University Hospitals is moving to demolish an entire block of century-old homes on East 115th Street near Little Italy, a plan that would clear 15 houses and one apartment building to make way for undetermined future medical use. The properties stretch nearly the full length of East 115th Street between Mayfield Road and Cornell Road, south of Euclid Avenue, and many have sat vacant for years after utilities were cut off.
According to Cleveland.com, University Hospitals acquired nearly all of the properties from University Circle Inc. in 1985 and rented them out for years before the block fell into disrepair. The health system says it wants to clear the land “to continue growing and serving the community,” though it has not determined a specific future use for the site, with that use ultimately expected to be based on the clinical needs of University Hospitals patients. Cleveland.com reporter Rich Exner notes that the demolition timetable remained unclear as of this week, and the plan has not yet gone through the city’s approval process.
The homes, which likely date back to the early 1900s, include single-family houses ranging roughly 1,600 to 2,200 square feet alongside a castle-like brick apartment building at 2032 East 115th Street. The structures feature Shingle Style architectural elements such as shake siding, leaded glass, dormers, and bay windows, according to a detailed community account of the block’s condition. University Hospitals has said it plans to salvage and repurpose parts of the homes rather than simply scrap them outright.
A Nonprofit Caught in the Middle
Not every building on the block is empty. Transplant House of Cleveland, a nonprofit that offers temporary housing and support services for organ transplant patients and their families, operates out of a duplex and small apartment building on East 115th Street, including its address at 2029 East 115th Street. The state application submitted by the Cuyahoga County Land Bank reportedly listed all but two of the properties as vacant, and per that same application, the 16-unit apartment building and duplex are on month-to-month leases…