is leading with Betsy Figgie on the Lakewood-Cleveland border.

And, it must be added, the ecosystem also includes a renovation of the historic Phantasy Entertainment Complex, including the downstairs theater, and, yes, the pirate ship.

Some even call what is happing in Lakewood a “gayborhood.” The development, opened last fall, is getting national attention for its bold vision – and reality.

“The Fieldhouse is just the first phase of a much larger effort by private developers and local governments to build a complex of businesses and services that cater to L.G.B.T.Q. people — and attract them to visit or settle here. In effect, they aim to provide the hub for a brand-new gay neighborhood, at a time when many traditional gay enclaves — from Chelsea in Manhattan to the Castro in San Francisco — have lost much of that identity to gentrification and assimilation,” enthused a 2022 New York Times story.

The Fieldhouse gymnasium.

The impact of the complex can already be felt.

“We hear time and time again that it’s changed people’s perceptions,” says Budish, who identifies as gay. “We’ve had businesses and corporations bring their group,s and folks who have had birthdays and parties in this space. Somebody from Ashtabula came and they told us they now have a much better understanding of their neighbor who has a trans child.

“If we can just do that time and time again, we can begin to effect some real change.”

“It’s also about the impact on job creation services for the community,” adds Figgie.

Studio West 117 began with a need – and a love of sports.

“We looked at the current assets in the community, and where the biggest gaps in services and demands were,” says Budish.

“We looked at the spaces that we had available, and every one of these spaces spoke to us in a different way. For example, where the current gymnasium is, that was a very large open space. I’m very active in Stonewall sports, which kind of traveled from place to place – they had their dodgeball tournaments in church basements. And we thought, ‘why don’t we create a space that is affirming, LGBT-friendly and LGBT- owned, where we can host Stonewall Sports events?’”

The Symposium Bar.

The vision progressed naturally.

“The LGBT-bar and food space has historically been where the LGBT-community has felt safe,” adds Budish. “A place where we can come out and be safe and in our own skin. So it was really important to us to have the bar space as part of this project.”

But this isn’t the dimly-lit, hidden gay bar of earlier eras.

“We wanted to do it in an updated way,” explains Budish. “When you come into the Fieldhouse, there’s a ton of glass. It’s very open. It’s really the opposite of what you used to find in LGBT bars, where people had to hide before or didn’t want to be seen, for fear of reprisals from law enforcement. We’re trying to say, ‘we’re here and we’re proud to be here. And please, everybody come hang out with us and spend time with us and see that we’re just like you – but also celebrate our differences.’”

Funding followed the vision. With Figgie and Budish both experience developers with large portfolios, they knew how to start building not only structures, but capital.

“We have the understanding on how to bring sources to a project and how they marry together,” says Figgie. The project is a mix of both private and public funds, including New Market Tax Credits and Federal Historic Tax Credits for the Phantasy building, which they were able to get listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They also have received State of Ohio tax credits, and a $4 million grant from the state for brownfield demolition and remediation. Figgie says they are currently in talks with other government entities for additional funding.

Studio West 117 rooftop bar.

With much given to them, it’s important for Figgie and Budish to give back.

“In addition to everything we’re doing with our real estate, we’re also incubating small businesses,” says Figgie. “I think that’s a really important part of the story. For example, there’s a fellow named Nathan David who owns Everybody Cycles spin class program. He has the equipment and he wanted to have a location at Studio West 117, knowing that this was just exploding.

“We gave him temporary space in a storage room of the Fieldhouse. From there, it gained popularity, and we ended up moving him into one of the storefronts of the Phantasy so that he could have a permanent space. And he has signage up. He’s marketing it. He knows that that’s going to be his permanent space. He has said that he wouldn’t have been able to do this without our coming up with some unique ways to provide space.”

Opportunities such as these are important in the LGBTQ+ community.

“We want to be able to give small businesses the opportunity to launch, people who may not have the traditional funding of those not in the LGBT community. They may not have that family support or that generational wealth,” says Figgie.