Downtown employers reconsider suburban moves – NEOtrans

Gray Media, AmTrust Financial may reverse courses

ARTICLE UPDATED OCT. 2, 2024

Two large Downtown Cleveland employers may be reversing course regarding their future office locations. One was bound and determined to leave for the suburbs but now its plans are up in the air. And despite the grist coming from the real estate rumor mill, the other employer says it’s not going anywhere — yet.

Gray Media Group Inc., owner of local television stations WOIO (CBS affiliate), WUAB (CW) and WTCL-LD (Telemundo), has reportedly shelved plans for relocating to suburban Independence. The media company’s offices and TV studios for more than 100 employees are located in Reserve Square, at the northeast corner of Chester Avenue and East 12th Street downtown.

The destination for Gray was 5810 Rockside Woods Blvd., between Embassy Suites and Topgolf Cleveland — a site that would have been very visible from the interchange of Interstates 77 and 480. Gray had invested heavily in the site and not just the $2.8 million it paid in 2022 to acquire the 3.2-acre property, according to county records.

Two sources who spoke to NEOtrans on the condition of anonymity said Gray had advanced plans to build a 40,000-square-foot, $12 million building. It also sought to construct a large antenna that required getting lots of costly regulatory approvals. Those and other high costs ultimately doomed the project, the sources said.

NEOtrans left a voicemail for Gray Vice President and General Manager Matt Moran seeking more information and comment on the potential move. We also sought more information on where it might move, if not to its property on Rockside Woods. Independence Economic Development Director Jessica Hyser did not respond to a NEOtrans e-mail seeking information on whether another location in Independence might be considered.

While it isn’t known where Gray will land, it is unlikely they will remain on the ground floor of one of Reserve Square’s pair of 23-story apartment towers. The sources said Gray employees and management are unhappy with the conditions there, including the presence of insects, rodents and other pests onsite.

Employees working late have also reportedly expressed concerns about their safety in the immediate area. In a recent incident, a shooting occurred right outside Gray’s studios just three weeks ago. Reserve Square is owned and managed by Willoughby-based K&D Group.

“The statements made regarding Channel 19’s supposed pest issues are completely unfounded and inaccurate; we have 0 pest issues within Channel 19’s space,” said Douglas Price IV, vice president of K&D Group. “As far as a shooting outside of our property goes, we’re unaware of this event and would like to know more specific information. We’re very present and active in management and over site of all issues at our properties and take great offense to inaccurate statements being made about a space within our portfolio.”

Those same two real estate sources, plus a third, have told NEOtrans that AmTrust Financial of New York isn’t likely to stay downtown after its lease expires at 800 Superior Ave. on Dec. 31, 2026. They say the insurance company is seriously considering relocating its 600-plus employees from the 23-story office building owned by an affiliate of suburban Chicago-based Allstate Corp.

They said AmTrust is considering locations in Cleveland’s suburbs to lease a smaller office space. Many of AmTrust’s employees work remotely or hybrid, so the company won’t need the 150,000 square feet it leases now. But AmTrust officials say they haven’t decided anything.

“AmTrust has a long history in Cleveland as a significant employer,” said a company spokesman. “We are currently occupying 800 Superior under a long-term lease and have no current plans to change our location.”

In May, an AmTrust official said the company had no plans of conducting a site search. But he also said “AmTrust has a long history as a company and employer in Cleveland and are committed to maintaining our presence in the metro area.”

The 587,118-square-foot 800 Superior…