Htsguy

I think this has been asked a couple of times on the forum recently but never answered: Did Cumberland lose it's option since it did not break ground on anything in June?

For what it is worth I quickly reviewed a brief filed in DT lawsuit and it would appear to me that the grounds for the suit are pretty shaky. That said the assigned judge is very unpredictable.

You are most probably correct that it will stay a vacant lot for a long time. Dunham Tavern principals have more or less admitted they don't have the resource to do anything major with it and it's not like it is an organization that is at the top end of the charitable giving list in town.

Great name. Never noticed it before

In my failing mind it was something more recent. Maybe the article I am thinking was just using above as a source. Obviously Shake Shack will no longer be going in.

A recent KJP blog says its A Fox Sports Live and Starbucks. Cannot find where I saw Cleveland Live (again I thought it was a recent article) and the 50,000 square feet number which seems insane.

I think there was a post last week that discussed updated retail (cannot remember if it was just a forum members info or from a news article but I believe it was an article) indicating that Cleveland Live was taking 50.000 square feet (that seemed to me to be a lot and I wonder if it was a misprint) and a Starbuck Reserve was going in as well as something else I cannot recall.

It looks like Pattakos is representing the plaintiff trustee's not Dunham Tavern

What law firm is that. I note that they are represented by Todd Raskin in connection with the litigation and his firms offices are in Solon and I would guess (knowing the firm) that they were retained by Dunham's insurance carrier so they probably had not choice in the matter as far as that representation goes. Is there another law firm involved?

What I found frustrating at the various meetings were that the majority of the comments were inarticulate, nonsensical and disjointed ramblings without basis in fact (and the same stuff over and over...cannot believe they were still complaining about parking at the last meeting after all the study and compromise that went into that issue) Sure design and development are subjective, but at least make sense. Sometimes I just wanted to climb under the council chamber carpet and hide. I can only imagine what the out of town developers with significant expertise were thinking (I am sure they were mentally rolling their eyes). Expected a lot more from residents of Cleveland Heights.

They had hot sauce on every table. It was in a generic container so it may have been home made (is that possible? Seems like it would be a lot of work). My nephew was raving about it and insisted I try it. It was fine but I am hardly a hot sauce expert. I love deviled eggs but did not have theirs. We had fried green tomatoes (had a really tasty sauce) and my mom, who likes them, said they were the best she's ever had.

Yeah go figure. Of course familiar with the dish as everybody seems to have had it on their menu the past 10 years or so that I could tell (up north...of course a thing in the south and in northern urban centers with large southern black populations for years) but for some reason it just did not appeal to me. I guess I thought it would be too dry (especially using white meat). This was not the case at Soho. The chicken was very moist and the syrup was tasty. Definitely will now try it elsewhere to compare. The ambiance was very nice, I could tell they spent a fair amount on the build out (I am personally familiar with what goes into a restaurant build out) It had these great booths along the sides that were very large but seemed cozy at the same time. Very nice table wear and furnishings for the price point. They had this wonderful metal sculpture of the Cleveland skyline, more than 10 feet long, which I was admiring. They put a far amount of thought into the décor. Nice bar and patio off to the side. Serving staff was great. You could tell they knew what they were doing and were invested in the place. Could not comment on regular menu portion sizes because we had a buffet of apps to begin and then were served family style at the table. The food just keep coming and coming and was just incredible (unfortunately way better than the food at the wedding the next night). My "new nephew" indicated that when they were planning the dinner (for 80 people...they closed the restaurant on a Friday night which was nice of them) the owner told them that if there was anything not on menu they wanted just ask and he would make it for them. Great personal touch. My brother popped into the kitchen at one point and saw the owner slaving away at the stove. You really like to see something like and want a place like this to do well. I am going to be touting the place for weeks to come.

I attended a rehearsal dinner on Friday at Soho Chicken and Whiskey on West 25th in Ohio City. First time. There was not one morsel that I shoved in my mouth that I did not love (even the chicken and waffles which I have never had before and did not think would be my thing). This is going to be one of my new go to places.

There is no doubt in my mind that for purposes of retail Ohio City should be considered part of downtown....no brainer. And another reason to get moving on the transformative Irishtown Bend project (I know I sound like a broken record) as it will only further seamlessly connect downtown and OC.

So the large apartment building on Meadowbrook is no more.

@Foraker thanks for the report.

Foraker I think you mean the Hanna Building

Doesn't Cumberland's extended option expire if they don't break ground in June?

Yeah I definitely though the previous pool location was better and I also thought the Euclid Hts side looked better before. The park by Nighttown was in the previous plan. I never thought it was a great idea. Don't think it will be used much (I keep thinking of that plaza in Cedar-Lee which always seems vacant but I guess this will be larger). Would have preferred more density and something blocking the parking garage at that point. I think the city and design review were actually giving the developer grief about the previous materials and that is why the change. The were supposedly working with the city behind the scenes to work on this and much depended on cost. I think the fix is in on this design since the developer seemed to be working so close on the changes with city officials. Despite the polite acceptance of views at the two upcoming meetings in order to "make a record" design review will green light so they can break ground in December. I could be wrong.

There are clearly some major differences including materials and the height of the mid block eastern elevation (appears a couple stories taller)

The city has posted the new Top of the Hill renderings on its website. Just in time for all hell to break lose at the community meeting on Tuesday. They look significantly different to me.

Unfortunately, if they stay downtown it will probably have to be in a similar type facility. I believe they were in the federal building before they moved and the GAO was keen to put them in a very secure location due to fears of terrorist bombing. Thus they had to be in a building off the street with gates and the like. Not a very urban friendly set up. If I recall correctly (although I could be wrong) the government at the time wanted them to stay downtown so that the agents were somewhat close to federal court.

Just trying to be funny (I clearly failed). My point is that it is a pretty hard hitting blog article. I certainly don't believe Ezra Stark's failure to respond had any impact on your writing (although I bet now he wishes he said something...hope he read it).

If I remember my Accounting 121 class, a loan is considered debt not equity.

^OUCH...KJP remind me to ALWAYS respond to any e mail you send me.