Frequently asked questions
Protect Our US Neighborhood is a group of Shaker residents who live in the vicinity of University School’s lower school campus. The group came together after US announced its plans to build a high school sports stadium on its lower school campus. The group has incorporated in the State of Ohio, opened a bank account, hired legal counsel, created a website, started a petition, and provides ongoing communication to the neighborhood about the status of the stadium project and our efforts to stop it.
US plans to install an artificial turf field marked for football, soccer and lacrosse games on the footprint of the existing grass football field. To widen the field, it will narrow the running track that surrounds the field to three lanes. New home crowd stands to accommodate 644 fans will be erected on the east side of the field (back facing Ashley Road) and platform space to accomodate a press box will be built on top of the home crowd stands, estimated to be 25-30 feet tall. Visiting crowd stands will be erected for 263 fans on the west side of the field (back facing the new middle school building). Space to accomodate standing room crowd will surround the field. A large, 264 square foot scoreboard will be built on the north end of the stadium (facing Brantley Road). Speakers for a public address system will be installed. Four permanent light towers 80 feet tall will be erected on the the east and west sides of the stadium, flanking the grandstands. The stadium will be surrounded by a chain link fence. A new roadway entrance to access the east end home stands will be added off Brantley Road. Fabric windscreens with space for graphics such as advertising will wrap around the new grandstands.
A donor group, led by the family of Cleveland Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslem, has reportedly committed $20 million to University School to pay for the project at the lower school. While some of these funds will be used to pay for the new stadium complex, a portion may be earmarked for athletic scholarships and coaching endowments.
Parking and traffic congestion (including parking and traffic which narrows or blocks emergency routes on Brantley and Claythorne).
Reflected light.
Crowd noise and noise from the PA system.
Safety and security, especially following night games.
Trash and debris spread throughout our neighborhoods.
Destabilizing and altering the character of a quiet residential neighborhood.
Impact on property values.
Unclear. US has a 220-acre campus situated in Hunting Valley, about 5 miles away from its Shaker campus. The Hunting Valley campus includes a football stadium in a secluded area, surrounded by fields and forest; no houses are visible from this facility. There is extensive parking adjacent to the Hunting Valley stadium. This stadium does not include lights, but a Freedom of Information Act request revealed that US has not sought a variance or approval from Hunting Valley to add outdoor lighting. The US Head of School has explained that US is building a second high school stadium for night games at its Shaker Heights campus to foster unity and connection between students at the two campuses.