First paragraph of the article w28th posted says it was a depression-era gift to the city so maybe it's rare for the city to own such a bridge. Perhaps rare enough to get federal dollars to repair it.

 

What's truly rare are federal transportation dollars. There is a decades-long backlog of unfunded projects nationwide. Welcome to the Third World....

In case anyone is interested the meeting time re the Columbus Rd bridge is 5pm Wed at St. Malachi.

 

I understand surveys will be conducted and one of the choices with be no bridge at all.

 

I too am concerned about how the infrastructure continues to crumble in the Flats. As w.28th mentioned we do not have Eagle Rd. Bridge or River Bed st. With the Columbus  Rd. bridge out, and Carter rd in shambles, I am concerned not just about convenience and quality of life, but about safety issues as well. If multiple emergency units needed to respond to the area they would be limited as to how they would get here. Given the heavy industry, high volume entertainment venues, and residential that exist in the Flats, is a little scary.  The fact that the Abbey Rd. bridge is closed as well does not help matters.

First paragraph of the article w28th posted says it was a depression-era gift to the city so maybe it's rare for the city to own such a bridge. Perhaps rare enough to get federal dollars to repair it.

 

What's truly rare are federal transportation dollars. There is a decades-long backlog of unfunded projects nationwide. Welcome to the Third World....

 

How sad is that :-(

http://www.wkyc.com/news/local/news_article.aspx?storyid=95293&catid=3

 

Cleveland: Browns help break ground for new field at rec center

 

CLEVELAND -- Up and coming football players on Cleveland's west side will soon have a field of their own at the Gunning Park Recreation Center...

 

work is starting to pick up at 1303 Prospect Place... and I think Korfant & Mazzone have become the official contractors of Prospect Avenue.

Me likey that building.

I like the building also.  I wonder if they are preparing the facade for some bay windows.  I think that would look awesome.

I wonder if that facade is original.  I kind of doubt it.

i'm not sure if that is the original facade... though i don't think they are getting rid of the current one.  I'm sure once the vinyl windows are replaced with something that fits the building a little better it will make a big improvement.

Not exactly sure what thread to put this in but I couldn't find a Terminal Tower restoration thread.  Anyway, Tuesday night around 11:00pm I saw the top of terminal tower changing all kinds of colors in a psychadelic way.  How often does this happen and is it random?  Basically what is the deal with this lighting because it looked really cool for the 20 seconds I saw it before it turned off.

It was red, white and blue the other day.  I have no idea what they are doing, though.  I've never seen anything like that.

I saw the top of terminal tower changing all kinds of colors in a psychadelic way. How often does this happen and is it random?

 

It happens every single time you use illicit drugs ;)

Haha that could be the case but it was pink, red, purple, green, etc and not just lit up but going crazy and it was the entire portion above what I believe is the observation deck.

Stalled development on Fenwick leaves residents in limbo

by Chuck Hoven

 

(Plain Press, September 2008) Just South of I-90 on the 4700 block of Fenwick, a six-unit townhouse remains unfinished with no siding-- a glaring reminder of promising plans to convert the former Joseph & Feiss clothing factory and surrounding area into a new 150 unit housing development called Ashbury Homes. Another six-unit townhouse, fronting on Fenwick, is completed; but only three of the six units are occupied. Developer Ameri-Con Homes abandoned the project several years ago and has since gone out of business.

 

Dan Reichelderfer, who moved into one of the townhouses in December of 2005, has not received any information as to what the future holds. Recently, rumors circulated that the project had been sold and a new developer had come forward. Those rumors have proved to be false.

 

Huntington Bank, which holds the mortgage taken out by Ameri-Con homes, split the property into the site of the townhouses between Fenwick and Walworth, and the site of the former factory on W. 53 and Walworth. Al Brazynetz, Executive Director of the Stockyard Redevelopment Organization says, “There were no bidders at the July 14th Sheriff’s Sale. The bank is still holding the project. The City, ourselves and the bank are still looking at ways to try to get parties to be interested in it.”

 

Brazynetz cited the downturn in the housing market as making it difficult to find a developer to complete the project. “We are going to continue to hope that someone with deep enough pockets and interest might show up,” said Brazynetz.

 

Ward 17 Councilman Matt Zone called the failure of the development, “a huge disappointment for people who purchased units and residents who live in the area around the development.” Zone recalled there had been “so much hope and promise” when the project was first announced. “It is one of my highest priorities to get a responsible developer to take over the project, “ Zone said.

 

At the groundbreaking ceremony for the Ashbury development on June 9, 2004, there was indeed much excitement and Mayor Jane Campbell joined resident Julie Wilson of the Fenwick Junction neighborhood shoveling the first scoop of dirt for the development in a front page photo in the July 2004 Plain Press. At the time, the Plain Press reported (Redevelopment of Joseph & Feiss site moves forward, July 2004) that developers planned to build “96 new townhouses and 54 units of townhomes and lofts in restored buildings on the site. The $20 million project, named Ashbury Towers after the water tower being preserved at the site, is to be phased in over a five year period.”

 

The article notes that the project was initially proposed by Ameri-Con Homes in June 1999, but delayed because of concerns Ward 15 Councilwoman Merle Gordon had about a project in her ward, which she said the company did not properly complete.

 

A March 26, 2007 article in Crain’s Cleveland Business (Parties work to devise new plan for troubled Ashbury Towers by Stan Bullard) outlines the loans and investments made in the project before Ameri-Con Homes walked away from it. The Crain’s Cleveland Business article notes that Huntington Bank had provided Ameri-Con Homes with “$2.75 million of a $3.6 million construction it had approved for the project.” The article also notes that Village Capital (a development arm of Neighborhood Progress Inc) had invested $425,000 in the project and the City of Cleveland had given the developers $688,000 of a $831,000 loan it had approved for the development. The article notes that contractors are still owned money for work on the site to the tune of over $600,000.

 

Councilman Zone told the Plain Press he has instructed the Cleveland Law Department to pursue recouping the City of Cleveland’s investment in the project from the principles involved in the now dissolved Ameri-Con homes partnership. According to Crain’s Cleveland Business, the president of the company was developer Sandy Krulak. According to July 1999 Plain Press article, another official of the former Beachwood based company is Vice President Jeffrey C. Simler.

 

Residents of the Fenwick Junction neighborhood still want some answers as to what will be done to the vacant structures. The only suggestion so far as to what can be done with the unfinished and unoccupied came from court-appointed receiver David Douglass who in the Crain’s Cleveland Business article suggested that a developer who ends up with the project could offer a lease purchase option for the townhouses estimated at the time (March 2007) to cost “upwards of $128,000.”

 

 

Haha that could be the case but it was pink, red, purple, green, etc and not just lit up but going crazy and it was the entire portion above what I believe is the observation deck.

 

They also did that during the Orchestra's outdoor concert on July 2.

King Nut Companies Announce New Location for Flagship Peterson Nut Store

 

Peterson Nut Company to Move Back to Original Location by Progressive Field

 

Cleveland, OH, September 1, 2008 – Kanan Enterprises, parent company of King Nut and Peterson Nut Companies, today announced the historic Peterson Nut Company store in downtown Cleveland will move back to its original location, on the corner of E 9th and Carnegie, across from Progressive Field. The new store will open for business on September 8, 2008, with the grand re-opening scheduled for September 15, 2008.

 

The new Peterson Nut Company location is 3,700 square feet, affording Peterson the opportunity to sell all of the traditional favorites Clevelanders have grown to love, while also providing enough space to introduce new products and services. Specifically, the store will carry Peterson’s brand new gourmet coffee and espresso line. Customers will be able to purchase Peterson’s coffee and espresso ground and packaged, as well as hot and ready to drink. The addition of new Peterson Nut Company product lines, like the coffee and espresso line, are intended to generate excitement and better serve Peterson’s customers.

 

“We are thrilled to be back to the original location Peterson’s has called home since 1934,” said Martin Kanan, President and CEO of Kanan Enterprises. “With the extraordinary assistance of the Cleveland Historical Society, we have the opportunity to continue to serve the people of Northeast Ohio with premiere products, for all occasions and budgets. We are committed to the city of Cleveland, and we believe the new, expanded location will further our commitment and foster opportunities for growth for both Peterson Nut and downtown Cleveland.”

 

King Nut has invested substantially in the new Peterson Nut location. The store will feature a new peanut sign that is both significant in size and uniqueness. Although the iconic peanuts Clevelanders have grown to love are no longer visible on the side of the building, remnants of the locally famous artwork will be on the front of the new location. Additionally, the store has installed all new equipment, to better serve Peterson’s customers. Furthermore, Peterson’s well-known gift basket line will expand to include new concepts and creations for all occasions and price points.

 

King Nut, founded in 1937, and Peterson Nut, founded in 1927, both in Cleveland, operate together as the King Nut Companies. Headquartered in Solon, King Nut Companies is a leading national supplier of snack nuts, fruit mixes, snack mixes, soy mixes, pretzels, and candy to the airline, retail, vending, food service, gift, and private label industries.

 

CONTACT:  Emily E. Panza  440-821-4542

 

http://www.kingnut.com/site.cfm/news.cfm

 

 

Yea...  Good to know.  Ill be back for my late summer visit this weekend and will be stopping in on Saturday to do my usual stocking up of Peterson's to bring back with me (for me and the many people with Cleveland requests that have me bringing back a cooler and require stops at the West Side Market and Great Lakes). 

You just cant find this kinda stuff in D.C.

Now if Honey Hut is still open.....?   

Are they going into the rug space?  Their old building was demo'd.

Hi everyone.  I couldn't find this in a search (maybe I just missed it), but the old Clothing Brigade store on W. 9th is being converted into a Phoenix Coffee.  Seems like a fairly large space, and it's a closer walk for me than the Starbucks on 6th. :)

Now if Honey Hut is still open.....?   

 

Oh yeah, open until at least 9 pm until the week before Thanksgiving.  Best ice cream I've had.

 

closer walk for me than the Starbucks on 6th. :)

 

And more importantly, it's a Phoenix Coffee! :)  That's great to hear!

Now if Honey Hut is still open.....?   

 

Oh yeah, open until at least 9 pm until the week before Thanksgiving.  Best ice cream I've had.

 

 

 

Mmmmmmmmm....

 

Almost time for Pumpkin Ice Cream

 

I feel like this needs to be cross posted some where else.  But, anyway:

----------------------------------------------------------------

Green Cottages make Cleveland EcoVillage even smaller

Submitted by Marc Lefkowitz on September 8, 2008 - 11:32am.

Posted in Gardening Green building Rebuilding cities Walkable neighborhoods EcoVillage | Marc Lefkowitz's

 

Tomorrow (9/9) is the groundbreaking for the Cleveland EcoVillage Green Cottages, and, in addition to being the largest concentration of green building, it marks another historic moment for the area.

 

It will be the first affordable development in Northeast Ohio to achieve the LEED for Homes certification of the U.S. Green Building Council, which promotes the design and construction of high-performance green homes.

 

The five cottages continue the momentum of the Cleveland EcoVillage, where 20 ‘green’ townhomes were built in 2004 and completely sold. The Cottages are right across the street from the townhomes, and both are within walking distance of a rebuilt W. 65th Street Rapid station.

 

The Cuyahoga Community Land Trust ensures they will be permanently affordable. ‘Green’ features include recycled and recyclable-content products, water saving products and a smaller (1,225 sq ft.) home which will cost less to heat and cool (also helping the affordability!).

 

An ecovillage has a dense mix of housing, shopping, and promotes healthier living because streets are comfortable to walk and bike, and there's plenty of public places to play and even grow food. It supports the necessities of life in one place. And when you need to visit somewhere else, links to transit are within easy walking distance.

 

The Cleveland EcoVillage is in a real city neighborhood, so it already has some of these elements. Even though it doesn’t have it all yet, it has three distinct green housing developments, an urban garden, and good transit connections.

 

http://www.gcbl.org/blog/marc-lefkowitz/green-cottages-make-cleveland-ecovillage-even-smaller  Note: they are some cool links in the article

^what's up with that headline.  Are the editors at the PD required to make good news sound bad?

That article is from Green City Blue Lake (gcbl.org), not the PD. But yes, an odd headline.

That article is from Green City Blue Lake (gcbl.org), not the PD. But yes, an odd headline.

 

I now notice they've added a parenthetical (and greener) to the headline -- apparently, somebody in the know thought better of the headline.

I still don't get how adding houses makes EcoVillage smaller.  Anywho...

The building housing the future firefighter's museum looks like it has gotten a nice facade cleaning.

Photo, please!

I've been watching that one come along... I really hope they replace the glass block in the windows, with actual windows. I believe I heard they are fully restoring the building for the museum.  VIP is doing the restoration work.  I wonder if VIP and Coon fight to the death for work in the city.

 

Other items of note I've seen around.  Wednesday there was a crane hoisting skids of metal studs into the 5th floor of the Halle Building. Judging from the exhaust fan locations in some of the windows... it looks like whomever is moving in is taking up the entire floor.  That's a sizeable space.

 

Work has been progressing at 1304 prospect place... yesterday they were hoisting drywall through a popped window.

^That might be for the law firm who is moving over from another downtown location. It might be Fay Sharpe.

Where is the new Cleveland Firefighter Museum located .. the building they're rehabbing?

At the east end of the Lorain-Carnegie Hope Memorial Bridge, where Commercial Road splits off.

Hmmm .. wish I could find it on Google Maps. :(

 

I did, however, find a nifty link regarding the restoration, complete with photos detailing the outer restoration work/cleaning:

 

http://web.mac.com/carpenterdesign/Fire_Museum/News/Entries/2008/8/29_Fire_Museum_Turns_a_Corner_with_Cleaning_by_M-A_Building_and_Maintenance_and_VIP_Restoration_.html

 

It's right next to the Hope Memorial Bridge (I mean inches from it) on the south side.

It's right next to the Hope Memorial Bridge (I mean inches from it) on the south side.

 

Thanks, KJP .. I just wanted to have some sort of visual reference because I was having a hard time picturing the area. You're right, though; it's literally at the entrance to the bridge.

 

I just finished watching the slide show. It completely blows me away what a difference a simple power washing can do to a building. The cleaning alone is absolutely stunning.

^Nice find jpop, thanks. Love seeing classic stuff like that getting restored and put to good use.

The Firefighters' Museum can be really great (and there are some splendid views of downtown from its roof), but it would also be cheek-to-jowl with the fly over ramp to the Innerbelt bridge (if and when it is constructed).

Fix-ups aim to add life to Cleveland neighborhoods

Posted by Joel Downey September 12, 2008 21:18PM

Categories: Local

 

Click http://blog.cleveland.com/pdgraphics/2008/09/13CGNEIGH.pdf to download PDF.

 

Every year the city spends millions of dollars on parks and other neighborhood

improvements.

 

This graphic lists the most recent projects.

Neighborhood improvements raise the quality of life

Posted by Molly Kavanaugh/Plain Dealer Reporter September 16, 2008 23:30PM

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2008/09/neighborhood_improvements_rais.html

 

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2008/09/large_Halloran-Gazeebo.jpg

Lisa DeJong/Plain Dealer

The gazebo at Halloran Park on W. 117th St and similar projects are repsonsible for a rejenvenation in some of Cleveland's neighborhoods.

 

The Sunday night concert series at Halloran Park started off slow. But by summer's end, families with picnic baskets in tow lined the lawn. Even motorists driving by the West Side park pulled over to listen to the music...

Will there be an observation deck on top of the terminal tower?  I hope there is and it is accessible because that could add a neat attraction to our city for out-of-towners.

Will there be an observation deck on top of the terminal tower?  I hope there is and it is accessible because that could add a neat attraction to our city for out-of-towners.

 

Once the renovation is done, I'm sure it will reopen.

What is the status of the plans for Public Square?  About the time paved areas there were being rebuilt to at least partially match the Euclid Corridor streetscape, it was announced the four quadrants were being redesigned as a separate project?  What happened?

Incidentally, the three Euclid Corridor-style lights in front of the Park Building and May Company Building seem to be oddly out of place.  They really are on the Square though they match the Corridor's lighting.  No, I don't think it would have looked inappropriate for the lighting to change within a block.

I don't believe there were "plans" for PS, as much as a study.  You probably wouldn't like the results of the study.  At any rate whatever happens to PS is a long term vision, and nothing you are going to see happen any time soon.  I agree with you regardarding those lights.  I've been scratching my head as to why the sidewalks and lights didn't get redone all around PS as technically it's part of the project.  I'm sure at some point it was part of the budget cuts.  Regardless that section in front of May and Park is deemed part of the project, the sidewalks have been redone, and thus it gets the new lights.

I've not really thought of Public Square itself as part of the "the project," except for the stretch on the south side up to Ontario.  My 11/2000 "Streetscape Urban Design: Phase III" oversize planbook, for example, does not show the Square with the same detail as Euclid Avenue itself.

Indeed, I've thought of the new walks and curbing around PS as the City's efforts to harmonize that site with the EC, in the same way, in a sense, East Cleveland did with the section of Euclid that goes past Windemere Station.  Sort of a "nice gesture" but one other funding pays for (and, at least in East Cleveland, one that was really called for.

Do you have verification all work done around PS was part of the EC ca. $200 MM funds?

Sure, I'd like to see new lighting and the Square, too, and some thing decorative (or perhaps a more decorative version of the EC lights - something with a pronounced distinction though the same material, etc.). :type:

^ http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,6560.0.html

Does anyone know what is going on with the abandoned warehouse that sits right off the exit ramp on the corner of east 14th street and carnegie?  I saw a crane there the other day and it was clear some work was being done.  The windows were already taken out among other things.

 

This would be a great site for lofts or some other kind of residential living, IMO

Sadly, it looks like they took down the remainder of the smokestack that was there at the former Independant Towel Company.  Certianly a very cool building.  Surprised anyone would be doing anything to renovate it though with ODOT threatening to take it in the Innerbelt reconstruction.

asbestos removal and site prep for demo.

they are demolishing it? how sad, another historic downtown building going the way of the dodo

I heart ODOT.  :roll: