The planning of the Lakeshore shopping center began in 1945. It's near the corner of Babbitt and East 222nd St.
In 1945 plans were made to build a shopping center at Lakeshore Blvd. The land was owned by the Merkel family for many years. Wilbur Merkel was the real estate investor for the shopping center. The land was valued at $750,000. The plans in 1945 were to build 26 stores. Parking was for 350 cars. The Merkel family home had recently been demolished in 1945.
The first Department Store that opened in the shopping center was the Burr Department Store in 1948. On the left was W.M.Mullen, Assistant manager and on the right, W.C Croswell, Manager.
The Grand opening of the store was a big event. Mayor Sims was to cut the ribbon for the opening. Dale Harper and the Euclid High marching band was to perform. The Grand Opening ran from May 22nd to May 29th, 1948. Two "Grand Awards" were given out, an RCA Radio and a two-piece living room set.
One of the first restaurants in the shopping plaza was a Howard Johnson's in 1947. It was later replaced by the Tasty Shop and then Charlites.
This picture from the 1955 Euclid High yearbook shows the Tasty Shop, Fisher Foods and Krogers, which were grocery stores. This was around Christmas Time.
This is the August 2014 view with Aldi's, Radio Shack, H.R Block and Subway. The Center is now known as Shore Center Shopping Center.
The Howard Johnsons's later was a branch of Corky & Lenny's for awhile. Kroger moved to Shore Center Drive and its space was taken by Gornik's men's store. Burr's had a long run as Bing's Suburbia Furniture.
ReplyDeleteNortheast Appliance and Audio store was also in that vicinity
ReplyDeleteNortheast was nearby - just to the east along Lakeshore Blvd. Owned by people I knew.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the prehistory of this shopping center, where I spent a fair amount of time when young.
My grandmother, Mary Cornelia Heidinger Ravencraft, worked at the Tasty Shop in 1952. She worked in the food industry most of her life including being the chef at the Maple Manor and The Barn out at Geneva-on-the-Lake from about 1954-1968. Because she worked there for a year or so, I looked into the Tasty Shop for my family history records. The following are my notes on the business. "From May 1947 until August 1951 this address was associated with a Howard Johnson's Restaurant and Ice Cream Shop. Interestingly, it posted help wanted ads not just in the main newspapers, but also in Lithuanian and Slovenian ones. From 7 Dec 1951 until 4 Dec 1958, classified ads for this address mention Lake Shore Tasty Shop and promise a good salary with meals and uniforms provided. In March 1959 this had become Charlite Steak House; 1966, Lenny & Max's Restaurant & Lounge; 1978, Max's Restaurant & Lounge. The original Tasty Shop opened at 13937 Cedar Rd. at Warrensville, University Heights, in October 1950 by Sam Diamond and Bill Metz and continued until Jan 1962 (sometimes under the name Bill's Tasty Shop) when it became Corky & Lenny's, which went on to become a Cleveland legend as a Jewish deli. Apparently, (Dia-mond's) Tasty Shop eventually had four locations, including one at Playhouse Square downtown, all renowned for their Jewish deli fare. Postcards with photos and other memorabilia can be found on eBay."
ReplyDeleteThank you for your informational comment, Tim, and thanks for sharing your grandmother with us. I bet she was a fantastic chef!
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