A Cleveland City Council committee approved a package of resolutions and ordinances to vacate unnamed alleys and portions of several streets to support private development, a waterfront project and a school campus.

The measures included a resolution of intent to vacate unnamed alleys south of Abbey Avenue (Ordinance/Resolution 955-2025), three related vacancies on West Third Street tied to the Bedrock project (956-2025, 957-2025 and 958-2025), a partial vacation of right-of-way on West 40 Eighth Street and Raven Court (976-2025), a vacation to consolidate portions of Lorraine Court, West 40 Eighth Place and Tern Avenue for Urban Community School’s campus (977-2025), and an ordinance to vacate the remaining portion of Sherman Court (978-2025). Committee members approved each measure as presented.

Director DeRosa reminded the committee that the vacation process is a three-step procedure: a resolution of intent to vacate, review by the board of revision of assessments, and a returning ordinance to finalize the vacation. He said the resolution before the committee was the first step in that process for several items.

Several items were tied to private development or public amenities. The three West Third Street resolutions were filed so the Bedrock project could create a uniform street width along the north–south corridor and, at the river end of West Third, to allow for a future kayak launch. Consultant Jean Michel Lemmon told the committee the goal is to reduce an irregular fronting width “from 103.5 feet to 70” to create a uniform right-of-way for the corridor.

The partial vacation on West 40 Eighth Street and Raven Court would free a large swath of right-of-way adjacent to a homeowner’s property so the owner could build an outbuilding while the city retains sidewalk, curb and tree-lawn areas. The Lorraine Court/West 40 Eighth Place/Tern Avenue vacation supports Urban Community School’s campus consolidation; staff said the project required accommodations for fire access and new hydrant locations, and the matter had gone through the board of revision of assessments.

Committee members asked staff to include maps with subsequent documents and confirmed that these items had council member support where noted. Each ordinance or resolution was advanced by the committee with no recorded objections in the transcript.

The approvals move the items forward in the vacation process; final vacating ordinances or subsequent administrative steps remain subject to the required hearings and approvals from the board of revision of assessments where applicable.