Accomplishments
Bay Village Master Plan
The city partnered with the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission to complete a Master Plan for Bay Village. A Master Plan is a guide or framework for a city’s future development. It outlines the city’s desired vision and creates a road map to achieve that vision. https://www.cityofbayvillage.com/266/Bay-Village-Master-Plan
New Library
A groundbreaking ceremony occurred in March for the new $8.4M Cuyahoga County Bay Village Library Branch located adjacent to City Hall. The branch includes group meeting spaces which will be a wonderful addition for our city. The branch construction will be funded by the Cuyahoga County Library system.
Bay Creek Residences
Construction is progressing on the 11-unit complex along Cahoon Creek, adjacent to Key Bank on Wolf Road. This project is a significant step in creation of a town center which is in alignment with the city’s master plan. It represents a $5M private investment in our city.
Collaboration with County and State officials – Road and Infrastructure Improvements
Cuyahoga County and the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) have contributed $9.86M for the following projects:
- Road improvement for portions of Lake, Wolf, and Bradley Roads.
- Bridge replacements on Ashton, Queenswood, and Lake Roads.
Fiscal Responsibility
The city produced balanced budgets and maintained Aa1 Bond Rating and funded operating and capital reserve funds to provide liquidity for future city projects.
Grant Strategy
A strategy was implemented to aggressively pursue grants and other external funding for city operations. To date $2.1M has been secured for city operations. Funding has included improvements for historical buildings, recreational activities, and equipment for the safety forces.
Parks and Recreation
The city has made the following improvements to its parks:
- Reese Park: rehabilitation of the restrooms, tennis, and basketball courts and construction of new pickleball courts.
- Bradley Road Park: installation of playground equipment and rehabilitation of the restrooms.
- Walker Road Park: improvements to the retention pond/system to ensure that the retention pond functions properly and protects Bay homes from flooding.
Tree Management
In partnership with Cuyahoga County, Bay Village was awarded a $50,000 grant as part of the Healthy Urban Tree Canopy Program. This funding was used to complete the city’s inventory of public tree lawn trees and allowed the city to create a strategic management plan including stratification of at-risk trees. This data will also be used to revise the master tree planting program.
Cahoon Park Lakefront Master Plan
The approved plan addresses erosion concerns along the lakeshore to preserve the land for future generations and provides greatly enhanced access for the public to enjoy the lakefront.
https://www.cityofbayvillage.com/448/Cahoon-Park-Lakefront-Master-Plan
Cahoon Basin Trail
A 10-foot-wide multipurpose asphalt trail was completed from the sledding hill through the Cahoon basin and under the Lake Road Bridge towards Lake Erie. This was an important step in improving connectivity to the lakefront in Cahoon Park. Funding for a significant portion of the project was received from several successful grant applications through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. https://www.cityofbayvillage.com/471/Bay-Village-Videos
Building Department
The department was reestablished with an employee led model, providing superior service to residents.
New City Website
A new website was implemented which provided residents with easy access to a wealth of information on city services and events.
School Resource Officer
The first full time school resource officer was established through the Bay Village Police Department to help keep our families safe. This was a collaborative effort between the city and the Bay schools.
School-Community Wellbeing
The city continued its investment in Bay Family Services which provides counseling support to fight the opioid epidemic and mental health issues in our community.
Safe Routes to School
In late May, ODOT awarded the City of Bay Village $207,000 in the Safe Routes to School funding program. The award will fund several specific infrastructure improvements that were identified in the School Travel Plan to increase safety for students who walk and bike between home and school. Improvements will include installation of rectangular rapid flash beacon crosswalks at multiple intersections and physical improvements to the grade and angle of crosswalk ramps. The pedestrian bridge south of Westerly School across Porter Creek will be rehabilitated based on a review and findings by the city engineer.
Animal Control Officer
The Animal Control Officer (ACO) was reestablished by the administration.
Deer Management plan
The city implemented a comprehensive deer management plan in accordance with guidance from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Smart purchasing
The city purchased a Pierce 107’ Ascendant fire truck. In a continued effort to provide value, the city took advantage of a demonstration model providing taxpayers with a $200,000 savings over a new unit.
BV60+ Programming
This program was created because of the Senior Center Strategic Planning process. Surveys and focus groups were conducted of residents age 60 and up. Responses were segmented into two groups: age 60-70, and age 70+. The large response from the first group signaled interest in becoming involved, but they did not recognize themselves as “seniors” and had little interest in coming to traditional senior center activities. They knew little about the center. This group wanted active options and social events. Since many still are working, their focus was on evening activities. Programming for this group has been successful.
Aging in Place
This initiative began as a version of an AARP Livable Community. The staff and advisory board of Community Services decided to focus on areas that would allow Bay Village seniors to age in place and stay in their homes. Older residents are frequently concerned about the lack of senior housing and/or communities in Bay Village. Through surveys, the staff determined what services, programs, and information the city could provide to assist residents as they age in place. The results indicated that home repairs/handyman services, home modifications and snow and lawn services were most needed to stay in their homes. Initiatives are being implemented based on these results.
Stay in Bay /Zoning overlay
We are addressing the business districts with our “Stay in Bay” initiative, which focuses on improving the look and functionality of the commercial districts, to create a more vibrant town center while reflecting the character of Bay Village. Updating the building guidelines for the commercial districts will encourage more retail, additional housing options, and new community gathering spaces that exist in harmony with our residential neighborhoods. One goal of this process is the creation of a “zoning overlay,” which is a set of building regulations that apply to commercial (including retail and office) areas to provide current and future commercial property owners with a clear understanding of our collective vision.
Bay Cares- Kindland
A “Bay Cares- Kindland” was launched and is based on the Kindland initiative. It is time for citizens to take charge. We can do so through acts of kindness. On any given day, there are hundreds of thousands of acts of kindness happening here.
Kindland is an initiative led by Values-in-Action Foundation in conjunction with 120 leaders and organizations, such as the Northeast Ohio Mayors and City Managers Association, Kindland asks each of us to do and document acts of kindness, using #kindland on any social media platform, documenting one million acts of kindness in Northeast Ohio by the end of 2021. It is important to show expressions of hope, positivity, empathy, caring and kindness. Kindness is infectious, impacting others from each act, the community will follow. The city has extended this by connecting compassionate Bay residents with opportunities to get involved with non-profit organizations that serve a variety of clients throughout Northern Ohio. To learn more about Kindland, visit https://www.viafdn.org/kindland.
Promoting, “I am a Citizen of Kindland” will be a welcome and unifying message — even to those with whom we disagree. Kindland can be a bridge for racial and social inequities, mentorship, and economic and social divides.
Shoreline Special Improvement District (SID)
Legislation is in process for a shoreline SID that will allow lakefront property owners to band together to form a public-private partnership for the purposes of coordinated lakefront improvements and protection to control erosion. It allows property owners to develop a project funded by a special assessment on their properties. Shoreline SID’s can be assessed up to 30 years. Shoreline SID’s are not grants or zero-interest loans. Instead, they are generally projects financed through the bonding authority of local governments. Property owners will pay for the project through assessments.