TPH2

No, you can only see the E&Y Tower and the very top of the Aloft Hotel.

Bad news from inside the Beltway: Arlington County announced today that they are canceling the Columbia Pike Streetcar project. http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/arlington-officials-major-announcement-on-columbia-pike-streetcar-project-at-noon/2014/11/18/ce2a8170-6f38-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef_story.html

Outside of downtown, there's not much. The Detroit suburbs have some amazing commercial districts, but they're pretty much non-existent within the city limits. Midtown would be the exception, especially along Woodward (which is the location of the Whole Foods). There is also some activity along Michigan Ave in Corktown, but the establishments are really spread out among vacant lots and the street is so wide that it doesn't feel like a vibrant commercial district.

Anyone know what he announced? That was incorrect info. It was Ed Fitzgerald, not the mayor. It was regarding the distribution of the casino tax money, which has been posted about elsewhere on the forum (nuCLEus and May Co. projects).

Not to mention, we are about to redo Public Square. Would make sense that they want to encourage as much development as possible around the square.

If only it had street view...

Winterfest and the Christmas tree will be at Play House Square. I haven't seen any official word yet, but I assume CLE Rocks NYE will also be there

I believe they're completely removing the old point of entry.

The main issue here is lack of education. As I believe the article mentioned, this whole debate is seemingly about closure vs rehabbing. How many residents even realize that relocation of the stations could be a viable option? For that, I'm especially glad that Alison got good chunks of Ken's argument in there.

too small. I think the average CityTarget is about 80,000 sq. ft. 80,000 sq. ft is on the very small side for a CityTarget too

Really?... with Heinen's going in a few blocks away? Hard to imagine a national grocery chain coming in with a Heinen's there. I think Heinen's took the risk partly because of a sense of civic responsibility. Even if downtown would reach 20,000 population in the coming years, still hard to imagine two grocery stores.

Looks like they're using the same "Heinen's Grocery Store" branding that they're using in the new Chicago stores, as opposed to the traditional "Heinen's Fine Foods." Or maybe they're in the process of re branding the whole chain that way...

Curious though as to why there aren't any renderings out. Isn't it typical for projects like this to have some kind of rendering at this stage in the process?

Yes, I know. I hit 'quote' before you added them to your post. And then immediately edited my post to remove them when I noticed it.

Wonder what "NYC style monumental arch and gate" means.

Beautiful. Your night shots are particularly fantastic

smh

"Oft-touted as the most attractive example of the suburban garden city in America, Shaker Heights offers walking tours of stately homes built along curving roads in Colonial, French, and Tudor styles. At its center is octagon-shaped Shaker Square, the second oldest shopping district in the country, the design of which is patterned after Copenhagen's Amalienborg Palace." UGGGHHHH

There are obviously a lot of intricacies to how hotels are branded, who owns them, what brand standards do they have to hold up etc, but my main point was that the Metropolitan is not owned by, nor managed/operated by Marriott corporate, as MTS and some others had indicated to be the case.

Here are a few pictures I took this afternoon. This is about a week's worth of work.

Yes, let's get back to the 9, just after this from Marriott's website: https://www.marriott.com/hotel-development/Autograph-Collection.mi "The Autograph Collection is a remarkable group of upper upscale and luxury independent hotels. These iconic properties are located in dynamic gateway cities and preferred destinations worldwide. Each one is unique, one of a kind and with its own distinct perspective." They're not managed and operated by Marriott. Here are some pictures (http://www.cleveland.com/kristel/index.ssf/2014/10/the_alex_theater_at_the_9_feat.html) and a video (http://www.cleveland.com/kristel/index.ssf/2014/10/9_must-see_things_inside_the_a.html#incart_related_stories) from Cleveland.com about the Alex Theater. Looks like a unique (and comfortable!) space.

I think many of you fail to understand what the Autograph Collection really is. It's not a "brand" of Marriott in the same way that Ritz-Carlton, Courtyard, etc are. They are independent hotels that are affiliated with Marriott's rewards program. Marriott corporate doesn't have much say in what happens at the Metropolitan (or any other Autograph Collection hotel), they are autonomous. The Autograph collection is a brand. Just like the luxury collection is a brand at Starwood and the Curio Collection is a new brand at Hilton. Each property is a "boutique" hotel, yet follow all the brand guidelines. in regard to the 9, no two properties are alike with exception of the 9 and the Cosmopolitan in Vegas. The are very close cousins. Many of the properties are former independents, historical properties or adaptive reuse properties that are unique to a specific area or region. What do you mean that the Metropolitan and the Cosmopolitan are cousins? I've never been to the Cosmopolitan, so what do they have in common that all the other properties don't? And again, as for the Autograph Collection, they're not "former independents," they are all independents. That's one of the defining features of the collection.

I think many of you fail to understand what the Autograph Collection really is. It's not a "brand" of Marriott in the same way that Ritz-Carlton, Courtyard, etc are. They are independent hotels that are affiliated with Marriott's rewards program. Marriott corporate doesn't have much say in what happens at the Metropolitan (or any other Autograph Collection hotel), they are autonomous.

Hey, it'll end up paying for itself....in just over 200 years

Did anyone else go to Ingenuity this year? I hate to use such a strong word for a cause that I support, but I thought it was awful. I feel like it's been lacking over the last few years and really needs to do a better job defining itself, but it's usually an enjoyable event. I was bored after a half hour this year and left. It seemed like everything was not organized well, and spreading things out through North Coast Harbor and inside the Science Center was not a good idea. Not to mention, the food options seemed to be very sub par this year as well. I fully support their mission, but I think it's time for Ingenuity to get some fresh leadership.