Question 1

What is the Aerozone?

Accepted Answer

The Aerozone is a 50-square mile area centered around Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. It is home to a large concentration of businesses, especially in aerospace, research, logistics and manufacturing. The area currently employs 100,000 people with strong growth potential. The Aerozone area spans eight municipalities, including Berea, Brook Park, Cleveland, Fairview Park, Middleburg Heights, North Olmsted, Rocky River, and Strongsville, and includes large tracts of un- and underdeveloped land.

Question 2

What is a Transportation and Economic Development Initiative (TEDI)?

Accepted Answer

The TEDI is a process that will help envision how this area might grow and what transportation projects will best support that vision. Planners will gather a wide variety of information, from surveying the public to traffic modeling, to help local leaders reach consensus about what future development patterns are most desirable and achievable and what kinds of transportation investments are needed to support them.

Question 3

How long will this process take?

Accepted Answer

The Aerozone TEDI is an 18-month planning process that will take part in three phases. The project began in June 2025 and is expected to conclude in November 2026. You can see what phase of the project we are in right now here. (https://8ec4b15b-efb5-4da1-a63b-b8a4bdba530f.usrfiles.com/ugd/8ec4b1_192c3b330b8d4173adcb693d594ec689.pdf)

Question 4

How will you engage the public?

Accepted Answer

Understanding how residents and employees in the Aerozone get around is very important as we consider what investments are needed and how to best facilitate and manage growth. Members of the public are invited to take our survey (coming soon), and/or attend a public meeting (virtually or in person) where they can can ask questions individually and hear from the planning team. Certain members of the public who have specific concerns, such as airport employees or transit riders, may also be engaged more deeply in a small group setting.

In addition, all members of the public will be represented by their elected leaders and other government leaders in the Stakeholder Committee which will oversee every aspect of the study.

Question 5

Why is this initiative needed?

Accepted Answer

Regional leaders have identified the Aerozone as an important jobs hub that offers unique assets and opportunities for growth. Those assets include an international airport, the nexus of major interstate highways, NASA Glenn Research Center as well as more than 1,100 acres (https://s3.countyplanning.us/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/AZ_CC_Document_Final-1.pdf)of developable land. However, the Aerozone has not been widely recognized as a cohesive place, in part because of access issues, whether it is lack of safe walking infrastructure from a transit station to work, fragmentation between municipalities and large “dead zones” created by highway or airport right of ways. In short, the area is in transition and could use some thoughtful investment.

Question 6

What are the goals of the TEDI?

Accepted Answer

The TEDI will gather information about public attitudes toward development and transportation in the area, as well as physical, political and financial constraints, including environmental issues, traffic conditions and municipal zoning regulations. The goal is to develop general consensus around an achievable vision for transportation infrastructure to encourage a thriving regional jobs hub.

Question 7

What is the end result of this initiative?

Accepted Answer

The TEDI will result in three products: 
1. A “preferred scenario” or vision of how the area will develop and grow.  
2. A list of transportation projects that will facilitate that vision as well as a project prioritization framework ranking projects by importance and feasibility. 
3. A plan of action to implement the recommendations, including likely funding sources and next steps.

Question 8

Who is funding this study?

Accepted Answer

The Aerozone TEDI study is being funded through federal transportation programs. The lead funding agency is the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA),(https://www.noaca.org/home) which is the regional planning association for the five-county greater Cleveland region. NOACA leadership is working closely with the consultant team who is leading the project.

FAQs

HAVE MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROJECT?