Residents and officials discuss vision for north end of town

by Dan Holland

More than 120 residents turned out for the Village of Richfield’s North End Public Input Workshop Nov. 9 held in the banquet room of the Quality Inn & Suites. The meeting addressed concerns and sought input to devise strategies for redevelopment and planning along the stretch of Brecksville Road between Boston Mills Road and the north county line.

The meeting was part of a multi-stage comprehensive land use plan for the village. An initial public visioning workshop was held May 31 in council chambers.

The village hired Kleinfelder Inc., who is working with a steering committee comprised of community leaders, local business owners and residents with an end goal of determining a community vision looking 10 to 20 years ahead. Former Mayor Michael Lyons is chair of the steering committee.

Residents gathered at one of 17 tables to discuss an overall vision for the area, changes to be implemented, aspects to remain the same and favorite and least favorite aspects of the area.

Steering committee members fielded ideas at each table regarding types of businesses, streetscape elements, transportation improvements and property maintenance issues. Residents were encouraged to write concerns and ideas on sticky notes to post on a board at each table.

Behnke Landscape Architects, in conjunction with Kleinfelder, presented three individualized concepts for the road design in the area.  Each concept includes a 12-foot-wide raised, landscaped median with turning lanes at designated points similar in style to elements found further north on Brecksville Road in Brecksville.

Concept A would maintain two lanes of traffic in each direction. The plan would include an 11-foot-wide paved, shared-use walking/bike path along the west edge of the road and a five-foot-wide sidewalk along the east edge. A tree lawn would separate the walkways from the roadway. A mounded, landscaped buffer with evergreen trees would be constructed at the outer edges of the zone.

Concept B would consist of one vehicular lane of traffic in each direction with an eight-foot-wide bike lane included as part of the overall pavement in both directions. A five-foot-wide sidewalk would run along each side along with a landscaped median and landscaped, mounded buffers at the edges.

Concept C would introduce a “town center” look, with one lane of vehicular traffic and bike lane in each direction along with eight-foot-wide tree lawns and 10-foot-wide sidewalks that would abut two-story storefront-style businesses. No street parking would be permitted; all parking would be at the rear of businesses.

Areas for potential redevelopment include the former Yellow Freight property north of the Ohio Turnpike and select commercial frontages along both sides of Brecksville Road.

A steering committee member or designee shared thoughts, preferences and suggestions from his or her individual table to the whole group.

Concept A was most preferred overall, with a number of persons expressing a desire not to add additional traffic/truck congestion at the already busy stretch of road, which contains a turnpike interchange that connects to Brecksville Road and I-77.

Many expressed an interest in redeveloping the now-closed Yellow Freight site into an additional truck stop/truck parking area to augment and alleviate truck congestion at the Pilot Travel Center. Other suggestions for the parcel included bringing in a big-box store or distribution center.

New business preferences included restaurants, drug stores, grocery stores, an ice cream shop, bakery, bike shop and a beauty shop. Outdoor storage by businesses was generally deemed acceptable if coupled with mounding and natural screening. There was a general consensus in favor of burying overhead utility lines for aesthetic purposes, along with general beautification and enhanced landscaping throughout the corridor.

Aesthetically pleasing signage directing motorists to Cuyahoga Valley National Park and the Richfield Historic District were also deemed desirable. Some speculated whether the mixed-use development at Valor Acres in Brecksville could spur retail and commercial business at the Richfield locale. Improved lighting along with designated pedestrian crossings were also viewed as desirable features.

“This was a focus on the north side of town; our last session will be looking at the entire community,” Lyons told The Richfield Times. “We’re in a unique situation in this community, as we don’t have a large population, but we are in the middle of Northeast Ohio where the accessibility in and out of here is very unique. We have the national park right next to us and many natural resources close by along with all the commercial and social access. We possess a lot of unique qualities as a community, and we will try to tackle some of those concepts at our next session.”

A date for a final community meeting has not yet been set. ∞

Mayor Michael Wheeler and Steering Committee Chairperson Michael Lyons answer questions and accept input from the participants in the workshop. Photo by D. Holland.

Photo (main/above): Attendees at an input workshop that was held to discuss improvements to the north end of Richfield, favored a redesign of Brecksville Road that had a median strip, sidewalks and would maintain two lanes of traffic in both directions. Slide provided by Behnke Landscape Architects.