8ShadesofGray

But unless they did some special crime assessments, crime rates are typically figured per 100,000 residents, not visitors. So downtowns with sparse residential populations would look more dangerous than downtowns with large residential bases, even if numbers of crime were similar and daytime populations were similar.

^^ From the vagueness of the clip, it sounds like we have to hire Mr. Ezell to find out ;) MayDay's points above are spot on. But I do think we need to invest in more demand-side education. We need to better educate suburbanites about what living in Cleveland is really like (e.g. the 20-something Eastlaker who told me I'd "better buy a gun" when I moved into Asiatown and that "people make money so they can move out of neighborhoods like that ... Why are you moving in?"). We need to get these people into the everyday fabric of urban living, not just to Gateway on St. Patrick's Day. They should see innovative models in the Cleveland schools, they should ride trains and bikes, take rowing lessons, camp in the Flats, grocery shop at Tink Holl, deep sea dive to look at sunken ships in Lake Erie ... things that really connect them to why living in the city proper is so great. We need to expand the awesome work that Emerging Cleveland does to showcase the city to expatriate young professionals visiting their suburbanite folks during holidays. And we need to do a much better job of marketing the city proper to people relocating from other regions, many of whom don't have the psychological baggage associated with the city proper that natives do and would likely be much easier sells. The Living in Cleveland Center is doing a good job of this, talking to HR directors, etc., but their funding is very limited and should be expanded several fold. We should also be encouraging co-housing projects (www.cohousing.org), where a bunch of people can all buy at the same time and invest in shared community amenities at the same time. We should also be doing more robust research to identify niches of potential buyers and steering them toward appropriate neighborhoods and developments ... something more than just saying the market is "young professionals and empty-nesters". NPI is doing some great work in this area for their Strategic Investment Initiatives, but it would be great to see it trickle over to the other CDCs, which of course is their ultimate goal. Of course, those of us living in the city are doing this work just by living the urban lifestyle, by inviting people into the city and taking them on impromptu tours, by making our friends join us at Cleveland's independent restaurants, bars and galleries instead of going out to visit them at the Eton Collection, etc. But we could always be doing more. I've always thought we should have some kind of Urban Pledge ... get 50,000 people to agree to certain urban principles (live in the city, shop in the city, vote in the city, limit car use, increase pedestrian activity, increase bicycle and transportation use, give tours of the city, patronize independent stores, etc.). Just by showcasing that this is a movement and not just 50 people fighting the tide I think would do a tremendous service. If we invested even $1,000,000 a year in such a demand-side effort, the results could be pretty astounding; even if such a grassroots campaign steered only 50 people a year to live in Cleveland, it would more than pay for itself in community impact. It could also be the tipping point for projects to move ahead based on pre-sells. We're doing a great job with the supply side, but our community-level demand-side models, and the resources we devote to educating people about city living, are weak in my opinion.

Ahem, Union Savings, ahem ... In the United States, the practice was fought first through passage of the Fair Housing Act of 1968 (which prevents redlining when the criteria for redlining are based on race, religion, gender, familial status, disability, or ethnic origin), and later through the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977, which requires banks to apply the same lending criteria in all communities. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redlining

^ (http://www.propertiesmag.com/current/2007-11/PropertiesWEB-Nov07.pdf ... see page 82) ... Mixed-Use Development Warehouse District Cleveland, OH (Cuyahoga Co.) West 3rd / West 9th / St. Clair / Superior Avenues Estimated Amount: $1,000,000,000 Contracting Method: G.C. Bids (By Invitation Only) Update: Announcing additional details; developer will have preliminary plans to city possible by early 2008; construction possible late 2008. Developer: Robert Stark Enterprises 28601 Chagrin Boulevard Woodmere, OH 44122 (216) 464-2860 FAX (216) 464-1458 Details: 8 acres; 15-20 story, 1,200,000-1,500,000 SF office space; 1,000,000 SF retail space; 1,000,000 SF residential; and 1,000,000-2,000,000 SF structured parking; 600 residential units; sitework; concrete; masonry; structural steel; wood and plastics; thermal and moisture protection; finishes; drywall; painting; plumbing; HVAC; electrical; lighting.

True ... but if we don't come to destroy ice scupltures and proudly show people on the street the shard of Frosty we stole, we're obviously crossing different bridges :wink:

I was over in Gordon Square on Friday, too, and the addition of the stores is really increasing the energy of that spot. Those few extra retail spots really lent the nabe a pedestrian flavor, particularly because those four shops are all adjacent to each other. The art show I mentioned a couple posts up also had a good showing, particularly given that it was a holiday weekend. I'd like to take this opportunity to say what a great job Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization is doing. It's my understanding that they've been VERY proactive about filling the vacant storefronts along Detroit and VERY helpful to new retail establishments starting up. If we could magnify their efforts to build the capacity of hip, local entrepreneurs to open up shops throughout the city, that alone would have a profound effect on how Northeast Ohioans view those of us living in the "numbered streets".

While I'll give the Democrats my nod and my vote, I'm frequently frustrated that they seem to be reticent to stand up for things and have difficulty presenting a clear message. "Fiscally conservative" seems to be a common descriptor ... I like to think of myself as "big-picture fiscally conservative" ... I want efficient, effective and equitable government programs. "Good government" is much more important to me than "small government". And I would love to see more investments in education, workforce training, urban development, etc., recognizing that the long-term public investments in these areas will have high ROIs over time. I interned with Canada's New Democratic Party (www.ndp.ca) while in undergrad, and I guess that's the party that I feel the strongest support for. They're significantly further left than our Democratic party but their agenda is grounded less in sentiment and "we should do this because it's right" and more on logic and long-term investment in quality-of-life. Plus, they heart gays.

Didn't see any framing yet when I went by yesterday evening.

Not a gallery, but DSCDO helped this group of artists do a temporary show in one of the vacant storefronts. The artists' work is really good, too. Convergence, November 23 - January 4 6706 Detroit Avenue Opening Reception, November 23rd, 7 p.m. "Convergence" outlines two very talented artists with completely different approaches to expressing their perception of the world and community. Long time friends, John G, illustrator, and Billy Delfs, photographer, epitomize the foundation of which this effort stands. "Convergence is musicians, artists, friends, onlookers and occupants within this city coming together to meet at a common ground. With musical performances by Uno Lady, Pablo Miguel, Blessi Anonyon Atu, Sim & Chris John G, http://ninepanelgrid.blogspot.com Billy Delfs, www.billydelfs.com

CTownsFinest, there's a house on E. 33rd for rent that I know of. Pretty traditional double, newly renovated. It's just north of Superior, so you'd have access to downtown via the 326. The rent rate was pretty reasonable from what I recall.

Panhandling-alternative charity drive comes up dry Wednesday, November 21, 2007 Stan Donaldson, Plain Dealer Reporter The Downtown Cleveland Alliance has gotten what some panhandlers get every day. Nickels and dimes. That's about what the nonprofit group has netted after spending $5,000 on a campaign to stop aggressive panhandling in Cleveland ... ... More at http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1195638204175740.xml&coll=2

I'm a little confused as to their definitions of "downtowns", as well. While they are studying a fairly small segment of Detroit's population (the cited "downtown" population is approximately 9.5% of the city population), the "downtown" populations of the other cities in the study are much larger chunks of their respective populations: 17.1% of Indianapolis's overall population, 27.3% of Chicago's, 30.8% of Cincinnati's, 43.4% of Minneapolis and 45.2% of Atlanta. So when they say "downtown", they actually are looking at much larger swaths of land ... in another thread (http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=415.60), Cincy's CBD population was estimated as just short of 4,000, while the greater CBD area was a little over 7,000; in the study, Cincy's downtown population is 93,189. Not sure what kind of impact this has on the results (i.e. whether including the neighborhoods adjacent to CBDs in other cities makes Detroit look safer), but it does call into question the methodology, at least in my mind. As a point of comparison, Cleveland's Downtown Statistical Planning Area has roughly twice the Part I crime rate of Goodrich-Kirtland and Ohio City and about 4 times the crime rate of Tremont. If you added these neighborhoods together as one "downtown district", you'd have a crime rate about half that of the CBD's ... and that district would still have a crime rate twice the average citywide. So I would be interested in knowing whether the study is showing that downtowns are relatively safe compared to other types of living environments nationwide ... or if the data might actually be pointing to neighborhoods adjoining CBDs being the truly safe ones. Just a thought.

JMasek, congrats on the ridership numbers. Are these the cameras for which Homeland Security provided some funding? Out of curiosity, what was the rationale for these particular four stations out of the entire line? Not doubting the need at these stations; just wondering what steered the decision to invest in these particular locations.

Central has come a long way, and I don't think it gets the attention it should from the community on just how far. That being said, most of the neighborhood indicators do still lag behind the city averages. That's not to detract from the progress that has been made and continues to be made ... most likely the result of continuing of concentrated poverty in the neighborhood. But all the trends are moving in the right direction. Keep in mind that most of the statistics are from 2000, although the crime stats are through 2006. Central neighborhood data from NEOCANDO: % of individuals below poverty line, 1990: 76.7% % below poverty line, 2000: 65.1% Still well above the city average (26.3%) Median household income, 1990: $5,712 Median household income, 2000: $11,236 Still well below the city average ($33,651) % of individuals 25+ with at least a high school degree, 1990: 41.8% % of individuals, 2000: 54.8% Still below the city average (69.0%) % of individuals 25+ with at least a college degree, 1990: 2.0% % of individuals, 2000: 4.2% Still well below the city average (11.4%) % of housing units that were vacant, 1990: 29.2% % of housing units, 2000: 18.4% Still above the city average (as of 2000, 11.7%) Serious violent crimes per 100,000 population, 1990: 5,773.1 Serious violent crimes, 2006: 4,335.5 Still well above the city average (1,639.6) Serious property crimes per 100,000 population, 1990: 11,887 Serious property crimes, 2006: 8,324.1 Still above the city average (6,113.5) Drug arrests per 100,000 population, 1990: 3,677.1 Drug arrests per 100,000 population, 2006: 2,974.1 Still above the city average (1,450.4) Child maltreatment per 1,000 population under the age of 18, 1990: 61.4 Child maltreatment, 2006: 19.3 Still above the city average (15.0)

At the same time that the above projects were approved for the credits, it appears a number have been quietly denied: - Hercules Motor in Canton - Allerton Hotel in Cleveland - Colony Theater in Marietta Meanwhile, 20 applicants have received 45-day notices regarding deficiencies in their applications.

The above-referenced editorial ... Dick Feagler: Euclid Corridor signifies nothing, and no one will use it Sunday, November 18, 2007 Dick Feagler, Plain Dealer Columnist St. Louis has its arch. Seattle has its Space Needle. And we've got the Euclid Corridor. These are three worthless things. But the first two became icons for their cities - a piece of the skyline you could put on a stamp. How would you represent the Euclid Corridor on a stamp? A couple of orange barrels and a jackhammer? ... ... More at http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1195465163290381.xml&coll=2

Saint Luke's Foundation gives $1 million grant for Buckeye neighborhood Foundation gives $1 million grant Monday, November 19, 2007 Barb Galbincea, Plain Dealer Reporter The Saint Luke's Foundation will continue its investment in the Buckeye neighborhood with a $1 million grant to be announced today. The grant to ParkWorks, a nonprofit group that promotes civic vitality through parks and public spaces, will be used to create walking trails, an outdoor reading garden, public-art displays and performance areas for community residents ... ... More at http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1195465163290381.xml&coll=2

Asiatown is Goodrich-Kirtland and a little bit of downtown. I believe the border between St. Clair Superior and Goodrich-Kirtland is E. 55th. Asiatown runs from about E. 21st (if you include Old Chinatown) to about E. 40th between St. Clair and Perkins-ish. One of the reasons that the nabes and sub-nabes and sub-sub-nabes is so confusing is that the Statistical Planning Areas group and bi-sect neighborhoods differently than CDCs do. St-Clair Superior CDC, for instance, serves both the St. Clair Superior and the Goodrich-Gannett SPAs. Meanwhile, even though Asiatown is almost exclusively in the Goodrich-Gannett SPA, it's represented by three CDCs: St. Clair Superior (the majority of the nabe), Midtown (south side of Payne and south) and the Quadrangle (west of E. 30th). Confusing, no?

Great location. Right across the street from Loftworks and next door to Shovelworks. And while a little pricey, with more than 7,000 sq. feet, three or foru households could go in on something like that and it's be a steal.

Does anyone know if the units are rentals or a mix of rentals and for-sale? The question was mentioned at the beginning of the thread and hasn't been answered yet ... and I didn't see anything in the way of clarification on the Tremont Place Lofts site.

The proposals are being reviewed on a first-come, first-serve basis. All of the 11 projects that have been approved for credits to date came from the first 18 applications. They are continuing to review applications on a rolling basis. If I understand correctly, up to 100 projects statewide could receive preservation credits in the pilot year, so I don't anticipate that these will be the only credits to go out. In the next 18 applications, we'll see a lot of Cleveland projects:the Allerton Hotel (1802 E. 13th Street), the Swetland Building (1010 Euclid Avenue), the Cleveland Trust (900 Euclid Avenue), Gospel Press (710 Jefferson), the Krather Block (4138-4146 Pearl Rd.), the Neal Terrace Apartments (8811 Detroit Avenue), Boulevard Terrace Apartments (10119 Detroit Avenue), the Exhibit Builders Building (1526 W. 25th Street), the Rogers Co. Building (2020 Euclid Avenue), the Liberty Building (2010 Euclid Avenue), the Hanna Complex (1400-1438 Euclid Avenue), Cogswell Hall (7200 Franklin Boulevard) and the Capitol Theater (1400 W. 65th Street). I should note that a number of these projects received 45-day notices that their application is deficient in some way and needs to be addressed within 45 days of receipt of the notice (Swetland, Cleveland Trust, Exhibit Builders, Liberty and Hanna). A number of early Cleveland applications have also been skipped over; I don't know why the credit approval or denial hasn't shown up for CIA's factory (11610 Avenue), but Olney House and Gallery (2241-2253 W. 14th Street) and Higbee House (2267 W. 14th Street) each received 45-day notices.

CWRU part of AIDS research grant By SHANNON MORTLAND 10:04 am, November 14, 2007 Case Western Reserve University and Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda, have received a $2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to improve social science research on AIDS in Uganda. Case anthropologist Janet McGrath and Charles Rwabukwali, an associate professor of sociology at Makerere, are co-investigators on the five-year grant that will create a Center for Social Science Research on AIDS at Makerere. The center will train social scientists to deal with AIDS and will enable them to use those skills on the grant’s research project ... ... More at http://www.crainscleveland.com/article/20071114/FREE/71114014/1007

From the PD: Graffiti artist killed by rapid train Posted by Donna J. Miller November 15, 2007 11:46AM RTA police say the 19-year-old man who was hit and killed by an RTA train in Lakewood last night was a graffiti artist who had been walking the tracks with two others. Criminal charges are pending against the survivors, RTA spokesman Chad Self said this morning. http://blog.cleveland.com/plaindealer/2007/11/graffiti_artist_killed_by_rapi.html

The Top 10 Greenest Colleges and Universities in the U.S. By Jennifer Hattam, Sierra Magazine. Posted November 6, 2007. Higher education has responded to growing demand for more environmental focus -- here are the 10 best. During finals last winter at Northeastern University in Boston, students blew off steam playing Guitar Hero, producing the video game's juice with a pedal-powered generator. Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, handed incoming freshmen energy-saving compact fluorescent lightbulbs along with their campus IDs. And collegians nationwide turned down thermostats; performed waste audits; and lobbied their schools to reduce energy use, provide healthier and organic food, and set a sustainable example for the rest of the world ... ... More at http://www.alternet.org/environment/67015/

As a Cleveland transplant, I've generally heard it lumped in to Slavic Village in the CDC world, but that's probably very much the same way that Payne/Sterling/Goodrich-Gannett/the QuARTer/Asiatown is lumped in with St. Clair Superior. I've also heard a number of people argue that it's a separate nabe completely.