Avogadro

What does that mean? Is that a bad thing? Did the R&R HoF divert entertainment dollars? Did the Browns coming back divert dollars? Would your bar one day divert dollars? The convention center has nothing to do with whether a casino works. It is just another form of entertainment. A venue that acts as a net attractor of visitors from outside the region who would not normally visit Cleveland and spend money is more valuable than a venue that would compete with other local establishments for the same local dollars. The same argument could be made that venues that retain folks from the region who would normally leave to visit (and spend their money in) other areas has the same value as a net attractor. In the case of a casino, insofar as it works to either bring in folks to Cleveland who would not normally visit the area (to go to the R&R HOF or a sports event or Lola) or retain folks from the area who will spend a certain amount of money on gambling, no matter where the casino is, then it is a good thing (independent of other factors, naturally). But, if it keeps Joe Ghoulardi from The R&R HoF may have diverted local entertainment dollars in its first few years of operation, but I think that you would be hard-pressed to find out of a random 10 visitors to the HoF more than one local person. The Browns coming back did divert local dollars, as evidenced by the drop in the Indians and Cavs attendance post-1999. I think that the argument punch is making is that a convention center makes it more likely that a higher percentage of casino visitors will come from outside of the region. I think that this is a reasonable argument, but one that would require more research (would a convention be more likely to book in Cleveland because there is a casino, or is it from their perspective just another form of entertainment?). Entertainment, broadly speaking, is not a fungible commodity. HOW? I don't understand, considering our casinos are on land and in the heart of each CBD. Please help me to understand. A single casino that is located behind Tower City, despite its location on dry land, has more in common with riverboat casinos than examples from Vegas where there are multiple casinos. Insofar as one would really only be able to access a Cleveland casino from Huron Road and that there is presently little opportunity for further development behind it, it is for all intents and purposes at the edge of the CBD.

I bet you are talking about video image vehicle detection cameras rather than a red light enforcement camera. They are used in place of pavement-embedded induction loops to send a signal to the traffic lights that a vehicle is waiting at the intersection.

Actually, the Marathon gas station isn't located on the site of the SOHIO station, but on the left on the site of the watch repair building. The 1940's era photo was taken from a building (no longer standing) that was on the NW corner of Woodland and E. 55th, and the SOHIO station is on the triangle made by Woodland and Kinsman. For something really sobering, check out this present-day view of the same site, looking in approximately the same direction: http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=qxf5pp85w3rw&style=b&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&scene=6732963&encType=1

Well, the algorithm (such as it is) is based on a comparison of how many tourists a place receives versus how few "favorite" votes marked on lonelyplanet.com. So, a place that gets few, if any tourists (such as Gary) won't even rank a mention.

New and brief article just published in The Economist on the decline of U.S. manufacturing, the shrinking of Youngstown, and the Youngstown Business Incubator. All in all, it was a fairly optimistic read, focusing on the nascent success of the YBI and Turning Technologies and the competitive advantage of inexpensive space. http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=14588263

Judge Anthony Russo of the Cuyahoga County Probate Court has ruled that the Museum of Art may use up to $75 million of restricted endowment income (spread out over the next ten years) toward bridging the $138 million gap in funds for completing the expansion project. (yay!) http://www.cleveland.com/arts/index.ssf/2009/10/cuyahoga_county_probate_courts.html

At the risk of starting another MTS/MoonlightOhiotwentycommentthreadthatshouldreallybeonIM, how is the no-coffee thing going, MTS?

From what I understand, there are actually two groups at work on Dike 14. One group (more closely affiliated with CMNH, Earth Day Coalition, etc.) seems to be more research and education oriented, and I think they were the ones working directly with the Port. The other group (with a more citizen-led emphasis) might be the group that you are talking about, and they are more vehement about keeping the Preserve off limits. (Caveat: I don't work directly with either group, although I know several folks who are working on this, so my recollection may be faulty.)

Yeppir. The fella who owns the flatiron-shaped building on the corner of Professor and W. 10th is in the process of getting permits to put an Energy Ball on its roof. It won't be terribly visible, though, except from a bit of a distance.

I would very much like for this place to eventually aspire towards Chicago's Hot Doug's, but I will be more than happy to enjoy their variety of cased meats and not-meats before going to the Capitol.

I don't think so. An aquarium is a very different commercial use than, say, a restaurant or a movie theatre. The latter two uses are the kinds of amenities that encourage the kind of frequent returns that contribute to a residential neighborhood, whereas an aquarium may be visited once or twice a year, if that. There is no real advantage to living nearby.

Hurrah! There is much work ahead, but this is a huge deal!

Don't forget to check out the always-awesome Cleveland Relocation Guide. Speaking as another new-Clevelander (15 years since college and 19 since leaving Texas), I think that you are really going to like it up here. Fortunately, with the smoking ban, the air in every establishment will be as clean as the hygiene habits of folks nearby will allow. And, there are lots of opportunities to join sports leagues. Check out clevelandplays.com to find all sorts of leagues to join. They cater to the 20-40ish crowd. Quick tip to make it through your first winter: pick up a winter sport if you haven't already. There are many skating rinks and cross-country ski trails around here. Heck, you could even pick up curling. Mods: can we rename this thread "Cleveland: Commuting from the Eastside"? I know that we Clevelanders are all that, but the downstaters might get glum.

pax is travel jargon for passengers, while O&D refers to "origins and destinations" as distinct from travelers who arrive or depart from an airport on the way to another destination ("conn", or "connections").

While I agree that "Where is _____ at?" is poor grammar, I have to also say that a pet peeve of mine is hearing that ending a sentence with a preposition is always wrong. This is not true; it is sometimes permissible (and even preferable) to end a sentence with a preposition, notably in the example of "That is the sort of thing up with which I will not put." Now, if we were speaking French or Latin, then yes, one ought never to end a sentence with a preposition. Alas, we are stuck with our mongrelized English. BLAME CHAUCER. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/ending-prepositions.aspx http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/CMS_FAQ/Prepositions/Prepositions04.html http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/Features/Columns/?article=ErrorsThatArent

I am a little surprised that Kansas City's Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art has not yet been mentioned (as far as I can tell). It may provide the best comparison with CMA since the original N-A building was modeled after CMA's 1916 building. The settings of both museums are very similar, and they both have (or will have) contemporary additions. Hell, they both have The Thinker. The main difference is that N-A did not have a significant addition built until Stephen Holl's 2007 building; Holl had more of a blank slate to work with than Vinoly having to deal with one iconic building versus two. EDIT: I do want to emphasize that I think Scav has a point in that the Vinoly design was a relatively safe one, and certainly safer than Holl's. Once the construction is completed, I would love to see an exhibition at CMA (and N-A) comparing the two designs.

Truer words have never been spoken. Also, keep in mind this: were Forbes to remain completely negative about Cleveland, they would likely lose readership around here. However, by having Cleveland (and other cities) at the bottom of a few lists and at the top of other lists adds just enough intrigue to provide them a modicum of relevancy.

Wendy Park was a bunch of things before it was a park, most recently "vacant". The restoration of Wendy Park is as sure of a thing that could exist without a big basket of money to undertake the entire project, but it is in no danger of becoming developed or used for any purpose other than recreation and habitat restoration. Here's more information on Wendy Park and Whiskey Island. I don't believe that there are grills there, but you can bring your own. Folks drink "grown up drinks", but they generally buy them from the Sunset Grille.

I've seen nothing that confirms this. The only thing he confirmed was that he was a Harvard employee, and the refusal to give a legitimate ID would be reason enough to arrest him. From Sgt. Crowley's own report: "With the Harvard University identification in hand, I radioed my findings to ECC on channel two and prepared to leave..." followed by "I told Gates that I was leaving his residence..."

For the sake of argument, let's try to put aside the whole race thing for a second, and let's assume that the police report is wholly accurate. It was established that, while inside, the police officers were able to determine that Gates was in fact in his own home. So, let's say that he was yelling the entire time or whatever. Doesn't matter. He doesn't look armed or dangerous (and the police report did not describe him as being a danger to himself or others). Why didn't the police just leave (even while Gates was yelling)? Did they think that he would continue yelling and freaking out on the street, thereby disturbing his neighbors after they left? Police officers and other people whose job it is to deal with the public get trained in nonviolent crisis intervention. You have to learn how to defuse situations. One of the main tenets of this (and I've been trained in this myself) is that when it is clear that your presence is exacerbating a situation and that there is no imminent harm to persons or property, You Leave. So, why didn't they just get in their cars and leave? (EDIT: Upon preview, I see that Hts44121 beat me to this. Dang. Anyway, I do think that race may have played a role, but I don't think that we'll ever really know.) (Unrelated, in response to the original comment to this thread, I'm half-Mexican, half-Vietnamese. I'm not going to share the extremely inappropriate term my brother and I use to describe our ethnic mix.)

Yep, it's the Super Mercado. They improved mightily when they expanded, and it's one of the things that keeps me from being homesick. MTS, you would think that since Puerto Ricans outnumber Mexicans in Greater Cleveland that you'd have a leg up on us. That said, if you do some recruiting, would you mind bringing in some vatos who can properly use apostrophes? :-D

Well, there's the whole passport thing. Also, it takes about twice as long to get there. And, it's infested with Canadians. ;)

If you can't make it to Pelee (it's marginally more difficult to reach), Kelleys Island is a reasonable compromise. There are cars, but very, very few. Most folks get around via bike or golf cart, and it too is more family-oriented.

God's work being done here: Damn right. I was working the taps from 4:30 onward. Great crowd overall, and boy were you all thirsty. We were down to only one spare keg by the end of Taste, having utterly kicked the Grassroots and quite nearly out of Independence Ale.

Steep hills Also, if you catch the lift bridge while it's up, you're talking about a wait of up to 20 minutes. Also, lots of potholes along the Flats route. I do take Abbey to W. 20th to the Lorain Carnegie on the way to and from work. It does take me a good 1/3rd mile out of my way, but it's a fairly decent ride (especially with the striped lanes on the bridge). The bugaboo is Ontario St. going southbound from Huron to Carnegie. With the "improvements" to the Innerbelt on-ramp at Ontario, there needs to be a significant improvement to accommodate cyclists going from Public Square to the Lorain Carnegie, because it's fairly hellish now.