President James Garfield was the last US leader to be born in a log cabin, and that type of pioneering self-reliance neatly sums up the character of this namesake city. Food lovers take note: if you have a taste for kielbasa, smoked cheese, borscht, haggis, primavera, or boiled cabbage, you just might think you've died and gone to (culinary) heaven.
How to Move There/Living There
Garfield Heights is considered a smaller city -- around 30,000 people live within the 7.23 square miles of land. If you are a fan of all four seasons, then this is certainly the place for you -- the average daily temperature in Garfield Heights in January is 25.7F and 71.9F in July. Garfield Heights receives 38.71 inches of rain, which is average for a U.S. city.
Garfield Heights is one of the many suburban villages that make up the greater Cleveland area. Real estate is affordable to downright affordable.
Garfield Heights Neighborhoods
The lowdown: If you're looking for the best places to find apartments or homes in the city, check out these neighborhoods first:
Sunset Drive/Hathaway Road: Sunset and Hathaway is convenient to both I-480 and Rockside Road, making this a great neighborhood for local commuters. You also get the Garfield Mall and some pretty spectacular pierogi.
Woodward Boulevard/Turney Road: Woodward and Turney is largely filled with older, well-established single-family homes.
Garfield Boulevard: Garfield Boulevardand the surrounding area sports a relatively high (21 percent) vacancy rate. It's not due to a seasonal exodus, either. Take advantage of the opportunity, though, and you might find an apartment at a real discount.
Garfield City Center: You'll enjoy quick access to local retail, dining, and professional services. As a bonus, you're in walking distance to the municipal court if, say, you accumulate too many parking tickets.
Broadway Avenue/East 131st Street: Broadway and East 131st borders Garfield Park Reservation, one of Cleveland's phenomenal Metroparks. For some reason the locals eschew autos, with 18 percent choosing to take the bus to work each day.
Nearby Attractions
The greater Cleveland area is surprisingly dynamic. Everything's pretty close together, too, so you can get pretty much anywhere in 15 to 20 minutes if the traffic's right. In case you were wondering, here are some can't miss local destinations:
Playhouse Square: Think Cleveland lacks culture? The number of theaters and performance venues here are second only to New York City.
The Bayfront: The shores of beautiful Lake Erie are bustling with pro sports arenas, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and some gorgeous parks.
The Cleveland Museum of Art: This free-to-visit repository houses more than 40,000 works of fine art spanning 6,000 years of human achievement.
The Flats: No, the Cuyahoga is not on fire. Stop being so 1960s and come out and enjoy some of Cleveland's finest revelry and nightlife.
The West Side Market: This daily covered market is the place to find fruits, vegetables, seafood and more. The historic and bustling market has been voted America's Best Food Lover's Market.
There's no shortage of things to do -- a definite perk of being near a larger city -- with the advantage of going home to a more down-to-earth suburban atmosphere that is Garfield Heights. As the aforementioned city's namesake once said, "A pound of pluck is worth a ton of luck," and you'll find no better place that embodies that than here. Welcome to Garfield Heights, Ohio!