The City of Cleveland is stepping up its game in the affordable housing arena, calling on real estate development teams to take on the transformation of the underutilized McCafferty Health Center Site. According to a release by the city, their Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is focused on converting the 19,000-square-foot clinic into a resource for Ohio City's residents, emphasizing housing affordability on a commercial stretch ripe for redevelopment.
Housing, incredibly affordable, has steadily crept up the city's agenda. With the clinic occupying a mere quarter of its capacity, the town eyes the remaining space as gold dust for community development. In sync with this vision, Councilman Kerry McCormack advocates for housing options and ground-level services that bolster the neighborhood's social fabric. Yet, the stakes are high, with the selection of a development partner marked for November 1, as the city revealed on its website.
Under the City's comprehensive housing strategy, which targets the year 2030, the project emerges as a critical player in tackling housing inequities. "To sustain a vibrant and equitable City, we believe that it’s critical to maintain and create housing opportunities where individuals do not have to pay more than 30 percent of their income on this basic need," stated Trudy Andrzejewski, Bureau Chief of Neighborhood Revitalization in the City’s Department of Community Development, highlighting the desperate quest to lift the burden of high housing costs for Clevelanders.
This approach is not confined to the drawing board, as the city has threaded the opinion of Ohio City's residents into the initiative’s plans. Collaborating with Ohio City Incorporated, the local authorities heralded a Community Values survey last month, which remains accessible on the initiative’s web page. Furthermore, Councilman McCormack tipped his hat to the public health professionals who have anchored the McCafferty Health Center, voicing his zeal for the site's prospective role in the Weave of affordable housing and support services, sentiments captured on Cleveland's official platform. Local stakeholders are invited to catch up on the upcoming virtual info session on September 6.
As the RFQ process approaches its October 1 deadline, anticipation is tangible among community members and developers alike. Those intending to attend the information session can register their interest through the city's announcement. The critical details governing submissions and evaluations lie within the RFQ document, available to all prospective teams ready to roll up their sleeves for an affordable future in Ohio City.
