MayDay

Update from October 1st - I think this is as tall as she's gonna get:

As I've been following the development of the project I can assure it's not going to be on the Scranton Road peninsula. The area in question is east of 176 (Jennings Freeway) and south of I-490. I know that covers a wide area but it's well south of the Scranton Road Peninsula. I have mixed feelings on this because I see the positives (revenue stays in the city, new jobs) and the negatives (suburban-style center in the city, more retail that won't be in downtown). Btw, welcome to the forum Equillibrius!

Arquitectonica did those??? Folks, take a ride up I-71 and look at the gorgeous (at least from the northern facade) Miranova tower in Columbus. Arquitectonica could and has and SHOULD do better here! In all honesty, I think areas like Over-the-Rhine need some ultra-modern structures to mix things up. You have all these beautiful older buildings - don't do what those renderings show (similar heights, 'matching' brick and masonry tones) - go all out and make something that's well-designed but tells the area "things are happening".

Yep, I can say the same thing for Kent State. Ah well... I'm really impressed with the plans for the apartments/retail on Euclid - I know the folks on Hessler aren't happy with it but I hope the project goes through.

I don't mean to come off as snarky when I say this but of course I wouldn't be as familiar with the 'recent' history of either Toronto or Cleveland - I was six years old when the city went into default and frankly, I didn't grow up in the area. I wasn't around while older generations redlined neighborhoods, white-flighted and in so many other ways led to this (and other urban areas in the States) decline. My first visit to downtown Cleveland was in the late 1970s - I remember it was awe-inspiring because it was a big city but I also remember vividly the streets and buildings were filthy. In some ways I'm grateful I'm a 'johnny come lately' because while it's been said over and over again, it is SO true that the greatest pessimism and negativity toward Cleveland comes from the people who were born and raised here, hands down. As a resident of the city who has been car-free - you bet your @ss I want to see heavy investment in rail transit, higher population density, TODs, you name it - and every chance I get I educated people on why such things equal higher property values and better quality of life. But I know that just like the stepping stones of these aforementioned projects, so is the education of the people in this region. Are things where they should be? No. Are they getting better? I'd say yes, although obviously things could be happening faster and in greater numbers. I think it's the stepping stones like Pinnacle, District Park, Medical Mutual Plaza, the adaptive re-use, the work of EcoCity Cleveland, ParkWorks, Cleveland Public Art - that's going to educate people even more about the effects of sprawl and decentralization so that more and more people get behind even bigger and better things. It'll take time but from I've seen in the short decade that I've become familiar with Cleveland - I still have hope. /rant

River rats I tell ya!

Here we go again with the "...Chicago is doing this! and Toronto is doing that!". While I admit that Chicago and Toronto are leaps and bounds ahead, you're comparing Cleveland to cities that have (depending on who is counting) at least two to three times our city population, much less the metro pop. I'm with zaceman on this - no, a parking deck may not be much but the fact that a group of horribly blighted buildings are gone and a well-designed structure is shaping up does tell me that yes, people still are interested in investing in downtown. Add to that what's going on elsewhere in the CBD and I say downtown Cleveland is moving in the right direction.

"...end domestic partner benefits offered by four state universities..." In other words, preventing gay and heterosexual unmarried couples at state universities from receiving the SAME and EQUAL health care benefits that married couples are eligible for. "...and could affect legal agreements between unmarried couples..." In other words, the legal agreements (power of attorney, etc.) that are the only recourse gay couples have to ensure things like hospital visitation, estate settlement... Anyone who is in support of this amendment, simply put - you're a bigot.

@ monte's comment (granted this happened a few years back but it's not unheard of): Sources: Reuters News Agency, 1997-FEB-24; Associated Press, 1997-FEB-26 A militant fundamentalist Christian group, the Army of God claimed responsibility FEB-24 for recent bombings in Atlanta GA of an abortion clinic and a gay/lesbian nightclub. A group called by this name has been known to the FBI; they have circulated bomb-making manuals which advocate how to blow up abortion clinics. The letter described the bombs' design and set up a mechanism by which future claims of responsibility could be confirmed for upcoming bombings. They threatened total war against the federal government and promised to attack gays, lesbians, their organizations and supporters in the future. The explosive devices at the abortion clinic and nightclub were packed with nails in order to maximize personal injury. A second bomb was left in an outside parking lot, apparently located and timed to try to kill investigators responding to the first blast. At least a half dozen people were injured outside the Sandy Springs abortion clinic when the second bomb went off. Five people were injured by the first blast at the Otherside Lounge. Federal officials have concluded that these two bombings and the deadly Centennial Olympic Park bombings bear points of similarity. They have speculated that a serial bomber may be at large in Atlanta. ............ http://www.reuters.com/

zaceman, I'll confirm with some of the people at CPA, but I'm pretty sure the East 120th overpass is another "hot spot". At least that's what the ECTP master plan says. Since all of Euclid will be getting a 'building-face to building-face' makeover, I doubt they'd let such a crucial point go unchanged.

zaceman, the bridge in question is indeed the train bridge - I imagine they'll want to brighten the undersides so it isn't so foreboding to pedestrians. The lot at Chester and East 55th is the site of the now-demolished Schwebel bakery - it stood vacant for a long time until the city demolished it a few years ago. It's currently being used by Rysar Properties as a marshalling yard for their equipment.

All I know is that the project had some financing issues - especially when Larry Dolan withdrew his support. If a Doubletree Hotel couldn't get financed (as in Courthouse Square over on Lakeside), it's not surprising that a 'boutique' hotel/condo tower had issues. Here's a pic from Downtown Cleveland Building Projects - it's on the left:

Bedbugs and Ballyhoo? (Sorry - referencing the song by Echo and the Bunnymen)

Hey, never mind about the inept governor and the horrendous job losses Ohio has had - we've got more important things to worry about like keeping those darned queers and radical activist judges from leading us down that slippery slope!!!

Thanks nsc, I had no idea. Is that a union rule or is it a federal safety guideline?

I can honestly say that my stress levels (from commuting) were drastically reduced the day I moved closer to my workplace in downtown Cleveland. The stress went down even more after letting someone else worry about the driving part. In the time it takes my friend to commute to their home in ex-urbia, I manage to work out, shower, and finish dinner by the time they pull in their driveway.

^What you describe in the first part of your post is how most urban dwellers I know do their shopping, especially those in places like NYC and Chicago. They make more frequent trips picking up what they need rather than one big walloping trip to stock up. Quite a few get their bulkier items (i.e. 64 oz. Tide) via an online service. That's one of the big differences between urban and suburban living - more frequent quick trips to the store vs. hauling the H2 to Costco. Having lived in both, I personally prefer the former.

@ grasscat - you're right, there's been a little added to the vertical structure but it seems like they're working on the lower portions for now. @ zaceman - trust me, the moment I get a glimpse of a crane being set up at District Park, I'm all over it! :) I know they said a September groundbreaking - in Cleveland it seems like they give or take a month on those dates.

More updates - from Sept. 1st, 2004:

"why do you think approaching cleveland just looks like approaching the key tower" Yeeeeah, I only see Key Tower in these pics - I don't see any others at all... riiiight: :crazy:

I see this as a positive for Hudson - I lived there for three years and I loved the historic center of town but you could tell it was lacking a little. This project should help add to the amenities of Hudson without harming the local shops. zaceman, I hear what you're saying but I think Hudson is really too far-flung from Cleveland for this project to exacerbate Cleveland's retail woes. Cleveland and the inner-ring burbs have the infrastructure but unfortunately they don't all have the disposable income of the typical Hudson resident (did you see the movie The Stepford Wives? *Textbook* Hudson housewife)

Ronnie, I'm well aware of the crown/Queen City reference - it's that there is little cohesion between the crown and the rest of the tower. It just seems like a hoop skirt turned sideways and "plunked" on top of a stretched out version of Sacramento's US Bank Plaza http://www.skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=1514 The crown *could* work (imho) if they made a better attempt at integrating into the rest of the tower.

"having to drive to PF Chang's for lunch - I say hell no!" I say plain 'hell no' to PF Changs - overpriced, underportioned crap!

^Although much of what you say is true, keep in mind that high vacancy rates don't always equal 'no new towers' or at least it's not the ONLY indicator. In 1989-1991, Cleveland's CBD had a vacancy rate around 20% (pretty bad) - nevertheless, Key Tower was built and the vacancy rate actually improved afterwards. As far as the design, when you say "ugliest and dated"... can you offer some specifics? I personally don't care for the crown but I can live with the rest of it.

It boggles my mind that OC would even consider leaving their office campus - it's only eight years old and one of Cesar Pelli's best non-highrise designs!