MuRrAy HiLL

Well here's my report: Chicago was great. We did both touristy and neighborhood things and met sone interesting people. We also navigated the city with the "L" Places we hit: Wicker Park (which is where she got her shopping out of the way ;) ) Bucktown Wrigleyville ( Risque Cafe bar was the highlight) Lincoln Park ( Dinner was at Boka) Downtown (hotel two blocks from Millenium Park) Little Italy ( Cleveland has a much, much better one... Shhh !. Although I hear there are one or two in the suburbs) Willis Tower observation Deck with the glass floor balcony Hancock 96th floor signature lounge the Bean Field Museum Thanks everyone for the suggestions!

A street like Hower Ave north of the railroad track is one example.

BUMP. I've been thinking a lot about this topic lately as more and more houses and buildings in East Cleveland continue to be demolished. Not to mention, there are numerous gorgeous brick apartment buildings boarded up and inching closer to making the demolition list. I wish there was a way to save them from demolition and wheel them into University Circle, "Upper Chester," or even around Newton Ave by the Clinic. I can only imagine the cost of moving and renovation, but we cannot build this type of brick and mortar craftmanship nowadays. This just seems like a two birds with one stone type of situation... Beef up UC and clear the blight in EC for new construction or urban farming.

This would be incredible if this ended up morphing into an entire neighborhood of these houses in University Circle. UC needs more housing, and there are income levels only a few blocks away who could afford them.

More UC construction ;) : Cleveland Museum of Natural History to build high-tech, `SmartHome' that stays warm without a furnace The overall cost of the project will be roughly $525,000, but the three-bedroom, 2,500-square-foot house will be sold at a discounted price of $300,000 to $400,000 to entice an owner willing to live in what amounts to a prototype. http://blog.cleveland.com/architecture/2011/01/cleveland_museum_of_natural_hi_1.html

^ FYI, much of Little Italy is closed monday ( it's the neighbrhood day of rest for business owners) For Pasta places: Mia Bella http://www.miabellacleveland.com/menu.html Angelo's Nido Italia (although they do not have lasagna on the menu--known for big portions) http://www.nidoitalia.com/pasta.htm Michaelangelo's has handmade pasta, but it is a little more expensive: http://www.mangelos.com/fine_italian_cuisine.html

Both Case's Men and Women basketball teams are 3-0 in the UAA. I think it was awesome for the Shaw High School band to play and perform at the last Case game: Men rebound from poor start to take top spot in UAA Kate Clancy Issue date: 1/21/11 Section: Sports On the first weekend back from winter break, the Spartan men's basketball team opened their UAA season at home with major victories over two Top 25 ranked teams. On Friday night, the Spartans battled No. 25 New York University until the final seconds and pulled off the win 80-76. With one short day's rest, the Spartans turned around and took down No. 13 Brandeis University in the final minutes 66-63. These two wins put the Spartans at 7-7 overall and help them keep their top spot in the UAA at 3-0. The Spartans travel this weekend to play Emory University and Rochester University on Friday and Sunday, respectively. The game started out with high intensity, and not only on the court. The gym was packed with cheering fans, and the Shaw High School band made an appearance, sophomore Austin Fowler explained. "The Shaw band is something special; hearing them in warm-ups gets you fired up and ready to play." www.cwruobserver.com/media/storage/paper1370/news/2011/01/21/Sports/Men-Rebound.From.Poor.Start.To.Take.Top.Spot.In.Uaa-3969823.shtml]http://media.www.cwruobserver.com/media/storage/paper1370/news/2011/01/21/Sports/Men-Rebound.From.Poor.Start.To.Take.Top.Spot.In.Uaa-3969823.shtml

Cleveland ranks No. 7 in Monster.com list of hottest job markets Healthcare and IT http://www.crainscleveland.com/article/20110121/BLOGS03/110129943 Hottest Job Markets for 2011: 1. Washington, DC 2. San Francisco, CA 3. Boston, MA 4. Baltimore, MD 5. Seattle, WA 6. Minneapolis, MN 7. Cleveland, OH 8. Tampa, FL 9. Dallas, TX 10. Kansas City, MS

From the Case news source: CWRU Forms Partnership with Chinese Company on Green Initiatives In a statement released in conjunction with the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao to the United States, the U.S. Department of State announced that Case Western Reserve University will collaborate with the China National Offshore Oil Corp. – New Energy Investment Co., Ltd. (CNOOC), to seek to develop new solutions to significant energy and environmental issues. Case Western Reserve is the first university to form a partnership with a Chinese company through the U.S.-China EcoPartnership program, which was developed through the Framework for EcoPartnerships under the U.S.-China Ten Year Framework for Cooperation on Energy and Environment. The U.S. and China issued a joint statement that cited the partnership as one of the outcomes of the visit. http://blog.case.edu/case-news/2011/01/21/cwru_forms_partnership_with_chinese_company_on_green_initiatives

This sounds like this could be an incredible partnership for CWRU: Expansion of U.S.-China EcoPartnerships Program http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/01/154875.htm

So Miga and Pho 99: Asian Town Center Scores Two New Eateries Posted by Douglas Trattner on Wed, Jan 19, 2011 at 3:32 PM Cleveland's Asiatown neighborhood continues to attract new businesses, with the latest being two new Asian eateries slated to open in the Asian Town Center (3820 Superior Ave.). This is in addition to Saigon Grille, which is opening soon just east of Number One Pho. While Crust and Crumbs fans will be sad to learn that that popular (former) restaurant will not be opening at the mall as planned, news of two replacements should ease the blow. Going into the space originally set aside for Crust and Crumbs is Miga Korean BBQ. Owner Albert describes the restaurant as a "more contemporary" version of Seoul Hot Pot. Six tables will feature table-top grills for diners to prepare bulgogi and kalbi. The marinated meats are grilled and tucked into lettuce leaves for eating. Pho 99 should be ready to go in two short weeks, hopes owner Vinh Nguyen. Located on the ground floor of Asian Town Center, the 40-seat Vietnamese restaurant will specialize in pho, naturally, but also rice and noodle dishes. http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2011/01/19/asian-town-center-scores-two-new-eateries

And after googling, I also found this...which still illustrates the financial complexity of this project: January 18, 2011 Rubenstein JVs Buys Development Properties Rubenstein Partners, a Philadelphia-headquartered private real estate investment management and advisory firm, formed joint ventures with local investment and development companies to invest $70 million in properties in four states on behalf of Rubenstein Properties Fund LP, an office fund that has sat quietly for nearly four years. The fund will follow up with an additional $30 million in the assets. The four transactions closed in the fourth quarter of last year. The fund provided a $15 million mezzanine loan in the mixed-use Flats East Bank Development in Cleveland, OH. The project will consist of an 18-story LEED certified office structure, a 150-room A-Loft hotel, retail space, a garage and park land covering 14 acres. http://www.costar.com/News/Article/In-The-Pipeline-CoStar-Development-and-Construction-News-for-Jan-16-22/125723

I think it is also odd that their only post is from a press release of Sept 2009. Who the HELL is their marketing team! ??? ?

OK, Flats East Bank just joined Facebook about an hour ago...I have no idea how I just found it: I'm the only one "liking" it right now...lol http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flats-East-Bank/177488772279473?v=wall

Anyone watch "Hot in Cleveland: last night? Here were the reviews: TV Land’s ‘Cleveland’ rocks but ‘Retired’ needs work “Hot” sizzles in its second-season opener, thanks to surviving “Golden Girl” Betty White, who turned 89 Monday. As Elka, she finds herself sharing a prison cell with a hardened criminal named Diane, played by Mary Tyler Moore, whose dialogue consists of shoutouts to the legendary 1970s sitcom they shared. “I hate spunk,” she tells Elka in her best Ed Asner glare. “Hot” is shameless enough to fan baby boomer nostalgia, but at least it knows how to maximize a cameo. Melanie (Valerie Bertinelli) is angry at her cop boyfriend (Springfield native David Starzyk) for arresting Elka. Victoria (Wendie Malick) finds out she’s been “Madoff-ed” — her business manager squandered her fortune. Joy (Jane Leeves) faces deportation and carries a back story that is just toosad for this show. Yet amid the bawdy double-entendres, writer/series creator Suzanne Martin sneaks in a smart exchange between Joy and Elka about aging that proves this show can rise above silliness with something serious to say. It would just rather distract you into thinking otherwise. http://www.bostonherald.com/entertainment/television/reviews/view.bg?articleid=1310470

^^La Cave du Vin is my favorite bar on the eastside -- Thanks !

It looks like they are still on pace for a March 2011 opening. This place is going to be incredible: Cleveland: Tudor Arms building being restored Updated 1/19/11 The $22 million renovations are expected to be done in March 2011. That is when the Tudor Arms building will reopen as a 157-room Doubletree Hotel. http://www.wkyc.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=170487&catid=3

Awesome. Thanks WW!

Some big names at this week's Design Review. It's a good thing it's the only thing on the agenda. http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/designreview/schedule.shtml

^thanks. Here's a video on the new store and owner as well: http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/entertainment/around_town/new-retail-shop-dredgers-union-opening-downtown-on-east-4th-street

It looks like we're backup again after a down year in 2009: Investment in health care startups rises in Cleveland and Ohio in 2010 vs. 2009 By MARK DODOSH 12:00 pm, January 18, 2011 The latest figures for investment in health care startup companies across the Midwest show 2010 was a better year for venture investment in Cleveland and Ohio than 2009, though still not what it was before the recession took hold. The Midwest Health Care Venture Investment Report produced by BioEnterprise Corp., a nonprofit that supports biomedical venture development in Northeast Ohio, indicated that $135.1 million was invested in 33 companies in the Cleveland area last year. The dollar figure is double the $66.3 million in investment in 21 health care startups that BioEnterprise reported for 2009. However, it was down 17% from investment of $163.5 million in 31 companies in 2008, and was off 44% from investment of $241.8 million in 28 companies in 2007. http://www.crainscleveland.com/article/20110118/FREE/110119829

^ Hey thanks for the in depth review! Great to hear you enjoyed it. And I welcome that correction very much. A neighborhood grocery store staying open past 9pm I'll take. This shows they are trying to adjust to the demands of the neighborhood, since when I talked to the owners 3 weeks ago, they had told me 8pm. Great to hear of "expanded hours" so soon.

Sooo ... Crews have been on site everyday since the demolition. Is it safe to safe MOCA is underconstruction? They only seem to be site prepping though, so there is my confusion.

A few articles: "Hot in Cleveland" 1) http://www.cleveland.com/tv-blog/index.ssf/2011/01/tv_lands_second_season_of_hot_in_cleveland_to_feature_reunions_with_co-stars_of_the_past.html 2) http://www.cleveland.com/tv-blog/index.ssf/2011/01/hot_in_cleveland_stars_say_everyone_can_identify_with_city_characters_1.html "Take Shelter" http://www.cleveland.com/moviebuff/index.ssf/2011/01/cleveland-area_movie_producer.html "Kill the Irishman"

Everything is going great. We're in Wrigleyville at very impressive bar. Check out this link: http://www.risquechicago.com/risque_beer.htm Tonight we're going to the Hancock building for a drink. Thanks everyone for the suggestion.