CLEVELAND, Ohio – The renaissance of the Tremont neighborhood has featured gentrified century homes, swanky new townhouses and some of the most popular restaurants and nightspots in the city.
But a vital piece of the puzzle remains unfulfilled: Clark Field in Tremont Park.
And despite an ambitious project to remediate the toxic soil and to rebuild the 50-acre park to its former glory, the work continues to encounter unforeseen delays.
Residents and Towpath Trail enthusiasts who had anticipated the completion of the renovation project this year must wait at least until 2018 or later, as funding for the remediation work remains tangled in the bureaucratic red tape of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
“I know folks are very anxious for the start of the project. It’s a great project and we all want to move forward,” said Ward 3 Councilman Kerry McCormack in a recent interview.
Kerry McCormackPhoto courtesy of Ohio City Inc.
“The good news is that the remediation project has been approved by the EPA. The bad news is that it’s going to be delayed,” McCormack said. “The EPA requires a two-year funding cycle. They won’t be able to do it all at once.”
EPA District 5 spokeswoman Rachel Bassler was vague in responding to a reporter’s questions about the project. She confirmed that soil tests found contaminants such as lead and PAHs, and must be removed before the reclamation work can move forward.
PAHs are polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, a group of carcinogenic chemicals released from burning coal, oil, gasoline or trash, as well as steel making and asphalt paving. The lead is believed to be a result of more than a century of industrial operations located nearby.
Bassler declined to provide any documents dealing with persistent questions:
- What will the remediation project entail?
- How much will it cost?
- When will the work start, and when will it be concluded?
“We don’t have the answers to those questions,” Bassler said. “I will send you this information when we have it.”
Willam Neff/The Plain Dealer
Meanwhile, plans for key leg of the Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail also have been put on hold. Clark Field is supposed to provide passage for the Towpath through the industrial valley and eventually to the lakefront, ringing the park’s western and northern borders, from Steelyard Commons to Literary Avenue. A $700,000 grant from the Clean Ohio Greenspace Conservation Fund will be used to help buy and restore two vacant parcels totaling 21.7 acres next to Clark Field, enlarging the park.
For 50 years, Clark Field served as a buffer of green space between residential neighborhoods and the smoky Industrial Valley. It was one of Cleveland’s favorite playgrounds, hosting high school football games, baseball fields, tennis and basketball courts, and dog walks.
Gradually, though, Clark Field deteriorated as Tremont declined and lost population. The Little League and softball players abandoned the crumbling fields, and the football stadium was demolished as the park became a dumping ground for junk cars, discarded tires, and beer bottles, and a hang out for criminals and drug users.
But in 2001, visionaries from the Friends of Clark Field, Tremont West Development Corp., Canalway Partners and city officials bonded together to rescue the decrepit park, and the city earmarked $2.7 million for the restoration work.
The new organization developed a master plan focused on cleaning up the park, bringing back recreation activities and maximizing safety. Baseball and football practices returned, trees and flowers were planted, benches and picnic tables were added, and a dog park was installed. Future plans call for new baseball diamonds, football/soccer fields, tennis and basketball courts, a picnic area, a playground, and renovated bathrooms.
Then the polluted soil was discovered, and the city stopped issuing permits for events and sports until the soil testing and remediation project were completed.
Former Ward 3 Councilman Joe Cimperman said in early 2015 that the remediation work would begin later that year, and would require excavating and removing all of the polluted soil, and capping the ground with fresh soil.
Two years later, the work still has not begun. Vandals knocked over 27 trees and pulled up all the flowers, said Beverly Wurm of the Friends of Clark Field.
“We don’t have anything definite at this moment,” Wurm said. “It’s a step-by-step procedure, but good things will come.”
Cory Riordan, director of Tremont West, said he’s inspired by the city’s commitment to following through with the project, and of earmarking the $2.7 million for improving the park – leaving the cost of remediation to the EPA.
“Of course, it’s frustrating not to have the project completed, but it’s moving forward,” Riordan said.
City administration officials declined numerous requests to talk about the Clark Field project.
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