Cleveland to loan $2M for aquarium project

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland City Council has approved a $2 million loan for a proposed aquarium meant to draw visitors to the city’s Flats entertainment district.

The council agreed Monday to approve the loan for the developers behind the project.

The 10-year loan will have a fixed 3 percent interest rate. The money comes from an economic-development fund.

Backers estimate the $9 million aquarium will draw 400,000 visitors a year and pump $10 million into the Cleveland economy.

One critic has said the proposed size, one-eighth of Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium, is too small to succeed.