At the mouth of the Cuyahoga river stands what used to be a bustling US Coast Guard Station serving a popular Lake Erie waterfront. It opened in 1940 and is obvious by the deco-style shapes to the building. The CG left in 1976, the land was sold and tossed around a few times before serving as a night club for a brief stint in the early 90′s (which is hilarious, I think.) In classic Cleveland fashion, the city has let it deteriorate and fall apart, leaving only the building’s skeleton to act as the first building one see’s as they enter the city by way of the Cuyahoga. We biked to the location, but you can park at Edgewater or Whiskey Island and walk, if preferred. You can easily gain access to every part of the property, including inside the structure.
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Rear view, from the pier.
Front Entrance
Driveway View
Great view of Cleveland from the path to the station.
From Scene Magazine, 2010-05-19:
U.S. Coast Guard Station
WHERE YOU’LL FIND IT: At the end of the West Bank pier in the Flats, at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River (accessible via Wendy Park if you follow the service road from Edgewater Park past the scenic water treatment plant).
HISTORY: Designed by J. Milton Dyer — the guy who drew up Cleveland City Hall — it opened as a U.S. Coast Guard station in 1940 and closed when the Guard moved near East Ninth Street in 1976. The place was never a lighthouse, but its white observation tower makes it look like one. The station, with its spectacular views of the downtown skyline, was sold to developers in 1985 and operated briefly as a nightclub in the early ’90s, when the local entertainment scene centered around vomiting in the Flats. Accessible only by ferry, the club became somewhat less popular when the Lake froze each winter.
VALUE: $431,800, according to the county auditor.
STATE OF DECAY: About how you would look if you sat naked, facing the elements for 70 uninterrupted years. The roof, window, and door frames — and anything else not made of rock or concrete — have fallen apart, and the list of building code violations runs so long that the place didn’t feel very gift-like by the time it was “gifted” to Cleveland in 2002. On the plus side, the concrete walls that give the place its art deco style are in good shape, and the mayor’s office claims that bids are being collected to repair the roof, thus ensuring that the structure can safely sit dormant for another 20 years or so.
WHAT IT’S GOOD FOR: “It appears difficult if not impossible to create a self-sustaining investment,” says Volpe. “The thing is, it’s worth saving. Fortunately, an enlightened group is working with the city to envision ideas that require subsidy, but make sense. I am most excited about something truly connected to the water, with an emphasis on the environment. Some Cleveland icons are just too important to let go of.”
The city seems to agree: “As we get the building in better repair, there are other groups that would find the setting and architecture as major plusses and would regard the relative inaccessibility as more a plus than a minus,” says mayoral spokesman Ken Silliman. He sees it as a venue for special events like weddings. It already hosted last year’s Burning River Fest, with plans to return there this year. Fun fact: The city got 10 more days of use out of Cleveland Browns Stadium than it did from the abandoned station in 2009, but with way more expensive beer.
