cadmen

I'm a huge fan of the Metro Parks and contribute to the Nature Conservancy but for this discussion l focused on parks downtown. It's those parks that need a revamp. That's a multi-stage process. It starts with an understanding that we HAVE to do better. That's step one and we're not even there yet. Unfortunately. Step two is understanding what makes a successful urban park. I see no indication that our leadership knows what works and why. Step three is implementation. We have a very long way to go folks.

^ You two beat me to the punch but yes, I also agree that K&D pulling out is a good thing. They have done some nice work (and some not so nice) downtown and for the most part I applaud their investment but we need a more diverse development environment in this town.

I'm not disputing Cleveland's low ranking although how those stats are complied and the definition of a park seems somewhat subjective. My issue is not so much with the ranking but with the quality and type of area that is considered a "park." To me, we have both too much park land downtown while at the same time not the right kind of parks. Any one who has ever visited Central Park in NY, Grant Park in Chicago or experienced the squares of Savannah Ga. or a park like Rittenhouse Square in Philly know that's what a city park should look like. We don't have anything like that. The best parks have mature trees and artfully created landscaping. They both invite sitting/watching and activities. Again, our parks have none of that. They don't encourage much of anything other than to keep moving on. Our parks need a massive upgrade in design and maintenance. They need funding to do that. None of this is rocket science though. There are plenty of examples of parks that work and parks that don't. All we need to do is have a few local park organizations create places that work here. We need to raise the bar. Parks that work ultimately pay for themselves by attracting more people to live nearby thus increasing the local tax base. They add life which produces safety. Parks should not be an afterthought. Done correctly, they are value added.

^ Bingo!

Memories indeed. In 1976 l graduated from college and got my first two Cleveland jobs. I worked in the OR at St. Alexis hospital in the day and Playhouse Playhouse Square at night. I have to admit as interesting as working in surgery is l enjoyed Playhouse Square much more. Worked there until the early 80's when the Junior League took over and got rid of most everyone at my level. It was necessary though. We were all amateurs putting on shows with very little money or connections. The woman from the League had the moneyed connections in the form of their husbands and without them Playhouse Square wouldn't be what it is today.

Here's a bold idea for the space...cancel it. Then again, after viewing the scale of this thing I'm more and more convinced it is just a temporary installation until they see how the transformation of the entire property goes. After all it's probably going to take a decade until it's finished. So this dinky little thing should be nothing more than a speedbump, ultimately replaced by something substantial.

Ouch!

Nailed it. Unfortunately. I'd love to be a fly on the wall when something like this comes up. Not just this but a lot of the other mediocre at best designs. What is driving crap like this? It can't just be the money because I've seen ideas that weren't all that expensive that looked pretty attractive. Must be a lack of talent or vision. I've said this before but it remains true. If you can't come up with something yourself just pick a great idea out of a architectural design manual then modify it enough so you don't get sued. At least you'll have something that's better than a lot of the garbage out there.

I don't know about those charges but l am billed almost $90 a month for 4 days of paper paper and 3 of digital. I've been a subscriber for ever and at this point l'm thinking about giving it up. The price is bad enough but the quality is even worse. I don't blame the PD though. The business model has changed and l either accept it or give it up. Sunday is the only day when it still looks somewhat like a real paper. The rest of the week it's an embarrassment.

Yes, new high rise residential. Sans stripes.

^ Now THAT'S what I'm talking about! Come on Bedrock. If you're going to do it, do it right. Otherwise don't bother.

^ That would be great if it happens. And it makes a lot of sense too. CSU wants to increase student housing. If the price is not prohibitive this is ready made for a makeover. It's close enough to campus especially if the Wolstein Center is replaced with more school facilities. It could work.

"Ladies and gentlemen...we have crane." He says in a sonorous voice.

It does look somewhat cheesy. It's a big space. If you're going to fill it appropriately it needs to be to scale. This (improvement?) is not. If you're going to install nature in that cavernous space then do it right. Fill it with real trees, landscaping, a waterfall and some nice walking paths. Turn it into a little rain forest. With a little study I think it could be pulled off.

The additional sq. ft. are curious to me. That's almost 150,000 additional feet right? I think I see how that is going to look. Previously I've noticed that some pictures of the tower make it look almost like a larger but still slender version of the Hilton. But some images make it look almost as bulky as 200 Public Square. In my mind I kept trying figure out if it is the former or the later. The additional sq. ft. settles it for me. It's going to be bulky and that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned.

You are correct gildone about those housing prices in Boston. 20 some years ago I was offered my choice between 2 jobs in research at Mass General. I was given a wonderful tour of the hospital and loved the resources, responsibility and was shown an office overlooking the Charles. At one point I casually asked the woman who would be my boss where she lived. She said she lived many miles away because she couldn't afford to live in Boston. Hmm. If my boss couldn't afford a decent place in the city what could I afford? I've always lived in a nice place here. My home environment contributes to my mood. If I live in a dump I feel dumpy. So I've always lived in a nice place by design. It may have been short sided but I turned her down. I just wasn't willing to go backwards. Cleveland is NOT the best place to live but for a number of reasons it is for me. I have lived in Europe and Israel. I've traveled to every continent. Europe blows away anything we have in the States but for some reason I keep returning to Cleveland. It gets under your skin and for me it will always be home. My biggest frustration with this town (other than the crappy weather) is we could be so much more than we are. There is a world of potential here.

I don't know, maybe I'm suffering from lack of imagination but I don't see a better alternative than repairing this bridge. My problem is I want to keep the bridge but at at the same time turn the higher speed East Shoreway into a boulevard and if I use a syllogism from my old college logic class (if this, then that) it doesn't work. So for me the choice is keeping the bridge and the Shoreway or losing the bridge but getting a boulevard. Using that logic I prefer the bridge over the boulevard because...a road is a road and a higher speed East Shoreway or a boulevard is still a road. which is a problem for lakefront access BUT if we're also connecting the lakefront with a landbridge the kind of road become irrelevant. That way we keep the bridge and also get to connect downtown with the lakefront. The Main Avenue Bridge is visually stunning. It connects east and west in a dramatic fashion. If it was lit properly it would also turn into a work of art at night. A sculpture. One giant work of art. We're going to lose that for...a tunnel? Or some kind of drawbridge as lake freighter's still need access upriver. In order to do that we're going to build a road that plunges down to the river, somehow crosses the river and then continues on to connect with the West Shoreway. In order to complete that stretch of road we would be placing a dagger into the heart of the Flats. We lose that big beautiful bridge and replace it with with a road that slices up the Flats. I don't think that's the way to go.

Thanks. I forgot about that. Not sure what hurdles you have to jump but food for thought.

Getting ready for my annual Boston trip. Yes that town knows how to do it. Plus they have the money, educated populace and clout to do pretty much what they want. Side note: My friends there are telling me to move to Boston now before the political sh*t hits the fan. They tell me Ohio is getting more backward by the year and unfortunately I can't argue with them.

^ Well they better get cracking 'cause I'm looking lol. And I need to buy so let's have some for sale too. Don't we have enough apartments already? And we need BALCONIES.

^ So far I haven't seen any places that are new enough to have the abatement. There's actually not a lot of for sale available. Agents are having a hard time finding properties for sale under $400,000 that aren't beat up. I suppose if I wanted a house in Westlake or Strongsville I would have a lot more options but I'll die if I have to live out there. Not my cup of tea. Probably why I 'm on this forum. I'm a city guy.

I think the land bridge is the key to harbor life. Right now there are some significant attractions and yet the harbor is also mostly lacking in the things that make it a place you want to hang out in. You can walk around for a bit but there's not much to interact with. If you've been to other harbor areas around the country there is usually a palpable sense of life. People shopping, eating, drinking and little things to grab your attention and of course, just places to sit and people watch. North Coast Harbor doesn't really have much of that. Maybe it really is a chicken or egg thing as in what comes first; people to use attractions or attractions to bring in people? I'm not sure of the answer to that question. I just know that somehow something is missing down there and it's too good of an asset to waste. I think a land bridge is the best way to get more people to the harbor. If you make it easy to access (plus the walk there should be visually appealing) more people will use it and then more activities should open up. Hey, I've just answered my own question.

This may be slightly off-topic but I'm just going to vent a little as sticker shock has me dazed and confused. So we're looking to move back into the City from Rocky River. Prices are high but what is really concerning are the property taxes. They're all over the place. One unit we looked at on 25th in the high $200's had property taxes above $8,000!! Another fantastic unit on Columbus priced at $500,000 also had property taxes of $8,700. How is that possible? We can sell our condo for $250 -$275 but our taxes are under $5,000. I really want to move into the City but the property taxes are quite concerning. And yes, what happens with the next assessment? Yikes! First world problems for sure lol. 🤨

With close proximity to employment centers this project is a no-brainer. It will probably be half leased even before it's finished. Plus, another windswept vacant piece of land is brought back to life. Yep...keep it going Cleveland.

New paint is one thing but my hope would be for LED lighting of the bridges. As for the graffiti, that's an ongoing issue and will never go away. Whack a mole for sure.