Studio West 117 Building Development Updates

Studio West 117, a new hub for Greater Cleveland’s LGBTQ+ community, is rapidly coming to fruition on the west edge of Cleveland/the east edge of Lakewood. Margie’s Closet, Barbercult, and LoRoo Security, three of Studio West 117’s first tenants are already open for business and are incredible additions to the neighborhood:

• Margie’s Closet, a thrift store benefiting the trans community, is providing high quality affordable clothing and resources to the neighborhood.
• Barbercult is your new neighborhood barbershop, with the best fade this side of West 117th! In between her regular appointments, Ariana is giving back by providing haircuts to LGBTQ+ youth, trans folx, and residents of B. Riley.
• LoRoo security is an LGBTQ+ owned security and technology company and is helping keep the neighborhood safe as Studio West 117’s first tenant at The Mansion at Studio West 117 (11210 Detroit Ave.).

Construction is well underway on the Fieldhouse at Studio West 117, a 30,000 square foot recreational and bar/restaurant facility, featuring:

• A gym with three sports courts and a mezzanine walking track for spectators
• A courtyard complete with a bouldering wall
• Three restaurant concepts including Leña y Sal, serving wood fired culinary creations by Chef Y, pizza by the slice that you can order directly from Hird Ave., and Lakewood’s first and only rooftop bar and restaurant.

The Fieldhouse, opening in summer of 2022, will host the country’s first LGBTQ+ youth sports league, led by Gio Santiago, as well as Stonewall Sports dodgeball, rentable sports courts, and multifunctional event space for everything from private parties to weddings.

The Phantasy Entertainment Complex is slated for a complete historic renovation and has already been placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the development team. While those entertainment venues are slated for a 2023 opening, the Symposium is already open many weekends with drag shows and dance parties. Look out for a more regular opening schedule in early 2022.

A full podcast studio is also currently operational within the Phantasy and we are working on making reservations available to the public for both podcast professionals and those wishing to learn. Let your voice be heard!

The building at 11600 Detroit which we affectionately call the “My Friends” building is soon to have an LGBTQ+ artist collective in the former State Farm Insurance space. Artists of various mediums will be able to rent a shelf (or table, or wall!) to display their products for sale in a lively and engaging venue. We also may have some flexible artist workspace available in the back of the collective at a later date.

If you or someone you know is interested in being the first to hear about employment opportunities at Studio West 117, please visit our job postings page.

To stay updated on the project and learn about upcoming events visit studiowest117.com and sign-up for our newsletter below to be added to future communications. Be sure to also follow us on Facebook and Instagram.