Van Sweringen Brothers - Real Estate and Shaker Heights

Real Estate and Shaker Heights

Prior to the establishment of Shaker Heights, Ohio, the brothers were land and building speculators in Cleveland, Ohio. After being employed by others, and after suffering several early business failures, the brothers entered the real estate business. In 1909, the Van Sweringen brothers began exercising options on 1,399 acres (5.7 km²) of land formerly owned by the North Union Community of the Society of Believers, better known as the Shakers. Conceived and planned as a garden community similar to Baltimore's Roland Park, Shaker Village soon became Cleveland's most sought-after address. This was achieved through a combination of planning, design review, and convenience - all of which fell under the strict supervision of the Vans.

Street planning for the new community used curved roads instead of the more usual grid pattern of streets found in many American communities. Three tree-lined boulevards extended eastward into the country. Moreland and Shaker boulevards' center isles would be used for track bed for a planned interurban streetcar line. Both lines would share a common route from Cleveland through Shaker Square (recognized as the second modern planned shopping center in the United States) where they would divide onto their own routes. The Vans designated Shaker Boulevard as a grand boulevard of mansions, fronted by generous setbacks from the interurban tracks. Higher-density luxury apartments were planned for Moreland Boulevard, which was renamed Van Aken Boulevard in honor of the city's first mayor.

Building in Shaker was controlled by a set of restrictive covenants and building guidelines established by the Vans and known as Shaker Standards. Shaker Standards prevented the community from being developed in any way contrary to how the Vans intended. Standards limited commercial development, rental property development, and residence style and size. Standards set roof slope angles, materials, finishes, and garage placement. All residences were required to be unique and designed by an architect. Duplex residences in the community were restricted to designated areas and were required to follow guidelines designed to give the impression that a structure was a single-family home. By 1920, the Vans controlled more than 4,000 acres (16 km²) in the community, which reached city status in 1931. Since lots sold slowly, the brothers concluded that Shaker Heights needed a transportation system between the suburb and downtown.