East Cleveland is an interesting place for sure. I have a client there and it’s definitely not in great shape. Their city government is definitely failing them in a big way, and they are also heavily impacted by the issue with suburbs in regards to tax revenue that much of metropolitan Cleveland has had to deal with. For those reading who aren’t up to speed on things, the city of Cleveland, by total landmass, is pretty small. Cuyahoga county itself is composed of 38 cities, 19 villages, and two townships which means that a lot of different areas grant themselves their own individual tax laws and guess what, they all feel like they are paying too much in taxes. So, they decide themselves that they get lower taxes, problem is, the tax revenue required has not actually decreased at all, in fact, by creating a new local government you have now increased the operating costs of your area. So really by having people move into these smaller suburbs you have really just created special groups of individuals who are wealthier, are a greater stress on county resources, and choose to pay less in taxes essentially bleeding the community dry. If you were to pull up a map of Cuyahoga county you will actually get a pretty good laugh. East Cleveland itself is the only outlier in this situation and it exists itself in a very complicated and sad situation that involves redlining, systemic racism, corporate greed and lack of regulation. Ironically its borders are surrounded by some of the wealthiest communities in the state.

Honestly the part that makes me the most upset about the situation is just how easy it is to solve.