Monday, May 21st: Today, EA staffers were treated to a tour of Beachwood, an east side Cleveland suburb known for its convenient location, great schools, community amenities, and shopping districts. We started our day with a welcome and overview from Mayor Martin Horwitz. He knows his city! He served on the school board for 16 years and on the city council for six years prior to taking the mayoral reins in January of this year.
Here’s a brief overview of what we learned from Mayor Horwitz:
- Beachwood’s Community Service Department is robust. It offers a community center, an art gallery, a family aquatic center, City Parks West/East (great walking trail), tennis and pickleball courts, summer day camps, a youth theatre program, youth sports, and community theatre. They have programming that serves all ages and all interests. One of the coolest programs available is the travel program. The community recently put together a trip to Santa Fe, NM for interested residents.
- The amenities and programs listed above are available to both Beachwood’s residents and the employees of the many businesses that support Beachwood’s healthy tax base. Beachwood is home to several large businesses, including: Eaton Corporation, DDR, Penske, OMNOVA, Aleris International, and Austin Powder.
- Beachwood offers door-to-door transportation for the disabled and anyone 60 and older. Rides are available for medical appointments, shopping, banking, and social and recreational activities. This is an extremely helpful amenity for people relocating to Northeast Ohio who are bringing their aging parents with them. You can go to work, and the City of Beachwood can take your mom to meet her friends for lunch!
- Beachwood City Schools are consistently highly-rated. The city prides itself on the technological offerings for its students and on its campuses. They began a one-to-one computer program for their middle schools over 20 years ago.
- Beachwood’s premiere shopping and dining districts include: Beachwood Place and the Beachwood Lifestyle Center (formerly LaPlace). Beachwood is also just down the road from the shops and restaurants at Eton, Legacy Village, and Pinecrest.
- All three major NE Ohio healthcare entities are represented in Beachwood. It is home to UH Ahuja Medical Center, Cleveland Clinic’s Beachwood Family Health and Surgery Center and Cole Eye Institute, and MetroHealth Beachwood Health Center.
- While Beachwood is often thought of as a mostly Jewish suburb, all religious backgrounds and heritages are represented and welcomed in this community. It has a diverse population. The high school currently has students enrolled from 23 countries.
- There are three to four routes available from Beachwood to most spots in University Circle, Downtown Cleveland, and the airport.
- Beachwood shares Canterbury Golf Club (private club) with neighboring Shaker Heights.
After our overview, we hopped on the Senior Transportation Bus and toured the city with Beachwood’s Business Retention Specialist Keri Zipay, Building Commissioner Bill Griswold, and Executive Director of the Beachwood Chamber of Commerce Cindy Caldwell.
As we drove around Beachwood, we learned more about the housing options available. There is zero available land for building homes. All new builds in the community are built after the demolition of a previous house. There is a wide range of price points with some streets offering homes in the $225,000-$350,000 range and others with homes in the $700,000-$1,000,000+ range. The Hamptons offers 651 apartments that are currently 94% occupied. For apartment living, they also have The Four Seasons, The Vue, The Aster (more on this spot in a minute), and The Village. The Village consists of detached homes, condos, and apartments. Many of the apartments in The Village are available for short term lease, which is great for those relocating to Cleveland who want to rent while they look for the perfect home. The Twenty Four Hundred luxury townhomes are under construction now, with six out of the 12 units already purchased.
On our tour, we stopped to check out the Mandel Jewish Community Center with the help of VP of Membership & Marketing Debra Posner, who gave us a ton of seven-day passes to share with the people that we help orient to Northeast Ohio. The JCC offers a preschool, after-school care, day and overnight summer camps (overnight is at the Chardon campus), one of the best fitness facilities in Northeast Ohio, and the Playmakers Youth Theatre. All JCC amenities and events (with the exception of the fitness facilities) are open to non-members.
Our next stop on our tour was the soon-to-open apartments at The Aster. Community Manager Amy Lawlor gave us a behind-the-scenes tour. It is a boutique-style community located near Chagrin Boulevard and I-271. There are one, two, and three-bedroom floor plans. The amenities include a heated salt-water pool, club room with commercial kitchen, and a pet park.
Thank you to EA Guide Janice Bilchik for organizing the tour, and thank you to the Beachwood team for a great day!
At Executive Arrangements, we are constantly engaging in neighborhood educational opportunities so we have all of the latest info to share with your company’s recruits and new hires. Does your company need help showcasing our region’s lifestyle opportunities? Call us: 216.231.9311.