The Observer, February 16, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 17
Cleveland on Fire: Sprawl issue needing to be addressed
As the region's resources continue to spread themselves thin as more residents of Northeast Ohio move to outlying counties, there is a hope for a regional approach to sprawl. In the far west side community of Avon Lake, there has been considerable growth as families move out to the next ring. Therefore, city officials have asked for a proposed interchange to be built in their community for Interstate 90. The Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) has decided to study the potential regional impacts that this exit would have – the first study of its kind and a welcomed change.
Beyond the familiar characteristics of suburban sprawl is exurban sprawl – a similar concept but with greater ramifications because it leaves not only a decaying urban core but suburbs with increasingly less resources. In the ever-continuing battle for the newest development and residential subdivision, communities are draining the assets of one community to benefit another. The ironic and threatening concept behind this newest movement is that it is destroying communities that, when created, destroyed many core cities. This cyclical exercise is one that no region can win, especially one that does not see any growth.
Proponents of the proposed interchange – mainly elected officials in Lorain County – believe that the private market forces should be answered by development support. Their proposal would supposedly ease congestion, open up land for development, and therefore bring in needed taxes to a community that is struggling to pay for its school system, which has grown as more farmland gets plowed to construct this town.
However, NOACA has wisely voted unanimously to broaden their perspective for the project. In their study (which is still being defined), they hope to determine the interchange's impact on other communities in the region, particularly the west side suburbs between Avon Lake and Cleveland. Such a study is new to the region, and possibly to the state, as the Ohio Department of Transportation has publicly admitted that they have never completed an economic-impact study.
Although the area may be congested and in need of a tax-base, those problems should not be alleviated at the expense of other neighborhoods and cities. The economic, environmental, and social impacts of sprawl have already led to a glut of retail, housing, and safety issues in the inner-ring of Northeast Ohio. The rest of the region is in danger if this continues. As a community, we continue to apply more resources over a wider range without any regard for our neighbors or the future.
By adding another interchange to I-90 for this exurban community, the suburbs and Cleveland would be indirectly told that there is no collaboration in Northeast Ohio – each city should be on its own to temporarily steal business and residents for a decade or two before the 'next greatest place' comes along. This shallow, narrow-minded, and near-sighted vision is pathetic and should not be acceptable if this region of Ohio wants to succeed in the twenty-first century.
Verespej is a senior Political Science/Pre-Law student involved in the performing arts and is also the Executive Director for the Student Turning Point Society.
