8ShadesofGray

It really is a great program ... it'd be nice to assemble a thread of pics of all the participating congregations. To date, that list would include Annunciation, Archwood, Immanuel, Our Lady of Mercy, Pilgrim Congregational, St. Colman's, St. George's, St. Patrick's, St. Stephen's, St. Theodosius, Trinity, Zion Evangelical and Zion UCC. Sounds like a road trip ...

Got to see a little bit about the Variety project Septemberish. Westown CDC is looking to renovate this theatre as the anchor for a larger neighborhood plan along Lorain Avenue. They were still in the early planning stages but were interested in pushing this as a venue for performing arts groups (particularly small Cleveland-based dance groups, as well as for a cinema. The building was in really bad shape when I saw it a couple months back, but you could tell that it was at one time pretty stunning (and that it still had potential to be stunning again).

I agree. Although I think we can probably get some artists involved at an UO Day of Service event ... there are several arts and culture professionals (artists or people who work with artists) on the forum.

That project was carried out by Sparx in the City, who then shifted their limited resources to Street Beats (the free outdoor performances during the summer) and the Urban Gallery Hop. But I think we could get at least a few high-profile bike racks painted for next to nothing.

^ Perhaps we should assemble some artist friends to paint them by cover of night ... or seek City Planning's permission to do it during the day.

^ :clap:

I give Cleveland a B-. Overall, there seems to be more of a sense of optimism about Cleveland's future. Some random successes: - What appears to be some massive infusions of support into University Circle (wait ... what did Jane Jacobs say about cataclysmic funding? :wink:). - Continued success in securing venture capital for local biotech start-up. - Increasing talks about alternative energy research, design and manufacturing as a labor niche. - Dedicated funding for arts and culture organizations and individual artists. - Land planning emerging as the #1 concern in Voices & Choices, which should hopefully lead the foundations to begin devoting some substantial funds to smart growth initiatives. - A plethora of exciting downtown development projects (I'm particularly excited about the District of Design/ECP/Playhouse Square/Erie St. Cemetery area ... yay). - Ongoing positive trends in Ohio City and Tremont; promising developments in both Detroit Superior (Gordon Square, Battery Park) and Asiatown (first signs of a comprehensive marketing strategy around Asiatown). Ongoing failures, IMHO: - Quiet leadership at both the city and county level (more importantly, leadership that is not always transparent and fails to engage citizens in a meaningful way). - Lack of comprehensive strategy around social equity issues and lack of outrage that this isn't happening. The common solution for addressing poverty, poor educational outcomes and even crime seems to be, let's get those with means back into the city. While this is an important strategy, it should not be the only one ... with every major investment in the city (whether it be Steelyard or the Uptown Initiative or fuel cell development), we should be asking: how can we engage the citizens of Cleveland in this project in a way that provides them additional benefit?

I haven't been biking lately, so maybe I've been oblivious to it, but did the bike racks get installed?

KJP, have you heard anything concrete about his plans for the Erie St. Cemetery block? Not asking for anything proprietary, confidential ... just interested in whether this is still pretty conceptual or further along. It seems like he has assembled options for a pretty substantial footprint, particularly in the Northeast quadrant of the block. This is AT LEAST as exciting as Pesht. Connector for Playhouse Square and Jacobs, with proximity to CSU, The Avenue and the Financial District = success. And correct me if I'm wrong, but this area was not included in Stark's "I Have a Pesht" talks ... if I recall, he talked about the important connector being the eastern river bank and the bluff behind Terminal Tower, the parking lots on the southeast corner of the Warehouse District and WD extensions north toward Brown Stadium. Interesting to see this land purchase pop up.

^^ I think you're right, Pope. If I recall correctly, the turbine automatically stops rotating when winds hit a certain speed as a precaution to protect the machine from serious damage.

Ouch. Now that's harsh. I'm a pro-Issue 5 smoker, am glad re: bars, restaurants, etc. and hope that it will help me to quit. But when that January gale starts whipping down the Ontario windtunnel, you best believe I'm running for the bus shelter. Note: 8Shades kindly asks that you not report him to the Ohio Department of Health. The preceding threat to smoke in a public place was purely speculative and should in no way be construed as an actual, flagrant violation of law. That is all.

11 Mile, holla! Royal Oak's a cool little area. 's where the Greyhound drops me off when I visit the Detroit side of my family, and I've always thought it had a nice feel to it and certainly more urban than a lot of suburbs you run into.

I'm always amazed that as we try to position ourselves as frontrunners in wind energy research and production, we don't mention our even older ties to wind innovation. Sure, it's cool that NASA Glenn was a pioneer in wind energy in the 1970s and 1980s, but how about some props to Charles Brush, the guy who created the first electricity-generated windmill ... in 1888 ... at Euclid and 37th. We should be selling the sh*t out of that tidbit; together with NASA's pioneering and the CSU development of the "urban turbine", Cleveland has a 120-year history of wind innovation. Next step, capitalize on Brush's invention of electric public lighting on Public Square (ca. 1879) and install a world-class demonstration of solar energy lighting in the same space. I hark on this point a lot, but I think that by tying Cleveland's incredible history of innovation to our current innovations in medicine, energy, technology and culture (and displaying these messages in high-profile public spaces around town), we can develop a very compelling brand image as the illustrious pioneer that we have been, are and will be.

Not only 10 years ago ... I worked for a prominent title company about 3.5 years ago and was a patron of a little smoking lounge in the basement that was frequented by insurance professionals and lawyers. For all I know, it could be operating today.

And while these vacancies suck now, the delay does give the Design District time to get off the ground. If the District can get at least a dozen showrooms lined up, ready to open with the completion of the ECP, it will certainly up the ante for neighboring retail along lower Euclid.

If this is the store on Euclid that I'm thinking of (Shooz, I believe), it's been there the entire time I've lived in Cleveland. 4.5 years. Hardly a start-up at this point. I think the really sad thing is the potential for these stores to be displaced when ECP is complete. I know many of you are not going to decry City Blues or Shooz disappearing, but a lot of these stores would add to a dense mix of retail if they could just get their signage, window displays and interior layouts in place ... But I guess that's a pretty tall order, given the deplorable visual condition in most Euclid storefronts.

MayDay offers some great suggestions. You might also try: Detroit Shoreway: Cleveland Public Theatre, with dinner at Snickers & perhaps your jaunt over to the Antique District ... they will be showing Making It Right (http://www.cptonline.org/seasoncalendar/event.cfm?eventid=267&eventdateid=1933), from their much-heralded Y-Haven program. The play is created, directed and acted by formerly homeless men, is FREE and is an annual audience favorite (NOTE: Saturday performance is a fundraiser event; if interested in the performance, I'd check it out Friday evening). Tremont: Any number of things ... galleries, eateries, you know the usual suspects. A lot of great shows up right now, a fantastic brunch at Lucky's, etc. You can even take a quick jaunt past the Christmas Story House (http://www.achristmasstoryhouse.com/), which won't yet be open but is nearing completion for their Thanksgiving premiere. Coventry, Shaker Square, Cedar Fairmount, Little Italy: Again, no particular events in mind, but some great neighborhoods for Cleveland newbies, with plentiful food options. No trip to Cleveland is complete without a stop at Big Fun, watching a big band at Nighttown and having some finger foods at Osiyo, our resident Native American teahouse. The Superior Artist Corridor & Asiatown: Shameless plug for my neighborhood. But with kitsch, galleries and restaurants galore, why not come down to Asiatown? :-D Topping my list for visitors would be the Tower Press Building (1900 Superior, www.towerpress.com); Cleveland's only art gallery, martial arts studio and winery, The Studio of Five Rings (2400 Superior, http://www.studioof5rings.com/); Zygote Press & Tastebuds (1400 E. 30th, http://zygotepress.com/index.html; www.tastebudsrestaurant.com); Slyman's Deli (3106 St. Clair, http://www.slymans.com/); No. 1 Pho (3120 Superior); Josaphat Arts Hall (1433 E. 33rd (http://www.josaphatartshall.com); Koko Bakery (3710 Payne); and Town Fryer (3859 Superior, www.thetownfryer.com). Phew! Pottery: Depending on her level of pottery enthusiasm, you might check out the Cowan Pottery Museum at the Rocky River Public Library (http://www.cowanpottery.org/) ... It certainly beats a drive out to Zanesville (www.rosevilleplace.com).

I'm in this same boat. I feel ashamed that I've mastered the labyrinth that is the Heights, but something about Tremont completely shuts down my internal compass. I usually allow myself an extra 15 mins. when I go to Tremont b/c I'll likely be swearing my way through strangely angled streets and one-ways, blindly hoping to run into Lincoln Park so that I can catch my bearings.

Posted this elsewhere ... but seemed appropriate here, too. Not a single county passed Issue 4 AND defeated Issue 5. The race came down to counties that favored Issue 5 and disfavored Issue 4 (72 counties) and those counties that disfavored both issues (16). I was also interested to see that counties that were against both measures tended NOT to be directly bordering another state; of the 16 counties that voted against both 4 and 5, only 2 bordered Indiana (Paulding and Preble) and 2 bordered Kentucky (Adams and Brown). Greatest support for Issue 5: Delaware Co., 69.0% Least support for Issue 5: Brown Co., 40.1% Greatest support for Issue 4: Lawrence Co., 49.5% Least support for Issue 4: Greene Co., 28.2% The 3 Cs (well, their respective counties) Franklin County: 64.1% FOR Issue 5, 34.9% FOR Issue 4 Cuyahoga County: 61.8% FOR Issue 5, 35.7% FOR Issue 4 Hamilton County: 60.7% FOR Issue 5, 35.8% FOR Issue 4

Continually interested in how well voters navigated Issues 4 and 5. Not a single county passed Issue 4 AND defeated Issue 5. The race came down to counties that favored Issue 5 and disfavored Issue 4 (72 counties) and those counties that disfavored both issues (16). I was also interested to see that counties that were against both measures tended NOT to be directly bordering another state; of the 16 counties that voted against both 4 and 5, only 2 bordered Indiana (Paulding and Preble) and 2 bordered Kentucky (Adams and Brown). Greatest support for Issue 5: Delaware Co., 69.0% Least support for Issue 5: Brown Co., 40.1% Greatest support for Issue 4: Lawrence Co., 49.5% Least support for Issue 4: Greene Co., 28.2% The 3 Cs (well, their respective counties) Franklin County: 64.1% FOR Issue 5, 34.9% FOR Issue 4 Cuyahoga County: 61.8% FOR Issue 5, 35.7% FOR Issue 4 Hamilton County: 60.7% FOR Issue 5, 35.8% FOR Issue 4

I honestly think that investing in inexpensive, in-your-face, grassroots strategies like these could do wonders for Cleveland neighborhoods. I hope we start funding them at a much higher level. That being said, I hope no one comes up seeking coffee and doughnuts if and when the drug dealers put their card table back out. :laugh:

From the PD, 11.09 Residents take back street from drug dealers (Cleveland) Plain Dealer November 9, 2006 Residents of one West Side Cleveland neighborhood decided to take back an abandoned house on Elton Avenue from drug dealers. The dealers had become so brazen that they routinely set up a table and lawn chair in front of the house and peddled drugs in plain view, activists and authorities said ... ... More at http://www.cleveland.com/newslogs/plaindealer/index.ssf?/mtlogs/cleve_plaindealer/archives/2006_11.html#203280

Thanks for the pictures, Matches. The Asia Town Center extends pretty deep into that parcel, and while it's not overwhelming in size, another Asian market and restaurant lie directly across E. 36th. Meanwhile, a certain forumer took a tour of the facilities earlier this week and promised some feedback and photographs. I won't name names, but ... do we have some more photographs and info coming?

But following some Towpath extensions, as well as the development of neighborhood connectors in Old Brooklyn, it could be bikable, though ... although I haven't quite figured out the "shopping by bike" thing.

While the Democrats didn't take the Statehouse, they did pick up roughly 5 to 7 seats ... enough to break the Republicans' ability to override a veto. That means Strickland will be able to offer up a more rigorous agenda and that the Republicans will likely have to be a little more conciliatory about letting Democrats' legislation out of committee. To borrow from Peabody, the whole thing seems a little surreal ... Democrat pick-ups in the state legislature, a Democrat as governor, a Democrat in the Senate, a minimum wage hike, arts and culture funding and a smoking ban (both of which were being financially opposed by the tobacco industry). We should probably check the alignment of Lake Erie ... I'm beginning to believe that Northeast Ohio broke off like an iceberg and is now lodged along the Ontario coastline :-)