Slavic Village
Encyclopedia
South Broadway is a neighborhood on the southeast side of Cleveland, Ohio
. One of the city's oldest neighborhoods, much of the area has historically served as home to Cleveland's original Czech
and Polish
immigrants. While demographics have shifted over the decades the largest part of South Broadway today, Slavic Village, is named for these earlier communities.
South Broadway is bordered on the northwest by the Cuyahoga River
(and the adjacent Tremont
neighborhood), to the north by the neighborhood of North Broadway, on the east by Union-Miles and Kinsman, and the suburbs of Cuyahoga Heights
and Newburgh Heights
to the south.
and Easten European
neighborhood centered around Fleet Avenue and Broadway. The neighborhood's name encompasses two smaller ethnically sub-divided sections: the larger Czech-dominated Karlin, and the heavily Polish Warszawa districts.
Slavic Village is combining the Warszawa site the Polish immigrants settled in 1870. The lives of these immigrants were centered around the hamlet
s they've formed and the St. Stanislaus Church
they built. Its exact location is at East 65th Street and Forman Avenue, and the thriving Polish commercial center along Fleet Avenue and East 71st Street. The population of Poles and other Eastern Europeans in the neighborhood peaked in the period from 1920s to 1940 and began to decline during migration of the people
to the villages, when the city suffered demographic decline during the 1950s and 1960s. On November 28, 1980, Warszawa was added to the National Register of Historic Places
as Warszawa Neighborhood District.
An attempt to revitalize the neighborhood was undertaken with the organization of Neighborhood Ventures, Inc., in 1977. With Teddy and Donna Sliwinski, along with architect Kaszimier Wieclaw, the area began to come alive once again. In order to attract people of various Eastern European descent, the name of the region was changed to "Slavic Village".
The nonprofit Slavic Village Assn. was organized in 1978 to preserve residential and commercial buildings through its sponsorship of the annual Slavic Village Harvest Festival, which in its 17th year (1993) was drawing 100,000 people. Between 1987 and 1990, the Slavic Village Assn. merged with the Broadway Development Corporation as the Slavic Village Broadway Development Corporation to coordinate community-based revitalization activities in the Broadway neighborhood. The Slavic Village Broadway Development Corporation is now known as just Slavic Village Development
, and cites an "investment of $160 million over the past 22 years to improve Slavic Village."
More recently, Slavic Village has seen difficult times. The zip code that includes the neighborhood, 44105, recorded more home foreclosures than any other zip code in the country during the second quarter of 2007, causing the national media to declare the neighborhood the center of the 2007 foreclosure crisis.
The neighborhood saw an increase in property crime, violent crime, and prostitution during 2007, attributed to youth gangs and drug dealers taking advantage of the high number of home foreclosures.
The City's plan to eliminate the 3rd police district, which includes Slavic Village, had been an issue of concern for some residents, as voiced by local councilman Anthony Brancatelli. In May 2008, the former 3rd District Police headquarters closed and Slavic Village policing responsibility was redrawn between the 3rd and 5th Police Districts, increasing the number of police cars on the street. Subsequently, Councilman Brancatelli stated he was satisfied with the resulting improved police response time and police presence.
In July 2008, Slavic Village was one of six neighborhoods of the Neighborhood Strategic Investment Initiatives featured locally in an audio discussion titled "Conversations in Slavic Village" held by the Case Western Reserve Studies Symposium. Stakeholders discussed how neighborhoods are vital to the livable city. Speakers cited specific events occurring in direct counterexample to the increased crime reported in the media in 2007. Representatives included a savings and loan association
official, steel mill
corporate social responsibility
manager, public art
coordinator, community development corporation
director, and local metropark
, youth organization, and cultural center
directors.
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. One of the city's oldest neighborhoods, much of the area has historically served as home to Cleveland's original Czech
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
and Polish
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
immigrants. While demographics have shifted over the decades the largest part of South Broadway today, Slavic Village, is named for these earlier communities.
South Broadway is bordered on the northwest by the Cuyahoga River
Cuyahoga River
The Cuyahoga River is located in Northeast Ohio in the United States. Outside of Ohio, the river is most famous for being "the river that caught fire", helping to spur the environmental movement in the late 1960s...
(and the adjacent Tremont
Tremont, Cleveland
Tremont is a neighborhood in the city of Cleveland, Ohio. Tremont is one of the oldest parts of Cleveland, and is home to restaurants and art galleries. The district sits just west of the Cuyahoga River and south of the Ohio City neighborhood. Tremont is home to numerous historic churches...
neighborhood), to the north by the neighborhood of North Broadway, on the east by Union-Miles and Kinsman, and the suburbs of Cuyahoga Heights
Cuyahoga Heights, Ohio
Cuyahoga Heights is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 638 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Cuyahoga Heights is located at ....
and Newburgh Heights
Newburgh Heights, Ohio
Newburgh Heights is a village in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,167 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Newburgh Heights is located at ....
to the south.
Slavic Village
The historic Slavic Village is named for what was once a predominantly CentralCentral Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
and Easten European
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
neighborhood centered around Fleet Avenue and Broadway. The neighborhood's name encompasses two smaller ethnically sub-divided sections: the larger Czech-dominated Karlin, and the heavily Polish Warszawa districts.
Slavic Village is combining the Warszawa site the Polish immigrants settled in 1870. The lives of these immigrants were centered around the hamlet
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
s they've formed and the St. Stanislaus Church
St. Stanislaus Church (Cleveland, Ohio)
St. Stanislaus Church was established in 1873 by Polish American immigrants from Poland. They established a church and school for the growing Pol-Am or Polish American Community of Cleveland. The Alliance of Poles on Broadway Avenue was allied with the St. Stanislaus Parish Community. As St....
they built. Its exact location is at East 65th Street and Forman Avenue, and the thriving Polish commercial center along Fleet Avenue and East 71st Street. The population of Poles and other Eastern Europeans in the neighborhood peaked in the period from 1920s to 1940 and began to decline during migration of the people
Suburbanization
Suburbanization a term used to describe the growth of areas on the fringes of major cities. It is one of the many causes of the increase in urban sprawl. Many residents of metropolitan regions work within the central urban area, choosing instead to live in satellite communities called suburbs...
to the villages, when the city suffered demographic decline during the 1950s and 1960s. On November 28, 1980, Warszawa was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as Warszawa Neighborhood District.
An attempt to revitalize the neighborhood was undertaken with the organization of Neighborhood Ventures, Inc., in 1977. With Teddy and Donna Sliwinski, along with architect Kaszimier Wieclaw, the area began to come alive once again. In order to attract people of various Eastern European descent, the name of the region was changed to "Slavic Village".
The nonprofit Slavic Village Assn. was organized in 1978 to preserve residential and commercial buildings through its sponsorship of the annual Slavic Village Harvest Festival, which in its 17th year (1993) was drawing 100,000 people. Between 1987 and 1990, the Slavic Village Assn. merged with the Broadway Development Corporation as the Slavic Village Broadway Development Corporation to coordinate community-based revitalization activities in the Broadway neighborhood. The Slavic Village Broadway Development Corporation is now known as just Slavic Village Development
Slavic Village Development
Slavic Village Development is a non-profit community development corporation serving the North and South Broadway neighborhoods of Cleveland, Ohio...
, and cites an "investment of $160 million over the past 22 years to improve Slavic Village."
More recently, Slavic Village has seen difficult times. The zip code that includes the neighborhood, 44105, recorded more home foreclosures than any other zip code in the country during the second quarter of 2007, causing the national media to declare the neighborhood the center of the 2007 foreclosure crisis.
The neighborhood saw an increase in property crime, violent crime, and prostitution during 2007, attributed to youth gangs and drug dealers taking advantage of the high number of home foreclosures.
The City's plan to eliminate the 3rd police district, which includes Slavic Village, had been an issue of concern for some residents, as voiced by local councilman Anthony Brancatelli. In May 2008, the former 3rd District Police headquarters closed and Slavic Village policing responsibility was redrawn between the 3rd and 5th Police Districts, increasing the number of police cars on the street. Subsequently, Councilman Brancatelli stated he was satisfied with the resulting improved police response time and police presence.
In July 2008, Slavic Village was one of six neighborhoods of the Neighborhood Strategic Investment Initiatives featured locally in an audio discussion titled "Conversations in Slavic Village" held by the Case Western Reserve Studies Symposium. Stakeholders discussed how neighborhoods are vital to the livable city. Speakers cited specific events occurring in direct counterexample to the increased crime reported in the media in 2007. Representatives included a savings and loan association
Savings and loan association
A savings and loan association , also known as a thrift, is a financial institution that specializes in accepting savings deposits and making mortgage and other loans...
official, steel mill
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
corporate social responsibility
Corporate social responsibility
Corporate social responsibility is a form of corporate self-regulation integrated into a business model...
manager, public art
Public art
The term public art properly refers to works of art in any media that have been planned and executed with the specific intention of being sited or staged in the physical public domain, usually outside and accessible to all...
coordinator, community development corporation
Community Development Corporation
Community Development Corporation is a broad term referring to not-for-profit organizations incorporated to provide programs, offer services and engage in other activities that promote and support community development. CDCs usually serve a geographic location such as a neighborhood or a town....
director, and local metropark
Regional park
Regional park is a term used for an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, recreational use or other reason, and under the administration of a form of local government.-Definition:...
, youth organization, and cultural center
Cultural center
A cultural center or cultural centre is an organization, building or complex that promotes culture and arts. Cultural centers can be neighborhood community arts organizations, private facilities, government-sponsored, or activist-run...
directors.
External links
- Audio discussion of Slavic Village of the Neighborhood Strategic Investment Initiatives hosted by the Case Western Reserve Studies Symposium, referencing Norman Krumholz and Neighborhood Community Development Corporations http://blog.case.edu/wrss/2008/07/01/slavicvillageonehttp://blog.case.edu/wrss/2008/07/01/slavicvillagetwo
- The Encyclopedia Of Cleveland History by Cleveland Bicentennial Commission (Cleveland, Ohio), David D. Van Tassel (Editor), and John J. Grabowski (Editor) ISBN 0-253-33056-4
- Slavic Village Development
- Polish-American Cultural Center, Cleveland, OH