Map Boy

If they get a little plot o' green, that's great. I'm sure they could've pinched the site a bit to put the parking access off a rear drive, but I'm not the architect, so I'll settle for a well-designed front-in version. I'm being picky... I just don't like all those curb cuts!

Glad to see they're getting started on the next set. Townhomes at this price point in BP & AD seem to be selling well. Not thrilled about the garages being up front on the new set, but I haven't seen enough of the site plan to know how necessary this is. It's also hard to tell from the drawings what type of materials they're going to use. I hope it's some quality stuff, as these will be the first set that make it all the way to a Superior Avenue frontage.

Great news out of the two big local foundations today. The Cleveland Foundation piece (from Crain's) is a little misleading... I don't think they're awarding money to the Euclid Corridor, but to the Uptown project. And Village Capital isn't building Uptown, but I believe they are a significant capital contributor. Anyway, if you can make any sense of it, it's very good news! Cleveland Foundation awards $13.9M in grants By SHANNON MORTLAND 4:29 pm, September 25, 2008 The Cleveland Foundation today announced it will provide $13.9 million for various local projects... Gund Foundation Awards $4.2 Million in September CLEVELAND OH - The George Gund Foundation made a $3 million commitment to University Circle Incorporated for the proposed Uptown housing and retail development on upper Euclid Avenue...

And there is no way to pay on-board, correct? This needs to be spelled out explicitly.

that is one HUGE outdoor dining area! what does that add... 200 square feet to their footprint?

Based on the design review agenda images, it looks like they're moving on the "Alley Townhomes," which will face W. 74th Street. This is now posted on their website as well and it looks like 4 of 9 have already been pre-sold. The Gateway Townhomes had similarly strong pre-sales and are completely sold out. They're into some of their phase 2 buildings now, but some phase 1 structures remain unbuilt. It seems that pacing their building based on market demand is the way to go here. Very exciting!

I've got a baby, so I guess I can weigh in here. I live in Detroit Shoreway (just west of Ohio City, centered around W. 65th & Detroit Avenue - there are a couple threads on here about it) and did, in fact, register my daughter for UCS within 3 months of her birth! I'm part of a young families "babysitting" co-op that was founded in Ohio City and has now spread to Detroit Shoreway. Some of the families have been in the neighborhood for years (we used to run into them while walking our dogs... now it's with our strollers) and others have just arrived from other parts of the country. There are at least 2 families from Chicago and 1 from Detroit that I know of. Most of our friends have kids under 4 years of age, so I don't know much about 5 years and up, but I can attest that the two catholic schools in the neighborhood have kept a good number of families in these blocks and there are plenty little rugrats riding their bikes around and causing trouble! I would count Battery Park as one of the safest parts of this community, with solid blocks of old homes around the developing area and lots of families. The councilman lives on an adjacent block and the block clubs are active and positive. The access to the beach and waterfront parks is unparalleled in the city. The other threads can address the other neighborhood assets (movie theater, restaurants, etc.). I won't speak much to other neighborhoods mentioned on here, but I'll add that the Shaker Square neighborhood in Cleveland is very popular with young families because of the housing stock and a partnership with the Shaker Heights public schools. Welcome to Cleveland!

Went to a gallery opening (http://www.frontroomcleveland.com/) a week or so ago at Tyler. The place was packed and the art & music were great. I hadn't been in for quite a while, so it was nice to see things moving along. It's also getting rarer to mention Tyler in a conversation and get the "what village?" look anymore. People know about it! Any updates on Indigo? The retail space?

what the heck is that pattern in the wall they're drilling through?

How can this project carry on with such dire news from Eaton just down the street? I thought Eaton's possible departure for Beachwood meant the end of the Avenue District, FEB, Pesht, Uptown, CSU, and all $2 billion of investment along the Euclid Corridor?

mmmmm... retailers...

is #3 over by CSU/Prospect Ave/Trinity?

Earlier today, I tried to figure out how to get from my office in University Circle to a meeting I have in Beachwood after work without a car. It's going to be a 2-bus + 1-train ride that could take me anywhere from 50 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on making my transfers during rush hour. I may opt for CityWheels, which is a luxury I have in the Circle, but I'd rather not have to spend the cash. Connections between these exurban job centers and our urban job centers and neighborhoods is SO automobile dependent, which is one of many reasons why news like this sickens me.

Wasn't Chagrin Highlands land that was owned by the City of Cleveland at one point? Somewhat off-topic, but relevant if we're talking municipal laws and tax regulations.

Steven Litt's take: http://blog.cleveland.com/architecture/2008/09/university_hospitals_new_proje.html#more

Thanks for the pics! I haven't run by here in a while, but I will plan to do so very soon. Correct me if I'm wrong, but this new townhome site will front the boulevard/park that runs north/south?

^I love the idea of a bakery right there. Not sure if it's the highest and best use or if it would pay the rent, but hey, it's just an idea.

Do you know what the last built structure was on that space (where CHSC is going up)? It was 1-story motor motel. Totally wack...

The proliferation of grocery stores in Asia Town is so intriguing. It goes against all the "laws" of demographic & market analysis, but it seems to work.

^Bingo And some progress on the Cleveland Hearing & Speech Center, just down the street. They will not be providing a public wading area, but they will have a waiting area with an entry right up on the sidewalk.

I concur that the groundbreaking ceremony and dog park meeting were a great one-two punch on Wednesday. The crowd and performances for the groundbreaking were great and the buzz spilled over to the storefronts on Detroit, a rare site for a weekday afternoon. Luxe prepared snack trays (really good ones!) for each of the retailers to help entice shoppers. I spent about $50 and ran into a bunch of neighborhood friends while I was at it! The dog park meeting provided more of the commUNITY feeling that I love about the Cleveland 'hoods I've lived in. ParkWorks, Matt Zone and the Cleveland EcoVillage are putting this project together. The feeling was that dog owners can really help solidify a public space by being regular users and caretakers. Another great amenity development in the pipeline for D-S!

That's great news! That's such a prime location (IMHO) and it's a shame it's been vacant for this long. Of course, I know nothing else about it...

"I got a guy on the other line about some white walls..." Shoot, we're going too far off topic! [snip, snip]

There so much to comment on here, but several points don't really relate to the ECTP alone, so I'll be brief. One, a number of communities, including University Circle, are working on plans to add to the ECTP improvements with more streetscape amenities like benches, unique lighting, bike racks, etc. The ECTP is the baseline from which these neighborhoods will add their individual character/flair. Two, CPP has a pretty limited set of options for street lighting. We've seen this become a problem at a few points throughout the City, including the Italian Cultural Garden in Rockefeller Park. It's not easy to get them to add a new fixture, unless you've got scale like 6 miles of lights to be installed. Some new pics from the Circle: Euclid @ E. 115 in front of CIA... peek-a-boo on the new Cleveland Hearing & Speech Center building in the background: Things will indeed change in the lots beyond this new public art piece, the site of the Uptown development: Doing more harm than good? Out for a test drive on Euclid in front of the Uptown sales center:

I don't mind the stucco on the Prospect side. I say this, not having any idea what it covered up. The scale is what's important to me, though, and the Prospect side is very nice in that regard.