COLUMBUS, Ohio — Under the Ohio House's updated budget proposal, Cleveland would get tens of millions of dollars for the long-awaited land bridge to connect the downtown area to Lake Erie.
The state's $95 billion budget includes items like a billion-dollar tax cut, $1 billion to fund public schools and an expansion of the private school voucher system. News 5 Statehouse Bureau reporter Morgan Trau will be examining more aspects of the budget in upcoming pieces.
The state budget would give $62 million for the Cleveland Municipal Land Bridge project, giving locals better access to the state's best asset — Lake Erie.
In downtown, the Shoreway highway, the railroads and bluffs separate the city and the water.
"You look around all the other cities; they have stuff like that," said Clevelander John Cabil. "We need to build our lake up."
For years, Northeast Ohio leaders have been trying to find a way to connect the downtown area to the lakefront. This would be good for locals, but also tourism, Cabil said.
"If we do that, I guarantee a lot of people will visit there, too," he said.
State Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland) is a leader on the Finance Committee and said she's fighting to help make Cabil's dream come true.
"The mayors of Cleveland have talked about it for over 100 years," Sweeney said. "And finally, with some state support, we think that we can actually make it a reality."
The proposed land bridge has been in serious talks since 2021 and would build a pedestrian land bridge over the Shoreway.
This would allow greater access to places like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The music museum would get help from the budget with its own facelift, as well.
"They've been looking at doing a massive expansion to really make the Rock Hall, which is a state resource, really accessible to the whole region, to expand into school districts...They're creating a whole music venue, to really make it more ingrained into the community," the lawmaker added.
Five million ARPA dollars will be given to the museum if the bill passes.
“This critical support and public investment will fund much-needed updates to improve public access to Lake Erie and accessibility to North Coast Harbor," President & CEO of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Greg Harris told News 5, in part. "We look forward to the rest of the budget process and appreciate the support demonstrated by the Ohio House for this important project as we prepare to welcome our next 14 million visitors and continue to generate over $225 million per year in economic impact."
The Rock Hall will create new "outdoor community spaces" that will host programs with their community partners for free public use by Ohio residents, Harris added.
Clevelander Andrew Shields said he is sure people would be excited by a live venue at the Rock Hall, especially with its proximity to the lake.
"That'd be cool because I'm a big rock guy," Shields said.
The budget still needs to be voted on by the House and then will head over to the Senate for review, but Cleveland lawmakers on each side say they feel good about it.
"It would be nice for Cleveland to build that and revitalize the lake 'cause it's been so long," Cabil said. "You got the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and you got the Science Center and you got the Cleveland Browns Stadium, so something like that would be nice."
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