KJP

Me too! I thought of the apartment building from Ghostbusters where Dana (Sigourney Weaver) becomes Zhoul, the Gatekeeper, and awaits her Keymaster....

Birdtown. The other neighborhoods in Lakewood are Madison Village, Clifton Park, West End, Gold Coast and Downtown. I like Birdtown due to its density, diversity, good shopping choices, recreation (Madison Park) and walking distance to the Rapid station.

Stark first said he'd like to open for business in 2008, but now he says 2009. While he didn't say when he'd break ground, one can guesstimate it would take him at least a year to build it. He was able to build his first phase of Crocker Park (something like an 8-building downtown core) in a little more than a year.

^ LMAO! :laugh:

One interesting item is that I estimate the NS tracks might reasonably be raised only 10 feet higher over the river (for a total clearance of about 50-55 feet). That still might not be high enough to clear all river traffic. So I suggest the following -- since a lift bridge on a heavily trafficked road bridge is probably out of the question, why can't only the rail deck be raised when needed? A 20-to 25-foot clearance between the rail deck and the road deck above will probably be needed. So the raise the rail deck the 20 feet when the biggest ships come through. That ought to provide the clearance, but without specific information on what the minimum shipping clearances would need to be, I'd just be guessing on the measurements.

^ I think this project deserves its own thread. Or maybe it needs to be renamed when we learn what this area is to be called. It's the Sussex neighborhood of Shaker, but I don't think that name rings with many people.

I've said it before and I'll say it again and again and again... It all starts with land use. Better transit and bicycle routes have very limited impacts when we're building more sprawl where huge stores are built behind massive parking lots off six-lane roads that connect to the nearest housing -- subdivisions of mcmansions five miles away. That land use either has to be redesigned or it will soon become obsolete as gas prices surpass $5, $7, $10 per gallon. When those prices hit, I suspect that most suburbanites may start demanding transit service to their area. That's when they will recognize how hard it is for transit/bike paths to serve, and for people use transit and biking in such wastefully designed areas. Their responses will likely be -- A. give us some kind of tax relief to offset higher driving costs; B. redesign the land uses in which we live to offer a better mix in denser, walkable, bikable, transit-friendly settings; C. we're moving to places where B already exists. I suspect "A" or something like it will be the first reaction. Note Congress' lame proposals of late.

This still seems to be a TOD concept (a rather large one, admittedly), but not yet a project. But if there a thread for this project already, then we should post there. Subjects like this tend to get into a gray area between transportation and development project.

While the first message has a link to a video of what the proposed roof on Browns Stadium might look like, I thought it would helpful for those of us here to have a static image to look at and study...

I forgot all about it. Damn!

According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, 71,383 passengers got on and off the Illinois Zephyr here in 2005, an increase of 12 percent compared to 2004 and a staggering jump of 28 percent since 2002 when 55,683 passengers were recorded in Galesburg. In other words, Galesburg's Amtrak ridership numbers are better than Cleveland's, which is about 50,000-55,000 per year (though it was about 72,000 in the early 1990s when we had a decent schedule to/from Chicago and the East Coast).

So if non-monetary offers must be automatically rejected, can Shaia offer $1 plus parking for Wolstein as long as Shaia retains development rights?

Have you recently switched from driving to riding RTA? If so, the Cable News Network (CNN) wants to talk with you? - - -Crews from CNN will be in town later this month to talk with commuters who have decided to "dump the pump" and use public transportation to get to work. If you would like to appear on CNN, and help RTA tell its story,send e-mail to [email protected] (please, no phone calls). Please type CNN in the subject line. In the body of the e-mail, include your contact info and a few sentences about your commuting habits, including when you switched, how much money you are saving, and any other benefits you experience. We need this info promptly, so if you are interested, please send the e-mail today. The final decisions on who to talk to will be made by CNN producers. Thank you for riding RTA. Jerry Masek Media Relations Manager Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority 216-566-5211, office www.rideRTA.com

It kills me every time I see that stadium there. If I had a long enough handle, I would move that thing south of the Innerbelt. But we're stuck with it there for at least a few more decades. I think the advocates of putting a retractable roof on the stadium need to look at other northern cities' success or lack thereof with drawing non-sporting events to their facilities. What has been their experience? How many non-sporting events have they drawn to it? For more information: http://www.stadiumsofnfl.com/ http://www.baseballballparks.com/ http://www.eurostadiums.com/ (loads very slowly!)

This is what Urban Design Associates proposed for this area: Existing conditions: Proposed redevelopment: Street level: And, just west on Van Aken/Blue Line at Lee, UDA proposes this (some of which is underway, with a new rapid station built on the east side of Lee coming in the next couple of years)... The new rapid station is visible in the background-center (at least UDA's conceptual design of it)...

We can do anything if we're willing to pay the price. I'd love to see such a grade separation. I wonder how much it would cost? $10 million? $20 million? More? Perhaps a TIF could be created out of this redevelopment to pay the local share for leveraging state/federal funds? Once you push the Blue Line to the other side of this intersection, the cost for further extension should be relatively small. And the Major Investment Study for the Blue Line extension has already been done. Next stop is preliminary engineering/environmental impact study -- the last before federal construction funds can be secured.

Hi guys! :wave:

I was informed it was a franchise, but I can double-check.

By the way, the kid Zhang -- his father owns the P.F. Chang's restaurant. I have a feeling he's going to be pinching pennies soon to pay for his son's (alleged) numerous mistakes.

^ A friend of mine from Chicago did. He took the overnight run from Chicago to Cleveland, and said it was almost worth the $1.50 fare. When he boarded streetside at Chicago Union Station, the driver refused to open the baggage bay and didn't help the half-dozen passengers board with their luggage. The heat wasn't turned on until near Elyria, and my friend said he could see his breath (the temp outside was in the 40s). He had a jacket but it wasn't enough. The bus arrived Cleveland Tower City Center on time. Yet, he said the schedule worked for him, so he'd probably take Megabus again. Next time he said he'd bring a blanket and a pillow! It's pretty much his only option since his final destination is Ravenna and PARTA has slashed its Cleveland bus service, eliminating the midday trips. And Amtrak eliminated service through Akron. Previously, he would fly into Cleveland, take the rapid over to Shaker Square, grab lunch, and then board the PARTA bus to Kent for a transfer PARTA bus to Ravenna. Lots of transfers, but it worked. Or, he would take Amtrak's Three Rivers from Chicago, leaving there at 10:30 p.m., arriving Akron at 6 a.m. He would transfer to a PARTA or Metro bus to Kent, then a PARTA bus to Ravenna. All of those options are now gone -- just in time for the high gas prices....

No. The pay is lousy.

Shaia has received a written response from John Loftus of the port authority regarding his counter-offer: "I appreciate your willingness to provide space to the Flats East Bank Neighborhood development. Unfortunately, the port authority is not authorized to discuss non-monetary offers regarding this development. Accordingly, I must reject the offer as presented." So there you have it....

Tiffin Park and Recreation Board looks for improvements Tiffin Advertiser-Tribune, 4/31/06 More hiking trails and another picnic shelter may be in the distant future for Nature Trails Park. Two members of the Tiffin Park and Recreation Board met at the park with Director Steve Dryfuse and assistant Matt Coleman for the board’s monthly meeting. The group toured the park, which extends from the playground and shelter area on West Davis Street to the Sandusky River, and around the corner into a grassy area along the river on North Water Street. “This was at one time a dump,” Bing told the group. “It’s really a great asset. It’s one of the different areas of the city that has great natural and public potential.”

May 11, 2006 Brooklyn Sun Journal Police nab brash graffiti 'artists' By Ken Prendergast Staff Writer CLEVELAND — Two young men from the suburbs said they spray-painted graffiti at dozens of locations on the city's near-West Side because they didn't think anyone from the "run-down ghetto" would care, police said. They are facing multiple felony charges this week because someone apparently still does. Daniel M. Horvat, 19, of Wickliffe, and Danny J. Zhang, 18, of Seven Hills, brazenly showed police where they had spray-painted their "tags" all over the West Side, according to Second District police reports. Each time they pointed out a new location they tagged, police reminded them of their Miranda rights, but they didn't stay silent. More charges were added each time a new location was pointed out by the two men. READ MORE AT: www.sunnews.com

Geothermal school sparks interest Toledo Blade, 6/13/06 For Ottoville Local Schools, the proof has been in the utility bills. Three years ago, the Putnam County school district opened a new K-12 building with an innovative geothermal heating and air-conditioning system. The district did not have access to natural gas for the building and wanted an alternative way to heat and cool it that might be easy on the wallet. "We spend a year in our facility $70,000 to $75,000 for all energy costs," said Superintendent Kenneth Amstutz. "That is very low. The state basically says you should spend $1.50 to $1.75 per square foot per year for heating costs. We are running between 70 and 75 cents per square foot so we're basically at half of what it should be." Ottoville tomorrow is hosting more than 200 representatives of school districts from across the state and out of state who are interested in learning more about geothermal heating and cooling. The conference is sponsored by Touchstone Energy, a consortium of local electric cooperatives.