Lakewood Begins Redevelopment Process for Lakewood Hospital Site

LAKEWOOD, OH - The city issued a request for qualifications on Monday for developers interested in developing a 6-acre mixed-use site in downtown, at the former site of Lakewood Hospital, 14519 Detroit Ave. City officials will host a public meeting to discuss the redevelopment process on Feb. 15 at 7 p.m. at Lakewood City Hall.

“This RFQ is the initial step in the process to redevelop the nearly 6 acre site in the heart of Lakewood,” said Lakewood Mayor Michael Summers in a press release. “The goal is to generate responses from qualified developers who are interested in partnering with the city to reimagine an entire city block of our downtown, in a manner that provides the maximum benefit to our community.”

On the city's resources page, there is a link to a report called "Lakewood Hospital Redevelopment Analysis." That report suggests that the redevelopment of the former hospital site should cater to possible residents with a "propensity to live in both medium-density single-family (e.g., townhomes, condos) and multi-family housing."

That same report notes that in 3rd quarter 2016, the vacancy rate of Lakewood apartments was a very low 2.5 percent. Add that to a below-the-national-average unemployment rate (3.9 percent) and more people wanting to live near their downtown offices, and the report predicts a further run on Lakewood housing options.

Ultimately, the report suggests that there is "unmet demand for 11,597 units in the Primary Market Area by 2025; the hospital site could, conceivably, capture 116 to 348 of these units (one to three percent of the PMA total)."

The report also suggests using the space to meet increasing office space demand, senior living demand, hotel lodging and possibly additional retail space. You can read the full report here.

“This process is built to provide a framework for development teams to propose creative ideas that are market receptive to reshape and transform this prime real estate in the heart of downtown Lakewood,” said Bryce Sylvester, the city’s director of planning and development.

The city says that in addition to the mixed-used construction, the city also wants the block to be transformed into Lakewood's "finest multi-functional outdoor community gathering space."

Updates on the development process will be posted on the city's website.

Photo from Rick Uldricks, Patch