clvlndr

I'm not even talking about changing the structure at this point with POP and fare machines at all stops (although this would be desirable), I just want RTA to thoroughly make clear to the public the convoluted fare system they've already got.

I've long said that RTA operates the Rapid as a closed rail system for people who have been riding it for years; decades. People just kinda know these things, such as how fare payment works. However it is very inaccessible and confusing to those accessing the system for the first time. This is especially true of the archaic Blue-Green, eastbound/westbound fare payment system (and then what do you do if you get on or off at a WFL station? esp if you ride through from Shaker and the East side -- I've seen drivers who, upon arriving at a WFL station, open all the doors and let everybody off without asking for fares and with no fixed payment booths -- huh!?). I've literally seen a Yale-educated man who was confused by this system. I also think that the directional signage for the Waterfront Line is terrible/next to non-existent -- aside from the big sign over the turnstiles that says (IIRC) Green, Blue and Waterfront lines... For example you might think that, given the international prestige the Rock Hall has brought to Cleveland that, at Tower City, there would be signage screaming that the WFL is the best way to get there and pointing passengers directly to the WFL platform. (Note: I think the WFL should be for a lot more than Rock Hall tourists/visitors, but you get my point)... I haven't gotten much rise out of Jerry or JetDog on this issue either.

^I wonder what caused the tremendous spike in Red Line ridership in 2007. Indians playoff run, maybe? Not sure. Btw, to put these numbers in perspective, I read somewhere a long time ago that the highest yearly ridership on the Red Line was around 18M in the early 1960s, when it was the old CTS Rapid and when it was shorter (no Airport extension yet) -- meaning that the top Red Line riding yearly figures from '96 to 2015 weren't even half the top year on a shorter system. Of course there were only 1 or 2 malls back then and downtown still booming biz-wise and retail-wise compared to now. Of course, very few people lived downtown in those days, either.

Ditto thanks, Dumbledore... Glad to see the East End Restaurant and Bar going into the 1330 ORR building at the end of the old row. I checked their Facebook page, but there's not a lot on it to date. Is this first/only new restaurant so far on the East Bank outside the FEB footprint?

^Yeah, that sign seems more appropriate for a strip shopping center.

^That's great, but I wish we could have more movies that both film here and are set here. Seems we either have movies filmed here, but aren't set here (The Deer Hunter, A Christmas Story, Avengers-Winter Soldier) or films that are set here, but aren't filmed here (Major Leagues). ... That's why films like Draft Day, Welcome to Collinwood and Fun Size (the Chelsea Handler coming-of-age flick nobody saw... not even me), are a welcome departure.

Very nice photo-essay. I would not have imagined such impressive, diverse architecture and walkable areas for small/mid-sized city in the heart of Cowpoke country. It looks more like a northeast or Midwest city (... btw, I've never bought into the idea that Oklahoma is Midwestern, as some people have). Frankly Tulsa looks more desirable than OKC, ... to me, anyway. Downtown is Art Deco par-excellence and, obviously, there's solid, established residential areas.... Good job.

You're right. I'm willing to give Wild Eagle a chance; they could work out well, and I hope they do. One major positive is that this location has been a totally dead corner (architecturally attractive, but dead) that will likely bring foot traffic, and that's always a good thing for downtown. And it's right next to the new County Admin building, which could be a source of revenue.

I tend to agree. I tell my friends, Detroit has similar woes to Cleveland, but seems to be a decade behind the CLE in terms of it's comeback. It seems everything we did 10 years prior to Detroit -- like building new downtown sports stadiums; more sports bars around them; office building-to-apartment conversions, urban gardening, etc... Of course, Detroit mentored Cleveland in the area of a downtown casino (and Detroit was really reacting to Windsor, ONT across the river, which was drawing Detroiters over the Ambassador Bridge to their casinos). And the daytime emptiness of downtown Detroit is like Cleveland's downtown about a decade ago, particularly with all the dust and dirt along Euclid when the ECP/HL BRT corridor was being built. Cleveland really seemed to hit its stride around 2010, and has been on a roll since. Hopefully the same will happen to Detroit, too; the signs are good. I also agree that Cleveland, like Detroit, has some of those super wide streets that can sometimes be off-putting because it makes the neighborhoods surrounding them seem barren. Michigan and Gratiot Aves, are like portions of Superior and St. Clair here -- Clifton on the West Side is like that, too, at points, but Clifton is more alive; surrounded by such a mass of brownstone apts and interesting houses, it offsets that empty feeling... But this is a nice photo thread... It once again shows that Detroit has lots of interesting bones to build upon. Seriously investing in quality mass transit would be a BIG step forward. The tiny M-1 LRT is small step forward, as is the region finally creating an RTA, but not nearly enough.

I welcome any new establishment in downtown Cle, but Wild Eagle just doesn't seem to be a good fit for this location between Gateway and PHS. Maybe if it were kitty-corner across the 5-points intersection next to the Clevelander and the other drinking joints.

Another Republican (governor in this case) slashing transit funds... Ho-hum, so what else is new? ... Fact is people who care about mass transit and cities are foolish to either vote for Republicans (especially at the state level) or stay home (which is indirectly doing the same thing).

I agree with you, especially regarding lobbying the State House for adequate transit funding. RTA officials have stated that RTA could use increased State funding. But the problem, imho, is that RTA will continue to be muted in it's criticism of the State on this issue because there are Republicans on both sides of the table.

The Cleveland State Line on Clifton Blvd. Very nice little street paving job they did there. The Cleveland State Line on Clifton Blvd. Very nice little street paving job they did there. Yeah... don't get me started on that. I can understand putting the HealthLine on the rapid transit system map, but there's no reason the CSU should be on there...especially considering that it doesn't run on Sundays Yeah... don't get me started on that. I can understand putting the HealthLine on the rapid transit system map, but there's no reason the CSU should be on there...especially considering that it doesn't run on Sundays And you know, when the E. 55 Street fire closed down the Rapid's entire East Side division a few weeks ago, RTA was using those stretch #55-CSU "Rapid Transit" buses as Blue and Green Line substitutes, which seemed a huge waste as a regular-size bus could easily have handled the passengers; RTA used to use them. Once the Blue and/or Green Line (s) go down, it seems that most riders balk at the bus substitutes, either finding alternative modes or simply deciding not to travel to Shaker Sq, downtown or wherever, at all.

I don't keep up with the developments in Cleveland like I used to but wasn't there a movie theater planned for the Flats East Bank? If so perhaps the Cleveland International Film Festival can move there? I don't know Fairmount/Wolstein's latest plans for Phase III although, you're right, film theaters were discussed at one time... I also know there was some push-back with some worrying about undue competition with Tower City. I actually think if FEB did include, say, an art-house/independent type theater (think Cedar-Lee), then the 2 establishments could both survive. I personally, though, hope and pray Gilbert maintain, and even enhance, the Tower City Cinema. There's no better location for CIFF imho, with TC being the city's transit up along with providing so much under one roof, from food, 2 hotels, some retail ... and even the casino, if film goers are into that in-between films. Folks could even take in a Cavs or Indians game... ... ugh, ... and yes, there's also connected, indoor parking from 2 different lots, as well.

Michigan State's got to be kicking itself since it was probably had the clearest path to an F4 and title as it was in the easiest bracket, highlighted by the fact that Syracuse their bracket's Final 4 rep: a team that many (present company included) felt shouldn't have even made the Round of 64 but now is the 1st double-digit seed ever to make the Final 4. Let's hope nobody in East Lansing or Ann Arbor is uttering the dreaded Tom "FIzzo" slur heard early in Tom's career, because it would be idiotic since he's still one of the elite coaches in the country. This was just a very weird NCAA Tournament, from the selections to the Final 4 qualifiers, with only 1 No. 1 making the cut.

This caught my eye in the Crain's piece, above: "Taylor, a veteran of 15 downtown restaurant leases, emphasized Gilbert will need help from civic leaders and government to tackle factors hobbling downtown, such as lack of cheap parking for restaurant and retail workers and visitors." The lack of cheap parking is hobbling downtown? Really!? I think Stephen Taylor and his CBRE Group (and Crain's, too) need to get out and travel to other cities like Philly, Boston, SF, Chicago and D.C. -- among others (I won't even bother to cite New York). Cleveland's downtown parking is bargain basement comparatively. In fact, the abundance of available cheap parking in downtown Cleveland has been cited as a reason that has hurt rail transit usage here, which I believe to be true. Cleveland, especially downtown, will never take the next step to the big leagues until it can break free of auto worship for the urban environment and embrace, fully, the concept of walkability.

I think its ridership has already been rising, based on my observations. I wish RTA actually tracked ridership numbers for the line though, because we really have no way of knowing what the exact figures are. So I wonder how a reporter like Mark Naymik is reporting the 400 riders per day statistic as justification for drastically cutting WFL service.

Also, KJP, I agree that RTA's farebox recovery rate is too low, but I don't agree that RTA's fares are too low. There are not many cities that have a standard fare that is higher than $2.25, and even more so with RTA's proposed $2.50. We should be looking at ways to increase the share of revenue generated by fares, but I don't think increases fares is the way to do it. I'm definitely empathetic to transit services for the poor, esp the working poor. Many low-wage individuals/families live in areas where RTA bus service has either been seriously reduced or removed completely -- like the #12 bus along Woodland Av, where residents must now schlep bags long distances to reach bus stops or the Rapid. I just wish groups like this, as well as local pols (who seem to have group laryngitis when it comes to mass transit) would focus more on lobbying (even shaming) state pols (like John Kasich) who oversee the paltry state funding for rail which is both an embarrassment to Ohio, and dangerous to its transit systems. I just don't see any good coming out of having a circular firing squad sniping at other's transit services, like the WFL, instead of advocating for increased funding for ALL transit. On this level, I agree with E Rocc that this is Norman Krumholz-ism at it's worst. As for fares, I also agree: I definitely don't advocate raising them to cover costs. They are high enough as it is. Again, I feel we're not aiming at the right target. We need this stupid State to adequately fund its transit systems and really need to keep the heat on the small town/rural, anti-urban jerks that are responsible for this. To me, it seems our public officials are not standing up enough for transit and are letting Kasich and his Republican cronies get a free pass on this issue. As KJP and I have noted, ironically, you can bet RTA will be on it's Ps & Qs for the RNC for delegates who otherwise, at best, could give a damn about transit, as worst, are working to cripple it.

RTA has got to improve signage for the Waterfront Line in Tower City. Right now finding the WFL platform area is like going on a scavenger hunt; it's ridiculous. Hopefully this terrible situation will be rectified by the RNC in July as the WFL is an ideal route to/from FEB and even the Rock Hall from the convention floor in the Q. It's too bad RTA has waited until the RNC to fix a situation that should have been dealt with long ago. I know some people continually bemoan the poor patronage of the WFL. Unfortunately RTA has compounded matters by making the Line invisible to people at street level ... and even at station level inside Tower City. RTA does a terrible job of promoting the line.

If you access the station via the Tower City entrance on the south side of Prospect, it is much more direct. You either take the escalators down, or take the elevator directly to the station level. There are stations in the DC Metro that take longer to get to the platform from the surface than it does from Prospect to the RTA rapid platform. You're correct; the Rapid station is directly under Prospect. The long escalators from behind Tower City's beautiful front portico, reflect that Public Sq is actually a half-block distant from the station location (and that, actually, the Public Sq entrance is slightly sunken so that, if you walk straight back from that entrance, you actually walk under Prospect Av-- if you ever notice, when you walk toward the PS entrance from Ontario or Superior, you're walking down into a bowl). Many Clevelanders think you have to access the Rapid from the main entrance and Public Square, but the Tower City/Prospect entrances are supposed to be open (and the escalators operational) during the hours the Rapid is in operation. The passengers have an easement over TC's private property to access RTA's public transit station. There is usually TC security and/or Cleveland cops to make sure passengers keep moving and don't loiter or linger around storefronts, etc. There's also an entrance on Huron, next to the Hard Rock, but I'm not sure this rule applies. Signage indicating that the entrances access the Rapid are non-existent, and that's probably for a reason. It is likely to change for the RNC -- I wouldn't be surprised if such signage is temporary, and we return to business as usual after the convention.

I wouldn't be opposed if he wants to help fund a streetcar line here too ;) ... or even help fund the final leg of the CVSR so it could extend into Tower City/downtown instead of having that rail line terminate in Valley View, 8 miles south of downtown in no-man's land.

You're right; and that's what scares me about Gilbert. I don't know that I agree with this. Yes, every businessman is out to make money...that's the point. But it doesn't mean there aren't other forces behind that as well. Dan Gilbert can be pointed to for a LOT of the good happening in Detriot. He's responsible for revitalizing large chunks of thier downtown. Recently he lobbied congress to pass a bill fighting urban blight. A lot of what he's done is self serving I'm sure, but he has done a lot of good also. Actually, I'm a Gilbert fan. He's done tons in Detroit, and Cleveland is better off with his investments here. He's just a bit mercurial at times.

I'll have to check on this when I have more time... My recollection, though, was although the walkway-to-Gateway was a selling point for Gateway package which, of course, was then sold to the voters, even if it wasn't THE selling point. I do know that enticing the Gund Brothers to move the Cavs back into downtown from their happy perch out in Richfield, may have been what ultimately convinced County voters to pass the sin tax to finance Gateway.

Answer: yes. I take the long view. Has TC struggled with retail to a degree, esp in losing it's high-end retail since it opened in 1990? Sure it has. But retail has struggled downtown in a lot of cities, not just Cleveland. Pittsburgh recently shuddered it's Macy's. Philadelphia, whose Metro area's twice Cleveland's, is down to just Macy's as its lone major department store (there is a junky Burlington Coat Factory, a Century 21 and a small Marshall's in Center City, but come on-- Philly does have some high-end specialty stores along Walnut Street). Even titanic Chicago has taken retail hits downtown, including losing it's beloved Carson Pirie Scott department store in 2007. So downtown Cleveland's not alone in its retail struggles, although I would like to see us do better. But it's undeniable that Tower City is a model for cities around the globe as a mixed-use, inter-connected group of hotels, office buildings and retail directly connected to an underground rail transit station. And even though the Vans old Union Terminal Group was pioneering for it's day (only New York's Rockefeller Center, opened 2 years after Terminal Tower in 1932, matched the Terminal Group for its size and air-rights/mixed-use innovation), Tower City's 1989/90 revamp represented a significant leap forward on the original concept: the empty, deteriorating train station waiting room was expanded into a (still) beautiful, multi-tier urban shopping mall; an upscale Ritz-Carlton Hotel was built along with the Skylight office building. Other substantial office buildings were added over the years, including the Lausche State Office (1979) and the 23-story Stokes Federal Courthouse -- not to mention the fact that the RTA walkway to TC and the Rapid helped spawn the Gateway sports complex with both The Q and Progressive field: a model for downtown sports stadium grouping... TC's unique and convenient development at the center of town was influential in landing this summer's RNC. ... and yes, despite whether one loves the Horseshoe-turned-J*A*C*K casino, I much prefer it, and the constant activity it draws, to the desolate, near-empty Higbee Dept. Store building. So despite the ebbs and flows Tower City has had over the years, overall I can't consider it anything but an unqualified success and one of Cleveland's gems; ... along with being a pretty cool TOD on top of that.

You're right; and that's what scares me about Gilbert.