“The idea of bringing something to Cleveland that hasn’t been done before is compelling.””
-James KassoufLongtime Property Investor and Manager in downtown Cleveland, James Kassouf has an abundance of experience in real estate development. Not only has he become a recognized name in the Cleveland area, but James Kassouf has steadily become prominent developer overseas as well.
James Kassouf and his family have nearly 40-year history operating parking lots in downtown Cleveland. For many years, James Kassouf has run Metro Parking Systems, which operates a large parking lot overlooking the lakefront between West Third and West Sixth streets, and others. More recently, James Kassouf and the family have been working on a Class A office tower that has residential, fitness, retail, dining, entertainment and parking components all in one project. The property also includes a 421-space parking garage underneath the complex.
Apart from Metro Parking Systems, James Kassouf also heads KRA Management, a family owned and operated real estate development and property management business that was founded in 1972. The Kassouf family has come to own over 20 acres of real estate in Downtown Cleveland, a chain of gas stations, approximately 1.33M sf of retail, and multiple office buildings in Downtown Cleveland. Metro Parking System’s, an affiliate of KRA, has been an industry leader since 1972. Through its history, Metro Parking Systems has operated more than 51 parking lots and garages with over 12,000 parking spaces across 4 states.
In 2018, with James Kassouf’s investor group, they joined the Erieview urban renewal project have revitalized the Erieview Urban renewal plans with planning on redevelopment for 12 floors of the first Branded apartments in Cleveland, along with 7 floors of branded full service hotel space. The restaurant located on the 38th floor was the former “top-of-the-town” restaurant which has been in operation for many years, and the 40th-floor outdoor bar is the highest bar in this part of the country.
James and his team are now redeveloping the one million square foot 40-story tower and Galleria, which is the 4th tallest building in Cleveland and the 9th tallest in the state of Ohio. With this project, they hope to be the first branded residential project in Cleveland with a national hotel chain, along with condos and redeveloping the Galleria into a festive shopping & restaurant & entertainment facility, along with office space.
A native to the Cleveland area, James Kassouf has always been passionate about restoring his hometown. Having witnessed the city be developed first hand, James Kassouf and his family have made it their mission to preserve the city that they, like many others, have grown to love. More recently, the Kassouf family has expanded their talent overseas working on several real estate development projects in various countries.