Port of Cleveland Approves More Than $24 Million in Funding for Irishtown Bend

Kim Palmer, Crain's

The Port of Cleveland approved three resolutions totaling $24.4 million in funds for the Irishtown Bend Stabilization and Rehabilitation Project and accepted $1.97 million to fund the Cleveland Harbor Eastern Embayment Resiliency Study, known as CHEERS.

The port's board of directors voted in favor of both projects on Thursday, March 10. The Irishtown Bend project has an estimated total cost of more than $53 million to date. During the board meeting, members accepted:

• $5 million in Maritime Assistance Program or MAP grant funds through the Ohio Department of Transportation;
• $2.5 million each from the city of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County to match the MAP funds;
• $12.7 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency; and a
• $1.7 million grant from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

"We've been working diligently with our partners at the local, state and federal level to ensure that we can fund the necessary Irishtown Bend Stabilization and Rehabilitation Project. These funds are a vital investment in our community and today we took a critical step towards the construction phase of this project," said Linda Sternheimer, director of urban planning and development for the port, in a statement.

In addition, port board members voted to accept $1.97 million, also from an Ohio MAP grant, for the East Side lakefront's CHEERS project. The yearlong study will focus on improving the lakeshore, making it more accessible with the creation of an artificial buffer and beach.