Mendo

A good rule of thumb for anybody reading this: Don't run from the cops. And, this part is especially important, trying to escape using your car as a battering ram will not end well. Nobody should be treated to unreasonable searches. People that acquiesce because they have nothing to hide are just begging to get their rights trampled on. This isn't Russia and we aren't under military rule, but there is a right and wrong way to protest. If you did nothing wrong, fleeing by car is not the right way. Seems to me a lot of mistakes were made in this ordeal. A shame anybody had to lose their life.

That's awesome. Thanks for the pics.

It seems the total miles driven ebbs and flows with the economy. This downturn has been especially slow in recovering, so it makes sense the mileage trends down accordingly. Until we see a trend opposite the general health of the economy, you can't really correlate the downward trend with a lack of interest in cars. People drive less because they simply can't afford it. And the period between 2005 and 2008 shows that skyrocketing housing costs squeezed people's already tight budgets. The illusion of a healthy economy brought on by the housing bubble. This isn't directed at anybody's posts. Just my musings.

An ounce of heart or character? Or maybe you meant the complete lack of urban design. Yeah, that's it.

That's depressing how it looks now in comparison. What are the odds the site plan for new construction there actually gets built?

*sings* Ooohhh I don't give a damn about the the whole state of Michigan, the whole state of Michigan, the whole state of Michigan. I don't give a damn about the whole state of Michigan, cuz I'm from O-hi-o.

Should get a nice breeze coming off the lake to help.

Hm, well it looks like the geniuses at the VA are paying $48 per sf for office space as part of their expansion (http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/10/post_52.html), so maybe there's a similarly mismanaged institution nearby that will jump at $36. Though hopefully not one that's tax payer funded. Those organizations are the ones typically making such ridiculous decisions.

The agenda says it will be built to the street in the "New Urbanist style". That's an actual quote. Too bad they have to demo the empty boarded up building there already that looks like apartments over retail. And the design has no entrance on the street. It'll be just a blank wall with a couple tiny windows along broadway. Is urbanist the new buzzword? Even when they try to appease the urban crowd they manage to screw it up.

Love it or hate it, I'm sure the bulkhead will be reconstructed as part of the boardwalk going up.

Yes let's improve their downtown experience by making it so they don't actually have to set foot anywhere downtown. From the parking garage, to the casino, and right back to the garage. People have told me how surprised they were to see so many people out and about. A bustling city builds buzz. It builds momentum. Getting them off the street is the worst idea i've heard yet. And no that area is not barren. You don't need 10 storefronts along the way. There are numerous restaurants on the block around the higbee building.

Cincinnati has been slowly dismantling their skywalks over the last decade. Their urban revitalization has been just as aggressive as Cleveland. And the area around the casino is not barren precisely because of the people walking the street. It's called providing an audience. Who is going to open anything along that area if 50% of the casino patrons never set foot on the street? That's completely backwards. Moreover the distance between the garage and casino is miniscule. They would walk farther from their car to a department store out in the burbs.

I got hooked. My post on the article:

Why leave out names? Aren't they considered public employees/servants. They are responsible for general urban planning that affects local residents. Why hide?

What kind of hippy bullcrap is that? I agree a higher quality of life is what everybody should strive for. The best way to accomplish that is with an economy that sustains enough decent paying jobs for people to live comfortably. I don't understand how you can have one without the other. Maybe we should ditch our cell phones, cars, and McMansions, and all move to a communal farm in Utah, where pesky things like gasoline costs and foreign policy don't matter. Until the community grows too large and we can't sustain the farm without the use of fertilizers that are manufactured using oil and heavy equipment that runs on diesel. Even with higher fuel costs, it'll be cheaper to manufacturer overseas and ship it here. But that's a function of lower wages, lower import tariffs, and a government that doesn't give a crap about their own environment. The U.S. went through that same period -- it was called the industrial revolution. And if their share prices go down, you can bet the first people getting shafted is the American employees, not the overseas ones. It sucks but that's how things have become... Ironically, the collapsing dollar that Gramarye mentioned has made it profitable for some companies to shift manufacturing to the U.S.. For example, many foreign auto companies are moving (or planning to move) final assembly here. With typically much higher domestic content to boot, so local parts manufacturers benefit too.

Serious question. Why can't you believe it? I thumb through the completed and abandoned projects from time to time and I'm surprised some of them drag on for so long before getting started... or eventually canceled. I guess this project seemed different. The torn up facade and scaffolding up there for years just annoys me. I admit I've only recently gotten interested in urban development. I didn't know this stuff moved so slowly.

God, I can't believe the Schofield Building has been sitting like that for over 4 years, and they are only now (soon, allegedly) starting actual construction.

Nicely worded. And yes, I do view renewables as an expensive alternative to the oil of today. I'm not arguing that isn't necessary. Just that we won't be better off in the long run for it. We aren't trading one expensive fuel source for an alternative, cheaper fuel source. It's one expensive fuel for another equally (or more-so) expensive fuel. Electricity is cheap. The infrastructure to transport and store it is not. Can't argue with that. People will conserve as costs go up. We see it already. Young people are moving back toward the city for the variety of reasons. I get it. This is an urban enthusiast forum. Folks here will favor whatever policy enhances the urban environment. My concern is that rising oil prices raises the cost of everything. That is not a long term benefit.

You're damn right it is all that matters. The explosion in economic prosperity is a direct result of investment and R&D brought on by cheap energy. Without it, you wouldn't be here arguing with me on the internet -- maybe not for another 100 years. ^^ And this post is exactly the problem I have with the poll question. Who decides we are better off in the long run? You? Better is a very subjective term and you are going to have a hard time convincing somebody else what is better for them.

Not sure where I'm being unclear. The poll question was whether the high price of gas is a long term benefit or loss. High oil prices signify the end of an era. Any replacement to oil will be neither as cheap or as simple. Electricity for transportation and manufacturing? Biochemicals for plastics? Sure it'll happen but it won't be cheap. You can already see the slowed growth in the global economy. Transitioning from one expensive energy source to another is not a long term benefit. Necessary? Sure, but the world won't be better off for it. That's just ridiculous. Using words like "high" implies we made a mistake in taking advantage of a cheap energy source. In recent history you can peg rapid growth to periods of cheap oil.

Considering how important cheap and reliable energy is to a modern society, I'm surprised I'm the first vote for long term loss. Oil is such an integral part of manufacturing and agriculture. Benefit? I just don't see it.

:-o I guess they are ahead of the curve this way?

Pace already has an office in the arcade to facilitate leasing. There are signs up with a phone number to rent space. We'll see if it actually works.

I love cheap gas as much as the next person. But keep in mind much of that extra production in the US is going overseas. There's always some excuse.

I thought it looked somewhat plain before. I think the new stripes sort of complete the design. But I'll withhold judgment until more of it is covered.