KJP

There's money. Look at the list of federal funding awarded to transit projects around the country.... http://www.fta.dot.gov/documents/FY06_NS_Funding_Table_1.pdf Political will? Now that's another matter. I saw that little RTA logo, too, placed on the map where Lake Avenue goes under the railroad tracks by Don's Lighthouse. I asked a friend at RTA about it and he said it was mistakenly put there by city planners. The rest of the RTA logos were placed along the Lakefront Boulevard where bus stops could be located. But, you're right. It's another wasted opportunity. Hey city planners - you're ripping up the road for a major redesign. What better time to put a rail transit line in the median? KJP

The project is certainly better than all those wasteland parking lots, where downtown ends abruptly like a cliff! But I recall seeing some absolutely stunning plans for a massive redevelopment of that area, proposed by Forest City Enterprises, that was bounded by the railroad tracks at Davenport Bluffs, East 12th, East 18th area, and Payne on the south. It included building a new north-south street to be called East 15th that included an extension of the Waterfront Line, and intersected with St. Clair using a traffic circle. It was an incredibly visionary plan, and an expensive one, costing more than $1 billion. I got to see detailed plans for it while I waiting for a meeting with Hunter Morrison in the mid-1990s, in a conference room in the planning department. While I waited for about 10 minutes with an associate of mine, we were left alone to sift through all these documents that showed hundreds of townhouses on the side streets, mid-rise buildings on the main thoroughfares, and 15-25 story high-rises at the west end of the development that transitioned to the skyscrapers west of East 12th. When I saw the Crain's article on the "megaproject" and its price tag, I was hoping for a smaller version of the Forest City plan. Perhaps my disappointment was due to my getting spoiled from seeing what Forest City had envisioned. After the crap that happened between Mike White/Sam Miller and Kassouf over Davenport Bluffs, sometimes I wonder how much of the political mischief that goes on in this town is behind what Forest City considers to be a poor market for development? Here's another example... After a planning, zoning and design review board meeting a couple years ago, in which a developer and his plan were put through the ringer by the board members, I overheard this brief interplay between the developer and then-Planning Director Chris Ronayne: Developer: "You like me, don't you?" Ronayne: "Of course I do." Developer: "Then how do you treat the people you don't like?" KJP

^Like, how government buildings before World War II used to be as beautiful as churches, and after the war, were ugly as sin? KJP

Thanks for providing the link to that document! Very interesting reading/viewing. Now wouldn't that area kick ass if a light rail line was returned to the lower level of the Detroit-Superior bridge, had a subway stop at West 25th, and then replaced the entrance ramps to the Shoreway-turned-boulevard for a routing down the median of the Lakefront Boulevard toward Lakewood? To me, it seems such a natural, obvious addition to create the kind of the critical mass of pedestrian activity they want. Stop trying to do it with parking decks, for crying out loud. It just doesn't work as well. But sometimes I think our city's planning visionaries are either allergic to mass transit or have never ventured out of Greater Cleveland (at least with their eyes open). KJP

The et al of relocated offices is quite a lengthy list, with each office having a large staff....Auditor, Recorder, Treasurer, Engineers, Auto/Boat Title Department, Boards of Elections, Health, Mental Retardation/Development Disabilities, plus planning, development, children's services, emergency management and other departments. I think I recall reading somewhere that 3,000 county employees would need to fit into whatever new building they select. For now, they're scattered in offices all over downtown. Look in the blue section in the Cleveland white pages phonebook and you'll see how many county offices, boards and departments there are. It's a lot more than the county commissioners et al. KJP

Sounds like WalMart's plans were far from definite and it's the developer that's trying to use scare tactics. If he was counting on WalMart, I say let the project die and get someone with more imagination to develop the site. I never liked Steelyard Commons as it is designed. It's better suited for an exurban setting, not an urban setting. Schneider needs to take a ride out to Cedar-Warrensville to see how big-box retail can be accomplished in a more pedestrian-friendly way. The design of Steelyard Commons has zero attraction to me. I also fear the big retail development on West 117th, just north of I-90, will be designed in a similarly uninspired way. If you design it for access primilary by cars, that's exactly what they'll get -- more traffic congestion. The end result is that the pedestrian and transit rider gets screwed again. Do they know their customer base in that neighborhood? KJP

My understanding of the Ohio City project is that CMHA's involvement is only to catalyze the project by using federal funds and other incentives to make the project feasible for a private developer. The quid-pro-quo is that CMHA gets to subsidize the living costs for apartment residents and homeowners in a relatively small percentage of the new housing units. As far as I know, it will not be "public housing" which concentrates people with low incomes in confined areas but, rather, disperses them among others to create economic opportunities for low-income residents. I very much would like to see Lutheran Hospital's large surface parking lots swept up into well-designed parking garages that look like buildings and preferably with retail along the sidewalks. I suspect the hospital wants to preserve its visibility from West 25th, so leave a gap between the parking decks to put in a loop driveway shaped like a long U to the hospital's front door with a green space in the middle of the loop. I think the whole project sounds terrific, and is just what is needed to transform the north end of West 25th into the kind of area that now exists closer to Lorain Avenue. KJP

Tar sands = net energy loser <-- you are correct. I suspect that's why they're going after the Alberta sands now, before energy costs rise further. But, like you say, the mere fact the tar sands are being sought speaks volumes. KJP

We're a very vulnerable nation for a number of reasons. The debt crunch on multiple fronts in the U.S. -- on the federal budget, the trade imbalance and the credit crunch creating personal debts -- is bad enough. You throw rising energy costs on top of this and it creates a "perfect storm" to wrought a great deal of economic damage to this nation. Even the oil companies are acknowledging that conventional oil supplies are peaking and will begin a permanent decline in the coming years. That wouldn't be a problem if consumption rates were halted and reversed. Then we might have affordable oil for decades or even centuries to come. Instead, oil consumption is growing at record rates. Too bad we're addicted to our SUVs and big-ass McMansions in the outer 'burbs. Most of these folks have no idea what's coming, since the U.S. media never covers "big picture" stuff. I find that I routinely have to go to foreign media (Reuters, FT, UK Financial Times, Asia Times, heck even al Jazeera, etc. plus some of the petroleum industry's own publications) to learn how dire the situation is. Older cities like Cleveland may actually fare better than places like Columbus or Indianapolis, but the suburbs of all metro areas will have some serious problems. Rail and transit will also fare better, but will still see higher costs. At the other extreme, the "canary in the mineshaft" is the airline industry, which has a greater proportion of their balance sheets to devoted to fuel costs. And those are already some pretty sick birdies! Here's some recent articles from overseas media that may cause you to put that SUV up for sale before the rest of America wakes up.... Shell, Exxon Tap `High Cost' Oil Sands, Gas as Reserves Dwindle http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000102&sid=aZ6yVeyLhzkE&refer=uk US warned of east-west oil bidding war http://news.ft.com/cms/s/454b9d94-7fbf-11d9-8ceb-00000e2511c8.html Expert says Saudi oil may have peaked http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/80C89E7E-1DE9-42BC-920B-91E5850FB067.htm Matt Simmons (in the last article) is my hero. Do a Google search on his name and read more of his stuff. As a former energy advisor to Bush/Cheney, Simmons is one of the most respected people out there publicly raising the alarm on peak oil. Too bad his advisee's weren't listening (or, perhaps they were, hence "Operation Iraqi Freedom"). KJP

I am posting this under "Transportation" because 10 percent of GLOBAL oil usage is by American motorists. This article is a very good synopsis of an increasingly critical situation, and finally one that's published in a domestic newspaper. But I've seen this syndicated article published only in the Palm Springs, Calif. Desert Sun (?). This nation is going to be in for a shock, and the public isn't going to understand why. KJP ________________ http://www.thedesertsun.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050227/COLUMNS03/502270307/1081/business Investors watch rising energy costs Morris Beschloss Special to The Desert Sun February 27, 2005 The Paris-based International Energy Agency's recent pessimistic update about the world's oil supply/demand inversion set off global alarm bells. This was a major turnaround from a previous projection issued by the respected international agency before the end of last year. With the IEA trumpeting increased global demand, combined with a cutback in non-OPEC production, the New York Mercantile Exchange oil traders returned per diem oil prices back to the high 40's per barrel. Only two months ago, oil prices had retreated back to the $40 per barrel range. The early winter weather in the Northeast was exceptionally mild, and it looked as if oil prices in the 30's were only a matter of time. .......

Yep, I was there. I recall your baseball cap and unshaven looks. I think I was sitting one row behind you and to your left. The ODOT girls were quite nice looking. X asked a question about the iconic new bridge, realigning the Inner Belt to open up land for development and make a once-in-a-lifetime statement about the future of the city.... ODOT Planner Chris Hebebrand's response? He dodged it, instead talking about the University Circle Access Boulevard, now dubbed the Corridor of Opportunity (who thinks up these dumb-ass names?). Anyway, I guess that's the once-in-a-lifetime statement about the future of the city -- dodge it and rebuild in-place what you already have just to more move cars around faster. Such grand visions for this city! No wonder young people are fleeing... KJP

Thanks! And please don't forget about tomorrow's public meeting. KJP

Just a reminder that the Inner Belt public meeting will be held Feb. 24, from 4:30-8:30 p.m., with a presentation to be made by ODOT at 6 p.m. It will be held at the Visiting Nurses Association offices, 2500 East 22nd Street. For more information, contact Michelle Proctor, ODOT public affairs, at (216) 584-2005. Please attend and show your support for a new, grand and unique Inner Belt bridge over the Cuyahoga Valley, with a realignment that will open up more than 100 acres acres of downtown and riverfront lands for new development! KJP

Build it, and the residents will come. Maybe they'll wait until EC is done, to stay out of the way of each other's construction, and to see what the ridership will be like on the transitway.... If they do build that apartment tower, and it fills up with paying bodies, I'll wager that another tower will pop up on the south side of Euclid -- either by demolishing the 668 Euclid/Atrium Building or in using the parking lot where the Hippodrome used to be. KJP

It sounds like the 17-story apartment building doesn't count the 7-story parking deck. In other words, 24 stories total. Am I right? Why not just build the apartment tower and the parking deck at the same time? I would think the parking deck couldn't be used while construction of the apartment tower is going on, thus they will be paying the financing for the parking deck without the revenues to retire it? Unless, the apartment tower is some years off in the future and the developers believe the parking revenues will help get them started on financing for the tower? Just musing what their thinking might be on this.... KJP

Why in the world does CCF's Heart Center have a projected cost of $300 million??? I hope that isn't just for building that squat, unimaginative structure, but includes funding for medical equipment, specialized utilities, plus a MAJOR reworking of the streetscape in the surrounding areas. Even so, consider that the 57-story Key Tower was built for $343 million. Granted, that was 15 years ago, but I would have expected a $300 million investment in a new building would result in one that's at least 40 stories tall (or, at least 25 stories with a shitload of medical equipment packed into it). As for the uninspired design of the Heart Center, may I be the first to use the phrase: "CCF's design for the new Heart Center lacks heart"? KJP

Thanks! But, actually....? KJP

Dearest Pope, Coming up with ways to make Cleveland a better place is my life. I have to do something with my time ever since I quit drinking. Of course, just by bagging the booze, I immediately made Cleveland a better place! Soberly yours, KJP

No, I didn't know they were, but I do now! BTW, you like my "Grand Center Station"? I wanted to use a station name that suggested a transfer point, like "Metro Center" in D.C., but with Grand Avenue nearby, I couldn't resist. It's all about placemaking..... KJP

^That's a terrific place! Great brickwork and woodwork! Are the ceiling designs on the first level plaster or painted tin? If they're plaster, they look to be in very good condition. I'm envious. KJP

No, none of the Rapid lines passes near the site. However....the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad is working to extend its line north from Independence to Tower City using CSX tracks. Their goal, as I understand it, is to use their newly rebuilt Rail Diesel Car acquired from New Jersey Transit to provide frequent shuttle service between downtown and Independence (Rockside Road) and have a couple of stations enroute (Steelyard Commons, Canal Visitors Center and maybe Old Harvard Road). Here is a picture I took last fall of their new RDC... This may be a way for NE Ohio to get "a foot in the door" to a commuter/regional rail service, but would be a very low-density version of it. But, it could be a modest, yet important first step. KJP

"It is predicted that population will top out at over 70,000." Which means that other communities in Greater Cleveland will lose about 70,000 people. Most of them will likely come from Cuyahoga County since they often cannot find the kinds of homes with today's amenities in their existing, built-out communities (where housing surveys show most would rather stay). Too bad we don't have local and state programs that make it possible for communities and developers to afford more tear-down/rebuild or renovation/expansion projects for contemporary housing. KJP

So the countryside becomes a city, and the city becomes a countryside. Makes sense to me, except that we all pay taxes to maintain urban-level infrastructure (sewers, streets, utilities) for both. And, so we would rather pay taxes to build new interchanges in the country to disperse a stagnant regional population than use that money to change land use in urban areas by redeveloping seriously contaminated, vacant industrial sites? And, lets pave over more soil in the most productive farmland in the world, rather than rebuild infrastructure so we can take more jobs out of the city to keep the inner city residents on public assistance, that we all pay taxes for. We destroy our cities bit by bit, gradual building our suburbs and eroding our urban neighborhoods, shifting the wealth farther and farther away from the old urban core until some parts of Cleveland resemble rural areas only 50 years after they were bustling communities. Our state's policy toward urban growth is to create a 100-year lifecycle for a given community in a metro area. The first 25-50 years sees the growth spurt, thanks to an abundance of greenfields, with new development paying for rising costs in local public services (schools, garbage collection, emergency services etc). After 50 years, the community ultimately is fully built out and, since there is less state help for redeveloping communities than there is for building new ones, the built-out community's principal recourse is raise taxes to keep up with the rising costs of public services. The higher taxes drive out those who can afford the large, new homes being in the next new urban fringe community. More taxes are needed on the remaining middle-income residents. Home values stagnate or start to fall, as homes and buildings start to decay. Lower income residents can afford to move in. More taxes are levied because the housing values aren't rising anymore and the average income levels are falling. More people move out. Jobs are lost with the loss of wealth, crime increases and more homes and buildings decay, with some having to be torn down. Some redevelopment occurs, but it's akin to bailing out the Titanic with a bucket brigade. After 50 years of this, the once-proud community is in fiscal emergency and becomes a blighted area. This is the way of things in Greater Cleveland and most other older, industrialized cities across this nation. It's time to put a stop to this institutionalized policy of the 100-year community lifecycle. This state, and this nation, is so ass-backwards sometimes, I wonder why I still live here. KJP

My sister used to get them when she worked for a construction contractor. She would share the information with me, and I would pass it along to other reporters at the newspaper when the projects weren't in the areas I cover. Unfortunately, the company she worked for was mobbed up and the owners went to prison last year. No more Dodge Reports for this guy.... :shoot: KJP

See my earlier message... http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=2267.msg21288#msg21288 ...in this string about RTA possibly acquiring a standardized light-rail vehicle for use on all lines. RTA thought about doing it in the early 1980s, and some officials later regretted not doing so to save on maintenance costs and possibly route one of Shaker lines through to Hopkins Airport. Because the Breda LRVs and Tokyu HRVs were paid for in part with federal funds, a transit agency has to use them for at least 25 years before replacing them or they have to give back some of the federal funding. The Tokyu cars for the Red Line were delivered to RTA over several months from 1984-85. Since RTA said it doesn't expect to replace its rail fleet until 2011, that would "suggest" RTA wants to go with the standardized LRV. However, they may start procurement as early as next year to identify the kind of rail car they want so that manufacturing can take place in time to meet that 2011 delivery date. KJP