Map Boy

Another Browns game, another unnecessary heart attack. We got our 8th victory limping through the 4th quarter rain in the Meadowlands when we could have walked away with a convincing victory that a playoff bound team should know how to manage by now. We managed to "kill" 42 seconds on a 3 and out (one stuffed run and two poor passes from DA) with under 5 minutes left, up by two scores, when we should've been running the clock. What came next was a shoddy defensive side that could've ended the game if not for a silly pass interference penalty by Leon Williams (poor call if you ask me). Our D could've used a timeout, but Romeo sat on his hands instead of using one to help the squad catch their breath. The Jets scored easily and then recovered an onsides kick. I was so close to turning it off...

FYI, Hawken started out in the Circle area as well... on Ansel. Not sure of the exact address.

8th floor structure under way!

Mayfield Road (relocated from E. 120th Street) and Cedar-University stations to be rebuilt and operational in the next 3-5 years. Mayfield first. As has been said previously, there is different ridership based on origin, destination and other less objective criteria, though I can see why some redundancy in the two routes (silver and red lines) is perceived.

My wife, baby, brother, & I went to Latitude on Saturday for brunch and I will agree wholeheartedly with urbangirl. The menu was good and the food was delicious, but what impressed me most was the decor. Lots of brick, nice comfy couches and chairs, booths and tables. The one side is laid out like a lounge, complete with a book shelf and coffee table; while the other has a more traditional restaurant layout - booths along the walls and tables down the middle. There were about 6 other tables there while we were and people coming and going, albeit not as busy as say, Lucky's would be on a Saturday morning. Regardless... very nice! We'll be going back.

It looks beautiful, but it boggles the mind that in the time it's going to take FC to rehab this part of the tower, they've built a 52-story headquarters for the New York Times, 3,000 homes on an old airfield in Denver, and who knows what else? I know I'm not comparing apples to apples, but I'm just saying...

I agree that Winslow and Lewis had fantastic games. DA was spotty... when he was on, he was phenomenal. When he wasn't, he missed some simple passes. Braylon was again hot and cold. The biggest surprise and the deserved recipient of the game ball was Brandon McDonald. The rookie really stepped it up for the game and could've been the difference in the game. It's hard not to think about winning out our last 5 games, but I keep telling people that I'll be disappointed if we don't!

^Gypsy has great lunch and breakfast food... a pretty impressive menu for a cafe... and they make everything in-house! That's where we went after the shops on Friday. Can't go wrong with some hot chai and a couple fresh tasty muffins on a cold day!

Vacancy rates up a bit, and that’s pretty good NE Ohio’s industrial, office markets have weathered closings, additions to empty space By STAN BULLARD 4:30 am, November 26, 2007 Despite being roiled by big setbacks, Northeast Ohio’s industrial and office markets will make it through the year with minor hikes in vacancies, according to just-completed year-end forecasts by the Grubb & Ellis Co. real estate brokerage. The region’s industrial market took several hits, including the closing of Ford’s Lorain Assembly Plant, and it saw the first completion of a major industrial warehouse building in several years, which added empty space to the market. As a result, Grubb & Ellis forecasts that industrial vacancy will climb by year end to 11% from 9.8% a year ago. The volume of empty industrial space climbed 14% this year to 32.3 million square feet from 28.34 million square feet at the same time last Dec. 31. Just two developments — the closing and conversion of the Ford plant to a multitenant industrial park and the shutdown of the Tops grocery chain’s 700,000-square-foot warehouse in Bedford as it left the region — added 3.7 million square feet of vacant space to the market. However, the expectation might have been for the industrial market to fare far worse given the economic stagnation caused by turmoil in the credit markets. “It’s counterintuitive, given all you read,” said Terry Coyne, director of the industrial unit at Grubb & Ellis. Another big factor adding to the increase in empty space was actually a positive one, Mr. Coyne said. It was the addition of the 400,000-square-foot Diamond Center I warehouse in Glenwillow, the first speculative, big-box warehouse built in the market in years. Mr. Coyne said the appetite of manufacturers and warehouse operators for space was such that it kept vacancy levels from going higher. Despite the addition of Diamond Center I, which was built by a joint venture of Geis Cos. of Streetsboro and Weston of Solon, the overall pace of industrial construction was almost flat from the prior year. Grubb & Ellis estimates 1.68 million square feet of industrial space was completed in 2007, essentially unchanged from the 1.69 million square feet completed last year. Back at the office ... Meantime, in the office market, vacancies inched up. Grubb & Ellis estimates the vacancy rate for the market as a whole will hit 18.69% by year-end from 18.36% a year ago. As with the industrial market, vacancies in the office market grew just enough to keep bad news in check. The market received setbacks such as JP Morgan Chase & Co. shutting a collections offices at downtown Cleveland’s Skylight Office Tower, which emptied two floors and put 60,000 square feet on the market, and subprime lender NovaStar Financial closing two suburban offices, which emptied nearly 100,000 square feet. Grubb & Ellis forecasts office vacancy in downtown Cleveland will rise to 20.16% by Dec. 31 from 19.83% a year ago. However, that small increase masks a positive development: The vacancy rate among Class A downtown office buildings — those under 30 years of age with good locations and amenities — will dip to 10.4% by year-end from 11.2% a year ago. However, the move-up nature of the market meant the story was not positive for some older office buildings. Among downtown Class B buildings, which are over age 30 but still considered competitive office space, vacancy will climb to 27% by year-end from 25% last year. In still older and functionally obsolescent Class C downtown buildings, vacancy will edge down to 22% by year-end from 22.5% last year. Jeff Cristal, director of the office unit at Grubb & Ellis, said the continued decline in downtown Class A office vacancy, although slight, is significant. “This increases the chance we’ll see construction of a new downtown office building,” Mr. Cristal said. The downtown office excitement also may be contagious. “We’re seeing more demand for downtown space by suburban tenants because it’s perceived as an attractive place to be,” said Ronald “Scott” Pollock, a Grubb & Ellis office associate. “People are out in the market because they have to expand or want to upgrade their building.” The Grubb & Ellis office survey tracks the region’s appetite for office space through absorption, which measures the change in occupied space. Office tenants will absorb 271,000 square feet of office space by year-end, which is 60% less than the 703,224 square feet office tenants absorbed in 2006. That’s a big loss of appetite, but still beats much of this decade before 2004, when absorption often was in the red.

Same for Red Line trains?

Much insight (and diagrams) from Callahan: http://www.callahansclevelanddiary.com/?p=423#more-423 http://www.callahansclevelanddiary.com/?p=419

exciting about the new fare boxes. They look like they'll be a little daunting at first, but once people get used to them, no problem. It'll be up to the operators to be helpful (not rude) with new users. A question about the proof of payment system... will there still be fareboxes on the trains/brts for riders who are unable to purchase farecards ahead of time? Namely, if I'm running to catch the Silver Line and don't have time to stop at the farebox, will I be able to purchase my fare on the vehicle?

^some of us who grew up here, moved to NYC and then returned have kept sayings like that alive, because they do have some relevance here, albeit a little out of context. On the neighborhood bar topic, there are still quite a few of them down in the Gateway neighborhood. You might not find them on E. 4th, but I doubt the Winking Lizard, Rathskellar, Moriarties, or Ontario Street Cafe are going to throw you out for not looking like a dapper dan.

Wonderful, KJP! I'd love to get back to England someday soon...

I was voicing the same concern as B12 about Latitude 41. I've never seen a single person in there! I still haven't made it myself. I also concur with most of your review of the new shops. I loved Room Service. The goods were reminiscent of Banyan Tree, but with a different shop decor. I was very impressed with what the owner put together on short notice. Lots of great gift items. She's expecting much more stock in the coming weeks and looks to know what she's doing with merchandising, purchasing, etc. A nice touch was the digital photo frame by her register that had construction photos of the rehab process. The space is beautiful and it took a ton of work! Duo Home was a little fancy for me, but the shop looks great. There were definitely expensive items in both shops, but I found some cheaper stuff on the shelves too. Vases, candle holders, etc. for under $10. I'd never been into Detroit Studio before and was pleasantly surprised by the amount of retail goods they had in stock. Paper items, great tees, and more. Definitely worth stopping in when in the neighborhood! In total, these four shops (I left out Kitsch City) add a lot to the district and really start to give Gordon Square an address for more than just theater and food! They had a nice mention in the PD on Friday too as an alternative to the standard "Black Friday" shopping options. Go D-S!

7th floor is popping up... I drove by on St. Clair last night and boy is it nice to see a lit up construction site gaining height! Still can't see the structure from the Shoreway, but hopefully soon!

we are in serious need of some defensive help. is this Boykins? not likely. Davis? perhaps. Andre Miller? Not sure there. Varejao would be a boost, but that doesn't seem to be going anywhere. The Cavs D is competing with the Browns D for the most Disturbing Defense prize... Anyone think a Larry Hughes for Andre Miller trade would work?

I'll come down for lunch someday soon and we can check it out!

It fits in with his "Y Cleveland" plan, which stretches along Prospect and through Gateway to around E. 17th. Here's a "bird's eye" aerial of the 668/Dollar Bank site, looking north from Prospect. It looks like they'd have to take out the substantial building on Prospect (as JMC mentioned earlier). I do think this would be a big loss for Prospect and a potential rehab project. I'd like to see more of the devastation remedied (Hippodrome turned surface lot, adjacent to 668) before any additional demo is proposed.

Nice! I know one of those musical artists at least!

^1st things 1st! Thanks for the info. You paint a nice picture with your narrative recap of B&C's exterior. It sounds great and I think I can picture it! I'd still love to see those images, though, so sober up and scan, scan, scan!

^that'd be great. I stopped in at Gypsy this morning and they have fliers out. They also did a mailing, but very true that media should be getting in on the party too. In related news, I ran by the strip yesterday and was delighted to see lights on in 5 consecutive storefronts! (the newest shops look great, by the way) I've heard that Luxe (just west of these shops) is trying to open by the end of '07, which will extend the action even further. Continuing east, Gypsy was lit up and the gallery to the east has extended its displays into the old bookstore windows. The snowflakes are up on the electric poles and the whole thing looks great! As for that last note, I hope they have a plan for continuing the snowflake program even when the utility lines are buried...

^My sister just started there. I'll have to get more info from her, but I think it's a cafe/deli during the day (with an emphasis on locally grown products) and a wine/martini bar at night. Not sure how that location will do in the evening, but time will tell!

ECTP = Worthless... More new investment on Euclid provides more evidence that Feagler is out of touch: http://www.crainscleveland.com/article/20071119/FREE/311190067 Pittsburgh VC outfit has eyes for Baker building iNetworks sees commercialization potential in existing companies, region as a whole By CHUCK SODER 4:30 am, November 19, 2007 A Pittsburgh venture capital firm is opening a Cleveland office because it plans to begin making investments in early-stage life sciences companies in Northeast Ohio and throughout the state. The firm, iNetworks Advisors Inc., was scheduled to open the office, located in the Baker Electric Building at Euclid Avenue and East 71st Street, today, Nov. 19. The firm wants to be closer to institutions in Cleveland and throughout Ohio that are producing an increasing number of life science technologies worthy of investment, said Charlie Schliebs, cofounder and managing director of iNetworks.

very nice!