Coventry School Building May Be Sold

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — The Cleveland Heights-University Heights City Schools are looking to sell the Coventry School site. The district notified tenants of the building that they are moving to a month-to-month lease starting on July 1, 2017.

The Coventry School ceased operating as an elementary school in 2006. The district says the roof of the building is in need of more than $1 million in repairs, including a wholly new roof.

“It’s obvious that the Coventry site and the building are in need of significant repairs in order for it to continue operating,” said CH-UH Superintendent Talisa Dixon in a statement. “We do not want to invest more money into a site that does not directly impact our students."

The closing of the Coventry School building was controversial in 2006 and 2007. A grassroots group effort to reopen the school failed in August 2007. The group took their complaint all the way to the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, but Judge Michael Donnelly ultimately ruled that there wasn't enough evidence to overturn the decision.

The building now houses non-school tenants, like the Ensemble Theatre. A spokesperson for Ensemble did not immediately return a phone call and email seeking comment. You can read more about the building's initial tenants in this 2011 Patch article by Michelle Simakis.

“With that said, we wanted to be proactive with our tenants, many of which are valued District partners, and give them advance notice of our intentions. At the end of the day, we will ensure that the site transitions into uses that are beneficial to the surrounding neighborhood and the Cleveland Heights community.”

Photo from Google Earth