David Adjaye's master plan for the Cleveland riverfront is definitely worth checking out!

Cleveland, a city in the U.S., is often criticized and joked about. A viral video from the past depicted the city as having a main export of depression, and its desirability as a vacation spot was called into question by a famous basketball player. Despite this, Cleveland has much to offer, such as a unique regional sandwich, a beautiful art museum, and picturesque biking routes on the West Side. Additionally, some have even dubbed it "the next Venice." Regardless of one's opinion of Cleveland, it's clear that, like many postindustrial cities, some areas are well-maintained while others are in need of renovation.

Bedrock, a Detroit-based developer, has unveiled a master plan to revitalize a portion of the Cuyahoga riverfront by creating a promenade and renovating the Tower City Center, a mall, rail terminal, and office building located downtown. The company, owned by Quicken Loans founder Dan Gilbert, hopes that these improvements will lead to increased economic development in the area. The site has the potential to accommodate 3.5 million square feet of new construction and adaptive reuse projects. 

The firm hired Adjaye Associates to bring its $3.5 billion vision to life. Preliminary renderings show the most public, and recreational uses by the waterfront, and commercial and transportation further inland.

“Our redevelopment strategy for the downtown Cleveland Riverfront taps into the lost heritage of the city, establishing a new relationship between the urban core and the shore,” Founding Principal David Adjaye said, in a statement. “As I became more deeply immersed, the need to build a more tempered flow of movement through the city became immensely clear.”  

 

All things considered, Bedrock is estimating that the 35-acre site can accommodate 2,000 residential units, 850,000 square feet of office space, over 12 acres of public space, parking, as well as hospitality, entertainment, and retail ventures. The developers and city leaders are hopeful that a development of this size will convert a sleepy downtown from a 9 to 5 destination into a neighbourhood that’s lively 18 hours a day.

Adjaye Associates’ proposed a covered marketplace through Tower City Center that would link the riverfront to Public Square as a way to bring some life into the neighbourhood. JCFO revamped Public Square in 2016, and the proposed marketplace would build upon that work.

The development's west side will have winding paths leading to a new neighbourhood with shops and homes, while the east side will have an amphitheatre. Near the Riverbend, there will be a park with a waterside gallery.

Bedrock has selected Adjaye Associates, Osborn Engineering, and MKSK as project consultants on the plan - but it's going to be a while before all work at the site is completed. Bedrock estimates that the whole scheme will take 15 to 20 years to wrap up.

It's been a great year for Adjaye and his firm. They celebrated the opening of the Winter Park Library in central Florida, were tapped to redesign Liverpool’s International Slavery Museum and Maritime Museum, and were shortlisted for a revamp of Maine’s Portland Museum of Art, among other commissions.