After talking with the City of Cleveland staff and CMSD, Councilwoman Jenny Spencer issued a public statement regretting the lack of community engagement as a reason why CMSD is planning to proceed with a new school plan for Marion-Seltzer School that threatens to remove almost half of Cudell Park greenspace and kill over forty trees, saying that CMSD’s plan had been in process for ten years.
However, after speaking with community members and reviewing the evidence-based timeline, Councilwoman Spencer issued a correction to her statement saying that the current plan that CMSD is trying to push forward is not the design plan they have been working on for a decade. In reality, the current plan had only been created around one year ago but never publicly vetted with a radical change that removes healthy mature tree canopy and community park space. Plan previously presented by CMSD did NOT require the significant loss of greenspace and trees.
Councilwoman Spencer is now advocating for the Friends of Cudell Commons Park to meet with Mayor Bibb. She has requested a response from CMSD to account for changed school construction plans. Plans which will significantly decrease the size of the community park in a neighborhood with little park space and one of the lowest tree canopy percentages.
Timeline and links below.
September 1, 2023 - Councilwoman Jenny Spencer issues a public statement regarding the planning process of the new Marion Seltzer School. States that “CMSD will be proceeding with their current design for Marion C. Seltzer”
September 7, 2023 - Councilwoman Jenny Spencer issues a correction via social media to her previously released public statement.
“CORRECTION: I am issuing a correction to my statement from Friday, September 1st. Several residents approached me and reminded me that Cleveland Metropolitan School District held a community meeting for Marion C. Seltzer on March 15, 2022. I was not able to attend the March 2022 meeting and inadvertently omitted it from my statement. CMSD's stated purpose for the 3/22 meeting was a "Visual Preference Exercise" however an alternate site plan was presented. Engaged residents attended, and most left the meeting understanding that the depicted site plan was the final one. I will be reaching out to CMSD and ask that they issue a clarifying statement about what happened between March 2022 and October 2022 and why the site plan changed. Link to my prior statement”
An extended timeline being updated in real time of Cudell Commons Park & Marion-Seltzer construction plan is viewable at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X8HefAgDTtEPgN7laJAsAgGJVtoZcqYigwKGG-0fws0/edit?usp=sharing
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