OompaLoompa

There are tons of active groups for all kinds of interests at meetup.com. Cleveland groups are here: http://www.meetup.com/cities/us/oh/cleveland/

What, the Huntington bank building? That's my bank, I hope it doesn't disappear.

I don't think anyone posted this yet... PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Date: 4-11-08 ______________________________________________________________ Contact: Alanna Romansky/ Sean Derry From: The Bang and The Clatter Theatre Company 224 Euclid Ave. Cleveland, OH 44114 Phone: 330.606.5317 E-mail: alanna@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Website: www.bnctheatre.com Cleveland, OH – GRAND OPENING The Bang and The Clatter Theatre Company announces the Grand Opening of its expansion into Cleveland: The Bang and The Clatter – Sometimes In The Silence…Theatre Company. The inaugural production of this landmark event is the Ohio Premier of This Is How It Goes, by Neil LaBute. This Is How It Goes, directed by the critically acclaimed Fred Sternfeld, features Doug Kusak, Leighann Niles DeLorenzo, Michael May, and Rachel D. Zake. Performances run from April 18th through May 10th Mondays at 8pm, Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 3pm at The Bang and The Clatter – Sometimes In The Silence…Theatre Company at 224 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44114. All Tickets are $15. All students and seniors have the option to ‘Pay As You Can’ for each show. For ticket reservations, call the box office at 330.606.5317. There will be a free reception following the performance on April 19th. Make your reservations now and come be a part of this historic event! In This Is How It Goes, “LaBute…continues to probe the fascinating dark side of individualism…his great gift is to live in and to chronicle that murky area of not-knowing, which mankind spends much of its waking life denying.” – The New Yorker “This playwright aims his verbal punches so that they will tickle your funny bone at the same time they make your mouth pop open at his daring to say what many regard as beyond the pale.” –CurtainUp ###

Does anyone know if the Cliffs project is dead? It seems that way, since I drove by the site yesterday and the sign I snapped a pic of last summer (below) is no longer there. Just the fence and cleared ground.

Does anyone know what's going on with Cudell CDC? I just saw a sign on the building at 117th and Detroit that says it is for lease. Are they moving?

Hi all, I have created a new website/online community called NEOphytes for those new to Northeast Ohio. I have not officially launched or announced the site anywhere yet, but MayDay is graciously letting me use some photos and KJP allowed me to reproduce his relocation thread, although I split it up into three sections and I'm continuing to add to it. I just wanted to make sure it is okay with some of you here that I copied that thread, because I know that some of the photos in that thread are not his, so if I used anyone's photo and you do NOT want it used on NEOphytes, please let me know and I will remove it, or I can just credit you for it if you prefer. I hope some of you will visit the site from time to time to share your wealth of knowledge. I am looking for moderators, if anyone is interested please let me know, I would love to have some UOers on there. I'm still doing some tweaking but I hope to launch the site in the next week or so, and keep an eye out for upcoming NEOphyte events. http://www.neo-phytes.com.

Does anyone on this board work at the Detroit Shoreway CDO? Or if not, does anyone know folks over there? If you do, can you PM me?

I live around the corner on Clifton and I have never felt unsafe walking home late at night. But if you live on Edgewater, rnr is right, you will have a very rough time finding street parking. It's always difficult over there, but darn near impossible late at night. Be prepared to have to park far away.

The nice thing about OkCupid.com is that it is free, and already becoming quite popular. I think in a couple more years, they may be giving Match.com a run for their money.

I walked by the old City Place restaurant yesterday and noticed there is a Now Hiring sign for a new sports bar opening there. Huh? I thought this whole block was going to be torn down and redeveloped. Why would anyone open a new business in that space? Unless the redevelopment plans have been scrapped...

I just noticed a couple of days ago a fairly nondescript-looking restaurant in the NW corner of the Winton Manor bldg on Prospect. It is called simply "Middle East Restaurant". The signs were basically posterboards in the windows. I wondered if I have somehow never noticed this place, or if it just recently opened. Anyone know?

I dated a guy who lived in the Hat Factory about 5 years ago and I found it extremely loud at night, esp. when the bars emptied out - honking horns, screeching tires, screaming drunks, police sirens, you name it. Maybe it's not so bad if you're on an upper floor, but every night of the week it was like a W. 6th frat party at 2:30 am.

I would stay away from Coronet/Mayfair, I have heard they are pretty bad.

Just FYI, I live in Lakewood and I have free heat and water and a gas stove, in an affordable small apartment. I'm a female and I feel quite safe in my nabe. That's just my experience, YMMV. But this is off topic, sorry, back to RTA... I do have good bus service here on Clifton. There, now we're back.

Very true. Perk would be a great place for muggers to hide as well, I would never walk through there at night. It's such a weird, unfriendly design. And just being open does not make for an inviting space either. It's complicated to figure out how to create a great public space. Being ajacent to several restaurants and cafes would help increase the use of benches and picnic tables at most parks.

Perk Park seems like the perfect example of a park that totally missed the mark, but could be a nice space if redesigned. It's a good location. When designing an urban park I think you have to first pick a spot that allows for good people watching, some locations will never make good parks if there is not enough pedestrian activity in the area. And unfortunately you have to keep in mind that if a park is designed or placed incorrectly it can just become "homeless park". I think most parks need to have an openness because of this factor. All the nooks and crannies that were designed into Perk are perfect places for the homeless to hide and sleep, which means no one else uses that park. The Reading Garden is an exception of an enclosed, almost hidden park that works because of it's association with on entity (the library) that can manage its use. I know ParkWorks is hoping to redevelop Perk. http://www.parkworks.org/perkpark.html From the sound of the plans, it should be a major improvement. I agree with whoever said moving water is always a nice feature, whether a fountain or waterfall/pond. Also, the easiest way to increase foot traffic in that park would be to include a diagonal pathway from the northeast corner of the park at E. 12th to the southwest corner at Chester for pedestrians to cut through, which increases people-watching opportunities. I like the idea of putting a food vendor of some kind in there. Artwork is a nice touch, as is entertainment in the summer months. When I worked for Metroparks, we had a kiosk at every park which promoted upcoming events, the website, interesting facts about that park, had maps, etc. Something like this in our downtown parks would be cool, but it would have to be maintained and kept up-to-date.

I am also posting this in the "events" section. From the Cleveland Scene blog: http://blogs.clevescene.com/cnotes/2008/01/on_the_flats_east_bank_a_visio.php On the Flats' East Bank, a Vision of a Pop-Up City Tue Jan 15, 2008 at 10:26:23 AM Until Scott Wolstein’s bulldozers start swinging this spring, the Flats’ East Bank will be among the most desolate stretches in this, the City of Desolate Stretches. Old River Road, a former epicenter of debauchery, has been on life support for years. Now, save for the Hustler Club, that resilient ode to naked ladies, the plug has officially been pulled. It’s a ghost town with a view. But Terry Schwartz has a vision for the East Bank. Sadly, it has nothing to do with naked ladies. But it’s wild nonetheless. Schwartz, a planner with Cleveland’s Urban Design Collaborative who’s also helped with the strategic shrinking of Youngstown, is designing a so-called Pop-Up City for the deserted site – a one-day party to “remind people what they loved about the Flats.” It’s ambitious, considering that the party won’t have booze, and what everybody loved about the Flats was getting memorably smashed. But the party, slated for February 29, will have an ice-skating rink, a massive video-game display, live entertainment, food, and – here’s where you can get smashed -- imported snowboarding parks from Boston Mills and Brandywine. The logic behind “Leap Night” is totally dreamy, precisely what you’d expect from a former city planner: “This city has such a tremendous amount of vacant land,” Schwartz says, with odd cheer in her voice. Making permanent use of Cleveland’s desolation takes years, she says. It also involves talking with politicians, a leading cause of depression. So Schwartz has found grant money – yes, there’s grant money for this stuff – to take our bum-infested lemons and turn them into lemonade. “Vacant land is an adventure,” Schwartz says, and, strangely enough, she seems to believe it. -- Joe P. Tone For more more information on "Leap Night" and other pop-up city events, visit http://www.popupcleveland.com. The site's still fledgling but will add info as it comes.

I was in NYC last week and someone took us to this beautiful rooftop patio martini bar which was amazingly in use in January because it was so warm last week. The simplest and most elegant thing they did that I thought some Cleveland bars should steal is that they had blankets and plush robes that you could wear for extra warmth. What a great way to be able to keep your patio in use throughout the year.

I stopped by to snap a few pictures of the work going on at the Rockwell site. I apologize for the poor quality from my camera phone.

How about you give Ryan an ultimatum, as in "either he goes or I go." Perhaps the prospect of being left with Pete will force him to grow a pair and then you can boot the guy out.

The Osborn might fit your needs, I had a friend who lived there and liked it. It sits between Playhouse Square and Gateway/E. 4th, not as much in the thick of the nightlife, but still close to everything. http://www.forrent.com/apartment-community-profile/1030655.php#

I like the idea of doing a theme movie place. You could do retro decor and show black and white films. French cuisine with french films. Futuristic decor with sci-fi movies, etc. Or you could create an "indoor drive-in" where the chairs are carseats facing the screen, create a starry night sky ceiling, show old B movies and serve more upscale versions of drive-in food. Other uses, the space also maybe looks large enough to be a rentable hall for events. Perhaps a small church congregation in need of a home could use it? Probably not the best use of the space, but better than sitting empty. Maybe it could be converted for an indoor sport like volleyball or something, though I don't know that there would be much money in that. And to really think outside the box: A funhouse. It could have a bouncy house, slides, ball pit, rope bridge, climbing wall, arcade games, etc. During the day it's for families and after 8pm you have to be 21 and up to come in (hey, why should the kids have all the fun?)

I figured it had something to do with the service. Just before the smoking ban went into effect, there was a certain wait person who at least once waited on us while puffing away on her Marlboro Lights. Not a very appetizing way to engage in food service. Otherwise I just found the service slow in general and the food greasy, and only went there when dragged by a few friends who liked the place for some reason. I am sad to see the Giant Eagle close though. I wish they could have expanded the current location to have a larger selecton and wider aisles. Now that City Place is gone, they could take on that space, but it sounds like that's not being considered...I don't mind seeing that corner redeveloped though, and especially finding some use for the church. It's a great location with lots of potential.

Wow. Anyone know their hours?

Perhaps the show I referenced is the second show. It is the first audition notice I saw for the new theater, so I thought it must be the first show. Maybe the first show was pre-cast or I just missed the announcement.