Lakeview Terrace (Cleveland)

The Lakeview Terrace Apartments is a set of row houses, apartments, and a high-rise residential building in the Ohio City neighborhood of Cleveland that was started in 1935 and culminated in the opening of the 1973 high-rise apartment tower. The apartment tower is 208 feet tall and contains 19 stories. The complex is notable for being one of the first public housing projects in the country.HistoryPublic housing was vital following the rising population of Cleveland in the 1920s and 1930s. Overcrowding in the central areas of city was decried and it was reasoned that the local government must intervene in some way to minimize the negative effects of this overcrowding. This demand led to the planning and development of what would become the Lakeview Terrace complex. It was commissioned by the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority's first director Ernest J. Bohn in 1935 to supplement the declining availability of low-cost housing in the metropolitan area of Cleveland, the complex would include a community center to engage residents in issues relating to neighborhood safety and education. It is also worthy of mention that Lakeview was one of the first attempts to offer lower cost housing for poorer residents in the urban center. The formula regarding the establishment of public housing that Cleveland pioneered would be adopted by the urban cities of Chicago, Detroit, New York City, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Philadelphia and many others. In fact, many cities have their own either mini or mega versions of Lakeview. At the time of its construction, Cleveland was praised for being on the cutting edge of urban dwelling planning. The entire complex was designed by Joseph L. Weinberg, William H. Conrad, and Wallace G. Teare and was entirely fireproofed throughout.