“Some of it was infrastructure itself created those boundaries, but it was also due to racial and socio economic issues,” said Case architect Margaret Carney.

The university acted as a land bank and a prosperous entertainment district at E. 105 and Euclid was removed because it was seen as disadvantageous, Litt added.

“That’s the history of planning,” Carney continued. “Now we realize the danger is in not being connected. In the fear of not knowing your neighbors.

“In the 1960s when the area was feeling unrest, many people moved out to the suburbs. We were building without ground floors.”

The beginning of a turnaround of University Circle—$2 billion in new construction at Case, UH and the Clinic and in infrastructure like two new Rapid stations and plans to address the bad mistakes made with road design around the Circle in the 60s—was credited to the Cleveland Foundation using the bully pulpit and starting the Greater University Circle Initiative.

The issue of restoring Doan Brook, however, remains a grey area. “”Sometimes a pragmatic issue becomes the excuse. The idea of opening up Doan Brook brings up all of the old issues, things that were closed,” Carney said, adding that she hasn't lost hope that someday agreement on how to restore Doan Broak will be reached.

On the brighter side, Uptown—the infill development led by the Maron Family on land owned by the University along Mayfield and Euclid—is creeping along, with a groundbreaking expected in summer 2010. The high-end condos that were to be built by Avenue District developer, Zaremba, are being scratched from phase one, Carney said. But, the Barnes and Noble bookstore and six retailers or restaurants were still mentioned as a target for the opening.