Work Set To Begin At Lakewood School Buildings

LAKEWOOD, OH — The redevelopment of a Lakewood City Schools site has taken another step forward. The district's building at 1456 Warren Road has received historic preservation status from the city, and the properties at 1456 and 1470 Warren have been rezoned for commercial status.

The 1456 Warren Road site was built in 1879 and was once the East Rockport School. That building will be enlarged from 6,000 square feet to approximately 9,800 square feet to accommodate the district's Central Office Staff. A two-story addition will be added to the south of the building. The connector between the building at 1456 Warren and the building at 1470 Warren will be removed, the district said.

Construction at the sites is set to begin this summer and be completed by the fall of 2019, according to Dru Siley, development director for the Liberty Development Company. Siley gave an update on his company's progress at the April 23 Lakewood Board of Education meeting.

During construction, the Board of Education will be housed at 1470 Warren. The Liberty Development Company was cleared to purchase the Lakewood City School District's properties at 1456 and 1470 Warren Road for $500,000 during a meeting in February.

The company will also invest $8 million in renovations at the properties. The money would be placed into a capital improvement fund, the school district said.

"The proposed contract allows us to remain in downtown Lakewood in renovated office space without going to voters for funding," said Superintendent Jeff Patterson in a statement when the deal was first proposed in late January.

Photo from Rick Uldricks, Patch