blinker12

("perks with fervor" -- worst lead ever?) Product design district planners preparing real estate packages Saturday, January 27, 2007 Tom Breckenridge Plain Dealer Reporter John McCann perks with fervor at the idea of a downtown Cleveland showroom for his specialty coffee makers. McCann, president of Glenwillow-based Saeco USA, wants his firm to be among the first companies to help launch a consumer product design district near Playhouse Square. McCann says his company - and the dozens of buyers it hosts yearly - would benefit from the unified merchandising and design innovation that the "Cleveland District of Design" concept offers. "This is truly a cutting-edge idea," said McCann, among panelists who spoke to about 100 people Thursday at Cleveland State University's urban-affairs college... more at: http://www.cleveland.com

Meanwhile, the Plain Dealer is endorsing Frank Jackson's plan to spend $3 million a year demolishing "run-down" (read: old) buildings. Newsflash: Rampant demolition is a big part of the reason we're in our current predicament. We've been destroying ourselves for more than 50 years. Rebuilding Cleveland Jackson's $1.6 billion capital improvement plan offers a prudent strategy based on solid ideas; now he has to sell it Saturday, January 27, 2007 Mayor Frank Jackson has outlined a plan to prod economic development and strengthen neighborhoods by spending $1.6 billion on projects from building bike paths to rehabilitating homes. The five-year strategy - the city's first capital plan in 16 years - spans departments, from aging to water, and sketches improvements across all of Cleveland's 36 neighborhoods. Jackson's plan includes a good many things that critics might suggest won't result in an increase in jobs - things like landscaping some city streets, sprucing up the restrooms at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and building a $10 million recreation center. And it's true that job growth is a sure measure of economic development. But the goals of this plan are broader. It's a down payment on a huge, long-term investment - stabilizing Cleveland and recreating vibrant urban "neighborhoods of choice," as the mayor likes to say. The plan seeks to build on ideas seeded by former city leaders, such as: Ramping up the budget, by millions of dollars, for demolishing run-down buildings. Threading miles of bike paths through the city and adding a $240,000 bike station to create recreational opportunities and better connect Cleveland with the region. Buying and decontaminating Mittal Steel's unused coke plant so it can be returned to commercial use and contribute to economic growth as swiftly as possible. The plan specifically lays out all spending, year by year, through 2011. Residents can see it online at www.city.cleveland.oh.us/pdf/CIPDraft-20070122.pdf. The city can pay for the projects without raising taxes or its debt ceiling, which could have jeopardized its bond rating or increased borrowing costs. Last year, Jackson shaved the city's operating expenses and didn't issue general obligation bonds. That combination created a cushion to help finance the projects in this plan. Jackson also expects a third of the money to come from the state and federal governments. Wisely, he has said he'll seek local partnerships with private development groups and foundations to help leverage the city's money. Those groups could offer grants, below-market financing or other investments. Cleveland, of course, needs more than is called for in this $1.6 billion plan. And in time, once it's clear these efforts are paying off, the mayor could carve out more ambitious projects. Immediately, however, Jackson needs to sell this approach to a cynical and skeptical public. He can't stay inside the walls of City Hall and hope that residents, business owners and potential partners will just trust him on this one. The hard work of creating the capital plan is behind him. The potentially harder work of convincing people of its worth and executing it has a way to go.

^Hmmm... I don't think so. Olmsted designed Wade Park with the lagoon in front of the art museum, but I believe someone else did Rock Park. According to www.tclf.org/landslide/cleveland/index.htm, it was Ernest Bowditch, a landscape architect from Boston.

It's wonderful to hear the Clinic even talking about community revitalization. It's been a long time coming. Has anyone seen renderings of the planned new heart treatment center? Will it follow good urban design principles?

A sign in the window says Cheddars will open Feb. 5. I'm a little skeptical that this space can seat 35, though... More like 10 if you ask me! BTW, anyone been to the new version of Grumpy's in Tremont?

Erie's a solid little city -- I was there this summer. They have a large, intact millionaire's row just west of downtown, and a neighborhood just east of downtown that reminded me A LOT of Tremont in Cleveland, very Eastern European, same A-frame housing stock. Run-down area south of downtown along Parade Street. Presque Isle State Park is absolutely stunning -- miles of pristine Lake Erie beach on a little peninsula to the west of downtown.

We are stuck in the 1960s. BTW, why would there be ramps onto a boulevard??

^^No, don't worry, Mann still owns everything and all the buildings are included in his plans.

This project is moving forward. Mann has acquired 1102 Euclid, meaning he owns everything between Huntington and Statler. The plan is for rental apartments, neighborhood retail on the bottom, parking in the basement and in the rear of the first floor. Sandvick is the architect.

New awnings up at the Corner Alley.

^^What's especially paradoxical about the demo on Chester (a building called Madonna Hall) is that literally across the street, the chintzy Woodhaven townhouses -- built to about a 20-year standard -- continue to rise. Meanwhile, a sturdy brick building is torn down. The waste of energy is mind boggling.

Yes, it's always nice to see new construction in/near downtown. And it's kinda fun seeing this from the Shoreway, adding to an already dense skyline as seen from the West. Urbanistically, though, this building is a real downer to me. Why does it give the sidewalk the architectural equivalent of an obscene gesture? This is especially puzzling given all the lip service K&D (developers) have given to vibrant, walkable urban neighborhoods lately when describing their plans for the future. I hope they realize that a building like this is *preventing* such a neighborhood from emerging.

This town is small enough that it would be difficult to assemble a port board that had no stake in any downtown development. None of this seems like a big deal to me. I just hope it doesn't somehow affect the eminent domain process in the East Bank. Like that existing property owners could challenge the port -- and scuttle E.D. -- by questioning Carney's interest in voting for the process to begin.

Rather than creating an "intraverted" medical mall inside a building, I wish they'd reuse some of the vacant storefronts along, say, lower Prospect Avenue, and fill in the surface lots with new ground-floor-retail buildings. Similar to the District of Design concept. I know it would be complicated to get control of multiple properties, but worthwhile for the potential street life.

It's cool that there's a Nordstrom downtown. Other than that..... :|

Yeah. It's weird to me that MRN is simply replicating the Warehouse District.

Is this East 4th or West 4th (the lil alleyway in the WD)? Both are mentioned in that notice.

A couple of new developers are interested and are working out the financial details with local banks. Pre-sales were strong, so this project should be back online soon.

I had forgotten this was tonight... -- ---------------------------- Progressive Urban Real Estate & Howells and Howells, LLC request your presence at the unveiling of a model condominium suite in one of Cleveland's most historic buildings THE PARK BUILDING 140 Public Square at the intersection of Euclid and Ontario Thursday, January 11th, 2007 Preview Party and Dedication at 4:00pm Public Reception to follow from 5:00-8:00pm Wine and refreshments will be provided. REGISTER TO WIN A $50 GIFT CERTIFICATE FOR THE CORNER ALLEY!

I LOVE IT!

This should probably be in another thread, but... I think it's unfair to describe Stark's vision for the WD as a replication of Crocker Park. Every time I've heard Stark talk about it, he has emphasized the importance of design in the project as well as the need to integrate new buildings with old. It's highly unlikely he'll use one designer for his whole Y-concept, assuming it comes to fruition, though I could see the superblock between W. 3rd and W. 6th (Phase One) having a single designer.

Hmm, this is an interesting question. I'm surprised you haven't run across more YPs in Cleveland Heights. There is also a healthy population of young people in Shaker Square, where MyTwoSense lives. The museums and universities of University Circle are the big attraction for these young people, as well as the vibrant retail strips of Cleveland Heights and Shaker Square. Still, Cleveland Heights doesn't seem to have the cache among YPs that it once did; Coventry, once the nexus of the bohemian scene in Cleveland, has become dominated by sports bars. The East Side has always been where the "old Cleveland money" is, and perhaps this patrician air scares off less established Clevelanders. I agree with your point that the near West Side and Lakewood seem to be the current places of choice for most young, new-to-Clevelanders and young refugees from the suburbs. I believe these areas are appealing to YPs because they are 1) close to downtown without being separated from it by four miles of abandonment (as are the hip East Side neighborhoods) and 2) have a lot of cool, edgy stuff going on.

The formal boundaries of Detroit-Shoreway are: W. 45th to W. 85th, from Lorain Avenue to the lake. I'm at Gypsy Beans right now using the wifi -- I love it!

I thought that article was pretty positive for Litt. Though the opening paragraphs were his usual doom and gloom, he goes on to predict good things to come for the city, with 2006 a possible turnaround year.

^^Yes.