Historic apartment renovation near Irishtown Bend, West Side Market gets nod from landmarks commission

An 1890 apartment building perched on the edge of the Cuyahoga Valley overlooking downtown Cleveland will soon get a full makeover. At its February 23 meeting, the Cleveland Landmarks Commission approved plans for an exterior renovation and addition to 1865-69 W. 22nd St., which is located behind the West Side Market in Ohio City. The apartment project would extend the historic building – currently a seven-unit building – to the south and north, add a new facade with a lower level courtyard, add new entrance stairs, and add a new one-story rear addition with garages and a roof patio. 

County records show that owner Red Door Renovations bought the property for $500,000 in October 2019 and sold it to new owner 1869 W. 22nd LLC in 2021. Owner representative Brian Spear and architect Paul Beegan presented at the landmarks meeting. The Land reached out to Beegan to find out the construction timeline for the project, but we haven’t heard back yet. 

Beegan told the commission that the building was relocated from its original location when the adjacent (RTA) train line was first developed. “When they put in the train line, they relocated two buildings to this site and connected them together,” Beegan said. “One of the buildings they put in backwards, so the front of the building ended up on the back of the building.”

The owners obtained an additional parcel to the south from the city of Cleveland to make space to complete the project. Beegan said they would coordinate the landscaping with the adjacent Irishtown Bend project, which is slated to bring a major new park to the near west side. Project plans submitted to the city show a staircase and pathway running up the steep hillside from the valley to W. 22nd St. behind the West Side Market and adjacent to the apartment project. 

Brian Spear, presenting on behalf  of the ownership group, stated that the neighbors, including St. Emeric’s Church and Refugee Response, which runs the adjacent Ohio City Farm, have been supportive of their project, as have the city and Ward 3 council member Kerry McCormack. 

He stated that the entire building would be tuckpointed and the mortar would be re-stained, so that the addition and the historic building would have a “complete cohesive look.” A new rear retaining wall would be added and the landscaping would be coordinated with the Irishtown Bend project to ensure a seamless transition. 

Spear stated that the revised submission answered the questions posed by Cleveland Landmarks at its last review, yet several commission members requested at the Feb. 23 meeting that the owners consider removing the cast stone exterior and replacing it with regular brick, in order to fit in with the historic architecture. They also wanted to see the owners retain the existing front sidewalk, which terminates with the building, so that the area is accessible to people with disabilities. 

The committee approved the project unanimously with the condition that the owners study the changes to the exterior and sidewalk. Beegan stated the project was being done to fit in with Irishtown Bend, where hillside stabilization by the Port Authority could start as soon as this summer.  “If Irishtown Bend has a sidewalk coming here, then we’re more than happy to accommodate that,” he said. 

You can watch landmarks commission meetings on YouTube. To send questions, comments, and feedback to the Cleveland Landmarks Commission, email landmarks@clevelandohio.gov or call 216-664-2532.