MayDay

Pfft! I'll take a case of Burning River - it's even on sale at the moment! :drunk: Now maybe I've rushed to a conclusion - if they designed the main exhibit floor on a BIG spiraling ramp like the Guggenheim in NYC, that would give them plenty of "contiguous" floorspace! They could always expand it like a soft-serve ice cream cone as needed! :lol:

As odd/cramped as the riverfront site is, any consideration of the Warehouse District site is flat-out short-sighted and absurd. A picture is worth a thousand words, and this image shows the footprint of two comparable markets' convention centers - Columbus in red, Pittsburgh in yellow. Should they just obliterate the Grand Arcade and the West 6th block? Just vaporize the Rockefeller Building and the Renaissance Hotel while you're at it!!! Maybe put the truck marshalling yard on Public Square!!! :weird: :roll:

What? MTS never watched "Mean" Gene Okerlund on WWF? :laugh:

It's entirely possible that it will have some sort of interior corridor/lobby on the ground level which will allow pedestrians to pass through.

I don't like looking at this thread and seeing that I've moved up an age bracket since I first posted! :x

"I cannot make do on food from a convenience store." Just to clarify, we're not talking mystery meat gas station burritos, this was a place that knew they lived in an area with a lot of single folks who made use of their prepared foods section - thus those prepared foods were a little better than what you're probably imagining. And I'm more tolerant of bad weather than you but it wasn't like that was my only option for days on end. "because I am a female." As a gay man, I totally appreciate and respect your comfort zone - I think both of "our peoples" have a heightened awareness of all things safety-related.

I'm the first to say what works for me works for ME, and I would never preach that at anyone else. I do think it's helpful for me to list options, maybe not for you, but so others who might be considering going car-free can see that there are amenities available, and in what cases a car would be needed (CityWheels or commercial rental). "I missed a lot of parties. Baby showers, birthday parties, cookouts I joyously decline invitations to baby showers ;-) How many receiving cloths can you "ooh and ahh" over, and how many times can I tolerate (with sobriety imposed because apparently people don't have booze at most baby showers) some twit asking me and my partner "So when are you two going to have one?!? You'd be a GREAT parent!" or even better the Sally Soccermom who thinks I'd be great for her token gay friend. :roll: Sorry - I loathe baby showers. As far as birthday parties/cookouts - most of my friends are local so that wasn't a problem (got rides, in some cases took transit or taxis). "I cannot imagine WALKING to and from the grocery in the awful winters we have, never mind the wind and thunderstorms and ice." My old apartment was about two blocks from a *good* convenience store that had lots of prepared foods; and about four blocks from a full-service grocery. That's no further than where I walk downtown at lunch. So during the really rough days I'd stop at the convenience store (next to my evening commute bus stop). As far as restaurants - when I say between Lakewood and Cleveland Heights, that includes: Downtown (Warehouse District, Gateway, Playhouse Square) Asiatown Tremont Ohio City (Flats West Bank, West 25th, Bridge Avenue) Detroit-Shoreway Edgewater/Clifton Lakewood (Madison Ave., Detroit Ave. downtown, Detroit Ave. near Rocky River border) University Circle Little Italy Shaker Square Cleveland Heights (Coventry, Cedar-Fairmount) Now think of all the cool little places in each of those areas - not exactly "one neighborhood", and thus not exactly lacking in options, either. I can honestly say I was never bored when it came to dining options. If I wanted to check out Tay-Do in Parma, or Red in Beachwood, that's a time for car-sharing. Did that take a little more planning ahead? Obviously - as does a lot of stuff when you're car-free. But I'll take the minor inconvenience of having to plan ahead over paying a car payment any day.

And to clarify, I work a 9 to 5, Monday-Friday in downtown and never need to leave the office for client visits, etc. - by far, that facilitates a car-free lifestyle more than anything else.

*Ahem* - "no WIRE hangers". :-D

"Most everyone thinks renting a car is so expensive, but if you're doing it just a few times a month, it's saving you a lot of money over owning a car." There's also the cost involved when you use the rental company's insurance. My credit card covers the CDW, but I have to pay for the other stuff - at $15-$20 per day on top of the rental fee, that can add up. "Doesn't anyone go to the doctor or dentist or see any specialists or ever go for physical therapy or travel to a new, interesting restaurant for dinner? The gym? The park? Over to friend's houses for a barbeque or party? The only place I can think of that would have everything I might need within walking distance or easy and quick public trans is New York City. I just don't see how anyone makes it work in Cleveland." This isn't a list of "ha ha I'm better than you" or "anyone who isn't car-free is a city-hating, SUV-driving lard@ss", it's just a sincere list of how I can be car-free in Cleveland: Doctor- General practitioner is at Cleveland Clinic, Main Campus. Dentist - Superior Dentistry, downtown in the Leader Building. Specialists/Physical Therapy - (knock on wood) no need for them. The gym - Fitworks downtown (along with a host of other options) The park - Most city parks worth mentioning are pretty easy to get to. Places like Whiskey Island or CVNP - good time for the car-sharing service, or getting a ride from friends. New interesting restaurants - most of the places I like to try are in between Lakewood and Cleveland Heights. Not only that, living in Tremont, most friends who are in the 'burbs usually insist on visiting US. Friends' houses - Again, living in Tremont... honestly when my partner and I visited people in Aurora, they apologized for "you guys having to schlep all the way out here". On a few occasions, I've rented a car or done the car-sharing thing. Hairstylist - Found a good one close to my old apartment in Edgewater. Groceries - I simply don't live in an area without a close/walkable grocery store. On rare occasions, I'd use car-sharing for stock-up trips at Trader Joes. Chain store shopping/Beachwood - This would be a good case for car-sharing. Visiting family 70 miles away or friends within 2-3 hour drive - Daily car rental (Enterprise, Hertz), usually with weekend special. Keep in mind, when you don't have car payments, gas, insurance, etc., that frees up a LOT of money for the occasional car-sharing trip, car rental, and/or taxi. I would never say I don't EVER need a car, it's just that I only need one on an occasional basis so paying for a car that doesn't see full-time use would be silly. rnr, this isn't a slam - it's just that your routine is completely hardwired into a car-dependent approach, and as you've said before, that seems to be the case with your circle of friends. Believe me, when I first gave up my car, a lot of my friends thought I was nuts, that I'd never get out, and that my social life would suffer. I did fall out of touch with some friends who live in the far-flung ex-urbs, but I wasn't the only one. Those friends have recently said they're looking to move closer - mainly to save on gas, etc. What was a very pleasant surprise was the amount of new friends I'd made in the city simply because I was out and about instead of in a car. With those people, I didn't get as much of the "are you nuts?!?" reaction when I said I was car-free. In fact, a lot of them are sympathetic and know that if they offer me a ride, their first round or parking fee is on me. :-)

VERY NICE!!! :clap: Looks like the places on East 4th that have patios are getting full use of them (Wonder Bar isn't open at lunch, and Lola doesn't seem to use theirs yet):

My take is that it's not really needed, but there are some incredibly stupid people who wouldn't be able to find it without being clubbed over the head with an "EAT AT JOES" style sign.

Just a update shot for today:

640 is too small, I recommend* 800ish :-) *And just remember I'm an Admin ;-)

Oops! From newsnet5.com http://www.newsnet5.com/news/16199609/detail.html Cherry Picker Crashes Into Flats Apartments POSTED: 10:39 am EDT May 8, 2008 UPDATED: 10:59 am EDT May 8, 2008 CLEVELAND -- A cherry picker crashed into the windows of an apartment building on the west bank of the Flats, NewsChannel5 reported. A worker was in the bucket of the cherry picker outside the Stonebridge Plaza on Washington Avenue at about 9 a.m. when it started to give way. A resident said the man jumped onto an apartment balcony as the crane started to collapse and the bucket hit the windows. Read More...

Jimbo, for information about the Progressive tower, visit my site http://www.clevelandskyscrapers.com/cleveland/unbuilt08.html. It's been on my site for well over a year and a simple Google search would give you all the answers you needed - your post basically shows a good example of someone complaining without any knowledge of the subject at hand. You ARE aware that some of the projects you're moaning about were proposed FORTY years ago?

It's going to jump out of that building if you nitwits keep going off topic!

I'm also glad that more females are joining the forum*. I'll be even happier when this thread gets back on topic :-) *Public service announcement to all males - let the gals have about 10 or 20 posts before "propositioning". Trust me - just trust me. :-)

Interesting line... Another random questions, I searched around and didn't find anything, but what is going up next to Tri-C off of 77? Back then, the area around the Rose Building (aka Medical Mutual at East 9th and Prospect/Huron) was called "New Center" and people thought the builder was out of his mind for being SO far removed from the center of downtown - sounds like some other current projects ;-) Yes, the construction at Tri-C is the Rock Hall archive/classroom thingyamajig.

There's the Kent State University library tower - tallest in Portage County at 125 feet: It's not in downtown Kent but since it's the largest in the county I figured it deserved mentioning.

I guess I was spoiled by working for (and reading) the Daily Kent Stater - the article reads like it was by a news anchor for Channel 19 :roll:

^I'm seeing it. :?

Absolutely recommend seeing Iron Man *in the theater*. And stick around until the credits are over ;-)

"My comments weren't made to be mean or condescending yet state that if the situation is right you can still save and have a life." They came across as neither mean or condescending, more like bubble-headed.

"Understood, but even if you are making 26k or less, I still think its wise to put that minimum 3% (or is it 2%) into a 401k. Is it tough?" No bourgeoissh!t Sherlock, it's wise, but yeah it just might be tough for some people who don't have two homes and spend their career jetting around the world. :roll: