Roughly two weeks ago, Cuyahoga County Commissioners announced that downtown Cleveland’s Mall B was the leading choice to house a semi-underground Medical Mart and Convention Center. The Mall site was said to cost over $100 million less than competing locations.
But, the commissioners and developer Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. were greeted with harsh criticism from the public and the Plain Dealer editorial board for what was seen as a secretive decision process. So, Thursday at 2PM, there will be a public hearing at Cleveland Public Library with the commissioners and MMPI. County Administrator Jim McCafferty says the public meeting is not a direct response to the outcry…
McCAFFERTY: I think it’s something we always planned to do, but certainly we’re aware that there’s been criticism in the media that this hasn’t been done totally publicly, and we want folks to see what the decision was made on—what kind of information—and also the depth of the work that’s been done by our partner in this project.
And, McCafferty says the public will get to see the same plans the commissioners saw.
McCafferty also rejected reports that a site on the lakefront had been chosen as a backup location. He says the Mall location is the only provisional choice, as the commissioners await a report from engineers on its feasibility.