NorthShore64

Clintonville Area Commission election: Three districts up for vote attract one candidate each Jim Fischer - ThisWeek - Mar. 21, 2021 "Only one candidate has filed petitions with the Clintonville Area Commission in each of the three districts set to elect commission representatives in 2021. “The CAC has been looking for candidates all along and write-in candidates are welcome,” said Ann Henkener, election committee chair. “The deadline for submitting a candidate packet for write-in candidates is (April 2).” Henkener added that the three candidate packets returned were the only ones picked up, and that all three races will be uncontested unless write-in candidates are received by April 2."

Senior housing: Stafford Village redevelopment project poised to begin soon Stephen Borgna - ThisWeek Group - Apr. 2, 2021 "Construction of National Church Residences’ 85-unit redevelopment of the Stafford Village senior-housing community at 814 Hartford St. is expected to begin within the month. ... Tabit said the redevelopment has a 19-month construction timeline and an anticipated opening date planned for late 2022. The redevelopment, which was approved for a planned-unit development by City Council in February 2020 and received final approval by the Architectural Review Board and Municipal Planning Commission in July 2020, will feature 85 one- to two-bedroom apartments and will renovate a historical single-family home on the property into a cottage residence, Tabit said."

Black Keys' Drummer Patrick Carney Will Take John Adams' Place in the Bleachers to Drum for the Home Opener Vinci Grzegorek - Cleveland Scene - Apr. 2, 2021 "When I found out that John Adams wouldn't be able to make Opening Day in Cleveland for the first time in almost fifty years, I reached out to the team," Carney said. "I share John's love of baseball and the Cleveland Indians franchise and drumming for him during the home opener when he can't physically be there feels like a meaningful way to show John the love and respect he deserves. I want to be there for John."

*** Cleveland.com Subscriber Exclusive *** New details emerging about NFL Draft in Cleveland: 20 top prospects expected to attend, nightly fireworks, concerts, red carpet & more Susan Glaser - Cleveland.com - Mar. 31, 2021 "David Gilbert, president and CEO of Destination Cleveland and the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, urged members of the city’s travel and tourism industry to start gearing up for the event, which he called 'a slingshot opportunity for us to get that swagger back. It’s going to put Cleveland at the very top-of-mind as a place to go,' said Gilbert, speaking on a conference call Wednesday with about 300 representatives of the city’s hospitality industry. He called the draft 'the biggest week in hospitality in Cleveland in more than two years.' ... In response to a question, Walton still could not estimate the number of people who are expected to attend the event, other than to say 'tens of thousands.'"

Developer to break ground soon for first Circle Square building Mary Vanac - Cleveland Business Journal - Mar. 29, 2021 "Midwest Development Partners LLC plans to break ground this spring for the first building in its ambitious Circle Square development. The Cleveland developer expects to complete the financing for the mixed-use building, to be called The Artisan, by mid-April, breaking ground soon afterward, said Steve Rubin, a partner in Midwest Development. ... Leaders at Midwest Development hope to have a start date for the second building in the project — the Library Lofts apartments to be built above a new Martin Luther King Junior library branch — within 60 days, Rubin said. Financing for the library branch and Library Lofts is being completed, Rubin said."

Residents, city officials call for changes to luxury neighborhood proposed for Valor Acres in Brecksville Bob Sandrick - Cleveland.com - Mar. 30, 2021 "Most notably, commission members voiced objections to a proposed five-story apartment building at the eastern end of Residences near Brecksville Road. They said it was too massive compared to any other building in town and suggested dividing it into a few smaller buildings. ... Residences at Valor Acres would contain more than 200 living units, including townhomes, attached homes, luxury apartments or lofts and single-family homes. Condos are also a possibility. The living spaces would line the north and south sides of a single street running east to west off Brecksville Road. ... In addition to the Sherwin-Williams and Residences at Valor Acres sections, DiGeronimo and the city have divided Valor Acres into two other sections -- one an office and industrial area running parallel to Brecksville Road and the other a mixed-use area, at the very corner of Brecksville and Miller roads, possibly containing stores, restaurants, offices and residential units."

Official backing from Columbus at the March 29th City Council meeting. I timestamped All Aboard Ohio's Stu Nicholson comments to council regarding the cities resolution. According to Nicholson, the next step the city (along with MORPC) should take is looking at possible station locations. Nicholson also mentioned the CHI-FTW-Lima-CLB-PIT route which was not in the initial Amtrak proposal. Toledo's resolution should come this week.

Capitol Theatre is getting a fundraising campaign for its centennial — and the opportunity to host a movie in July Scott Suttell - Crain's Cleveland Business - Mar. 29, 2021 "A campaign launching next month to support the Capitol Theatre on Cleveland's West Side will include a bonus this summer — this historic theater's first movie screening in more than a year. Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization (DSCDO), which owns the Cleveland Cinemas-operated movie theater at 1390 West 65th St. in the Gordon Square Arcade, said in a news release that it will kick off the Centennial Campaign on Thursday, April 8, which is the 100th birthday of the Capitol. ... While the theater has been closed, DSCDO has installed 34 new, large reclining seats in each of the two upstairs theaters of the Capitol. ... The first floor's main auditorium retains its 420 regular seats for larger screenings."

The "Whale" in the wild (3-22-21)

Here are a few upcoming developments, all proposed on empty grass lots (3-27-21). These developments are still in various steps of the approval process: 199 South Ohio Avenue - 11 Unit Townhome. Received NEAC and preliminary rezoning approval. 980 East Rich St - 19 Unit Apartment Building. Received NEAC and preliminary rezoning approval. 261 Hamilton Ave - 51 Unit Apartment Building 762 Mount Vernon Ave - 31 Unit Apartment Building This development appears to still be early in the approval process. This two apartment building development above is being pursued by Kelley Companies and the Shiloh Baptist Church. These two had previously partnered up on the proposed renovation and new apartment building at 48 Parkwood Avenue. Aside from the demolition of the two houses on site of the apartment building, but there hasn't been any activity on the development yet.

MetroHealth moves toward behavioral health expansion in Cleveland Heights with council approval Lydia Coutre - Crain's Cleveland Business - Mar. 29, 2021 "MetroHealth has received approval from Cleveland Heights City Council to move forward on its behavioral health expansion at the health system's Cleveland Heights Medical Center to grow the number of inpatient behavioral health and addiction beds, according to a news release. MetroHealth announced last year that it would invest $42 million to expand the Cleveland Heights facility to add 110 new treatment beds to the medical center's dozen beds. Slated to open in fall 2022, the three-story addition adds 96,000 square feet of new space for care."

Worthington Mall Plan Gets First Approval, Developer Sued by Tenant Brent Warren - Columbus Underground - Mar. 29, 2021 "Worthington’s municipal planning commission voted last week to approve the rezoning of the Shops at Worthington Place, clearing the way for Dallas-based developer Direct Retail Partners (DRP) to redevelop the site. ...The project will head next to city council, where it will be introduced at the April 5 meeting, with a public hearing planned for April 19. If it is approved by council, Worthington law calls for a 60-day “referendum period” before the project would go before the city’s architectural review board for design approval."

The Adelphi Quarter (3-27-21) Atcheson Street Lofts The Jacqueline - 1305 Oak St Infill housing at 1435 Oak St Eye Homes condominium building at Oak and Wilson Bryden Row Condominiums

Not specifically about LEED Co or Great Lakes wind farms, but still good news The Biden administration makes a swath of ocean between New York and New Jersey an offshore wind zone Lisa Friedman and Brad Plumer - New York Times - Mar. 29, 2021 "Officials also announced $3 billion in loan guarantees available to offshore wind projects. ... Separately, the White House is setting a goal of deploying 30,000 megawatts of offshore wind in the United States by 2030 — a goal it claimed will create about 75,000 jobs — and devoting funding already approved by Congress to port infrastructure and transmission development. ... Officials estimate it will create 44,000 jobs directly in the offshore wind sector, like building and installing turbines, and 33,000 indirect jobs."

Demolition is wrapping up for Arlington Gateway (3-27-21) New Upper Arlington Highschool Devon Pool renovations

The Edington at 1580 West 1st (3-29-21) Grandview Crossing Grandview Heights Highschool renovation

Reboot: New Cleveland Crunch owners working to secure downtown location Kevin Kleps - Crain's Cleveland Business - Mar. 27, 2021 "The owners are hopeful the Crunch will have an agreement in place in the next few months that will result in the franchise kicking off the 2021-22 season at a downtown venue. The Wolstein Center, where the former Crunch drew 11,162 fans for a double-overtime win that clinched the franchise's first title in 1994, and Cleveland Public Auditorium are the most viable possibilities, the owners said. The spacious Public Auditorium is the "most promising" option, Ruscitto said, due to talks that have been ongoing since August. 'It definitely needs to go downtown,' said Hector Marinaro, one of the stars of the Crunch's 13-season run from 1989 to 2002."

Crews break ground on $12 million housing development in West Akron Robin Goist - Cleveland.com - Mar. 25, 2021 "Crews broke ground Thursday on a $12 million development of 51 single-family houses in West Akron. The Crossings at Auld Farms is expected to be completed within 18 months to two years by New Jersey-based builder K. Hovnanian. The developer is Painesville-based Knez Homes. The development on 6.2 acres on Diagonal Road, near the Akron Zoo, is expected to have three- and four-bedroom homes between 1,381-square-feet and 1,759-square-feet costing $200,000 to $230,000, the city said in a news release."

Plans for another Ohio City apartment building scuttled amid concerns from Cleveland residents, Landmarks Commission Eric Heisig - Cleveland.com - Mar. 25, 2021 "The Cleveland Landmarks Commission’s reluctance to approve a plan to build 18 one-bedroom apartments atop a 100-year-old building in the city’s Ohio City neighborhood has almost certainly doomed the project, the developer said. ... Still, residents have expressed concerns about Asimes’ plans, and a committee that advises the Landmarks Commission expressed its disapproval. The commission did not take a vote during its virtual meeting Thursday but instead agreed to postpone one so Asimes could make changes based on its feedback and re-submit plans. ... Additional alterations would make the project unviable, Asimes said. He said he was under contract to buy the property from longtime owner Tom Hatzopoulos but that the sale had not yet gone through."

The Liberty Textile Building from the Mar. 25th Landmarks Commission Meeting: Its a nice project, especially considering that they are almost enterally rebuilding the entire Cornice from scratch. The project was approved unanimously, pending the final selection of exterior colors after the cleaning of the façade.

Revised Fulton House plans at the Mar. 25th Landmarks Commission Meeting:

Former Plain Dealer office building hits the market — yet again Michelle Jarboe - Crain's Cleveland Business - Mar. 24, 2021 "Perhaps the third time will be the charm. The former Plain Dealer headquarters building, at the eastern edge of downtown Cleveland, just hit the market again at an undisclosed price. The property spent the last year in limbo, after two potential sales — the first to the city and the second to a local staffing company — fell through. ... Rob Roe, managing director of JLL's Cleveland office, confirmed that Advance Ohio plans to vacate its first-floor space if the building changes hands. The remaining office tenants — technology firm Logicalis, the YMCA of Greater Cleveland and Step Forward, an anti-poverty group formerly known as the Council for Economic Opportunities in Greater Cleveland — occupy about 45% of the space, he said."

Cleveland Hopkins airport reports busiest weekend in more than a year Susan Glaser - Cleveland.com - Mar. 24, 2021 "Cleveland Hopkins International Airport reported its busiest weekend in more than a year – and it’s likely to get busier as spring break traffic picks up. Even so, “busy” is relative. The 56,500 passengers who traveled through the airport last weekend, Friday through Sunday, is still 30% lower than the 81,000 passengers who traveled the weekend of March 6-8, 2020 – just before global travel came to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic."

Amtrak to restore daily service through Cleveland; major Ohio rail expansion pushed by advocates Susan Glaser - Cleveland.com - Mar. 24, 2021 "Amtrak is planning to restore daily long-distance train service through Cleveland this spring, reduced last year because of the coronavirus pandemic. ... Amtrak will bring back daily service on all 12 reduced routes on a staggered basis in late May and early June. The two lines that come through Cleveland will resume daily service on May 31. ... Meanwhile, All Aboard Ohio continues to lobby for the possibility of a much more significant expansion of Amtrak service in the state. In recent weeks, the group has been encouraging local officials to pass resolutions in support of a possible major expansion of Amtrak service in Ohio and across the country."

Cleveland Metroparks moves closer to lakefront trail connection by placing first section of Wendy Park Bridge Steven Litt - Clevalnd.com - Mar. 23, 2021 "Additional sections of the bridge will be lifted into place over the next month. When finished in early summer, the 14-foot-wide bridge will measure 500 feet long and will span the lakefront Norfolk-Southern rail line that bisects Whiskey Island. ... The $6 million span will make it possible for cyclists crossing the old channel of the Cuyahoga River on the Willow Avenue Bridge to reach Wendy Park on Whiskey Island directly from the south via the Cleveland Foundation Centennial Lake Link Trail and the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail."