Cleveland officials announced Friday the city has been awarded $70 million from the federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help fund the North Coast Connector. The Connector will bridge the train tracks and the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway, state Route 2, behind city hall, providing better pedestrian access between downtown and the lakefront.
The funding is on top of a $60 million federal Infrastructure for Rebuilding America grant awarded in October 2024 and $20 million from the State Community Investment fund. Mayor Justin Bibb called the grant a big win for the city.
"It allows us to plan towards construction on the first phase of this project in 2027," he said. "And we are confident that the first phase of this project will be completed relatively soon."
The Connector is aimed at uniting communities once divided along economic and racial lines, Bibb said.
"For far too long in Cleveland, our waterways whether it be the Cuyahoga River or the lakefront have been a dividing line between the East side, West side, Black and white."
The North Coast Connector is part of Bibb's Shore-to-Core-to-Share initiative, intended to bring new vitality and economic growth to the city's lakefront. Jessica Trivisonno is the city's senior advisor for major projects. The overall lakefront project is crucial to Cleveland's future, she said.
"Every neighborhood of Cleveland really prevents folks from getting to the lakefront, Trivisonno said. "The North Coast Connector really helps remediate the harm that was caused."
The $284 million Connector is set to break ground in 2027. Funding will primarily be used to construct the land bridge but will also transform part of the Shoreway to include access for pedestrians and bike riders.
