CLEVELAND, Ohio — There’s a new spot in downtown Cleveland for where people can live and soon, new places to eat and drink, too.

But it’s all inside a historic building.

What You Need To Know

  • The iconic May Company Building in downtown Cleveland has been restored and so far three residents call it home

  • The more than $100 million project has been in the works for the last three years

  • In 1915, the building was home to the May Company Department Store

  • After the store closed in the early 90s, most of the building lay vacant for years

 

The iconic May Company Building in downtown Cleveland has been restored and so far, three residents call it home.

The more than $100 million project has been in the works for the last three years.

Ken Till is the Vice President for Development at Bedrock, the real estate firm leading the renovation.

“A lot of vibrancy. Hopefully when the pandemic passes there will be the potential for people to engage with each other and really form a neighborhood within this one building,” said Till.

There is a state-of-the art fitness center at "The May." It features a weight room, cardio machines and even a yoga studio.

“With these 100,000-square-foot floor plates, we had the ability to do larger amenities than a lot of residential developers might otherwise do,” said Till.

Off the community room is a family-friendly kid area where you can write on the walls. The eight-floor building has a parking garage and atrium.

“Originally all of this space was filled in. We literally took out all the floors that were interfiling the spaces around the columns and the beams,” said Till regarding the atrium.

The 307 apartments range from studio to three bedroom.

Price tags vary from a little over $1,000 to over $3,000 a month depending on the size. But there’s no shortage of Public Square views.

“I mean it’s really amazing, the transformation,” said Till.

In 1915, the building was home to the May Company Department Store. After the store closed in the early 90s, most of the building lay vacant for years.

The current modern, colorful touches throughout are there to reflect an up-scale department-store feel.

And now, life breathes back into these historic halls.

"So this building is basically a full city block. It stretches from Euclid to Prospect,” said John Drain, the development manager of the project.

There’s even a private rooftop space. Bedrock is in the market for more retailers to move in too and make the other side a restaurant’s rooftop bar.

But keeping the architectural integrity of the terra cotta building was critical for the developers.

“From our perspective this building was 100 years old. It deserved that respect and we’re going to hold it for, who knows, another 100 years," said Till.

Surprisingly, COVID-19 didn’t slow things down and work wrapped up on time.​

“A lot of pride. A lot of joy to see this happen,” said Till.