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By Ed Hauser
 With little fanfare and justification, the Cleveland City Planning
Commission approved one of largest and most costly public works
projects in Cleveland’s history in March 2008. The project
that was approved is the relocation of the existing Cleveland-Cuyahoga
County Port Authority eastside facilities to the E. 55th St. Marina
area.
If implemented, this project will have an enormous environmental
impact. The relocated port facilities would be built on a new 200-acre
confined disposal facility containing contaminated dredged material.
This project will diminish the aquatic and wildlife habitats on
and around the proposed Dike 14 Nature Preserve, which is about
a half-mile away.
Also, the Port Authority’s relocation study includes graphics
and data that demonstrate the port’s intention on expanding
its bulk facility to Whiskey Island Marina. The graphics depict
moving the cement silos and gravel piles from the port’s
eastside facilities and expanding the limestone operation to Whiskey
Island Marina. If this plan is implemented it would reduce the
public access to Whiskey Island and deteriorate the aquatic and
wildlife habitats on and around Wendy Park on Whiskey Island.
This public involvement process is severely flawed. Only one public
meeting was held before the planning commission approved the plan
seventeen days later. That meeting amounted to three hearings in
one (1) Port Authority- Relocation & Expansion Plan; (2) US
Army Corps of Engineers- 20 Year Dredged Material Management Plan
(Federal Environmental Impact Statement process); and (3) City
of Cleveland- Waterfront District Plan (the port relocation plan
changes the city's 2004 approved plan by making it 80% obsolete).
The Port Authority allowed only two minutes for each respondent's
testimony on these three major plans that have the potential to
negatively impact our environment and change the face of Cleveland...
forever! Also, the Port Authority never publicly released its $1.5
million relocation study. Public works projects on this scale must
be justified and the public must get involved now! The Port Authority
needs to release all of the studies that the taxpayers paid over
$1.5 million for and be allowed ample opportunity to provide meaningful
comments. Stay tuned- more to come.
Please contact Mayor
Jackson with your comments and concerns.
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The City of Cleveland's 
Do you know of a local environmental issue in need
of attention? Do you have inside information on what's
going on in your city or township? With over 5,000
members in Northeast Ohio we count on you to be the
Club's eyes and ears of the region. While the Federal
government and large corporations continue to wreak
havoc on our environment, it is more important than
ever before to act as watchdogs in our own backyards.
For those new to
calling state or federal representatives, it's easier and
less confrontational than it sounds. You will never
speak directly with your rep or senator - an aide
will answer the phone, take brief notes plus your name and city (sometimes), and that's it.