Design Review is a crucial step to renovating property in the neighborhood. Ohio City Incorporated can help you through the process.

Local Historic Design Review

An Advisory Committee to the Landmarks Commission

The Ohio City Historic Design Review Committee is a Cleveland Landmarks Commission advisory board. It is independent of Ohio City Incorporated.

The Historic District was created in order to recognize and preserve the neighborhood's architectural heritage. Historic Districts are areas of exceptional architectural strength where historic buildings and their surroundings are protected by a design review process. When properties have been designated by the City of Cleveland as part of a historic district, exterior changes must be reviewed and approved by the Cleveland Landmarks Commission in order to ensure the historic integrity of that property and the district as a whole are maintained.

In Ohio City, as well as in several other Cleveland neighborhoods, changes are also reviewed by a local design review committee, which helps to lend a neighborhood perspective to the review process, as well as give expertise on architectural styles prevalent in individual Cleveland neighborhoods. The Local Historic Design Review Committee fulfils this function in Ohio City. If a property owner wishes to make exterior alterations to their home or building, or a business owner is looking to add permanent signage for their business, those proposed changes must be reviewed by the Ohio City Design Review Committee and potentially the City of Cleveland Landmarks Commission.

Meetings of the Ohio City Design Review Committee will take place virtually via the city's WebEx platform until futher notice, on the first and third Thursday of the month at 11:30 a.m. year-round. During the months of November and December, only one meeting is held on the first Thursday of the month due to holiday scheduling.

After your applications have been reviewed for completion, you will be referred directly to the Landmarks Commission.

All Design Review meetings are held virtually and are open to the public. Please contact Landmarks@Clevelandohio.gov for the meeting link.

For additional information or to be placed on the agenda for a Design Review meeting:

City of Cleveland Landmarks Contact: Jessica Beam, jbeam@clevelandohio.gov

OCI Staff Person contact: Julia Mettler-Grove, jmg@ohiocity.org