c/cleveland-westshore-living

Talked to a neighbor at Bay Village pool about living here 30 years

She said the library was better when it was the old building downtown and now she just drives to Westlake half the time. Got me wondering if I am missing something by always going to the newer spots around here.

Lakewood rec center has been packed since they redid the locker rooms

I hit the Lakewood rec center at 6am last Thursday hoping to beat the rush for a quick swim, but the parking lot was already almost full. They finished the new locker rooms about three weeks ago and I guess word got out, because I waited 15 minutes just to get a lane. Anyone else notice the west shore spots getting way busier lately?

Had the worst commute of my life last Tuesday on I-90 near Westlake

Question about those new traffic circles popping up in Westlake

I live over by Crocker Park and noticed they put in a new roundabout on Center Ridge last month. Three different times now I've seen people just stop dead in the middle of it and wait for someone to honk. Is there like a secret class everyone else took that I missed? I moved here from Parma three years ago and we just had regular stoplights. My neighbor said they're supposed to be safer but I'm not convinced after watching a minivan nearly get sideswiped last Tuesday. Anybody else finding these things confusing or is it just me?

Wasted $150 on a fancy compost bin that fell apart in 4 months

I bought one of those supposed heavy duty tumbling compost bins from a garden supply place in Avon Lake back in May. Thought it would be great for my backyard setup since I wanted to get into composting without a pile. By September the plastic cracked right where the axle goes through, and the whole thing just sagged and stopped turning. Customer service told me it was wear and tear, not covered. So now I have a broken hunk of plastic and I'm back to just using a cheap wire bin from Home Depot that cost me $20 and works better anyway. Has anyone else had bad luck with those tumbling bins around here, or did I just pick a dud?

Question about the new Westlake parking restrictions on Center Ridge

I was reading the Westlake city newsletter last night and found out they added 68 new no-parking signs along Center Ridge near the Clague intersection. Apparently it's because of the backup from the new apartment construction. Has anyone else noticed how tight it gets through there during rush hour now?

Heard a guy at the Westlake library complaining about lake effect snow totals being off this year

I was grabbing a book at the Westlake Porter Library last weekend and overheard this older fella talking to the librarian about how the official snow totals for Rocky River and Bay Village have been way lower than what he's measuring in his own backyard. He said the NWS is missing the band that sets up right over the lakefront neighborhoods. That got me thinking because I live over in Lakewood near the water and my driveway has been a mess while friends in Avon say they barely had to shovel. Is anyone else noticing a big difference in snow accumulation between the lakefront streets and just a mile inland? Maybe I'm just unlucky or maybe the weather guys really are missing something.

The Lakewood library worker who helped me find my dad's old yearbook

I was at the Lakewood Public Library last Tuesday just kind of browsing the local history section. One of the workers, a lady named Carol who must have been 70, saw me looking lost and asked what I was searching for. I told her I was trying to find my dad's high school yearbook from 1968, and she walked me straight to a shelf in the back and pulled it out in under 5 minutes. Has anyone else had a librarian or local worker go way above and beyond like that around here?

Tried planting butterfly bushes last spring in my backyard near Lakewood...

I put in three butterfly bushes last May along my fence line hoping for some color, but they grew to over 10 feet tall in just one season and flopped over onto my neighbor's side. Now I have to dig them out and start over with something shorter. Anyone else have bushes get out of control like that around here?

That guy at Don's Lighthouse Inn was right about the pier fishing spot

Some old timer told me last summer to fish off the west side of the pier near the rocks, not the east side where everyone goes. Caught three decent walleye there last Sunday after getting skunked for months on the other side. Anybody else got a secret spot they swear by around here?

Lakewood property taxes jumped 12% this year and I almost missed it

I was going through my escrow statement last week and noticed my monthly payment went up $87. I called the county auditor's office and found out my home's assessed value shot up from $185,000 to $207,000. Nobody sent me a notice or anything, I just happened to catch it in the fine print. The lady on the phone said reassessments happen every three years in Cuyahoga County but a lot of people don't check. Has anyone else on the westshore gotten blindsided by a big tax jump lately?

Tried the new Asian market on Detroit Road for produce last week

I picked up a bag of mangoes for $3.50 and they were way riper than the ones at Giant Eagle. Three of them went bad in two days though. Anyone know which day they get their fresh stock delivered?

Paid $75 for a gutter cleaning and it saved my basement from flooding

Ngl I always thought gutter cleaning was a scam. Like how bad can leaves really get up there right? Well after that big storm two weeks ago in Westlake I had water seeping into my basement for the first time ever. Freaked me out. Called a guy from Rocky River who does it for like $75 and he pulled out like 30 pounds of muck from just the front section. Apparently the downspout was completely clogged and water was just pooling around the foundation. Now my basement is bone dry and I feel dumb for waiting so long. Has anyone else had a close call with their gutters?

Switched from chemical weed killer to a torch in my Lakewood yard

I spent $40 on Ortho stuff last spring and it barely touched the dandelions in my back lawn. Bought a $25 propane torch from Home Depot and cleared the whole driveway crack weeds in about 10 minutes flat. Has anyone tried one on creeping charlie yet?

The guy at Lakewood Ace Hardware fixed my leaky faucet with a $3 part

I spent like 45 minutes trying to find the right washer at Home Depot last weekend and came up empty. Stopped by the Ace on Detroit Ave on a whim and the older gentleman behind the counter knew exactly what I needed from just me describing the drip sound. He walked me to the aisle, handed me a little brass washer for $2.89, and it fixed the leak in 5 minutes. Has anyone else had good luck getting actual help at a smaller hardware store around here?

Seasonal farmers market on Detroit Road in Lakewood totally won me over

I was a HUGE skeptic about that farmers market near Wagar Park. I figured it was just overpriced organic stuff from a truck. But last Saturday I grabbed a basket of peaches for $5 and they were the sweetest I have had all summer. The guy who grew them even told me which week they peak in Ohio. Has anyone else found a vendor there they swear by?

Realized I was watering my lawn ALL wrong for 3 years straight

I used to just set the sprinkler on a timer and walk away, but after that dry July I finally checked my soil and it was like concrete beneath the top inch. Now I do deep watering twice a week instead of light daily sprinkles, and my grass actually stays green through August. Anyone else around here switch up their watering routine after a bad season?

I found out the old Avon Lake power plant site is bigger than I thought

Was looking at a county zoning map online last night, just out of curiosity. The area where the old power plant was, down by the lake, is listed as over 100 acres. I always pictured it as maybe 30 or 40. That's a huge chunk of waterfront just sitting there. Makes you wonder what the actual plan is for cleaning it up and doing something with it. Anyone know if there's a real timeline for that project yet?

I just realized I've walked my dog 1,000 miles on the Lakewood park paths

I was looking at my step tracker history and the total surprised me. It made me appreciate how much of the city I've seen just by sticking to a routine. Anyone else have a local habit that added up to something unexpected?

Just realized my old way of dealing with Westlake road salt was making a mess

For years, I'd just use a regular broom to sweep the salt and grit off my garage floor and it would just kick up dust everywhere. About six months ago, I saw a neighbor using a damp mop on their concrete driveway apron. I tried it with a cheap string mop and a bucket of warm water with a little dish soap. It picks up all the residue without the cloud of dust, and my garage floor actually looks clean now. It takes maybe 10 extra minutes once a week, but it's worth it. Has anyone found a better solution for keeping the salt off the floor without tracking it all inside?

Finally got my old basement sump pump to stop that knocking sound

It was making this awful racket for almost two months, and I kept putting it off. Turns out the discharge pipe just needed a new rubber check valve, which I found at the hardware store on Detroit Road. Anyone have a good local plumber for the next time something like this happens?

Honestly, I used to drive to the West Side Market every Saturday morning from Lakewood, but now I just go on Tuesday afternoons. The crowds are way smaller and the parking is free after 4 PM. What's your grocery routine?

Spent $80 on a 'guaranteed' squirrel baffle for my bird feeder in Lakewood. The squirrels just laughed and did parkour.

I finally took the ferry from downtown to the west side for my commute

I live in Lakewood and work downtown, and I got so sick of the Shoreway traffic last month. I decided to try the water taxi from the East 9th Street pier over to the Wendy Park dock. It was only $8 each way, which seemed fair. The ride itself was great, super smooth and a nice view. But I didn't plan for the walk from the dock to my office. It added a solid 20 minutes I didn't account for, and when it rained last Tuesday, I was totally soaked by the time I got in. I learned that the ferry is a cool option, but you really need to factor in the extra time on both ends, especially if the weather turns. Has anyone else made the ferry work as a regular commute, or is it more of a summer weekend thing?

Need recommendations for a major home remodel in the Westlake/Rocky River area

Hey everyone, my wife and I are finally pulling the trigger on a massive first-floor renovation. We're in Westlake and want to take down some load-bearing walls to completely open up the kitchen into the main living space. Can anyone recommend a solid design-build company around here? We really want someone who handles the architecture/design AND the construction so we don't have to juggle multiple contractors.