Wickliffe group off to impressive start

When a significant problem arises in a community, it’s not uncommon to see a committee formed to seek solutions.

That’s what has happened in Wickliffe, where the Wickliffe Community Euclid Avenue Corridor Action Committee has been established.

We believe, for a variety of reasons, that the panel shows the potential to achieve success.

First, we like the composition of the committee. This panel boasts a good cross-section of members: the mayor, schools superintendent, business owners, residents, council members and a state representative, and is facilitated by Willoughby Western Lake County Chamber of Commerce President Karen Tercek and Lake County Commissioner Jerry Cirino.

The group held its second meeting on July 27.

Cirino said economic development on the west side of Lake County is a priority.

The Euclid Avenue corridor in Wickliffe has been identified as a problem area because of vacant properties and lack of aesthetics.

Although the Wickliffe Community Euclid Avenue Corridor Action Committee is relatively new, we commend the group for promptly considering and setting a number of goals. Short-term goals of making Wickliffe more attractive include placing “Welcome to Wickliffe” signs at entry points of the city and designing building murals. The longterm goals include design of Euclid Avenue, beautification projects, ways to attract new businesses, new development and plans for the ABB site.

We also believe that the committee has done a good job of assessing what obstacles stand in its way and what efforts already have been undertaken to improve the Euclid Avenue corridor.

Tercek said many of the vacant properties in the target area have been neglected by owners and are overpriced for sale.

Wickliffe Mayor William Margalis said the city has identified the property owners of vacant buildings, cited them for building code violations, changed zoning and made attempts to make Euclid Avenue more visually appealing with streetscape projects.

As for possible solutions, we like Margalis’ idea of group members contacting property owners and inviting them to meetings. In our opinion, this approach might help property owners to feel like they’re needed to play a key role in improving Wickliffe’s Euclid Avenue corridor, rather than targeting them as part of a problem.

It’s also clear to us that the committee is receptive to receiving ideas and input from knowledgable people outside of the city. For example, when several inquiries were raised about how downtown Willoughby was revitalized, the group asked if Willoughby Mayor David Anderson could attend the next meeting.

So far, the Wickliffe Community Euclid Avenue Corridor Action Committee has shown itself to be an insightful, focused and dedicated group that’s eager to gain community input, discuss possibilities and explore ideas to improve a section of the city that holds great potential.

We urge committee members to keep up the good work they’ve started and continue to provide public updates on the progress they make in bolstering Wickliffe’s Euclid Avenue corridor.