Cuyahoga County Council backs African Town Plaza project with grant and loan

Cuyahoga County Council unanimously approved a $300,000 community development grant for African Town Plaza, a planned $9 million commercial and residential redevelopment of the long-closed, historic YMCA Cedar Branch in the Fairfax neighborhood.

“To have this developer come in and redevelop this building for a multi-million-dollar project is a godsend to this community,” District 8 Council Member Pernel Jones, Jr. said. “It fills a void. The developer has talked about an opportunity for mentoring of individuals to be developers like himself.”

The developer is James Sosan, a former telecom engineer turned developer who purchased the former Y, at 7515 Cedar Ave., in 2023. A Nigerian immigrant, Sosan told Crain’s Cleveland in December that African Town Plaza will include 20 apartments, a cultural event center and commercial kitchen in the gym and offices in the converted pool area…

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