May 24, 2024, updated on June 7, 2024
On Monday, May 20, the Heights Libraries board voted not to renew the 18-month leases of nine PEACE Building tenants (Artful, Building Bridges, Cleveland Heights Teacher’s Union, Coventry PEACE Inc., Future Heights, Grace Communion, Lake Erie Ink, Reaching Heights, and Singer’s Club).
Here are answers to some questions that members of the CHUH community have asked the Library.
Why did the Library fund the expansion and renovation of their Noble Branch building but is unwilling to invest funds in the PEACE Building?
Heights Libraries receives its funding from state and local taxes, so the money it spends must go toward public services, which can include anything from materials, to classes, to spaces to sit in and work, study, or just be. Any member of the public, whether from our community or not, can enter a library building, no questions asked, for no reason other than they want to be there. No one needs to have an appointment or a purpose. Once there, that person can stay all day reading, relaxing, taking classes, using a public computer, taking their child to a storytime, or even, if they are under 18, getting a free snack in the children’s and teen areas after school. For example, the Noble branch serves an average of 138,000 people a year (not counting 2024, when it was closed most of the year for renovation).
The Library, however, is not a funder, nor a foundation, and the PEACE Building is not a public building, and offers few free services to the public.
People must buzz in to the PEACE building unless there is a specific event that is open to the public. Programs are not free to the public except in rare cases. For example, Artful does have some free events like the PEACE Pops, but it resells space to artists; it is not a free resource to artists. Other tenants are nonprofits that do not directly serve the public, like the CHUH Schools Teacher’s Union.
Did Heights Libraries change the deadline for the tenants to renew their leases?
No. The 18-month leases, which each tenant signed, clearly state that they must inform the Library of their intent to renew their leases AT LEAST 90 days before the lease expires on June 30, 2024; the expiration date is clearly spelled out in section 5 of each lease (copies of each lease can be found here):
Term. The term (the “Term”) of this Lease shall commence on January 1, 2023 (the “Start Date” or “Effective Date”) and end after a term of eighteen (18) months on June 30, 2024 (the “End Date”), unless otherwise extended as provided herein.
Section 6 of each lease states:
Option Term. Tenant shall have one (1) option to renew this Lease for a period of an additional eighteen (18) months (the “Option Term”) from the conclusion of the Term set forth in Section 5 of this Lease. Tenant may exercise its option to renew this Lease for the Option Term by providing Library with written notice of such exercise at least ninety (90) days prior to the End Date.
Additionally, each tenant received, via email and hand delivery, a letter reminding each tenant of the rent increase that would take place July 1, 2024 IF they renewed. (Copies of each letter can be found here.)
Does the Library have a buyer lined up for the PEACE building?
No. If the Library were to solicit offers from potential buyers, it would have to be a public process. The Library HAS received unsolicited offers, which it has turned down. In fact, at the May 20 board meeting, the Board of Trustees formally voted to reject unsolicited offers. The Library will follow the original deed for the property, which stipulated it be for public use.
Are the tenants being kicked out in December?
No. Per the resolution passed at the May 20 Board meeting, the Library is offering the tenants with expiring terms an additional 6-month term, from July 1, 2024 through December 31, 2024, renewing on a month-to-month basis thereafter until terminated by either party with 60 days’ notice.
Are the tenants’ payments covering the costs of the building?
No. Over the last few years, the Library has been spending roughly $200,000 a year on basic maintenance and repairs for the building, an amount that the current payments from the tenants don’t cover. For example, in 2023, the tenants paid $149,267 in rent and operating costs, but the Library paid $191,290 on utilities, cleaning fees, and other expenses, creating a deficit of $42,000 (see report here). So far in 2024, the gap is already $16,000 and continues to grow.
1/23 to 12/23 1/24 to 3/24 Total
Tenant payments $148,267 $38,125 $186,392
Expenses $191,290 $54,503 $245,793
Difference (43,023) (16,378) (59,401)
The original leases in 2018 spelled out the tenants’ responsibility to cover the building’s costs in the form of rent, additional payments to cover operating costs, and fundraising efforts that would go in to a reserve account to cover repairs and maintenance. The leases also spelled out a requirement that the tenants had two years to create a single governing entity and create a financially feasible structure for taking over the building. The tenants were unable to do so, and since then the library has, to date, spent almost $500,000 on the building that has not been recouped.
What are the next steps for the property?
The decision about what to do with the Coventry PEACE Building has not been made and there are no inevitabilities. The board has asked staff to evaluate the financial stability of the building. Staff will also conduct an open, transparent and public process to consider options that are both within the mission of the library as well as in the best interest of the community. We are currently planning public meetings that will take place this summer, and will circulate a survey both online and in hard copy. We look forward to hearing from all of our stakeholders across the community.
Staff will be taking into consideration a March 2024 report by Cresco/Playhouse Square Management, the building’s current manager and real estate agent, that finds the former Coventry Elementary School building is in need of slightly over $2.8 million dollars’ worth of repairs. (A copy of the report can be found here.)
Also, on July 7, the Library will celebrate the ground breaking for the new PEACE Park, a public space, open to all, that will feature a new playground for all ages and abilities, an accessible walking path, a performance pavilion, outdoor seating, and over 100 trees. The sledding hill will remain, as will the open field in the middle of the park.