BlackOpsAmbassador

MyTwoSense...just an FYI, the Downtown Cleveland Partnership no longer exists, it was merged into the Downtown Cleveland Alliance.

Is anyone willing to comment on this? I didn't see it posted anywhere else. The think the reactions of some of the neighbors and friends are exactly why society no longer feels any empathy for the hood. This so called "15-year-old good boy" tried to rob someone with a gun and dies and people are screaming for justice. Justice already happened! Shooting sparks neighborhood anger Vigil held at house where teen was killed Wednesday, April 25, 2007 Gabriel Baird Plain Dealer Reporter Damon Wells and his home appear no longer safe. The .40-caliber handgun that Wells carries legally for defense may not be enough to protect the 25-year-old man and his home in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood. Sunday night, a day after Wells shot and killed a 15-year-old who threatened him with a gun on his porch, Wells' home was under siege. Police sent a car to guard it. ... Plain Dealer reporter Jesse Tinsley contributed to this story.

In terms of biking stuff, I used to go to Freidrick's on the Lorain and Fulton, but the last time I got a tune up there it looked like nothing had been done. I recently went to Century Cycles in Rocky River and theydid a great job. I also have been to the bike shop on the corner of Madison and Marlow which was also very good. I think that one is called Spin.

Goodjob, I think you're right, and maybe there is a way to have a volunteer program. I know that there was a church group that helped out before St. Patrick's Day. Maybe there's a way to expand that experience for the community at large. I know there is alot of people who would like to help.

I don't get were all this criticism is coming from. Geezes, its a joke people, relax. I needed to change my name, I like Jack Bauer, and I thought it was funny. Let it go. Going back to my original point, I think the ambassadors and DCA are great. In the past couple years I think they have single handedly improved downtown more than anything else. I have talked to several ambassadors and they agree that after 7 PM they should change their focus to a more strategic deployment. I'm asking for constructive critism on that, not a name change. Anyway, Happy Easter if you celebrate!

Lammonator

I seriously believe the PD would actually just shut Cleveland down and send everyone home and say, come back in 2009, we don't like dust!

Strap, You are correct, I did not mean that they should just leave the streets after 7 PM. I also live downtown and that is the last thing that I would want. I think that the emphasis after 7 PM should focus to areas around Public Square, East 4th, Gateway, Warehouse. I say this because I think the major problems of aggressive panhandling occur around those times. And lets not forget, that the ambassadors would still be available for 1 on 1 escort service for all areas of downtown. We're dealing with limited resources of something like 40 ambassadors, I was simply asking if there was a way to make them more effective during the night. I think the day time deployment has worked great. P.S. I'm not new to this forum, I just changed my name as a pun to whoever decided to become "goodjobambassador"

Is there anyway we can insist on building a land-bridge over the railroad tracks at Mall C in trade for having Forest City get the convention center? Maybe TIF off of the project?

Does anyone know more about Fairmount Properties, who is partnered with Wolstein to do the retail portion of the project? I know they did First & Main in Hudson but I haven't heard about anything else they've done in the area and there website gives the impression that they've been doing a lot of sprawl development.

For the NCAA Final Four this week, all of the downtown hotels were offering beefed up shuttle service to Hopkins. Anyone know if RTA was doing the same? I'm not riding the Red Line as much as I used to.

The agreement that the trolley group has with RTA is that they would be able to use the Waterfront Line and RTA would no longer run their Light-Rail Blue/Green line trains on it. (Unless there is a Brown's game or an event on the North Coast) The one issue of contention is who is going to operate the trolley on the line. I believe RTA is insisting that it be RTA employees, because of possible Union Issues. There was some discussion two years ago about rerouting the waterfront line directly through the new Flat's East Bank Development as a trolley line, but I'm not sure if that ever went through. My source at Wolstein is no longer there.

The one thing I'd like to see change in the program is the deployment of the Ambassadors after 7 PM. Is there really any reason to have a bunch of ambassadors roaming around City Hall when there isn't anyone there at that time? Any thoughts?

Can we have a group from UrbanOhio become off the record ambassadors...perhaps those who respond only to a bright shinny light in the sky with the symbol "UO"? They take care of business and clean up the streets without all the messy paper work. Sounds like a fun job! Anyone interested? Meet me at Public Square at midnight :shoot: Elliot Ness would be proud.