The RNC local host committee has been putting banners up around downtown this week. I noticed this one on the 668 Euclid building yesterday. I think the idea of the Cleveland fun facts is kind of neat, but this fact is blatantly false. Garrett Morgan had nothing to do with the first electric traffic light that was put at E 105th and Euclid in 1914. It was designed by James Hoge. Morgan's traffic signal was the first 3 colored traffic signal and didn't come about until the 1920s. http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-electric-traffic-signal-installed

 

 

Now about that new playground for downtown... (OK, no plans yet, but they need one!)

 

The new ward 3 councilman strongly agrees

 

My wife has a meeting today to discuss a downtown playground. It seemed to be progressing 6 months ago and then Joe Cimperman's office stopped calling and then out of the blue, the new ward three councilman set up a meeting for today. I'll keep you posted.

A playground in Perk Park would be awesome. So many kids already play out there at night riding around on there tricycles, playing soccer, etc. Technically the park is supposed to close at 9 pm (like all city-owned parks) but people just ignore the rule. Granted, I've seen cops come through several times over the past few years to clear out the park. Women and small children who don't understand English get chased out by the boys in blue with bull horns only to have half an hour later the park fill up again.

A playground in Perk Park would be awesome. So many kids already play out there at night riding around on there tricycles, playing soccer, etc. Technically the park is supposed to close at 9 pm (like all city-owned parks) but people just ignore the rule. Granted, I've seen cops come through several times over the past few years to clear out the park. Women and small children who don't understand English get chased out by the boys in blue with bull horns only to have half an hour later the park fill up again.

 

It's absurd that any of the public green spaces downtown "close." Before they rebuilt the Malls, there were signs saying that you were prohibited from being there from 10pm-6am (IIRC). The signs are no longer there, but I assume the ordinance is still in place? This isn't how cities should operate

Well duh, too much immigration, too many young families choosing downtown, and over-use of our parks are three major problems facing Cleveland, so this seems like a really good use of public safety resources.

 

Happy to hear that a downtown playground is back on the radar. Ridiculous it's taken so long. I know cutting ribbons for useless MedMarts is more fun, but c'mon local leaders, get it together.

I was in Chicago a couple of weeks ago with the fiancee and kid. We visited the new playground at Millennium Park on Memorial Day. Needless to say it was packed and it was Chicago-big. Here's a few views....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At long last you can all relax... it seems the monument sign for 200 Public Square is coming.

 

 

Also: side point.  The library is a beautiful building but have they ever thought of cleaning or repairing the Superior side? It's getting quite dirty compared to the Mall side...

 

 

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Yes!

 

Back in the prehistoric days of 1999  - the main Library was fresh of a resstoration, and a re-build of  building 2 (Louis Stokes Wing).

it was May '99 and the exterior was as fresh as ever along with the restored interior.  i was lucky to be at the opening night reception.

the "Grand Dame" - as this article rightly calls the main building - needs a power wash again

 

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cleveland-public-librarys-main-library-is-back--and-better-than-ever-74542882.html

Popular Cleveland script signs to be installed at three postcard-worthy spots (photos)

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Destination Cleveland, Cuyahoga County's convention and visitors bureau, is planting its popular Cleveland script signs at three postcard-worthy locations.

 

The installations are an outgrowth of the agency's "This is Cleveland" promotional campaign, launched in 2014.

 

The idea is to stoke local pride and provide spots where visitors will snap selfies and pictures of friends and relatives and share the resulting images through social media.

 

The first Cleveland sign will be installed at Edgewater Park on Tuesday at a spot with a skyline view.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/architecture/index.ssf/2016/06/popular_cleveland_script_signs.html#incart_gallery

I really want Destination Cleveland to make the Cleveland script one of the snapchat filters for Cleveland.

It's like the same thing they are doing with these signs but it offers people to take it with them in a way.

I've been thinking about this for a while I'm just too shy to suggest it to them and such and I don't think I can send it in myself as it's their logo.

Maybe this has already been discussed somewhere else in the thread and I missed it I just thought this was an opportune time.

^ I was thinking about that the other day too. I just sent the suggestion their way

Kids love these things. They want to sit on each and every one of them......

 

 

 

 

Saw the SPeaker installment at E. 9th and the Shoerway. They could not have found a more garish purple color!

 

Again, I really hope the concept for these is for "street artists" to graffiti the hell out of these things.

Kids love these things. They want to sit on each and every one of them......

 

 

 

 

 

Attracting kids and families was the point of these things.  Hope to see tons of families downtown this summer enjoying these things (and spending money in local businesses!)  Good excuse to use the Rapid, kids love riding trains as well.

I am a bit surprised by the lack of maintaining Euclid Ave sidewalks and crosswalks downtown. The new trees that are planted have many broken branches hanging and many different varieties have been planted in no particular order .  Storefront windows are filthy with people writing on the dust "wash me" The 2 main culprits are The May Company Building and The PNC Center I would be glad to wash the windows or help but do not know whom to contact. 

 

The 2 flame sculptures at both ends of East 4th Street desperately need repairs before the RNC, Cardboard covers broken panels as well as metal straps hanging carelessly

 

The Stephen Manka "chorus line" sculpture along the center median in Playhouse Square has faulty lighting.

 

Lastly, why did PNC remove the kinetic sculpture by George Rickey. I miss it's presence

 

I want Cleveland to shine and hope these repairs can be addressed. I am all about maintaining what we have. No reason any of these items should be in their current state. 

Dead trees in stone planters along Superior in 9-12 District are being taken out. These were alive in the spring, not sure what happened to them.

Dead trees in stone planters along Superior in 9-12 District are being taken out. These were alive in the spring, not sure what happened to them.

 

Only two light rain showers in the past month. Apparently the city doesn't have the budget to water the trees, but it does have the budget to replace them?

Another reason I generally oppose new landscaping... if you don't spend money on it nonstop, it starts looking terrible quickly.

 

I am a bit surprised by the lack of maintaining Euclid Ave sidewalks and crosswalks downtown. The new trees that are planted have many broken branches hanging and many different varieties have been planted in no particular order .  Storefront windows are filthy with people writing on the dust "wash me" The 2 main culprits are The May Company Building and The PNC Center I would be glad to wash the windows or help but do not know whom to contact. 

 

The 2 flame sculptures at both ends of East 4th Street desperately need repairs before the RNC, Cardboard covers broken panels as well as metal straps hanging carelessly

 

The Stephen Manka "chorus line" sculpture along the center median in Playhouse Square has faulty lighting.

 

Lastly, why did PNC remove the kinetic sculpture by George Rickey. I miss it's presence

 

I want Cleveland to shine and hope these repairs can be addressed. I am all about maintaining what we have. No reason any of these items should be in their current state. 

 

wow youre even more fastidious than me. i know what youre talking about w each of the points u bring up but they are nothing compared to what eyesores are really going on - these are generally not in the CBD or th greater downtown area but close enough. theyre futile to even bring up and would never change in time for the RNc , so ill leave those to myself.

 

If one is a perfectionist or even 50 % perfectionist, CLevleand will make u very frustrated, the best thing to do - unfortunately -  is to keep expectations low so u wont be disappointed.

....one last thought ..there's the right way, the wrong way and the Cleveland way. jus tsayin

 

I am a bit surprised by the lack of maintaining Euclid Ave sidewalks and crosswalks downtown. The new trees that are planted have many broken branches hanging and many different varieties have been planted in no particular order .  Storefront windows are filthy with people writing on the dust "wash me" The 2 main culprits are The May Company Building and The PNC Center I would be glad to wash the windows or help but do not know whom to contact.

Overall the walk down Euclid on both sides of the street is defeinitely not as bad as ur description. i think you are talking about the crosswalks at the euclid/E9th intersection. i agree that it comes off as  lazy that they didnt put the bricks back correctly with all the different construction projects post-Euclid Corridor.

THe new trees ,especially in this drought, will go into an early hibernation and shut down leaves and branches. Also, a lot of downtown trees have been abused of late by the throngs of people at recent events.

agree that the windows could be better, but whats worse ,of course, is  all the buildings with no glass windows, plywood, plastic tarp or broken window panes. THis is really disheartening as we are now far into our downtown revitalization now.

 

The 2 flame sculptures at both ends of East 4th Street desperately need repairs before the RNC, Cardboard covers broken panels as well as metal straps hanging carelessly

i havent noticed this. Dont expect much out of the Marons tho.

 

The Stephen Manka "chorus line" sculpture along the center median in Playhouse Square has faulty lighting.

I hear ya on this one. This is aggravating

the lights on Chorus Line have been off for about a year and a half now. Suposedly it made for  'too much' going on at Playhouse sq. Sensory overload was the thinking post-Chandelier /Euclid ave sidewalk lighting. its a shame . a good example of the "Cleveland way."

 

Lastly, why did PNC remove the kinetic sculpture by George Rickey. I miss it's presence

for obvious reasons - to discourage climbing it, this was taken down before the Championship parade but i want to say that it was even down before Game 7. it should be staying down to avoid being used for arobatic events by anarchist-types protesting at the RNC conventoin.

Or PNC plaza may be needed for something else ...the flower pots in this specific area had the flowers removed once again (?today), as did all of them up and down E9 . After just putting them back after the Cavs parade

 

 

 

 

Dead trees in stone planters along Superior in 9-12 District are being taken out. These were alive in the spring, not sure what happened to them.

 

Only two light rain showers in the past month. Apparently the city doesn't have the budget to water the trees, but it does have the budget to replace them?

 

They're about to have alot more trees to replace here soon. After someone pointed out the dead patches of grass on Public Square, I started taking a closer look at things around downtown. The Mall has a ton of dead grass and there are dead and dying trees everywhere, especially in the Flats where there are fully grown trees full of leaves that are completely dead now. But I wouldn't put too much blame on the city. We are rated as abnormally dry (http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/) and I wouldn't be surprised if we're in a moderate drought by the end of summer with the rate things are going. Now that I've gone back to work, I noticed a ton of dead/dying trees and grass turned to dust the whole way out to Twinsburg.

 

Still doesn't answer why they can't water them to begin with though. I wonder if its something DCA can handle like they do with the hanging flower baskets?

Dead trees in stone planters along Superior in 9-12 District are being taken out. These were alive in the spring, not sure what happened to them.

 

Many cities have watering crews.  They hit the planters, hanging baskets, median plantings etc. They cruise around in a green water truck.  See them in Chicago all the time on Michigan Avenue.  Could be a private contract with a Mag Mile group but something DCA should consider.

DCA is downtown watering the trees almost every morning

Yea I have definitely seen the DCA watering truck going around downtown. Several large trees between the Westin and the Aecom (formerly Penton Media) Building seem to be dead as well. I don't think the blame can be placed entirely on the city, seems to be a little bit of both neglect and the unusually dry weather. Too bad...

 

 

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^ There are watering crews that regularly hit the flower gardens on the sidewalks along 12th street. They may not be allowed to water the trees? ( I don't know the jurisdictions here), or maybe they're only targeting what they think is most effective. They're definitely out there, though.

^ There are watering crews that regularly hit the flower gardens on the sidewalks along 12th street. They may not be allowed to water the trees? ( I don't know the jurisdictions here), or maybe they're only targeting what they think is most effective. They're definitely out there, though.

 

Just thought I'd add that while there's a lot to criticize out there, the city continues to do a great job with the landscaping on E 12th.

Some of these trees aren't dying but are going dormant because of the heat and drought we are experiencing. Some, though, are dying. Urban street trees have a much higher chance of dying because their root canopies often extend into non-permeable regions, like asphalt roadways and parking lots, and concrete sidewalks, and do not receive the water they need. Even watering its base will do little to help alleviate stress on the tree - it needs to be soaked for about 5' to 15' from base.

At long last you can all relax... it seems the monument sign for 200 Public Square is coming.

 

And here we go

 

Is that an LED panel? Or just a gray panel?

It's a backlit panel. More of a bronze color.

That doesn't look real. Haha I thought it was another rendering

 

 

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If that is the 200 public square tenants where are people like Huntington? Also I agree it does look like a rendering lol. It doesn't bother me much though it's only an office sign.

 

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The Stephen Manka "chorus line" sculpture along the center median in Playhouse Square has faulty lighting.

I hear ya on this one. This is aggravating

the lights on Chorus Line have been off for about a year and a half now. Suposedly it made for  'too much' going on at Playhouse sq. Sensory overload was the thinking post-Chandelier /Euclid ave sidewalk lighting. its a shame . a good example of the "Cleveland way."

 

 

It appears that this is being fixed

 

The Ameritrust Clock has been repaired !

The Ameritrust Clock has been repaired !

 

Now if they could just set the clock back to 1989, before Ameritrust merged with Key so that we could stop that merger and so that the Jacobs lot on Public Square could be developed with that 60-story tower!!!

The Stephen Manka "chorus line" sculpture along the center median in Playhouse Square has faulty lighting.

I hear ya on this one. This is aggravating

the lights on Chorus Line have been off for about a year and a half now. Suposedly it made for  'too much' going on at Playhouse sq. Sensory overload was the thinking post-Chandelier /Euclid ave sidewalk lighting. its a shame . a good example of the "Cleveland way."

 

 

It appears that this is being fixed

 

Sad thing is these are probably only being fixed because of the RNC. I hate that Cleveland waits until major events come to keep the city up to standard.

 

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The Stephen Manka "chorus line" sculpture along the center median in Playhouse Square has faulty lighting.

I hear ya on this one. This is aggravating

the lights on Chorus Line have been off for about a year and a half now. Suposedly it made for  'too much' going on at Playhouse sq. Sensory overload was the thinking post-Chandelier /Euclid ave sidewalk lighting. its a shame . a good example of the "Cleveland way."

 

 

It appears that this is being fixed

 

Sad thing is these are probably only being fixed because of the RNC. I hate that Cleveland waits until major events come to keep the city up to standard.

 

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If that is what it takes to get things done, than let's get more major events to come to the CLE.

 

Also, did anyone get any shots of the silo's being lit up last night on the east bank of the flats? If so, can you please post them.

 

^Thats the thing though that shouldn't be what it takes. They should want the city to gleam no matter the time or situation.

 

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I saw lights on the silos recently. they weren't completely illuminated, but had colorful dancing spotlights on them. it was somewhat underwhelming, but i only saw it for a second

.

I saw lights on the silos recently. they weren't completely illuminated, but had colorful dancing spotlights on them. it was somewhat underwhelming, but i only saw it for a second

I saw them last night. It's constantly changing from full color to multi-color to hardly any color.

We saw this creative pop-up putt-putt near the Main Ave. Bridge. RT if you want more of these along the river! https://t.co/Yt6XSqpQiO

A metroparks run minigolf course in the newly created park in the flats next to settlers landing would be fantastic

 

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Cavaliers Nation

Iconic LeBron James Banner to Be Replaced in Downtown Cleveland

 

The stature of Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James was forever cemented when he led his team to the franchise’s first NBA title last June. To acknowledge that feat, an iconic banner that’s been a part of downtown Cleveland since he returned (and before he left in 2010) will be getting an updated look in time for the start of the season.

 

The Associated Press is reporting that the new banner should be up by this Friday, four days before the Cavaliers open the 2016-17 campaign. While no sneak peak is currently available, the new banner is expected to keep the image of James performing his former pre-game move: the chalk toss.

 

MORE:

http://cavaliersnation.com/2016/10/17/iconic-lebron-james-banner-to-be-replaced/

^Somewhat related.

 

 

I noticed one of the banners on the (the south facing window on the corner of Huron and Ontario) says the this:

 

 

ALL FOR ONE

WON FOR ALL

 

 

 

 

I like that

 

 

 

Nice LED flood lamps.

What the heck has happened to the trees lining the Mall around the convention center!?  Sorry for the bad quality, but big swaths look like they are dead.  These were nicely maturing trees too!

 

EDIT: Forgot about the Photobucket issues with posting pics, won't work for me.  But the trees along Mall C near city hall are the ones I see appear to be dead.

They just cut down a bunch of trees on Payne today right across from the FOP.

 

I'm going to assume it was to keep people from hanging out under them since the new school is opening next week.

For a city that claims to love trees they really force residents to work hard to protect whatever trees they can. I feel like really great tree canopies are constantly being destroyed,

What the heck has happened to the trees lining the Mall around the convention center!?  Sorry for the bad quality, but big swaths look like they are dead.  These were nicely maturing trees too!

 

EDIT: Forgot about the Photobucket issues with posting pics, won't work for me.  But the trees along Mall C near city hall are the ones I see appear to be dead.

 

I have no idea what kind of trees they are, but I was out yesterday and was wondering if it was some sort of a disease. You would've thought it was fall outside there were so many leaves on the ground.