Commodore Place Preserves Historic Affordable Housing in Vibrant Cleveland Neighborhood

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Commodore Place Preserves Historic Affordable Housing in Vibrant Cleveland Neighborhood

 

Nestled in the heart of the University Circle neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio, Commodore Place has provided affordable housing to hundreds of households over the past 50 years. The 13-story, mixed-use building, with its red-brick façade, stone accents, and distinctive finishes characteristic of the Tudor Revival style, opened as a hotel in 1924. The hotel was converted to an apartment complex in 1964 and provided housing for professionals, musicians, and Cleveland Browns football players.

By 2015, however, Commodore Place was aging. Although the building had been maintained and partially renovated, it had not undergone substantial rehabilitation in years, and changes in the surrounding neighborhood highlighted the need for modernization. The University Circle neighborhood has enjoyed an economic boom thanks to its valuable downtown location and concentration of universities, hospitals, and cultural institutions, but this growth has coincided with rising rents and gentrification that threaten to undermine the neighborhood's historic diversity. Commodore Place residents were especially vulnerable to displacement because the building's desirable location and architectural beauty placed it at risk of conversion to market-rate units that many longtime residents would be unable to afford.

In its Connecting Cleveland 2020 Citywide Plan, the city of Cleveland highlighted the need to preserve, rehabilitate, and increase the supply of affordable housing throughout the city, including in the University district, which includes University Circle. In keeping with these goals, The Community Builders, a nonprofit affordable housing developer, acquired and renovated Commodore Place. The newly renovated building opened in 2021 and preserves 198 apartments, including 144 affordable units, while maintaining the building's historic character.

The Path to Preservation

The Community Builders purchased Commodore Place in 2015 from University Circle, Inc., a local nonprofit that had owned the building since 2004, for $8.7 million. University Circle sought a developer to renew the building's Section 8 contracts and make broader renovations. The project aimed to redevelop and preserve the property for future generations while maintaining affordability. When renovations began in 2018, the building remained partially occupied.

Several challenges arose during the renovation process. In 2019, a fire broke out in the building; although no residents were harmed or displaced, smoke from the fire damaged the upper levels of the building, including some units that had already been renovated. The COVID-19 pandemic also hindered procurement and operations throughout the renovation process. The project team worked to ensure the health and safety of both the construction team and residents who remained in the building during rehabilitation and, in many cases, required continuous supportive services. The project team addressed these challenges by developing robust safety protocols, making necessary arrangements in advance, and maintaining open communication with residents. "I think we just got to know all the residents at such a personal level," says Meghan Kaple, senior development project manager at The Community Builders. "Having a relationship with them kind of kept a lot of the frustrations at bay."

The redevelopment of Commodore Place preserved the building's historic architecture while improving sustainability. Although some parts of the building had been renovated in 2008 and 2010, The Community Builders' restoration was more extensive, involving a new roof, new heating and cooling systems, new appliances and countertops in each unit, and exterior repairs. The restoration retained the original layout of the building's upper floors, an irregular U-shaped floorplan with deep courtyards on the side and rear of the building. The renovated Commodore Place meets the requirements of the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, and a review of the project under the National Historic Preservation Act found it to have no adverse effect. The building also received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver certification in 2022, acknowledging its preservation of the existing structure and use of healthy materials, including low-emitting adhesives, paints, and flooring.

About Commodore Place

Commodore Place consists of 198 apartments, including 23 studio, 142 one-bedroom, and 33 two-bedroom units, as well as 12,000 square feet of ground-level commercial space, which includes 5 retail storefronts. The residential portion includes 54 market-rate units and 144 units reserved for tenants with Section 8 housing choice vouchers who earn between 30 and 60 percent of the area median income.

Each unit comes with large closets, luxury vinyl plank flooring, and energy-efficient appliances, and all utilities are included in the rent. Building amenities include a community room, a fitness center, laundry facilities on each floor, bike storage, and an onsite resident services coordinator. Residents have access to support services such as job placement programs; daycare and afterschool care; and educational, vocational, and financial training. The building is within a half-mile of Case Western University; several parks, museums, and medical centers; and a station for the city's RideRTA Rapid Transit rail system.

Financing

The financing package for Commodore Place totaled nearly $40 million. The project received $12.5 million in federal low-income housing tax credit equity, allocated by the Ohio Housing Finance Agency and syndicated by KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment, as well as an $11.1 million HUD 221(d)(4) first mortgage loan and $5.6 million in federal historic tax credits. The city of Cleveland provided an additional $2.6 million, including $1 million in HOME Investment Partnerships funds. Other funding sources included $4.6 million from funding provided to The Community Builders through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's Capital Magnet Fund and a $1.8 million deferred developer fee.

History and Affordability

The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) and HUD's Office of the Secretary recognized Commodore Place with the 2023 ACHP/HUD Secretary's Award for Excellence in Historic Preservation. The renovation of Commodore Place represents a substantial commitment to both historic preservation and affordable housing in Cleveland.