CHEERS - Cleveland Harbor Eastern Embayment Resilience Strategy

2025 CHEERS news

The partners working to improve Cleveland's East Side lakefront kicked off the Cleveland Harbor Eastern Embayment Resilience Strategy, or CHEERS, in 2020. Now into it's fifth year, the project is a priority for the six partner organizations and is moving to implement a vision created by working with the community and with stakeholders representing more than 50 groups. Work currently underway includes:

Design funding is in place – in-water structures are nearing 60% engineering
CHEERS is the locally preferred solution for beneficial use of dredge material. The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is considering CHEERS as they evaluate options for a 20-year Dredge Material Management Plan (DMMP)
- Provide important support for CHEERS by attending a public meeting hosted by USACE on June 3rd from 6pm - 8pm at the Main Branch of the Cleveland Public Library. Please see this event flyer for more details.
CHEERS is complemented by proposed park improvements at Gordon Park south of Interstate 90. Construction is slated to begin in 2025.
Partners have been working with the consultant team to refine engineering & design of the park & habitat.
Additional design work and community engagement will kick off soon, so keep an eye out here for more info!
Partners are pursuing construction funding to build an early action project in the Habitat Loop, located north of the former First Energy site between the existing channels / stone structures. If successful, construction may kick off in 2028.
Partners will develop CHEERS in phases & plan to fully complete work over approximately 25 years

CHEERS Economic Benefits

CHEERS is a cost-effective, long-term investment in Cleveland's community and economy. The six project partners, stakeholders representing more than 50 community organizations, and residents of Northeast Ohio support CHEERS. Along with community support, the project represents a fiscally responsible solution that protects and maintains the Port of Cleveland's $7 B annual economic impact. See the Ohio Maritime Plan for more information.

The View Site Plan

The View Illustration

CHEERS Overall Site Plan

Past Meeting Information

Check back here periodically for presentations, videos, and other information from the many community and stakeholder engagement opportunities we will be holding as CHEERS progresses.

About CHEERS

The Cleveland Harbor Eastern Embayment Resilience Strategy (CHEERS) project is a concept that emerged from a yearlong study to determine how to transform Cleveland’s lakeshore through reconnecting communities to the lake, improving public health, bolstering the economy, and benefiting the environment and natural habitat. It is now in a design phase with the help of a consultant team to move the original study towards implementation. Stakeholders and the support received from the community are crucial to the success of CHEERS. Community engagement kicked off in early 2023 – check back here for updates!

CHEERS will utilize beneficial use of dredge material to improve shoreline resilience, build habitat, expand parks, and work to heal damage done by past unjust developmental practices and industrial use. Click here for a summary of background on CHEERS, and here for the full version of the initial plan.

CHEERS is a partnership between Black Environmental Leaders, the City of Cleveland and Cleveland City Council, Cleveland Metroparks, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Ohio Department of Transportation, and the Port of Cleveland.

This project is supported by grants from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Ohio Department of Transportation's Maritime Assistance Program, and local match and in-kind support from each of the CHEERS Partners.

The Partners

This stage of CHEERS focuses on detailed investigations of existing conditions on the project site and will develop engineering documents for the in-water structures.

The project partners will also continue community engagement and park planning with an eye towards phasing and implementation timeframes.
Site investigations and engineering are underway to move the project towards permitting from state and federal agencies
Nearly $6M in funding has been received from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s National Coastal Resilience Fund and the State of Ohio’s Maritime Assistance Program, along with local match commitments from the six project partners.

For a preliminary glimpse into what the phases of building this project might look like over the next 20+ years, take a look at the phasing graphic below!