Plaza lift will help resurgence in city of Lorain

The city of Lorain has experienced a surge in economic development in recent years, but renovating the vacant Westgate Plaza, which has been an eyesore at West 21st Street and Leavitt Road, is a welcome surprise.

Yaser Etayem, the owner of the Westgate Plaza on the city’s west side, plans to make it viable once again for patrons.

In recent weeks, workers have removed the canopy that covered the front sidewalk of the plaza located at 2530 W. 21st St., at the intersection of state Routes 58 and 611.

It is part of the planned renovation of the shopping complex, which was about 98,000 square feet, but now is about 66,000 square feet in size.

Etayem’s company, Mercy JLA LLC, purchased the shopping center in March for $300,000.

He wants to clean it up and make sure that everything there is safe.

Etayem and his crews are going wall by wall, ceiling by ceiling, to make sure everything is 100 percent safe, which is commendable.

Workers will replace glass and windows and renovate the interiors in the units.

Etayem said everything is going to be brand new in the shopping complex.

Since the purchase, All American Trucking and Excavating applied for a demolition permit through the city’s Department of Building, Housing and Planning.

The city issued the permit March 19 and the company took out the fire-damaged center section of the building.

Unfortunately, the company took off a little too much of the building, and crews, this summer, had to rebuild it, cinder block by cinder block.

Lorain architect Gary Fischer, who is working on plans for the interiors, admits the project is challenging, but it’s possible to seal the storefronts, even if temporarily, in time for winter work inside.

Hopefully, that will happen to eliminate potential issues because Etayem wants to get businesses in there next year.

There were several factors that affected reconstruction.

When Etayem bought the shopping center, he was based in Miami, Fla., and unfamiliar with the local contractors, architects and city and state regulations for the site.

He was planning his move to Ohio, but also dealing with family members who had the novel coronavirus.

Meanwhile, materials have been scarce or expensive, and deliveries interrupted due to the pandemic.

At the end of June, Etayem relocated to Ohio, but he plans to travel to Florida as needed for family and business issues there.

But, in the plaza parking lot, contractors working on resurfacing Route 58, which also is Leavitt Road, used the blacktop to store trucks for that job.

The heavy equipment damaged the pavement there, Etayem said, and he hopes to work out compensation for that.

One contractor estimated it would take $300,000 for resurfacing the eastern section of the parking lot.

The railroad tracks behind the plaza slope downward, which washes water and stone onto the property during storms.

Area residents also use the tracks for dumping refuse, so Etayem wants a barrier wall between the shopping center and the railroad track.

As for the city regulations, Etayem praised the plans to help downtown merchants with storefront renovation and indicated he would inquire about financing for businesses in other areas of town.

Etayem credits the city for doing “a really doing a good job” and he appreciates the city’s assistance with telling him the right way to go about the renovation of the shopping plaza.

On Sept. 23, the father-son team of Chris Long and Dalton Long were using a telehandler lift and scraper to remove material from the facade facing Route 611, which also is West 21st Street.

They were expecting a delivery of roof trusses to shore up the western section of the building, where part of the roof was damaged due to the collapse of the wall during demolition earlier this year.

There is a great deal of promise and hope for Etayem as he vows to bring that once thriving shopping plaza back to life.

Just look at downtown Lorain where people have invested.

A few years ago, there were a few businesses scattered throughout the area.

Fast forward a few years, and now look at the downtown.

Several restaurants and other enterprises are gracing the area.

All over Lorain, there is economic growth.

So, what Etayem is doing for that part of Lorain makes sense because he now will be part of the revitalization of the International City.