Malls · Ohio
Severance Center
Opened 1963. Redeveloped in 1998. Owner of record Severance Realty LLC Et Al.
Status nowOperatingextracted, unreviewed
What it becamehousing, healthcare, education, parkextracted, unreviewed
Owner of recordSeverance Realty LLC Et Alcounty assessor, 2026-10-15
Site size35.5137 acres (parcels)county assessor
Retrofit year1998extracted, unreviewed
Walkability17.7 of 20 · 15-minute 6 of 6EPA, OpenStreetMap
Rail within 800 mNoOpenStreetMap, HUD
Reach the owner Download dossier (PDF) · early access Download record (JSON) API Share LinkedIn Correct this recordhttps://retrofitatlas.org/malls/oh/cleveland-heights-severance-center/
Solid = from the authors' map · outlined = public source · dashed = model-written, not yet reviewed by a person. Tap any value's source label to see where it came from.
Site profile19 elements · what this retrofit is built with · tap a chip for the evidence
Finance and pipeline
Foreclosure or REO
This site: …scope: property research-deals · all sites with thisOn Facebook
This site: …https://www.facebook.com/163049047144345 overture · all sites with thisWebsite alive
This site: …https://tools.usps.com/find-location.htm?y_source=1_MzM3OTU3NC00NDAtbG9jYXRpb24u overture / http check · all sites with thisOwnership
Single-purpose entity
This site: SEVERANCE REALTY LLC ET AL county-parcels · all sites with thisPlace
15-minute neighbourhood (5+ of 6 daily needs within 800 m)
This site: 6/6 openstreetmap · all sites with this200+ tax-credit housing units within 1 km
This site: 201 units in 1 properties hud-lihtc · all sites with this3+ other atlas sites within 10 km
This site: 4 within 10 km computed · all sites with thisBike network nearby
This site: 30 ways openstreetmap · all sites with thisCounty lost 10%+ of retail establishments since 2012
This site: -10% census-cbp · all sites with thisGrocery within 800 m
This site: 1 stores openstreetmap · all sites with thisLower-income tract (< $50k)
This site: $48,980 census-acs · all sites with thisRenter-majority tract
This site: 57% census-acs · all sites with thisShrinking county
This site: -0.3% census-acs · all sites with thisTract house prices doubled in 10 years
This site: +118% fhfa · all sites with thisWalkable block group (EPA ≥ 12)
This site: …index 17.7 epa-walkability · all sites with thisStrategy
Redeveloped
This site: Home Depot, Dave's Markets, Marshalls, OfficeMax, and vacant former anchors extraction · all sites with thisNew use
Education
This site: …new_use field extraction · all sites with thisHousing
This site: …rshalls, OfficeMax, and vacant former anchors more than 500 residential units extraction · all sites with thisPark and open space
This site: …new_use field extraction · all sites with thisNow
| Status | Operatingextracted, unreviewed |
|---|---|
| Strategy | Redevelopedextracted, unreviewed |
| New uses | housing, healthcare, education, parkextracted, unreviewed |
| What is there now | Home Depot, Dave's Markets, Marshalls, OfficeMax, and vacant former anchorsextracted, unreviewed |
| Retrofit year | 1998extracted, unreviewed |
| Owner of record | Severance Realty LLC Et Alcounty assessor |
Planning
| Planning notes | more than 500 residential unitsextracted, unreviewed |
|---|
Parcels, tax and title
| Parcel | Owner of record | Acres | Use · zoning | Value (appraised · assessed · taxable) | Last sale · deed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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68325001all 108 county fields
| Severance Realty LLC Et Al | 35.5 | COMMUNITY SHOP CNTR · S1 | $4.4M (appraised) assessed $1.5M | 2016-05-19 $10.5M | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 35.5 | $4.4M |
Deals and debt
| Date | Event | Price | Parties | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Foreclosure | — | Wikipedia |
Site context
| Transit within 800 m | no rail station; 4 bus stops within 400 mOpenStreetMap |
|---|---|
| FEMA flood zone | no NFHL polygon at point (unmapped or outside coverage)FEMA NFHL |
| EPA-regulated facilities within 500 m | 3: CLEVELAND HEIGHTS CITY PWS; METROHEALTH CLEVELAND HEIGHTS MEDICAL CENTER; SEVERANCE MILLIKIN SCHOOLEPA FRS |
| Census tract 39035140800 | 3,641 people, 4,962 per sq mi; median household income $48,980; median gross rent $1,109; 57% renters; 5.3% vacant units; 1.4% commute by transitACS 2023 5-year |
| Walkability (EPA, block group) | index 17.7 of 20; 112 intersections per sq mi; nearest transit stop 213 m; land-use mix 0.76; 89,843 jobs within 45 min by car, 53,974 by transit; 16% of households without a carEPA Smart Location |
| Within a 10–15 minute walk (800 m) | 6 of 6 daily needs: 1 grocers, 3 schools, 2 parks or playgrounds, 3 health, 8 civic, 3 food and drink; 30 cycleway segments, 251 sidewalk-tagged segmentsOpenStreetMap |
| Opportunity Zone | noHUD |
| Housing permits, Cuyahoga County (OH), 2024 | 920 units in 5+ unit buildings, 102 in 2–4, 663 single-family; 2023: 735 in 5+Census BPS |
| Social vulnerability (CDC SVI 2022, tract) | overall percentile 0.70; socioeconomic 0.60; housing and transport 0.63; 34% below 150% of poverty; 18% of households with no vehicleCDC/ATSDR |
| Other atlas sites nearby | 4 within 10 km, 10 within 25 km: Richmond Town Square (5.3 km); Carr Multi-Purpose Center (8.9 km); Euclid Square Mall (9.4 km); Randall Park Mall (9.5 km)computed |
| Overture Maps | place Severance Center Post Office (post_office, confidence 0.97, from Overture, meta); building footprint 11,425 m²Overture (CDLA-Permissive 2.0) |
| Website and social | tools.usps.com (alive) · social: facebookOverture / Internet Archive |
| Attention: Wikipedia page views | 4,635 since 2015; 1,932 in the last 12 months (+6% vs the prior 12); peak 2025-11 with 232Wikimedia |
| Tract change 2013–2023 | population -4% (3,811 → 3,641); median income +40% ($34,917 → $48,980); renters 65% → 57%; median home value +42% ($133,000 → $188,500)Census ACS 5-year |
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA National Risk Index, tract) | very low overall (score 14.4); expected annual loss $687,074; community resilience very highFEMA NRI |
| Tax-credit housing within 1 km | 1 LIHTC properties, 201 units: Kensington Place Apts (201 units)HUD LIHTC |
| Retail trade in the county, 2012 to 2023 | 3,890 establishments (-10%); 67,128 jobs (+11%)Census CBP |
| Housing market in the county | typical home value $218,659 (+3% 1 yr, +32% 5 yr); typical rent $1,413/mo (+5% 1 yr), 2026-09Zillow Research |
| House price index, tract, 2025 | 380 (2000 = 100); +2.6% 1 yr, +57% 5 yr, +118% 10 yrFHFA |
| Traffic on the busiest road within 600 m (2024) | 15,487 vehicles a day on MAYFIELD RD (principal arterial, 6 lanes); 199 trucks; 7 counted segmentsFHWA HPMS |
Summary, model-written
Severance Center opened in 1963 as a mall with anchors Higbee's and Halle's, underwent renovations and new wings through the 1980s, and lost key anchors such as Horne's (1992) and Gold Circle. In 1998 it was retrofitted with big‑box tenants like Home Depot and Walmart, and after a 2014 foreclosure it now operates as a mixed‑use site planned for housing, healthcare, education, and park space.
Why. Anchor losses (Higbee's, Halle's, Horne's, Gold Circle) and increasing competition weakened the mall’s retail base, leading to high debt and a 2014 foreclosure. These factors are visible in the record as causes of the decline.
Where it stands. The center is currently operating under the ownership of Severance Realty LLC ET AL, following its 2014 foreclosure.
For a planner
- Precedent: adaptive reuse of a declining mall into housing, healthcare, education, and park uses.
- Policy tools noted: retrofit strategy, rezoning history (1952 request), and existing S1 zoning.
- Open questions: how the planned >500 residential units will be financed and integrated with existing retail, and what traffic or infrastructure impacts may arise.
For a developer
- Site size: 35.5 acres owned by Severance Realty LLC ET AL.
- Control: single private owner; entitlement stage indicated by approved retrofit strategy and planned new uses, though detailed approvals are not specified.
- Constraints: record does not mention flood, transit, or environmental limitations.
- Market signals: opportunity score 0.0, with reasons citing that retrofit already built and housing is already in the record, suggesting limited additional upside.
What we do not know yet
- Current tenant mix and vacancy rates are not provided.
- Exact number of residential units planned (>500) lacks detail on phasing or affordability.
- Financing structure post‑foreclosure and any remaining debt or liens are unknown.
- Site‑specific constraints such as flood risk, transit access, or environmental conditions are not recorded.
- The record is marked as 'draft' verification, so some extracted facts may be unreviewed.
Generated by nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b on NVIDIA API via Hermes CT from the fields, parcels, deals and context layers on this page, with no outside knowledge. It is regenerated when the record changes and has not been checked by a person. How it is made.
Similar sites
- Parmatown Mall, Parma, OH · Malls · opened 1956; same strategy: redevelop; also in OH
- Arborland Center, Ann Arbor, MI · Malls · opened 1961; same strategy: redevelop
- Beloit Plaza, Beloit, WI · Malls · opened 1966; same strategy: redevelop
- Brighton Mall, Brighton, MI · Malls · opened 1970; same strategy: redevelop
Elsewhere on the web
Retail history: Severance (Town) Center on DeadMalls.com photos, field notes and visitor memories since 2000; matched by name and state only, check the city; nothing copied here
Search images: Google · Bing · Commons · references: ULI case studies · Google Scholar
Multifamily screen
- retrofit already built
- housing in the record
Inputs: record fields (size, status) and county Census ACS 2018–2023 figures (growth, rent). How the points work. Not a recommendation.
History and original facts
| Opened | 1963extracted, unreviewed |
|---|---|
| Original developer | Austin Companyextracted, unreviewed |
| Anchors | Marshalls, OfficeMax, The Home Depot, Dave's Markets |
| County | Cuyahoga County |
| Census division | 3 · East North Central |
| Notes | Wikipedia categories: Defunct shopping malls in the United States |
Not yet recorded: acres, GLA. Know it? Tell us.
Background
Severance Center, also known as Severance Town Center, is a shopping center located in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, an inner ring Greater Cleveland suburb roughly 7 miles (11 km) from downtown Cleveland.
Excerpt from Wikipedia (authors and history), CC BY-SA 4.0. May be older than the record above.
Timeline
- 1952 Requested rezoning for commercial development
- 1961 Longwood estate demolished
- 1963 Mall opened with original anchors Higbee's and Halle's
- 1972 Major renovation
- 1981 New wing anchored by Gold Circle opened
- 1986 Further renovation completed; Gold Circle space enlarged for Dunham's Sporting Goods
- 1992 Horne's shuttered
- 1998 Home Depot opened in former Horne's space
- 1999 Walmart moved into former Higbee's space
- 2014 Center foreclosed owing $38 million in debt
Sources
- Wikipedia: Severance Center · supports: after notes, original developer, status, strategy, year opened
15 quoted sentences
Opening to fanfare in October 1963, the mall's original anchors were Cleveland-based department stores Higbee's and Halle's.
Severance hired the Austin Company for the development plan which ended up acquiring the Longwood land and brought in the Winmar Corporation as a partner on the project.
It is anchored by The Home Depot, Dave's Markets, Marshalls, and OfficeMax, and four vacant anchors that were formerly Walmart, Borders Books, Conway, and Regal Cinemas.
Severance Center, also known as Severance Town Center, is a shopping center located in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.
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