Pepper Pike, Ursuline Sisters come to agreement on homes for developmentally disabled adults – cleveland.com

PEPPER PIKE, Ohio -- City Council has resolved an appeal made by the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland, paving the way for construction of 25 dwelling units for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The housing will be built on property the Ursulines own south of the Ursuline College campus.

Ursuline Sisters lawyer John Slagter made the formal appeal Oct. 20, proposing alternatives to conditions the citys Planning Commission had put forth in early August that later were approved by City Council.

After a lengthy executive session Wednesday (Oct. 27) at the start of its meeting, council returned to approve by a 7-0 vote adjustments to the original conditions.

Medina Creative Living plans to build and operate the dwellings adjacent to the Merici Crossings building, which opened in 2019 as a home for Ursuline nuns.

Following Wednesdays vote, Mayor Richard Bain said, This is a win-win-win, for the applicant, Medina Creative Living; its a win for the Ursuline Sisters; its the biggest win, the greatest win, for the special needs community that is going to be served by this project.

My congratulations and best wishes to all those families who have waited very patiently through a lot of meetings -- a lot of long meetings -- to get to this point this evening.

On behalf of the city, we wish you guys the very best future for your families and success with this project, Bain said. I know theres a lot of work ahead. You undoubtedly have a lot of financing still to put together, and Medina (Creative Living) has a lot of work ahead, the Sisters have a lot of work ahead.

Hopefully, as we move forward with this, we will find the same spirit of community that all the parties came together about to achieve this result this evening.

The housing plan, named Creative Living for Life, has been in the works for well over a year. In September 2020, the Ursuline Sisters had their plan put on hold as the city was in the midst of a yearlong moratorium on building upon U-2 zoned properties, such as the Ursulines, as the city revised that zoning classification.

The Planning Commissions conditions, made after the moratorium, further held up the project.

Plans call for building upon five of the 42 acres the Ursulines own north of Fairmount Boulevard.

Over the past several months, council has heard from nearby homeowners concerned about the developments and setbacks from their properties, as well as local families of developmentally disabled people who praised the project as a way to have their loved ones living in close proximity.

The Ursulines sought to undertake the project as a means of fulfilling their mission to help those in need.

Among the conditions the Planning Commission placed on construction were those that required a minimum 250-foot setback from Fairmount Boulevard and a minimum setback of 300 feet from the back of Windy Hill Drive residential properties to the west.

The Ursulines appealed out of concern that the conditions would hinder plans for future development of their remaining acreage.

The final agreement approved Wednesday states that the Creative Living for Life project, which will see construction of 10 attached buildings housing the 25 dwelling units, would be limited to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and would cover no more than 6.25 acres.

The 250-foot setback from Fairmount Boulevard was retained, but the 300-foot setback to Windy Hill Drive properties was reduced to 286 feet.

Parcel splits within the subdivision will be allowed, after city review and approval, and other uses of the site will be allowed, should they conform to city code.

No further residential properties will be permitted to be built on the site without city approval. As Merici Crossings was built with special city permission because it did not conform to U-2 code, the new agreement states that it could be rebuilt in the same location should it be destroyed by fire or tornado or some other disaster.

Speaking at the meetings conclusion was a happy Sister Ritamary Welsh, president of the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland.

I just want to personally thank the mayor and council and (Law Director) Steve Byron and (City Planner) George Smerigan for all they did to get this project going, Welsh said.

We so appreciate your willingness to be open to some of our suggestions, and we were open to what you needed for the city. Knowing that Medina (Creative Living) can now move forward is just very, very good news, not only for us, but for the parents and all the people who will be (living) on that property.

Were so very grateful we were able to work this out together.

Welsh did not specify as to when construction work might begin.

Seeking grant money for trees

City Council also approved Wednesday a resolution that will have it apply for grant funding from the Ohio Division of Forestrys Urban Canopy Restoration Grant Program.

Service Director Jim Advent said it is a 50-50 matching grant, meaning the city would have to contribute the same amount of grant money it receives.

We are requesting $25,000, and the plan is to plant 120 trees of a native species, Advent said. Locations include Lander Circle, Morgan Park, Gates Mills (Boulevard), Lander (Road) and Fairmount (Boulevard), and Chestnut (Lane)/Rolling Hills (Drive, where) in the cul-de-sacs weve got a few trees missing.

Bain said the city will consult with its arborist to determine if more focus will be placed on planting on Gates Mills Boulevard to coincide with a plan to install a trail within its 130-foot-wide grassy median.

Read more from the Chagrin Solon Sun.

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Pepper Pike, Ursuline Sisters come to agreement on homes for developmentally disabled adults - cleveland.com