shs96

Yes, the servers wear jeans (and black converse shoes) but I don't think you got the wrong impression. You don't have to dress up to go there for lunch, but I would say it is more formal than casual (not in a "what you have to wear to feel comfortable" sense, but in an "atmosphere" sense). Regardless, I would go there no matter what if I am visiting Cleveland. The food is amazing.

1. I never thought I would see anyone say that. 2. I never thought I would ever agree with that. I have to admit, I felt pretty smug drafting Betancourt in my fatasy baseball draft expecting Borowski to lose the closer's job at some point, handing it over to Bet. Then it happened, Betancourt sucked, and now he's lingering on the free agent wire b/c I dropped him and picked up Chad Gaudin (who? Exactly...)

I agree its badly outdated, but I don't recall the small and narrow feeling you describe, although I was only there once for a game and it wasn't sold out.

Do you remember when Magic Johnson was opening movie theaters around the country in volatile inner city neighborhoods (like Compton). He opened one in Randall Mall and it closed within a few months due to crime. That sums up the collapse of Randall Mall right there. Check your facts!!! What you just typed is almost entirely made up!!! The theatre opened in 1998 and closed a few months ago as Magic theatres. Its still open, just not Magics Check out this link: http://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/entertainment-0/1210424118235510.xml&coll=2 OK, so maybe it didnt close within a few months, but: A) you tell me to check my facts, indicating the theater opened in 1998 then provide a link where in the first two sentences the article says it opened in 1999 and B) The article is discussing how poor (the underlying premise of my post - that those theaters have done well in other areas but not at Randall and Magic is no longer associated with it) the theater is doing So thanks for clearing that up.

Do they still have free appetizers duing happy hour (or maybe it was from 4-5?)? I loved Tony's... I found myself doing a mini-bar crawl most weekend nights once I turned 21...Pigskin, Juntion, Pub, Cat's Eye...I sometimes miss the days before cell phones when you'd just pop in places looking to run into people rather than texting them where you are.

McSorley's...anywhere that serves you two when you order one is my type of place...

Glad to see this mentioned...no Ohio bar list is complete without any mention of PIB bars. Round House & Frosty's have to be included, and I guess you have to mention the Beer Barrel since its in the guines book of world records, even though I'm not a big fan

A fan fell to their death yesterday at Turner Field. The only thing dangerous about baseball stadiums is getting black out drunk during the game.

maybe, maybe not...but that's not the point. Until something actually happens, its all still just talk. Stark was building a new "East side lifestyle hub" just a few short months ago in Solon. "Crocker Park, WHD, Solon - I'm connecting the metropolitan area with sustainable lifestyle developments here!" OK, sounds good. Let me know when you start digging holes. Hmmm...convention, Las Vegas, salesman...

I saw a "Clean up the River" group last weekend; they were going up/down the Cuyahoga simply picking up trash along the river...I thought it was a great idea - I even went out and helped them for an hour or so!

No, people in this county are terrified about living next to people who are criminals. Nobody really cares how much you make or what you do, so long as it doesn't involve being a criminal or infringing on their own lifestyle. Anyway, things like this don't change until they have to, which is why society will remain as you see it today until something (and sorry, but $4/gallon isn't enough to do it) forces it to change.

This thread started over 3 years ago. Until I see construction vehicles moving in and out of the WHD on a regular basis, its all still just talk.

Do you remember when Magic Johnson was opening movie theaters around the country in volatile inner city neighborhoods (like Compton). He opened one in Randall Mall and it closed within a few months due to crime. That sums up the collapse of Randall Mall right there.

Crime at Randall was a HUGE problem and the primary (if not sole) reason it went downhill. My mother and I went there to shop almost exclusively when I was a kid, right up until we were mugged in the parking lot on our way out (I was 10). Later in high school, I went there with some friends. My friend bought a bookshelf stereo and he (I was with him) was mugged, at gun point, leaving Circuit City. I used to go to the Toys R Us across the street to buy Nintendo games and it had developed into a mini Ft Knox by the time the new gaming system came out. Finally, I happen to know both of the Bedford Municipal Court Judges quite well...the scheduled day for the city of Randall is often the busiest, with most of the docket coming from issues at the mall.

My friend created essentially a push cart with a microwave on top. The bottom of the microwave was cut out and someone sat on a turn table inside the push cart with only their head exposed inside the microwave. You'd push a button, the microwave door would open, lights would flash, the turn table would start to turn, turning the person's head (body) around making it look like you were nuking someone's head (the guy inside the cart's face was painted, etc). I was one of the "crazies" in white jumpsuits pushing the cart around. But I remember the Empire St Building Costume - that was a good one! Five Fest replaced Derby Days, but is ten times larger. Everything at OU is larger today except Halloween, which has been about 20,000 to 25,000 people the last couple of years. The last big-time Halloween was in 2004 which was 25,000 to 30,000 people at peak. Palmer Fest is two times the size it used to be Right, Derby Days, not May Day...maybe the non Greek people called it May Day. Didn't Sigma Chi get kicked off campus? I assume that's why it ended. Anyway, I guess my point is, none of this story sounds new to me. I've been back as recently as 2005 and buildings changed and businesses turned over, but it pretty much seemed like the same ole place. Although I must admit, I wasn't there much in the spring so I suppose those festivals could have become bigger, I only attended a few of them. Palmerfest was pretty big though, the one year I stayed for it was due to OAR and Red Wanting Blue playing on Saturday, among other bands...they drew a big crowd. But I don't recall for sure how big Mill/High/Oak fest was...I would commute up to Put-in-Bay most weekends in May where I worked for the summer...Athens to PIB...didn't get any better...

I have an article saved from the front page of the Plain Dealer's Metro section that was discussing this very thing, except the article was about Halloween instead of Five Fest (which sounds an awful lot like May Day, which I don't think is an event anymore). I saved the article (well, actually my mom saved it) because the picture on the front page was of my friends and I in costume...luckily I didn't look too hammered ;) I think the article was from 1997 or 1998. The theme of this discussion (OU being deemed a party school even though for massive parties like this its more than just OU students, then handling of the situation by OU PD, APD, faculty, students, etc) has being going on well before I went to OU and will continue to go on well after you are gone...I wouldn't get caught up in it. The tasers, rubber pellets, and cops on horses are nothing new in Athens, from Halloween, Homecoming, Palmerfest, May Day...even during the 2-3 years of the "time change riot"...these have been issues in Athens for quite some time...even May Day had the same problems with thousands of people trying to leave at once and only so many buses leaving the fairgrounds. It just stems from not having much else to cover in Athens but what the students are up to (shocker - they're partying...)

Drugs, crime and degernate behavior will go where there's a market for it...and there's a substantially bigger market for it in the city than in the suburbs. Inner City schools were suffering long before No Child Left Behind (which I agree is horrible) and people moving to the suburbs. I beleive people moved to the suburbs because inner city schools were deteriorating. No school system is perfect and drug/incident free, but if you are going to argue Cleveland School district is equivalent (or "good enough") when compared to most suburban schools, what are you seeing that I am not? Better graduation rates? Percentage of graduates going to college? Better attendance rates? That is not the case when comparing Cleveland to any suburb people move to for education purposes. (I don't know anything about Columbus). I haven't seen the same "abuse" of school districts that you have. i know my hometown continuously passes school levys as do the neighboring school districts that have good schools. And what is less American...moving your kids to a school system that they can thrive in yet not supporting tax increases or simply not caring about your kids education in the first place?

If anyone wants to argue that the Cleveland School district is equvalent (or "good enough") and has less drugs/crime/safety issues compared to any suburban school...well, unless something drastically changes, I am never going to think that. But there's a difference between wanting to live in a walkable urban environment and needing to make some sacrifices to do what's best for your family. People don't live in the suburbs because they hate being able to walk everywhere and love driving their car around. They live there because their suburban city provides them a quality of life Cleveland can't.

That is what the "cherry picker" was doing - the building's windows were being cleaned. Now they get to be replaced too!

Yikes! Time for some damage control (literally and figuratively). I can only imagine if that was my unit...our poor dogs would be going nuts!

This meeting should be wrapping up...someone should have set up a web-cam.

I didn't even consider that, but yeah, there are other priorities right now.

Honestly I was a little surprised they selected the FEB site over a plot of land along the river by all of the shipping yards, maybe off Boradway along the Ohio Scenic Byway? They'd still be on the river, what's the difference?

Based on my primitive analysis on google maps, the current E&Y building is 0.4 miles from E 4th St. The new proposed location is 0.4. miles from W 6th St. So you're no farther away from dining options than before. And something tells me that someone who likes to make money will put in a restaurant or other business in this new development to appeal to the already large number of residents in the area and to accomodate the new population of professionals/residents who are moving in. And maybe someone - at a company that provides support on "Assurance, Tax, Transactions and Advisory" - will be sharp enough to put an ATM in your office building so that employees can do most of their banking there. I know I do 98% of all my banking at the ATM in my building's lobby...

The Stonebridge design office has now moved into the upstairs office section of Phase 6 (20/20, etc). they still have their master plan building model on display and it shows the full out development, including a bridge over to Whiskey Island, "something" where FEB is scheduled to go, along with a lakefront development (shown as a park) when the port moves. I know some of that is not their project, but it's a future view of the neighborhood, including phases 7-12 and they are still showing that to potential buyers. However, I've heard from some (realtors, K&D employees - although no one who has any kind of pull) that phase 7 and beyond is on hold for now, that they are going to finish off all of the odds and ends of phase 5/6 before they get started on 7. I don't know if that means waiting until all the units are sold or just finishing landscaping, street work, etc but I wouldn't expect any new ground breaking for another 12-18 months until the current projects are wrapped up.