clvlndr

^We can either go along with this thinking or try to change it... I'm for the latter. Ohio and Cleveland, though related, obviously, are 2 different entities in terms of outlook. Ohio's approach to transit, and indeed toward many urban issues, is regressive even by conservative Midwestern standards. Cleveland, however, is the one major Ohio city that has historically invested in and developed mass transit. Columbus, the capital and largest city that is still growing, neither has rail transit or even an Amtrak stop and there are no serious proposals on the board to change these embarrassing facts. It's no accident that, even with RTA's seriously decreased rider numbers compared with its early years, Cleveland still dwarfs every other Ohio city in terms of transit size and usage... Cincy's building it's small Phase I streetcar and Dayton's sticking with its trolleybuses are positive, but are relatively small in comparison to Cleveland. Development-wise, Cleveland is obviously on a serious roll, with most of the growth and rebirth occurring in neighborhoods accessible by the Rapid Transit (the rail version, that is). That's why our leader's seeming indifference to transit's plight in this city is both confusing and troubling... Let Columbus go the way of the Dodo transit-wise, but why should Cleveland to follow suit?

A Korver deal, for Mozgov or Andy + Haywood's trade exception, is generating more conversation including from Brian Windhorst who I tend to put more stock in despite Windy's unpopularity with some Clevelanders (following The Decision I). I've been hearing of a potential 3-team deal with the Cavs, Atlanta and New Orleans, with the Cavs receiving Korver and Omer Asik... some are throwing in the injured Tyreke Evans, which I don't quite understand. I would be intrigued by such a deal since Asik is an upgrade over Andy or the fumbling Mozzie (as he is now, that is, not last year) and a dead-eye 3-point shooter like Korver would obviously be welcomed here (and most places).

But that's a recipe for throwing in the towel on transit, and if we do that, esp in Cleveland, the city's growth and prospect for the future would be severely undermined. With all the TOD growth, and planned growth, occurring in Cleveland like there hasn't been since back when the Van Sweringens were alive, I seriously disagree with your assertion that mass transit is irrelevant to "most people."

Kasich was elected in 2010; began serving in 2011.

Not that I think it's even remotely possible but I wouldn't pass on Blake. He'd definitely stretch defenses even further. So what if he gets cold. Outside of Curry, I don't know anyone that is always hot. I mean LeBron goes through waves too. LBJ can hide his bad shooting nights by driving to the lane. But even that hasn't been a sure thing lately. Is he a good at the FT line? The Cavs need more consistency there. Every time LeBron walks up to that line I cringe. Blake Griffin is a supremely gifted athlete and has improved his outside shooting considerably, but I don't want him for a number of reasons: He's way too expensive -- he's max player (in 2012 he inked a 5-year/$95M deal). Cavs payroll and luxury tax are absurd as it is. Plus we would have to give up a ton to get him even though Doc and LAC are expressing frustration with him ... I'm guessing Love would be the guy we would move for Griffin since they are both max 4s and Love is still having adjustment issues with Kyrie and LeBron. But if Love is having adjustment issues with the Cavs, why would LAC be so anxious to acquire him, esp given his well-document less athletic play and poor defense. As for the Cavs, a team that is having hero-ball/iso-ball issues with Kyrie and LeBron (and even Mo Williams off the bench at times), do we really need a power forward who largely plays in and clogs the lane where LeBron does his work (and where we'd prefer more of LeBron as opposed to jacking 3s) who doesn't like passing the ball? While I don't know that Griffin is adverse to running, I do know that he primarily thrives in half-court sets. And with the Cavs having just fired one coach, with a new coach fighting to implement his system and a team seriously on the clock to win a championship THIS year, do we really want the major the disruption of trading one of the Big 3 starters 2/3rds into the season? ... this added to the fact that Griffin, because of his punching incident, is now hurt and will require an adjustment period once he returns, not to mention getting adjusted to a brand-new, very desperate, team if we trade for him. I just don't like it.

^As I said, I don't know the specifics of what Ted's commitment to transit subsidies (hopefully someone more knowledgeable will jump in)... I do believe, however, that his support for 3-C is a likely indicator of his stronger transit commitment and support, just as Kasich's killing of 3-C, as well as the State's current ridiculously paltry transit subsidy indicates Kasich's hostility and/or indifference to mass transit.

I don't know of any Democratic Ohio governors who were unfavorable toward transit; certainly not Strickland. It was Strickland who pushed for the 3-C Amtrak rail line; Ohio won federal funding and plans were finalized under his watch. Kasich, however, campaigned on the promise to kill 3-C and he made good on the promise as one of his 1st acts as governor. Yes, it's true that Republican pols in the Statehouse had planned to scuttle 3-C even if Strickland had beaten Kasich, but we'll never know for sure if they could have done so. What we DO know is that, thanks to Kasich, the hundreds of millions of FTA seed money, along with thousands of jobs and millions, perhaps billions in related development, left Ohio for California which is seriously pursuing HSR. I don't know the specifics of Strickland's support for local transit systems, but it certainly could not have been worse than Kasich's -- I do know Strickland had a much more robust pro-urban agenda than Kasich and didn't share downstate antipathy toward Cleveland/NEO that Kasich and other pols, esp Republicans, have manifested over the years -- and Ted is a downstater himself. And just because there are, and have been, a lot, even a majority, of conservative Republicans in the Statehouse who are hostile to cites and transit, shouldn't make us concede the governorship to these interests simply because we feel he or she couldn't make a difference, if that's what you're implying.

^In a Republican-controlled, freeway-dominated/oriented state, where the capital city -- the largest in the State, doesn't even have ANY Amtrak service at all, Megabus' 3-C nixing is not surprising. Study after study after study after study have pointed out that human beings are far more open to using trains that buses, with the former seen as comfortable, relaxing, safe and positive with the latter seen as all-things negative. But the GOP, their friends the Koch Bros in tandem with endless right-wing super-Pacs, have spent billions and worked triple overtime to convince the Ohio populace that train travel is just some gold-plated, social-engineering, tax-grubbing, Rube Goldberg-ean folly geared toward shuttling poor and minority, oft criminally-oriented hordes to a nice lily-white neighborhood near you -- all dreamed up in the heads those Bernie-lovin', Occupy Wall Street uber-wacko, Limousine Libs. Megabus' 3-C cancellation was due to falling gas prices and people -- again, we're talking Ohio, where trains and transit have been systematically sledge-hammered by the Right -- have been lured into drive their cars everywhere but esp to/from their suburban and ex-urban cul-de-sacs, malls and non-city office parks along the beltway.

Terrible. This major injustice of non-transit funding leading to this is at the hand of Kasich and his Republicans who, as we know, cancelled the 3-Cs Amtrak (fully funded) route while personally godfathering the $330M Opportunity Corridor urban highway through the East Side ... That RTA's rail transit cannot properly expand -- let alone barely survive given faltering rail cars, due to State under (actually non)funding, in a City/metro area that claims to want to be more dense/urbanized and pedestrian and transit friendly, is a major embarrassment for this City and region. Of course, in the grand scheme of things, the health-hazard atrocity of drinking water lead poisoning in Flint, MI caused by political cheapness coupled with total indifference to the needs of a largely minority/working poor city, is even worse than the situation of Kasich-GOP-RTA/transit/rail passenger mess here in Ohio... ... oh, and by the way, did I mention Michigan gov Rick Snyder, the man ultimately behind the Flint travesty is also a Republican ... just like our beloved John Kasich? ... yep, the same group of folks we will be cheerily opening our arms to this summer when mighty RNC marches into town... .... NOTE TO CAVS: please win the title this year so I can try and forget about all this.

[article quote] "According to Calabrese, Ohio pays 62 cents per capita toward public transit. And neighboring states, including Michigan, Pennsylvania and Illinois, pay as much as $51 per person." As I've said, this fact should be a HUGE EMBARRASSMENT to our supposedly more moderate/forward thinking guv-turned-Presidential-candidate and this summer's RNC host.

So does your 1st statement mean that RTA could, er, be persuaded to choose the Red Line extension as its Locally Preferred Alternative in the Spring? ... In your opinion, what would it take to move the RTA board in this direction (other than RTA's considerable assertion, you noted, that the expansion could be covered with the Red Line's existing fleet?). I take it Thursday's meeting will be a serious opportunity to persuade RTA in this direction, no? You further noted that the land acquisition cost is an unknown, but I reiterate that RTA's estimate of $914M for this nearly 6-mile, HRT expansion does not seem too terribly expensive within the larger scheme of rail transit new construction circa 2016. I'm sure part of this is because the route is relatively flat and barrier free. I wonder if RTA would factor in at-grade crossings (which NS has on this route) and even 1 or more at-grade stations, with simple ramps to street intersections to lower costs. As you know, the Chicago L has these cheap, grade-level crossings and stations at a few locations which are not only more densely urbanized than along the Red Line route (which, I know, carries its own Catch-22) and bears the added challenge of ground-level, electrified 3rd rails as opposed to RTA's much safer overhead catenary which is beyond the reach of pedestrians. Btw, are we to assume the $914 figure excludes costs for new rolling stock? .

^Probably for the better. As you've noted, LRT has much higher capacity that ETBs. This TVR system, while novel seems kinda weird. Even though it would simply overhead power collection with a single wire, the old 2-wire system allows buses to stretch and lower their trolley poles, allowing the buses to shift 1 lane to either side. Comes in handy when there are illegally parked cars, like in Philly, with it's often narrow streets; and where traditional ETBs exist.

Is the general consensus that Griffin will or will not make a move, either via trade with the Haywood exception or via a(nother) team's player buyout? I keep hearing Rudy Gay's name come up. Gay certainly could help in providing some added firepower off the bench. I've even heard Blake Griffin's name come up <-- personally, I don't want him. He's a ball hog who, as bad or worse than Love, tends to tighten up/choke/disappear late in games... Also, Blake may be prone to punching out the Cavs' trainer. We don't want that. One Griffin within the Cavs' organization is quite enough imho.

^I agree. Eventhough Sac-Town is a struggling team that is firing its coach, we showed a lot of nice aspects last night, notably Kyrie running/leading the break and distributing and, more importantly, shutting town the Kings' bigs: the talented-but-moody Cousins and talented youngster Cauley-Stein... We also held Gay pretty much harmless. Kings did score 100 (which has been an issue with everybody we play lately), but it was a meaningless 100 after a 20-point blowout and total control. Glad to see Lue using Andy more, even after Love has returned. Mozgov was, as usual, both exhilarating and enough to yank your hair out... That missed dunk was absurd... Austin Carr is riding Mozzie even when he lays it it... Says he's big and bad enough to be dunking... I agree.

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^Airport hangers and chain link fences along the lakefront never fail to give me the warm & fuzzies.

This is actually not a horrible idea; I've thought about this general configuration, too. But rather than having the Pennsylvania RR LRT tracks joining the existing Blue/Green ones heading east, I would continue the LRT southeast along the old Pennsylvania RR ROW to Rockside Rd and the Auto Mile at the Bedford border.

More specifically like the 1950s and 60s when freeways, strip development and suburban office campuses were the hot things. As there any other city that has developed a suburban "city" as extensive as Crocker Park? ... the only one that's comparable in my mind is Mizner Park in South Florida... The difference being that Mizner was begun in the 1920s IIRC and has grown over the decades; plus it's within Boca Raton, which has long been the free-standing, ritzy suburban city that's about 50 miles north of Miami... Crocker Park is unusual esp for a medium scale metro area like Greater Cleveland. Chargin Highlands is a disjointed, sprawling mess imho.

Nothing in Michelle's piece makes an imminent groundbreaking sound definite, so I wouldn't count this chicken just yet. In fact, the developer was explicit that there's still "stuff to do" before they can build. I assume it's much harder stuff than city approvals. Also per Michelle's article, the new scheme ditches both the micro unit concept and the high end roof townhouse concept. I said "all but green-lighted" which didn't imply "imminent." The article stated there "was still stuff to do," such as receiving infrastructure financing, but that a spring groundbreaking could happen. I'd skimmed the article and missed the micro-unit concept; sorry... It's actually better that these are gone since, without students, it will be easier to attract a more professional, stable clientele.

^If you look at just the apartment components of Intesa and the newer Centric, the designs, and footprints, aren't that much difference. Intesa's rendering is in light-colored material as opposed to Centric and, of course, the building next to Intesa (the parking garage? office tower?) is no longer in the Centric rendering. I'm just thrilled that Centric is all but green-lighted and that this small patch of surface parking ugliness will be filled with a 270-unit apt/commercial structure in the midst of a thriving neighborhood (and I'll gladly settle for the 70+ more apt units Centric has over Intesa). Also IIRC, Intesa had set aside a substantial number (80?) of very small units for students. Wasn't that true and, if so, has it been carried over to Centric?

^Thanks.

Looks great; all good... Query: is the site they're currently clearing for construction of the mixed use building? If so, what's their timetable?

I don't in any way consider Crocker Park successful or a model Greater Cleveland should follow. Yes, it's better designed than the typical cul de sac + strip shopping. But CP was carved out of cornfields at the edge of metro area and is auto dependent/transit unfriendly. It's about the furthest thing from TOD one could imagine... I get KJP's proposal, however, to use CP-type housing at the Warrensville-Shaker Rapid station. It makes sense because there is plenty of vacant land around the Rapid station from where the Van Sweringens had planned a depressed super highway (out to their planned Shaker Country Estates) 90 years ago. KJP's plan is both TOD and and within the suburban context of a wealthy neighborhood not far from a substantial residential university with it's on small retail/services district. In the recent past we've gotten it bass-ackwards here in Greater Cleveland building strip and/or big box development along the RAIL Rapid Transit like Chagrin-Lee-Avalon and the W. 117 big boxes and high-density developments like CP away from population centers and transit. Recent developments like Uptown, Van Aken and Intesa/Centric, though, give me hope that the tide it turning.

No question about it. Peter B. certainly got folks' attention, but I give a lot of credit to Chris Ronayne for bringing the disparate, often squabbling, parties (ie Hessler Road; CWRU) together, as the UCI director to get things done.

Really? What more could they do? Sure I would have liked more office development esp in towers, but the developers held out for a major tenant but couldn't land one. While the one guy is confident that any empty space could be filled, the office expert noted that building on spec has its risks especially from a financing POV. If this were New York, Chicago or even L.A. it would be one thing, but Cleveland is still not a hot market, esp for dense office development in such a non-traditional area: Michelle notes that U. Circle is very non-profit heavy. There will be lower level, street level office space. I'm sure that if the market warrants, there will be more offices and or apartment buildings rising in and around this location... there will still be plenty of undeveloped land around the footprint even after Centric is built. I believe the developers did what they could: tested the market and held out as long as they feasibly could: the lenders are in love with the location now, but they're not going to stick around forever until the market's right... I'm thrilled that we're getting a high-density, mixed-use residential building which will be a true TOD with the new Rapid stop right there. I'm also glad that Centric will not be a phased project but will be built at once. Are the renderings the most sexy structure you'll ever see? No, but they're not horrible either, esp the corner units with the penthouse garden/plaza. This is already an extremely strong Cleveland neighborhood and Centric will only make it better.