A Councilman's Big Plans for the 'Hodgepodge' on Pearl Road

Jim Carbone promised to help beautify Route 42, and he's already got the ball rolling

• By Debbie Palmer
| The Patch

Less than two months into his term, Ward 3 Councilman Jim Carbone is making good on a campaign promise to try to beautify Pearl Road.

"When you talk to people about Pearl Road, the term you hear is 'hodgepodge,'" Carbone said.

His goal: To unify the jumble of storefronts into blocks of consistent architecture, landscaping, and brick and stone color.

Carbone has long had a problem with the unsystematic growth of businesses along Strongsville's older business district.

Ward 3 Councilman Jim Carbone is leading an effort to unify the look of Pearl Road as new businesses are developed. Credit Debbie Palmer

Obviously, he can't make existing retailers rebuild.

But he can take aim at sections that are still developing, like areas on the south end of the street and at the Whitney-Pearl intersection -- if, that is, the city hurries.

"At Whitney and Pearl, in the next five years, we could see a dozen new businesses," Carbone said. 

He and other city officials, including city planner Bob Hill and Jennifer Milbrandt, coordinator of natural resources, are putting together a plan that would break Pearl Road in districts. 

They will then determine an architectural style and brick color "to make everything flow in that district," Carbone said.

It would extend to landscaping and fixtures, too -- like a hedge row in front of parking lots, pine trees on the sides of buildings, black fencing and black lamp posts.

He hopes Strongsville will have an architectural plan for Pearl Road in place in time to affect Giant Eagle's proposed construction of a Market District store, which could start this year if a rezoning issue passes at the polls March 6.

"We could really make an impact there," Carbone said.

During his campaign, Carbone said if he was elected, he would look into making Pearl Road a better-looking thoroughfare.

"It's just in the beginning stages," he said. "But if we do this, it would look like we had a plan there and create some unity among the buildings."