Competing with Neighboring Cities

The success of the Van Aken District in Shaker Heights has sparked conversations about its ripple effects across Greater Cleveland, particularly at Shaker Square, a historic commercial district on Cleveland’s western border. Both areas share some similarities. They are located at key transit hubs and serve as neighborhood gathering places.

But while Van Aken received significant public and private investment to become a new mixed-use destination, Cleveland’s Shaker Square has struggled with disinvestment, deferred maintenance, and retail and restaurant turnover.

Shaker Square sits on the Cleveland side of the Cleveland-Shaker Heights border and is a 3.5 mile drive from the Van Aken District. Pinecrest (Orange Village) is a 3.4 mile drive from the Van Aken District. Map generated by google.com.

This contrast highlights the competition that can exist between redevelopment projects. In a region with slow population growth, public and private investment dollars are limited. When cities and developers concentrate resources in one area, they may unintentionally draw energy and tenants away from others. Some stakeholders in Cleveland worried that Van Aken’s rise as a popular shopping and dining destination could pull business and foot traffic away from Shaker Square, especially since the two districts are connected by the RTA Green Line.

At the same time, Van Aken offers lessons that could help inform revitalization efforts at Shaker Square. The focus on independently-owned businesses, walkability, and strong collaboration between the city and the developer shows what is possible when planning and funding align.

Moving from the city to the eastern suburbs, Van Aken competes with Pinecrest, another relatively new shopping center built at the same time approximately three miles away in Orange Village. Pinecrest attracted attention for its national brands new to Ohio and a wide range of entertainment options. This raised the stakes for Van Aken, which took a different approach by focusing on independent and local businesses. The two projects reflect different visions for suburban development. The Van Aken District was a redevelopment project. Pinecrest was largely a greenfield project. Greenfield projects occur on undeveloped land, usually on the outskirts of towns or in rural areas, where there are few constraints from prior land use. This regional competition makes it even more important for cities to define what makes their projects unique.