CLEVELAND, Ohio - A new design commissioned by the city-county Group Plan Commission shows how bollards and other measures could replace the concrete barriers that have marred the renovation of Public Square for more than a year.

The question is finding the $2 million needed to pay for the modifications. The design is in hand; the cash isn't, said Anthony Coyne, chairman of the commission.

The bollards, short cylindrical steel columns designed to block vehicles, would be spaced 40 inches apart on either side of the central crosswalk on Superior Avenue in the square.

Another 8 removable bollards, set 9 feet apart and arrayed on the north and south sides of the central crosswalk, would also be installed.

Starting a conversation

The commission, whose 12 members are appointed by the city, Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish, and other entities connected to Public Square and the Mall, released the plan to start a public discussion about how to fund the project.

Coyne said he believes the money should come from public, private and philanthropic sources.

The new plan addresses new safety concerns that caused the Administration of Mayor Frank Jackson to install the unsightly barriers in March 2017.

"We've designed an extraordinary space [at Public Square} and because there are other now believed to be terror threats or security safety concerns, I think it doesn't mean we repair it with Band-Aids and bubble gum," he said. "I think we should do it to the best level possible that we can."

Dan Williams, director of media relations for the Jackson administration, said in an email that Coyne's statements about the cost and funding of the safety measures were accurate.

Modifications wouldn't take long

James Corner Field Operations, the prominent landscape architecture firm that designed the renovation Public Square and other widely praised projects, including the High Line Park in New York, provided the plan for the modifications.

Veronica Rivera, a senior associate at the firm, said the new measures would take "four to eight weeks max" to install once funding was secured.

"It would be a very surgical and quick process," she said.

She said the design had been coordinated with the city and Homeland Security officials.

The renovation of Public Square, the signature, 6-acre outdoor space in the heart of downtown Cleveland, earned rave reviews in the summer of 2016 from media outlets covering the Republican National Convention.

Goals of the plan

The Field Operations design aimed to beautify and unify the square, previously carved into four smallish quadrants isolated by traffic lanes.

The design removed the two blocks of Ontario Street that ran north-south through the square, and narrowed Superior Avenue, which runs east-west through the space, from 77 to 48 feet.

The plan called for eliminating all traffic except for Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority buses.

After the convention, Jackson said he wanted the square to remain entirely closed to traffic, including buses. He tussled over the issue for months with RTA and federal transit officials, who said RTA would have to repay $12 million in grants if buses were not allowed back in the square.

The city also said it had new concerns about whether pedestrians crossing Superior Avenue could accidentally step in front of a bus.

In addition, Homeland Security officials raised worries about whether vehicles could be used to attack pedestrians in the square.

The city allowed bus service to resume in the square in March 2017, but installed Jersey barriers along Superior Avenue east and west of the square's central crosswalk.

The barriers were set down across elaborately paved walkways designed by Field Operations to visually unify the square, thereby muting one of the key objectives of the renovation.

The city also installed large planters along diagonal walkways leading into the square from three of its corners. The modifications have been widely criticized as ugly.

In addition to the bollards along Superior Avenue, other elements of the new plan include:

- Curb extensions on the north and south sides of the avenue at the central crosswalk that would narrow the right-of-way for buses from 48 to 24 feet.

- Additional bollards at crosswalks at the northeast, northwest and southwest corners of the square. (Bollards would not be needed on the southeast corner because the Soldiers and Sailors Monument forms a physical barrier).

- Concrete planters measuring 55 feet long and 12 feet wide that would be placed in the center of Superior Avenue east and west of Public Square to slow traffic as it approaches.

Today, the city pays $9,800 per event to remove and replace the Jersey barriers for special events when the square is closed, Williams said. That happened nine times in 2017, he said, costing the city a total of $88,794.

In addition to raising money for the safety modifications, the GPC is working on a long-term financial plan to pay for maintenance and programming at the square, which costs about $2 million a year to operate.

The commission's CEO, Sanaa Julien, said the organization coordinates 220 to 230 days of free events on the square, ranging from concerts and family activities to public forums organized by the City Club of Cleveland and the Cleveland Foundation.

"We're working on a sustainable business plan that encourages private, public and philanthropic sectors to help fund the organization, along with earned income," she said.