Delete WardFeb 14, 2023
Cleveland’s one and only suspension bridge - Sidaway Bridge - was officially made a landmark by City Council Monday night (2/13).
The bridge has sat abandoned for five decades since it was set on fire in the Hough Riots during the civil rights movement.
The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in October 2022. Council’s decision to give the bridge landmark status —and the fact that it is already on the National Historic Registry — will help officials secure funding for its restoration and the area surrounding it.
Councilman Richard Starr, whose ward includes the bridge, is pleased with the designation which he believes will enable the city to receive grants and other supports to restore the bridge, and include community input in regard to the bridge and the area below, Kingsbury Run. The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority owns the Kingsbury Run property. There have been talks of converting the valley into a green space for residents and visitors to enjoy.
The green space and renovation of the bridge is something Starr said he hopes will drive further economic development in that area and along the Opportunity Corridor.
Read the history of the Sidaway Bridge – which had a colorful, notorious and sad history including being the location of the so-called “Torso Murders” in Cleveland in the late 1930s.