theguv

fyi, this WILL be the next parking garage built by csu. however, there may not be anything on top at the time of construction

the duck island people may not stop until there is pasture land under the bridges. more room to put the cows and goats out. i just hope they sell their feta cheese at the market.

lack of access makes economic development difficult, if not impossible. one business has already failed, that being a bid by the jacobs group to turn the coast guard station into a bar during the heydays of the flats. educational access, which i suppose is quasi-public, benefits from a lack of access so long as a sufficient reason (great lakes research, outdoor pursuits) justifies visitation. the reason seems more than sufficient in that none of the aforementioned universities offer greatlakes research or recreational opportunities. especially considering the current use of whiskey island/wendy park and the eventual (hopefully) reaches of the towpath. i may be wrong, but i see higher-ed as the highest and best use for this location.

yes, it's nice to remember the past. though it would seem that the developers could have just as easily preserved one of the massively hulking buildings (smelters?) for some sort of creative adaptive re-use. then shoppers could have RELIVED the past through the sheer magnitude of the steel making process. i, for one, consider myself lucky to have bicycled through one of those magnificently massive open structures. afterwards i wanted nothing more than to tell the world that the foundation of america as we know it today was built upon cleveland steel. now it's all been reduced to a museum the size of a three car garage. the price to pay, i suppose, for dealing with the devil of capitalism.

the lack of access is precisely why it should be public use or educational use. a great lakes research center and canoe/kayak rental for csu/case/jcu students/alumni/guests would be a nice fit. it would likely begin to engender greater appreciation and understanding of our great lake

smackem, i don't think you should direct your anger at block clubs as they hold many fragile neighborhoods together and offer a sense of neighborhood security that little else can provide

Since parking revenue is paying for most of these projects, the parking master plan will likely shed some light on project dats as well as seemingly incongruent land purchases. The attached image seems to clear up the reason for the recent land acquisition (north of wolstein). Have a look at the entire plan http://www.csuohio.edu/campusmasterplan/pmp.pdf

in regards to the extravagantly prices townhomes of OhioCity project, it appears that two more (4 of 6) have now sold. impressive considering a starting price of $450k

greencity blue lake is a project of ecocitycleveland. i believe the site is currently being redeveloped to enable more community participation. something along the lines of http://realneo.us does anyone have any word on when the parks are to be completed? it would certainly add a lot to the area, esp if they included bike racks! (i for one am tired of locking my bike to the trees) it looks like bike racks may be a standard for all future parkworks projects as their most recent project at e. 9th and huron has quite a few and employs them in an interesting way, almost as a sort of fence.

fyi, in case you didn't see this, Steven Litt, art/architecture critic for the Cleveland Plain Dealer wrote a nice piece about the new rec center multi-use buidling at UC http://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/plaindealer/steven_litt/index.ssf?/base/entertainment/114025552969310.xml&coll=2

Lots of new information regarding future construction at CSU has been posted at http://www.csuohio.edu/architect/developments.html including a partial new face to the chester side of main classroom to be completed in the summer of this year and the demolition and construction of a brand new student center. exciting stuff!

fyi, mueller lofts is planning on having a model open in the beginning of march as for the Frango's building, that's great news. what is the building that is being renovated about 1 - 2 blocks east of the Frangos building on the same side of the street?

i may have to agree with mgd. i have forgotten about the good work done by the levin college's resident urban housing guru, dr. tom bier. somewhere, about two years ago, he wrote about the grave need for for-purchase luxury housing for downtown. anyone have a link to the article? yes, i suppose the fact that i only make $12K per year has colored my views. there's certainly lots of old money here, most certainly in the empty nesters demographic.

fyi, ann taylor wanted to stay as business was quite good, unfortunately coral would not renew their lease.

i agree that many of the pricepoints are ridiculous for those that are essentially taking on the role of an urban pioneer by moving into a part of downtown where there is little foot traffic. perhaps that explains the elevated park/plaza that is only accessible to avenue residents? a sort of private greenspace in the city for those wiling to spend $400K. these pricepoints and design elements are certainly not the ideal for rebuilding the urban core. but perhaps it's the only way? there are however interesting properties to be had on the fringes, the painter's loft on franklin near 84th have beautiful 2 level units of about 1500 sq.ft for around $160K. the neighborhood appears to be quite nice with lots of new construction around including the neo industrial franklin townhomes. also, mueller lofts (e. 31 near payne) and payne avenue lofts at e. 37 have units around 900 sq.ft priced from $119k

in my humble opinion, the asking prices are way too high for the neighborhood. i believe they recently lowered the starting prices to the mid $400,000's i'd guess they are prepared to wait it out?

the developers bought the corner and end units.

I think it's one of the best book stores in town IF you have the time to just wander, you'll certainly come across some great finds. However, I really wish he would organize to the point of having easily identifiable sections then put some couches and comfy chairs in and it'd be a great winter hang out... In the summer, they host an amazing motown band that plays right in front of the store. Drums and vocals can be heard echoing all the way to johnny mango's....

Consider that EnergyWise Systems is not just any ordinairy company but a high performance builder that enables homes to be constructed quicker, less expensively, more solidly, and perhaps most importantly, homes that can be operated for far less money in our crazy climate. Consider what all of this means for future construction projects as well as consumer purchasing power. Their manufacturing process does not seem very intrusive and would likely not affect nearby residences. Seems like a winner to grow a new Cleveland. http://highperformancepanels.com

I believe it to be three screens. two long and narrow that will split the current screen and one that will, as i understand it, be short and wide in what is now the back of the theater, which also has a balcony. this last theater will potentially feature a bar/lounge from which movies can be viewed.

Good news for downtown Cleveland! I've often thought that downtown was litter strewn, though I think that could be remedied with more garbage cans, the newly formed SID will solve the problem. However, I perceive a far greater issue is the lack of landscaping, especially some sort of unified plan, for most of downtown. This would seem to be a far more sustainable issue to approach as the results come in the form of continuously improving landscapes (as the planting mature) that provide not only beauty but improved moral and pride for those that live and work downtown. I, for one, would really like to see downtown year round landscaping that is GREEN in the winter months as well. More conifers, such as Norway Spruce (a beautiful light green that does well in relatively dry conditions) come to mind as well as shrubs like rhododendron, boxwood, and holly, to name a few. Imagine a row of spruces with a string of solar powered led's on a january evening...

I think that in this stage, as Cleveland moves through a transition from heavy industrial/manufacturing to light industrial/manufacturing that is fueled by nanotech/biotech engineers and entrepreneurs, you are going to see greater losses then gains. so while we as a region are certainly gaining "new economy" jobs, we are still losing old economy jobs at a greater rate.

regarding the UC reconstruction, as I have come to understand it, the current building will be completely demolished and in its place will rise a MUCH more functional building that reaches out to Euclid and as I understand it, includes a much larger bookstore a with street level access. Demolition of the existing building was chosen, over the much less expensive renovation, because even a major renovation could not fix the inward focus of the existing structure. I think this represents a very postitive step for CSU. Also, apparently all new buildings will employ similar architecture to the soon to be completed Rec center, though not sure which characteristics will be common in all new construction. In transit center news, here is a blurb from the recent CSU Board of Trustees Meeting "Authorized officers of the University to pursue the acquisition of property located at 2005 and 2007 Prospect Avenue by purchasing the property at an aggregate price of $1,150,000, or by eminent domain, with all expenses associated with the eminent domain acquisition subject only to the approval of the University upon presentation of appropriate receipts or invoices." map it for even more fun!

it is grouped in with the next group of building projects. the current group includes fenn, the rec center and grad and admin bldgs. the next group, as i understand it, includes the new bldg for the college of education, the demolition and rebuild of the cage which will include a bookstore, and the transit center. each group includes construction of structured parking as means of enabling the next phase as parking revenues are paying for all garage construction.

a few notes: the ECP is supposed to feature bike racks at all stops, though i've never seen them in the plan. similarly, but outside of this topic, is that the ECP is supposed to feature wi-fi along the route. but again, i've never seen it in the plan eventhough i've mentioned the ease with which it (and bike racks) could be implemented. the ECP vehicles will feature storage for two! bikes inside the middle of the vehicle. bike racks around campus, preferably in visible locations, is something im suggesting to CSU as a means of increasing activity and reducing parking requirements. these ideas will be incorporated to my exit project which will define a set of sustainability indicators for the university. as for the transit center, i understand that the first two or so floors will be the "airport like" waiting environment for bus riders which will include convenience retail. the next five or so will be parking. on the next two or so floors CSU wants to build a small boutique style hotel/hostel for visiting athletes and performers at the wolstein center. the building will be capped by some sort of athletic facility and, as you can see from the drawing, will also feature an elevated walkway to wolstein.