CLEVELAND — A new trend across the state has people turning old schools into new buildings. Michael Knerem, a real estate developer, said that repurposing old buildings into new ones brings something to the table that new buildings can’t.

“It adds to a lot of character of it, it makes it more unique than just a traditional new apartment building,” he said.

This is something that the Woda Cooper Company has been doing for years and this week they broke ground on an old school property in Columbus that they are turning into affordable apartments. The company’s vice president of development explained why they invest in these properties.

 “What peaks our interest is that it’s a very unique project, which is challenging,” he said.

Cleveland Metropolitan School District has also hopped on the trend. They are in the process of transferring many empty school buildings to developers, two of them begin construction this summer. Knerem said although projects like these are beneficial, they can pose some challenges.

“A school, the floor plans are really open, so there’s not a lot of structural concerns compared to something else because it’s all pretty open and made that way, but you do have more difficulty with a school when you’re looking at the mechanical, electrical, the water, the sewer, all of those kinds of things,” he said.

Developers, such as McKay, believe this is a win-win situation because they have repurposed buildings that have been empty for years and given housing to those in need.

“We believe, ultimately, it is going to spur further economic investment. So, I would encourage other companies to undertake these types of developments,” he said. 

Both Knerem and McKay believe that this will continue to be a trend.