ICYMI: Shaker Square Community Open House

Visioning
ICYMI: Shaker Square Community Open House
On September 19th, neighbors and merchants gathered for an open house where we discussed the retail strategy recommendations and public space ideas to make sure the Square is successful and thriving now and into the future.
In case you missed it, click to download the full presentation below!
New Tenant: Coyoacán Taqueria & Brew to open in October

Update
Shaker Square’s culinary revival includes Coyoacán Taqueria & Brew to open in October
Cleveland.com, Paris Wolfe
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Experienced restaurateur and investment advisor Rey Galindo is bringing a new brewpub to Shaker Square in mid to late October. Coyoacán Taqueria & Brew, named for his family’s hometown just outside Mexico City, will be in the space formerly occupied by Balaton restaurant. It will be an anchor in the northwest quadrant of the historic, 95-year-old plaza.
The word “Coyoacán” has its roots in the Aztec language, meaning “place of coyotes.”
Galindo and his business partners are currently working with crews to renovate the two main rooms where diners will gather. They are removing benches and booths left from Balaton and finishing a windowed interior room that will show off four brewing tanks.
Shaker Square’s culinary revival includes Coyoacán Taqueria & Brew to open in October

News
Shaker Square’s culinary revival includes Coyoacán Taqueria & Brew to open in October
Cleveland.com, Paris Wolfe
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Experienced restaurateur and investment advisor Rey Galindo is bringing a new brewpub to Shaker Square in mid to late October. Coyoacán Taqueria & Brew, named for his family’s hometown just outside Mexico City, will be in the space formerly occupied by Balaton restaurant. It will be an anchor in the northwest quadrant of the historic, 95-year-old plaza.
The word “Coyoacán” has its roots in the Aztec language, meaning “place of coyotes.”
Galindo and his business partners are currently working with crews to renovate the two main rooms where diners will gather. They are removing benches and booths left from Balaton and finishing a windowed interior room that will show off four brewing tanks.
Shaker Square celebrates 2nd anniversary of local nonprofit ownership, with an eye to future

News
Shaker Square celebrates 2nd anniversary of local nonprofit ownership, with an eye to future
Cleveland.com, Tom Jewell
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Going back to its opening 95 years ago, Shaker Square could be considered “the original transit-oriented development.”
That historical perspective came last week from the City of Cleveland’s chief integrated development officer, Jeff Epstein, during the observance of the landmark’s second anniversary under local nonprofit ownership.
Growing up in Shaker Heights, Epstein has his share of lifetime memories of visiting the square.
So does Tania Menesse, president and CEO of Cleveland Neighborhood Progress (CNP), co-owners of Shaker Square with Burten Bell Carr Development Inc. (BBC).
Shaker Square's Road to Recovery

News
Shaker Square's Road to Recovery
Axios Cleveland, Sam Allard
It’s been two years since the nonprofits Cleveland Neighborhood Progress and Burten, Bell, Carr Development purchased the east side shopping center Shaker Square to prevent an out-of-state buyer from swooping in.
Why it matters: The owners this week unveiled more than $5 million in recent investments, paid for with both public and private dollars, that have helped retain Dave’s Market as an anchor tenant, attracted a new coffee shop and positioned the retail hub for future purchase.
Flashback: The nonprofits secured a $12 million loan from the City of Cleveland to acquire Shaker Square after its foreclosure in 2020.
The goal was to “stabilize and reposition” on a five-year timeline, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress CEO and president Tania Menesse tells Axios, and to find an eventual buyer who would work in partnership with local stakeholders.
Driving the news: Dave’s Market has agreed to a six-year lease extension, with options to renew.
It’s getting $350,000 from the City of Cleveland and the Square’s nonprofit owners for renovations as part of the deal.
Plus: Melissa Garrett, who owns and operates UnBar Cafe in Larchmere, is set to open a new space — Cafe Indigo — in the former Dewey’s Coffee location in November.
She said at a press conference Monday that it will offer coffee, ice cream and sandwiches.
Will Shaker Square's $5-Million Makeover Be Enough to Sway Future Tenants?

News
Will Shaker Square's $5-Million Makeover Be Enough to Sway Future Tenants?
Cleveland Scene, Mark Oprea
On a recent Thursday afternoon, there was a cacophony of sounds emanating from Shaker Square. Construction workers in neon vests were smoothing out freshly-paved road. Leafblowers worked down the block from contractors to clear weeds. Painters ran their white brushes up and down cracked facades.
“It’s kind of like puzzle piece matching,” says Michael Price, a contractor with Capretta who was shaping wood trim to match the aesthetic of the square’s original. Price looked at a sill. “Some of this is 100 years old. It’s really stood the test of time.”
This Whitman-esque orchestra of machinery is proof that, since this past spring, Shaker Square’s new owners and operators are working to reshape Cleveland’s oldest outdoor shopping district as an appealing place for 21st century, post-pandemic shoppers.
But even more so, to fashion the octagon of retail off Shaker Boulevard as a safe bet for developers and new tenants eager to buy into such vision–even as inflation, high interest rates and competition with Amazon continues to loom.
That hard belief—that a modernized Shaker Square is necessary—is what drove Cleveland Neighborhood Progress and Burten, Bell, Carr to buy the square from its previous owner, Coral Co., for $11 million in August 2022.
Shaker Square wraps up $5 million in renovations

News
Shaker Square wraps up $5 million in renovations
News 5 Cleveland, Clay LePard
CLEVELAND — Two years after being taken over by a nonprofit, Shaker Square is wrapping up $5 million worth of renovations meant to help existing businesses and attract new ones to the nation’s second-oldest planned shopping center.
Cleveland Neighborhood Progress and Burten, Bell, Carr Development Inc. hosted local stakeholders Monday to highlight progress being done on Shaker Square, including new HVAC systems, new roofs, outdoor lighting, awnings, historic light fixtures and other items that added up to 20 years of delayed routine maintenance.
Shaker Square lands new tenant, may eventually seek buyer

News
Shaker Square lands new tenant, may eventually seek buyer
News 5 Cleveland, Clay LePard
CLEVELAND, Ohio — The nonprofit owners of Shaker Square on Monday announced a new tenant, Cafe Indigo, and detailed the work that’s been done to the center toward eventually making it attractive to a new buyer.
The Cleveland Neighborhood Progress and Burten, Bell Carr Development Inc., which took over operation of the historic square two years ago, had a news conference to highlight changes under their ownership.
Shaker Square announces new cafe as renovations continue

News
Shaker Square announces new cafe as renovations continue
Crain's Cleveland Business, Alexandra Golden
Patrons of Shaker Square may notice the lack of a coffee shop — but that soon will change.
Cafe Indigo hopes to open by November, pending permits, owner Melissa Hirsch said Monday, Aug. 26, at a press conference updating developments at Shaker Square. Cafe Indigo will open in the space that has seen two other coffee shops depart in recent years: Dewey’s Coffee, which closed in May 2019, and Biggby Coffee, which closed at the end of 2022.
The new cafe will offer ice cream in addition to coffee and other traditional cafe items, such as sandwiches, soups and salads. Hirsch said Cafe Indigo will “feel a lot like a coffee shop,” but she’s adding the ice cream element as a “bonus to the community” because it’s not available in a nearby shop.
Shaker Square sees $4.5M in updates, more planned

News
Shaker Square sees $4.5M in updates, more planned
NEO Trans Blog, Ken Prendergast
Two years ago this month, Cleveland Neighborhood Progress (CNP) and Burten, Bell, Carr, Inc. (BBC) acquired Cleveland’s historic but faded Shaker Square mixed-use district. Today, the new owners outlined what they considered to be significant work and investment in making capital improvements to the property and carrying out a retail strategy to restore vibrancy to the square.
Today’s event centered around the unveiling of new storefront awnings, planned landscape improvements and recent roofing, electrical and heating-ventilating-air conditioning (HVAC) upgrades. All told, the investments to update the 95-year-old Shaker Square so far amount to approximately $4.5 million.