NOACA, Mayor Bibb Join Regional and Federal Partners in $10 Million Bid to Revitalize E. 66th Street Corridor

Thursday, August 4, 2022 – CLEVELAND – Mayor Justin M. Bibb and the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) joined regional and federal partners today in announcing a joint effort to seek $10 million in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program for the revitalization of the East 66th Street Corridor from Hough to Midtown.  
 
Today at 2 p.m., guests heard highlights of the proposed grant and took a tour of the DREAM 66 project corridor beginning at the Baseball Heritage Museum/League Park at the corner of E. 66th and Linwood. 
 
Speakers included: 
Mayor Justin Bibb, City of Cleveland 
Grace Gallucci, NOACA Executive Director and CEO  
Shontel Brown, Ohio’s 11th Congressional District  
Stephanie Howse, Cleveland City Councilwoman, Ward 7 
 
The City of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) are co-sponsors of the grant proposal and together with the support of U.S. Representative Shontel Brown, MidTown Cleveland, the Cleveland Foundation, Greater Cleveland Partnership and other stakeholders, are seeking $10.7 million in grant funding from the RAISE program to transform East 66th Street between Superior Avenue and Euclid Avenue.  
 
“This funding would help end decades of disinvestment in Hough and MidTown, two of Cleveland’s most underserved neighborhoods, and capitalize on the momentum to rebuild and revitalize the region,” Mayor Bibb stated. 
 
“Multimodal investments along East 66th Street will also bring connections to the adjacent St. Clair-Superior neighborhood,” said NOACA Executive Director and CEO Grace Gallucci.  “This collaboration between community residents, the business community, and local and regional partners has the potential to become a bustling connector in our region to produce more equitable avenues for access to jobs, education, and healthcare opportunities.” 
 
If successful, the funding would boost development within the corridor, which is already attracting investments with a new branch of the Cleveland Public Library and the Cleveland Foundation’s new headquarters under construction. 
 
DREAM 66 is the first project since the City of Cleveland passed new Complete and Green Streets legislation to comply with the updated ordinance. In addition to new investments and development underway, the proposed improvements complement existing residential housing, community service organizations, churches and the historic League Park.  
 
NOACA identified DREAM 66 as a regional priority pilot project for demonstration of its Complete and Green Streets Policy and has committed $1.5 million for implementation to leverage additional federal dollars requested through RAISE.  
 
The transportation project includes plans to develop a new multi-purpose trail, six-foot wide sidewalks, pedestrian crossings at several intersections, new trees and plantings, bicycle and scooter parking, benches and trashcans along the one-mile corridor. Residents participated in an extensive community engagement to identify and recommend these upgrades.