ohiocitybob

MayDay, that comment seems a little strong. Afterall, this is NOT cleveland.com, so there is no need for flaming here. To expand on what KJP stated, take a look at Riverbed Street, which follows the best bank of the river from the Columbus Street bridge to over by Stonebridge. There is a huge fissure in the road, where the slope is moving toward the river. Even the layman can see how the hillside is unstable, and is sliding toward the river. I saw the study that indicated that the Riverview Towers are on a solid foundation, but the towers are right on the edge of this. The study also indicated that the CMHA lowrise family units to the north of the towers (AKA "the big 8") are on unstable ground, and CMHA will eventually need to demo these units. There is a line of stability that roughly follows W.25th Street, with areas in and out of stability. The area behind the towers is very unstable, but may be suitable for a large park development. That is another debate, as there are concerns with crime and safety in such a park proposal. I will look at the old Middle Eastern Foods store to see what is going on there. The Abboud family was asking way WAY too much money for this site last I checked. This is the site that the Abboud's tried to open as a state liquor store. Ellie Abboud presented himself to the community as the owner, but Mr. Abboud is now in federal prison for money laundering, bank fraud and check kiting. The permit was going to be in his brother's name, but we were able to defeat their application to the state for this permit. We plan on working just has hard to block the liquor permit transfer with Hush Nightclub.

Duck Island is a strange place. On the one hand, it seems like an interresting little nieghborhood that is situated off the beaten path. On the other hand, I feel like when I go through there that grandma with a corn cob pipe is going to fire her shotgun at me for sticking my nose in their business.

The Hope 6 proposal for Columbus Road, near Duck Island and over the RTA tracks, was effectively shot down by the community. It is now a dead deal, along with the proposals of other sites in Ohio City. CMHA went with scattered sites throughout the west side for the replacement 81 units that were torn down behind Riverview (the CMHA low rise buildings). These are mostly CHN single family homes.

No comment!

Most of us felt bad for the H&E/Hush Nightclub guys. Someone gave them bad advice when they attempted to sneak the liquor permit transfer past the community. I don't think this was their idea. These guys promised the local CDC, in no uncertain terms, that if they were to move forward with their business plan, they would cooperate in a promised presentation to the overall community. They must now accept responsibility for this most critical error, but someone advised them how to best sneak the liquor permit transfer through under the radar. Fortunately for us, Joe Cimperman was there to intercept this transfer and bring it before the community. Also, I heard Joe Cimperman myself tell the club owners that he wanted to help them locate on the West Bank of the Flats. The possibility of a location in the St. Clair/Superior area was discussed as a secondary option. Thus, a public meeting there would not take place unless a specific site was selected. The Rialto/Moda site was the actual destination on the permit transfer application. KJP hit the nail on the head in the statement that we had enough of nightclubs after Moda, especially the large venue type. Even the popular Garage Bar has little to no impact on the residential community when their bar patrons hit the streets at bar closing time. About 25 guys on motorcycles make a little noise on their way out of the neighborhood, but this is nothing compared to 500 people flooding the streets when a large club like Moda discharges its contents onto W.25th at 2:30 am. The current bar/restaurant mix on W.25th seems to work in harmony with the residential community, who is prepared a little noise that accompanies urban living. Moda exceeded those limits beyond any reasonable expectations, and there is a significant risk that another nightclub there could result in the same disruption to both the residential and business community.

Thanks for the tip KJP. My interest in bicycling is merely as a means of conveyance, as I almost never pleasure cycle anymore. It's these neighborhood issues that really get my juices flowing. That's not to say I'm uninterested in global issues, I just have the ability and the access to impact the local issues much more effectively. Also, when I appear cryptic and vague, it is because I must tread very lightly in what I communicate, in the interest of keeping a job.

Beautiful, I should have known! Yeah, the Cleveland.com banter is a few notches below the Jerry Springer show (if that is still on). I enjoy spirited debate, but just do not have the patience for flaming. I've enjoyed the intelligent dialog on urbanohio.com, and could not resist a post. There is a plethora of information that flows past my desk, which has provided me the unique opportunity to view many neighborhood issues from the inside.

Thanks KJP. I've been lurking here for a while, and decided to go for a swim. It appears that these are not hostile waters.

My wife and I get by fine with one car. I get far more exercise now when I take care of my errands on my bicycle. It is quite feasible for me to this living in OC. I've even bicycled to shop at Steelyard Commons, which is not bad for an overweight 52 year-old guy. The streets are usually clear enough for me to ride almost all winter long. Also, there still are home bargains available, as long as you have patience and the vision to turn around a run down property. Most people want the perfect home in move-in condition, which requires paying a premium, which is just fine if you can afford it. We don't need to look any further than the Detroit area to see that we have a very affordable housing market (as long as you are bankable). Concerning what should or could go into the Rialto/Moda building, Alternative Press sounds like a perfect fit. A giant children's playground just does not sound economically viable, unless it caters to the very wealthy in order to make it profitable. I don't think the neighborhood will ever stand for another nightclub there either. The Rialto owners need to get out of this property while they can. They will be connected to the "curse of Moda" as long as they own the building, and this is due to the fact that they were complicit with everything that happened while Moda was in operation. The Rialto guys made this bed for themselves, and not only will they have to lie in it, they could possibly die in it (so to speak). Alternative Press is their best way out of this situation. This is the harsh reality of their bad reputation and a soft real estate market.