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University Heights, OH- John Carroll University has agreed to purchase Temple Emanu El, located at the corner of Cedar and Green Roads in University Heights. Temple Emanu El is in the process of constructing a new synagogue in Orange Village and was seeking a buyer for its current building in University Heights. John Carroll will develop the site with several future long-term goals, including possible: Additional Temporary Campus Parking Additional Playing Fields for Student Sports Upperclass Student Housing The university’s most immediate need for the site is to provide additional temporary campus parking, a plan that will be implemented in August 2008 when Temple Emanu El relocates. However, the university may move some of its facilities management operations to the site. For much of the past year, John Carroll University has been working on a new master plan for its campus. The University hired Sasaki Associates to assess needs and the current configuration of campus, and then to propose solutions that will make sense for the University and the surrounding community. In recent months, representatives of the University have been meeting with elected officials and neighbors to talk about the plan, which is still in draft form. In announcing the purchase agreement, John Carroll University President, Rev. Robert L. Niehoff, S.J., stated, “We are delighted to reach an agreement with Temple Emanu El that will enable us to better serve our students this fall and provide the Temple with the resources its congregation desires as it moves to the next level in serving the needs of its supportive and generous community.” Rabbi Steven L. Denker, spiritual leader of Temple Emanu El adds, “This transaction, between neighbors of over sixty years, blesses both institutions by facilitating Temple Emanu El’s move to our new home in Orange Village while providing John Carroll University with space for its future development. We are pleased to have reached an agreement that is truly in the best interest of the communities we serve.” Temple Emanu El was founded in 1947 to serve the Jewish community of the then easternmost suburbs of Cleveland. A leader in Jewish education for all ages, pre-school though adulthood, social justice, and in bringing contemporary spirituality to its members, Temple Emanu El will continue its tradition of service in a new ‘state of the art’ synagogue facility now under construction on Brainard Road in Orange Village.