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Section 70: Kamm's - Part 2

This was the second section run of the Kamm's neighborhood in West Park. Below is the boundary map:

Map: Run 1Run 2Run 3

Distance This Section: 22.6 miles

Distance So Far: 544.9 miles

Impett Park (3207 W. 153rd) is a 34.8 acre park featuring a playground, outdoor pool, tennis courts, baseball diamonds, rugby pitch, soccer field, and wooded area. It's also home to the Cleveland Womens Rugby Football Club (Iron Maidens).

  St. Mary's Romanian Orthodox Cathedral (3256 Warren Rd) was founded in 1904 and is the oldest Romanian Orthodox parish in the United States. The church also features a Culture and Ethnic Art Museum which houses multiple pieces by a number famous Romanian paintersPrior to the building of this church in 1960, the church's home was on Detroit Avenue in the old Romanian area of the city (Detroit Shoreway).

St. Mark's Parish & School (15724 Montrose Ave) was charted by the Catholic Diocese in 1945. Three years later, ground was broken on a church and school building which opened in 1949.

A sample of the homes north of Munn Rd.

Anything Worth Repairing (3095 W. 159th St) has been, well, repairing anything worth repairing at this little shop at the end of W. 159th St for nearly 20 years.

Truckin' over I-90

The terminus of tiny W. 155th.

This building complex located on Fischer Road was built in 1920 and is unique to the rest of the street.

The West Park Cleveland Police and Fire Fighters Memorial is located on Rocky River Drive and was built to honor the officers who lived in or died in the line of duty in West Park. The design of the Memorial is a result of ten years of planning and was dedicated in November 2002. In addition to the memorial, there's also a scholarship fund and an annual 5 & 2- mile race. 

The Kamm's Corners clock sits at a historic bank building at the corner of Lorain Ave and Rocky River Drive in the heart of Kamm's Corner retail district. It's not original to the building. Rather, it was added in 1997 and is from another bank building in Pennsylvania from around the same time as when the Kamm's bank building was built. It's been come to be known as a local landmark in Kamm's and West Park, at-large. 

The heart of the Kamm's Corner retail district runs roughly from W. 165 to Rocky River Drive along Lorain Ave.

West Park Elementary School (16210 Lorain Ave) serves about 270 students from grades K-8th.

West Park Masonic Temple (15500 Triskett Rd) was originally constructed during the Civil War and was known as the Sherman House. Passengers riding the stagecoach along Lorain Road would stop for a meal or evening accommodation.

The Donlon Funeral Home was founded by William J. Donlon on Miles Ave (east side) in 1918 and continued in that location until moving operations to this location on Triskett Ave in 1978.

The story of Bethany English Lutheran Church began in 1902 when 23 individuals signed the charter roll and selected the name of the church. In 1904, the first church building was built on 89th Street and Willard Avenue. This current church on Triskett Ave was built in the 1920s and had several additions made over its nearly 100 years of existence. It has active Meals on Wheels program, its main ministry.

Newton D. Baker offers an arts-infused education where teachers use visual, drama, technology, music and movement to effectively teach reading, math, science, social studies, and more.

Terminus décor at the end of tiny Lynn Court.

5 Points Coffee & Tea (3600 W. Park Rd) is an Irish-themed coffee shop founded in 2017. Per Cleveland Magazine: "This West Park coffee shop offers local teas and coffees that pair well with its traditional Irish baked goods. 'It kind of has that quaint, quiet type of experience,” says owner Conor Boylan, “where you could go and meet your neighbor.' The Irishtown Bend involves a secret blend of Irish cream and coffee." (This was a post-run drink, pictured above).

Cleveland has plenty to strip plazas full of generic businesses but Kamm's Plaza has some unique ones. A few include Kamm's Corner Ice Cream, West Park Nutrition, Working Class Brewery, Carol & John's Comic Book Shop, and Gene's Place, the neighborhood's popular go-to diner/restaurant in 1962.

Gene's Place To Dine (3730 Rocky River Dr) is a West Park legend, featuring pop culture memorabilia from the 1930s and 40s (plus some cool random Cleveland stuff as well). It's operated by 3 generations of the same family dating back to the early 1960s and the place can seat up to 260 folks. There's also actual live piano playing on Friday and Saturday nights. Per one longtime patron: "the lobby of Gene’s Place is the best non-alcoholic meet-and-greet area of (the) neighborhood".

Per Cleveland Scene: "The absolutely out-of-this-world Starship Earth (16880 Lorain Rd.) proudly serves as the year-round Halloween headquarters for costumes and novelties for Northeast Ohio. Fully realized costumes, props, wigs, makeup, masks, jewelry and anything else your heart desires can all be found within the black brick building in West Park.

Thumbs-Up Deli (Catering) (17902 Lorain Ave) is operated by husband and wife team. It used to be a walk-in deli but has switched exclusively to catering. The online reviews are pretty strong and most agree that George, the co-owner, puts a lot of love into his cooking. He's also a good dude (read this).

One of the the more colorful homes in the neighborhood. Really stood out among the brick ones that predominately make up the neighborhood.

Franciscan Village (3648 Rocky River Dr) consists of two, five-story buildings which house 176-units of housing for seniors. It was once home to a monastery and the buildings are actually quite remarkable. 

Our Lady of Angels Church (3644 Rocky River Dr) was established as a result of Franciscan growth in the area. This church and adjacent school were built in the 1920s although the acquisition of land, establishment of a monastery, and establishment of a parish go back years prior.

One of the beautiful homes on a side street off of Rocky River Drive, headed west toward Rocky River Reservation.

The Monastery of Poor Clares (3501 Rocky River Dr) is a monastery for cloistered contemplative nuns.

Saint Joseph Academy is the only all-girls private school in Cleveland. It was founded in 1890 and has an enrollment near 700. Over 18,245 have graduated from the school since its founding.

If you're not going to cut your tree lawn grass, this is the standard.

Munn Park (16041 Munn Rd) was established in 1950 and is mostly a grass field and is used for sports activities and dog walking.

This cool little commercial and apartment building sits in the heart of the sub-neighborhood of 5 Points, across from 5 Points Coffee.

Warren Village Shopping Center (3305 Warren Rd) was built in 1952 and is a 69,651 square foot retail strip center with an additional free standing Giant Eagle grocery store. It also home to K&K Portage Market, a family-owned business started in 1972 and named "Cleveland's Best Butcher Shop" numerous times (see below).

A shot of customer lining up to order at the very busy K&K Portage Market.

Greyhound fence art on W. 165th