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Residents urge council to pause sale of Cedar Road green space; ordinance on second reading
Summary
Neighbors told council May 5 they were blindsided by a proposed sale of two city-owned parcels on Cedar Road and said the parcels have served as neighborhood green space for decades. The sale is tied to an ordinance on second reading authorizing a real estate purchase agreement; residents asked council to delay action and provide written details.
Residents of the Cedar Hill neighborhood told Cleveland Heights City Council on May 5 that they want the city to pause consideration of a plan to sell two small green parcels on Cedar Road between Delaware Drive and South Overlook.
"I was often told by neighbors that these parcels were intended to remain within the community for park and green space for the original 1948 council agreement," said Kelly Ovecsek, who said she learned about the proposed sale through a neighborhood notice and that neighbors had found evidence the proposal had been in development since January 2024.
Several speakers said they received little or no direct notice and that a developer, identified in meeting remarks as Paul Volpe, has circulated a flyer about a public meeting on May 15 and proposed three tiny homes on the lots. Anne Sheriff, who said she was representing more than 40 neighbors, asked council to "reconsider the decision to sell a very valuable green space and to explore other options for its use" and requested a written explanation of planning and negotiations to date.
The matter is linked in council materials to ordinance 06063-2025, described by the mayor as an ordinance authorizing the mayor to execute a real estate purchase agreement for roughly 0.54 acres located at South Overlook Road and Cedar Road (permanent parcel numbers referenced in the meeting). That ordinance was on the agenda as a second-reading item on May 5; council did not take final action on it that night.
Residents raised specific concerns about safety, loss of trees and buffer area from a busy roadway, and the absence of a request-for-proposal (RFP) process. Lou Mandy said he feared that labeling the measure an "emergency" on the agenda could expedite the sale before the neighborhood had time to respond.
Council President Nakuta told speakers the council was not voting on the sale May 5 and said there would be additional meetings, including a planning commission meeting and a May 15 public meeting noted by the developer; law department staff and the clerk of council also directed residents to subscription options on the city's agendas page for meeting notices. Councilman Cobb said the council would ensure hearings occur before any final vote and encouraged residents to subscribe to notices and monitor the agenda packet.
Next steps: council materials show the ordinance remains at second reading; residents and council members identified a May 15 meeting and planning commission scheduling as the near-term public review path. Council indicated it will provide further notice to residents before any final action.
