CLEVELAND — Nearly six months after a bank shut its doors in Cleveland’s Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood because of crime concerns, a report from the city shows a decrease in some crime.
News 5 has been following the closure of the Huntington Bank branch on Buckeye Road near E 116th Street for months.
In December 2023, neighbors protested the bank’s closure announcement and collected signatures, calling on Huntington to reconsider.
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Some credit the grassroots campaign for a compromise from the bank. It agreed to temporarily close the business, aside from an outside ATM, while it worked with the city and community to improve the neighborhood.
Neighbors pledged to keep fighting to keep the bank open.
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“We can’t have news cameras down here enough to cover our response and our willingness to create a neighborhood of choice,” Julian Khan told News 5 Thursday.
Khan and his organization Neighborhood Connections are among the neighborhood advocates routinely meeting with Huntington Bank leaders to discuss reopening the Buckeye branch.
He spoke with News 5 in mid-July after 3 people were killed in 2 shootings in the Buckeye Shaker neighborhood.
Fellow neighbor and local block club president Bob Render also talked to us in April when thieves attempted to steal the ATM from the side of the Huntington building.
RELATED: Police investigate attempted ATM theft at bank temporarily closed over crime concerns
Both men believe the incidents don’t represent the neighborhood’s safety as a whole. They point to new data recently released by the city of Cleveland.
“The trend is going down - clearly,” Render said.
When the bank closed in February, Cleveland’s Department of Public Safety initiated a “microgrid intervention,” strategically partnering with local businesses and private security to tackle crime in the Buckeye neighborhood.
In comparing crime statistics from the 150 days after the intervention to the same period in 2023, the city reports a reduction in some crimes. Overall, violent crime was down more than 30%, and property crimes were down 10%. Thefts saw a modest increase, while robberies jumped by 60%.
“I think [the data] challenges the overarching narrative that this is an unsafe neighborhood… and directly related to that - a potentially unbankable neighborhood,” Khan said.
Render added, “There’s no reason on God’s good earth why the bank would be justified in closing this [branch]. The city, the city council, the administration has done everything humanly possible, given their limited resources.”
Both men believe permanently closing the bank could have lasting consequences on the community, and they said partnering with Huntington could help tackle the root causes of crime.
“If crime is the issue, we need a wealth-building institution here to help us to chip away at the byproduct of poverty,” Khan said.
Thursday, Khan, Render and other neighbors were meeting with bank officials for the latest in a series of discussions about the future of Huntington in the neighborhood.
Huntington Bank spokesperson Kris Dahl released the following statement to News 5:
“Huntington continues to work with the city of Cleveland and other community leaders to pursue meaningful safety improvements in the area surrounding our branch. This process has been underway since the beginning of this year and we are committed to exploring all reasonable options before announcing a decision. In the meantime, we continue to serve our customers and community in Buckeye by maintaining our ATM at its existing location, providing transportation options to nearby Huntington locations and advancing a variety of other programs that serve the neighborhood.”
In addition to increased patrols and other crime deterrents, the city has also provided investment in the Buckeye-Shaker neighborhood. It allocated $3.9 for 10 mixed-use commercial buildings and parking lots, more than $2 for small business support and will roll out ARPA home repair investments in August.
Neighbors vow to continue fighting to keep the bank open and advocating for their community’s future.
“I know what this neighborhood is capable of. It just seems to be news to everyone else,” Khan said.
