surfohio

Interesting. I was with my friend when he was doing work for the Transformer Station, lots of sand. Maybe it has to do with where cliffs are/were located. Who is the resident UO geologist lol?

Today's meaningless buzz word is "Sustainability." http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2014/06/the_gay_games_cometh_and_strai.html

^ Look at all that sand!!! My landscaping buddy once said that if you kick the ground anywhere between there and W25 you get sand.

Agreed. And the way the windows open up onto the street...such a great atmosphere!

Think of the children.....that are going to be eating pizza at this place next summer!

Always a valid concern with any new development. Even the Arena District in C-bus with it's classic architecture feels less than authentic. Of course new neighborhoods don't have to be sterile. [i mean look what Paul has posted while i'm typing this!]

I've often wondered what would happen if these dead zone properties were given incentives or perhaps even required to be opened up for retail.

I'm convinced that Browns fans will be tripping over themselves to either buy or to urge friends to snap up apartments by the Stadium.

Well the .com comments were...helpful.....I guess there's a first time for everything! Merry Arts Pub and Grille in Lakewood (on Detroit Ave.) is the official watch party of the World Cup for the Cleveland Outlaws. All are welcomed and no membership is required. If you're looking to watch the games with respectful, passionate, and knowledgeable people, Merry Arts is the place for you. Come out and cheer on our country with us! Merry Arts is pretty great. Friendly service, good views of t.v.'s. The Grafton on Madison would've been the Lakewood soccer spot (R.I.P. Grafton and curse you whatever stupid cheese bar took over that space). Parnell's and Olde Angle are two places I've had some great World Cup fun. They'll get crazy.

Absolutely. Cold lake plus sunny warm days = a good deal of San Francisco Bay effect going around lately!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Scholz Donald Thomas "Tom" Scholz (born March 10, 1947) is an American rock musician, inventor, engineer, and philanthropist,[1][2] best known as the founder of the band Boston. He is also the inventor of the Rockman guitar amplifier. Early life[edit] Tom Scholz was born in Toledo, Ohio and raised in the suburb of Ottawa Hills. His father, Don Scholz, was a homebuilder who garnered considerable wealth from his designs of prefabricated luxury houses and founded Scholz Design forerunner Scholz Homes Inc.[4][5] His mother Olive was valedictorian of her class, and went on to become an architectural designer and a landscape architect.[4][6] As a child, Scholz studied classical piano.[7] He also had a penchant for tinkering with everything from go-carts to model airplanes and was always building or designing.[6] A top student and a member of the varsity basketball team, he graduated from Ottawa Hills High School in 1965.[6] Prior to his musical career, Scholz received both a bachelor's degree (1969) and a master's degree (1970) in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and worked for Polaroid Corporation as a senior product design engineer. Scholz would then reside in Boston.[6] http://vimeo.com/63417857 www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSR6ZzjDZ94

Well, sure I agree. But I'll add that it's "money" and not always "cost" that's the key. Too many instances where we hold onto outdated and inefficient methods in the name of job preservation.

The entire bottom floor was retail. We are talking about the garage across from Westin, correct? Am I mistaken? edit - my bad I am completely mistaken. Arwell Garage, not Lincoln.

That's an important distinction to the feds, I think. We'll see. I will bring up the Fed-getting-in-our-way issue at the next Tea Party/Militia meeting. Right after the topic of paying 3-400.00 per scrawny dead tree is addressed.

A good example why you can never, ever rely on tax incentives - or tax revenues - as a long range strategy.

Once more for the record, if the roof of Hofbrau does in fact turn out like this, I say we have an UO storm the roof party. With pickaxes.

'But Drury needs to tackle a major renovation of the shabby structure. Vollink wouldn't put a specific price tag on the repairs, beyond saying that the costs will be "significant."' Based on that comment from the article, I'd say they plan for significant improvements. Man I sure as heck hope they keep retail on the ground floor. That was the saving grace of the Lincoln. We don't need any more dead space along the sidewalk that's for sure.

We live in a climate that is very tough to maintain. A lot of building materials do not handle salt well and unfortunate we have become a society where everyone is scared to not put enough ice melting material down as to prevent being sued. Calcium Chloride should be used in almost all situations like this but I don't think it is widely known. Embracing that awful Rust Belt moniker, ouch!

^ wow what city is that!!

Here's a snippet Friday 1:36am Me We need less abandoned buildings in Birdtown. Friday 10:42am Nomorebars.com We agree. Our view is that it's a question of highest and best use. If not a church, then let's identify constructive ways to increase the tax base. Friday 10:59am Me Please don't take this the wrong way. I've been to your church and love that you're in the neighborhood, but your opposition is going to lead to this building being condemned. We don't own the building; it's not ours. We aren't the buyers either. We are neighbors in a district that is diverse that has historically supported and benefited from a diversity of small retail. There are laws already in place to make sure the owners and patrons operate and conduct themselves within safe guidelines upheld by the city of Lakewood. The authorities will not tolerate a nuisance business operating in this location. Having a business there actually will slow down the speed of traffic. By every indication this is going to be a place that I can walk to and bring my kids to. It's not going to be a Hells Angels hangout or some late night dance club at all. And think of all the patrons who will see your church right next door. Suddenly our neighborhood and your church are more visible. And you have potential new churchgoers who will want to join your congregation right at your doorstep.

Reminding us that PS as it stands today is kinda awful.

^ hahahaha ya know I did the same thing in my head Musky!! Like, I heard once about a church committing mass suicide once.....is that what we want in Bird Town? Mass suicide!!??? I actually tried to engage them in constructive, adult conversation over email. The gist of it is they are Baptists vs. Alcohol. They said they wanted to engage the community to find a better, more suitable use of the church. They do not own this building. Were they were interested in buying it? Nope. Of course not. When I said "with all due respect" that having the "community" come up with a use for someone else's property, that it reminded me a little bit of say, Communist China, they stopped talking to me lol.

Love that shot! Does anyone by any chance know what they are doing with the deconstructed steel?

Absolutely. And they've managed to create an enjoyable environment that serves all four seasons. http://missbinnyc.blogspot.com/2010/12/fire-pit.html This could work so well for PS, especially considering the foot traffic going through there day after day. On that subject it is interesting to note that much of the discussions here center around removing the buses and transit from Public Square. Yet it's the buses and transit that provide much of the foot traffic that would be needed to make these Bryant Parkesque kiosks and coffee stands a success. IMO there needs to be a design that is all encompassing. Cleveland just doesn't have the foot traffic of NYC. Public Square has always been our hub of commerce and transit. We may very well have to keep it that way. I could be wrong, but I think what many people here are considering is removing transit from bisecting PS, not removing it entirely.

Here's their website. Not sure what kind of reaction this is getting. http://www.nomorebarsinbirdtown.com/2014/05/open-letter-to-birdtown/ READ AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PARENTS AND RESIDENTS OF BIRDTOWN » MAY 14, 2014 SITE ADMIN Dear Parents and Residents of Birdtown, As you may have heard, the city is considering allowing a bar to move in the old St Gregory’s Byzantine Catholic Church on the corner of Quail and Thrush, which by the way is directly adjacent to Harrison Elementary School. We are gravely concerned that money has taken priority over public safety and security of your children. With a bar being located on a residential street, there will be an increase of delivery traffic, and even worse, people driving under the influence of alcohol. How can any amount of money heal the injured, bring back the departed, or restore families shattered by alcohol? While the bar states the hours of operation will begin at 4pm, children will still be living and playing in the neighborhood. Will your child be one of them playing in the front yard or riding their bikes in the street as drunk drivers cruise by? Will your children be playing when the next bar fight spills out into the residential street? Will your children be playing outside when someone comes into the bar to rob it and pulls a gun and shots are fired just like it happened at the TREEHOUSE BAR in Tremont. (The proposed bar owner, also owns the TREEHOUSE BAR in Tremont)? Where will you park when you get home from a long day at work? Will there be any spots available for you and your family? Will you have to park further away and put your family at greater risk because you have to walk further to get to your house? We must stand, we must use common sense and say enough is enough, Birdtown has enough bars already. But to put a bar in the middle of a residential neighborhood just doesn’t make sense, it only promises to make money. Yet… It is statistically proven that when alcohol is brought into a community, the community experiences more crime, more noise and more trouble (recent WHO report worldwide). Birdtown is not perfect, but it is not “infested with crime” as the bar developers have stated. On the contrary, it’s a vibrant, ethnically-diverse and “up and coming” neighborhood. Our own councilwoman, Mary Louise Madigan, was quoted as saying so on Cleveland.com. Wouldn’t common sense dictate that another bar isn’t an appropriate way to stay on that track? Will you take stand for this community and for the children of Birdtown? Please come to the next City of Lakewood Planning Commission Meeting (MAP) on June 5th at 7pm and let your voice be heard.