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City economic development department seeks staff growth as council weighs $3M transfers for grants and storefront repairs
Summary
The Economic Development Department told the finance committee it has rebuilt staffing and will absorb a storefront renovation program; council members sought detail on a $3.0 million transfer and on how grant and loan pools are allocated across neighborhoods.
The Cleveland Department of Economic Development told the City Council Finance Committee it is expanding staffing to support neighborhood investment, business retention and a newly transferred storefront renovation program.
Director (Economic Development) and budget staff said the 2025 request reflects additional headcount: several neighborhood investment roles, a contracts and compliance manager and a marketing coordinator. The department said some positions formerly funded by external grants were reclassified to general‑fund budget lines as grant funding expired.
Nut graf: Council members asked for a breakdown of a roughly $3.0 million annual transfer the city provides for grants and loans that support neighborhood business work and question how the city will target limited dollars. The department said the storefront renovation program will include roughly $500,000 for building renovations and that staff are working to align neighborhood investment managers with city planners.
Details from the hearing
Staffing and structure: The 2025 operating request includes five additional full‑time positions. Three positions reflect the storefront renovation program transfer; other additions include a contracts‑and‑compliance manager and a promoted fiscal manager. The department said it ended 2024 with roughly 23 filled positions (some entries in the published book were miscoded to grant funds and will be corrected in future materials).
Grants and transfers: Committee members asked where the city’s recurring $3.0 million appropriation for grants and loans is recorded. Finance staff confirmed transfers to subfunds and committed to provide an itemized breakdown of the “transfer to other subfunds” line in the packet, which includes UDAG repayment, stadium capital repairs and other allocations. Economic Development said roughly $1.8 million of the $3.0 million historically goes to operational support for external organizations; the department described that amount as small relative to city needs.
Storefront renovation program: The department said it will allocate $500,000 toward the storefront renovation program to support building improvements on neighborhood commercial corridors; other funding streams (such as CDBG dollars and kiosk revenue) also support the program. Officials said the program will emphasize smaller‑scale neighborhood building rehab and storefront sign support alongside broader business‑retention efforts.
Business retention and expansion (BR&E): Economic Development described a plan to use a network of neighborhood investment managers to conduct proactive BR&E visits citywide. The department said it has recruited staff with BR&E experience and intends to receive data and transitional support from existing partners while it phases out some external contracts.
Follow‑ups requested: Council members asked for a copy of signed community benefits agreements, an itemization of the $7.0 million “transfer to other subfunds” line (which includes the $3.0 million) and a detailed list of grants and loans and their available balances. The department and finance staff agreed to provide those materials.
Ending: Council members and the department signaled support for increasing capacity to do neighborhood investments but said the city’s limited discretionary resources will require prioritization and metrics to ensure dollars produce measurable local benefits.
