the DoD is about a lot more than filling a few storefronts, and revitalizing a commercial main street. the potential impact of this development is almost immeasurable.

 

OK... what sort of potential impact are we talking about?  I'm not necessarily asking for measurables, just a general idea of what success might look like.

Hmmm... that could be a lengthy answer.  i would say to take a look at the DoD website to try to get a real feel for what they are looking to do, it's certainly not "retail".  But there are a lot of ancillary benefits.  We have a staggering amount of some of the top consumer design companies in the nation in NE ohio... albeit spread out everywhere. Step 1 cluster some of these companies with consumer product showrooms.  The A&D community from not just Cleveland but all over come to this centrally located place (these are after all internationally renowned companies, you can see the list of potential tennants on the website). These people come to an area that has ammenities few can match all within a few blocks, dining, entertainment, accomodations, etc. This obviously helps add to the vibrancy of the area (as opposed to just theatre crowds).  Step 2 companies open design studios in PHS office space, even if their main operations are still spread out.  Where do you think the kids graduating CIA will want to work? PHS or Middlefield or North Olmstead? Perhaps that will get the message out to some of these companies, or maybe they just stay small studios.  Once those creative type employees work downtown where do you think they will want to live?  Step 3 residential component.  All this seemlessly mixed with one of the countries best theatre districts.  DoD is about forming a culture of art & design around an already great hub of arts.  The possibilities are limitless.  And you have to start somewhere.  And they aren't just courting the amish to start... PHS RES is hoping to have 3 or 4 tennants up in the first year.

Most of what you previously descibed are ingredients for a funtioning and active neighborhood. 

 

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Step 1 cluster some of these companies with consumer product showrooms.  The A&D community from not just Cleveland but all over come to this centrally located place 

 

Thats going to be the tricky part.  Until that mass is reached, I dont think it would be realistic to expect that people are going to come form all over to.........

 

Do you think they a grasping with the Amish store, or not because it involves design?

 

On a different level, we attempted this in Ohio City with the idea of businesses to play off the WSM (a culinary district) but we see what has won out for that street. 

 

Of special note, was an attempt to get some interest going, we had a "market" of potential small businesses, set up in the Bier Market building, that was meant to spur interest, and it did somewhat but just never took off. 

Maybe part of the plan would be to do something similar in the Halle bldg? 

 

As another note, I have alot of faith in Mr. Ned Hill that is involved.....  Brilliant guy. 

 

Also McCleve.  I couldnt figure out what you were talking about with Mowen.....  It is just Moen 

Good pitch!  PHS has office space that needs to be filled somehow, and this plan leverages an existing regional strength to fill it.  I still can't say I understand the whole idea, especially the involvement of storefronts, but I'm cautiously optimistic.

Just a quick comment - The DOD will not be a success based upon street foot traffic, like a restaurant or card shop.  The showrooms they are trying to attract, for the most part, will not be open to the public.  I am in charge of product development for a company currently located in Midtown.  We have a showroom in our building where we display all the products we manufacture.  During the year buyers from Target, Lowe's, etc. visit us and we present our new lines in our showroom.  From my understanding, the retail storefronts on Euclid would be converted to showrooms like these with the upper floor being company offices.  The idea is that if there are several companies like ours located together the buyers from Target, Macy's, etc. would be able to visit them all in one trip making it much more convenient for them

The thing is willyboy... they already come from all over to see these companies. All. Over.  It's just that now when they come, they have to make 15 different stops, drive hundreds of miles to go all... over... NE Ohio, and stay in motel 6's and eat applebees.  This affords these people the opportunity to land, get downtown, see all the companies they came to see, eat great food, stay in a cool place, go to a ball game, the theatre or a night out.  Needless to say I think their perceptions of "Cleveland" will be a little different.

 

This is the beautiful thing about the DoD.  It's not reinventing the wheel.  It's just clustering a significant economic strength that the region ALREADY has.

Jsz65 and McCleve, that does shine some light.  If they are places that already attract clients from all over, I guess it could make good sense .....  I guess I was getting stuck on the Amish store aspect, and how that played into it. 

 

There is potential and I hope it does work out. 

This idea is creative and distinctive and I want to like it.  But I agree with Willyboy that it doesn't fill an obvious need like East 4th did.  It seems especially incongruous for a theater district, and I don't understand what "the A&D community" has to do with revitalizing a commercial main street.  Honestly it sounds like a trade show.  That seems like a great approach to filling one of the arcades.  Seems a little odd for Playhouse Square.

 

Again... I want to like this.

 

I don't want to assume so I'll say this.  I don't get the sense, that you complete understand what the med marts purpose is, do you understand what the "district of design" purpose is?  It's essentially the medical mart spread out over several existing buildings.  These will be showrooms that architects, designers, and the like shop.

 

Currently a lot of the showrooms are located in beachwood.  You can't get in unless your with your designer or they make an appointment for you.  At times they will be open to the public.  Sample sales happen when the showroom redoes the product line.  Sometimes they invite former clients in just to see the product line.

 

There will be demand from professional buyers, designers, decorators, architects, students, art, creative However, there will be times where the general public can shop.  (i.e. sample sales)

 

Those people will come alone or at time bring their clients.  It supports more of the daytime work crowd and wont put significant traffic on the streets, but the designers will most likely ad creative visibility with their window displays adding vibrancy to the area. 

Just a quick comment - The DOD will not be a success based upon street foot traffic, like a restaurant or card shop. The showrooms they are trying to attract, for the most part, will not be open to the public. I am in charge of product development for a company currently located in Midtown. We have a showroom in our building where we display all the products we manufacture. During the year buyers from Target, Lowe's, etc. visit us and we present our new lines in our showroom. From my understanding, the retail storefronts on Euclid would be converted to showrooms like these with the upper floor being company offices. The idea is that if there are several companies like ours located together the buyers from Target, Macy's, etc. would be able to visit them all in one trip making it much more convenient for them

 

OK that's the part I really don't get... it sounds like we'd be turning our commercial main street into a private trade show.  One more reason for the area's residents to NOT visit Euclid Avenue, as it's being specifically redesigned not to appeal to them.  Why this sudden fetish with non-public uses for our main street? 

 

And the irony of having Target and Macy's corporate buyers window shopping in a commercial district they refuse to service is pretty intense.  Downtown Cleveland: The Home of Consumer Products... unless you're actually a consumer seeking to purchase consumer products. 

Please study the Euclid Avenue Master Retail Plan.

Euclid Avenue Master Retail Plan.

 

Google's not entirely sure what you mean by that.  Is it published under a DoD heading? 

 

And MTS I'm trying to gain an understanding of this, and I'm sorta playing devil's advocate so that I can better sell the concept to others.  And there are plenty of highly educated people, including those who do health care purchasing on a large scale, who also don't understand the medmart concept. 

 

I want DoD to meet with better public acceptance than MM/CC has.  I don't think either has recieved a solid public explanation, and I think such would be of great help in both cases.  On another note, I am personally concerned with the number and size of the public activity dead-zones we seem to wanna put on our renovated main street.  That seems wrong on a conceptual level and it also seems fairly obvious.

Most of what you previously descibed are ingredients for a funtioning and active neighborhood. 

 

Step 1 cluster some of these companies with consumer product showrooms.  The A&D community from not just Cleveland but all over come to this centrally located place 

 

Thats going to be the tricky part.  Until that mass is reached, I dont think it would be realistic to expect that people are going to come form all over to.........

 

Do you think they a grasping with the Amish store, or not because it involves design?

 

On a different level, we attempted this in Ohio City with the idea of businesses to play off the WSM (a culinary district) but we see what has won out for that street. 

 

Of special note, was an attempt to get some interest going, we had a "market" of potential small businesses, set up in the Bier Market building, that was meant to spur interest, and it did somewhat but just never took off. 

Maybe part of the plan would be to do something similar in the Halle bldg? 

 

As another note, I have alot of faith in Mr. Ned Hill that is involved.....  Brilliant guy. 

 

Also McCleve.  I couldnt figure out what you were talking about with Mowen.....  It is just Moen 

 

Willyboy, the problem, straight from one the showrooms I visit (and I will not name them) is that most are located in beachwood.  Not very accessible to all of NE Ohio.  Especially those near the core of downtown, where the majority of new housing is being built or near the growing areas of Detroit-shoreway, Sterling, Ohio City and Tremont.  Nor do designers/decorators, etc., have a good place to wine and dine clients who are shopping the stores.

 

Bringing the stores downtown to attach/build upon the existing infrastructure will be beneficial to the showrooms, the clients and the district itself.

Just a quick comment - The DOD will not be a success based upon street foot traffic, like a restaurant or card shop.  The showrooms they are trying to attract, for the most part, will not be open to the public.  I am in charge of product development for a company currently located in Midtown.  We have a showroom in our building where we display all the products we manufacture.  During the year buyers from Target, Lowe's, etc. visit us and we present our new lines in our showroom.  From my understanding, the retail storefronts on Euclid would be converted to showrooms like these with the upper floor being company offices.  The idea is that if there are several companies like ours located together the buyers from Target, Macy's, etc. would be able to visit them all in one trip making it much more convenient for them

 

OK that's the part I really don't get... it sounds like we'd be turning our commercial main street into a private trade show.  One more reason for the area's residents to NOT visit Euclid Avenue, as it's being specifically redesigned not to appeal to them.  Why this sudden fetish with non-public uses for our main street? 

 

And the irony of having Target and Macy's corporate buyers window shopping in a commercial district they refuse to service is pretty intense.  Downtown Cleveland: The Home of Consumer Products... unless you're actually a consumer seeking to purchase consumer products. 

 

You dont get it do you.  Do I, MayDay, KJP, The Mayor, anyone with a pulse,  have to tell you AGAIN, why there is a delay in building retail in downtown?

 

Euclid should get as many uses as it can.  There is still enough room for adaptive reuse of existing building to bring back retail.

 

However, if the Showrooms want to come, we should turn out backs as items bring in tax dollars!

 

Also, why do you think the showrooms soley for corporate buyers?  Please read my previous post.

Euclid Avenue Master Retail Plan.

 

Google's not entirely sure what you mean by that.  Is it published under a DoD heading? 

 

And MTS I'm trying to gain an understanding of this, and I'm sorta playing devil's advocate so that I can better sell the concept to others.  And there are plenty of highly educated people, including those who do health care purchasing on a large scale, who also don't understand the medmart concept. 

 

I want DoD to meet with better public acceptance than MM/CC has.  I don't think either has recieved a solid public explanation, and I think such would be of great help in both cases.  On another note, I am personally concerned with the number and size of the public activity dead-zones we seem to wanna put on our renovated main street.  That seems wrong on a conceptual level and it also seems fairly obvious.

 

Thats fair, but it seems that you're not listening/reading what anyone has written.  Playing devils advocate or not, with this and several other projects, it's like you've made up your mind about a project, and at the same time admit you don't understand a projects function.

 

I dont feel the explanation is needed.  The non design, arts, decorating and beauty crowd will not understand.

 

Right now four showrooms know I want to remodel my kitchen and are all chomping at the bit.  It's a lucrative business and would bring lots of people downtown who wouldn't otherwise come downtown.

327 you are cracking me up.....

 

MTS, I already know what showrooms those are that you visit (I have a really good memory for stuff like that).

 

327, I get that the focus might be a little bit confusing, (stores/not stores, public/not public) and it may seem that the "closed showroom to the public" concept certainly may not make the most sense for Clevelands main street storefronts (maybe that concept better for midtown, or the tyler complex) but I think they are thinking more broadly, in that it would be a concentration of creativity, and maybe they would have stores and maybe not.  But it is an idea of something to do with an area that has lacked vitality and isnt automatically going to see reatail activity on its own (at least for a while)

 

I think it will certainlly be a work in progress. 

Both MyTwoSense and 327 have been given three days off to remember that they should report problems to the moderators instead of engaging in online fights. Back to the discussion at hand.

It seems to me that the idea has it's pro's, con's and limitations, the most severe of which is that it is not really going to be a public use.  Which is why it would have been nice if the public had more of a say in the plan.  I do think 327 was right that this would have been better for say, the Arcades, or my preference- Superior through the E. 20's.

Why would the public have a say in what private enterprise is doing with their space?  Was the public consulted on which businesses were put in on e. 4th street, gordon square, etc?  just sayin...

I see your point Mr. Mayor... but the public did just make a significant investment in Euclid Avenue.

 

That said, I like what I hear about the DoD.  And as the proud owner of several pieces of furniture from my favorite little shop on Navoo Rd. in Middlefield, I especially like the inclusion of an Amish component.

The public invested in Euclid Avenue... The public did not build the buildings that will house any of these or any other types of tennants  :)

Who decided that this is what the businesses are going to be doing with these buildings?  Did the DCA or PHSF have anything to do with building this consensus (if consensus their is)?

This concept was the brain child of Dan Cuffaro at CIA and Ned Hill at CSU.  The idea was pitched to PHS RES (who controls the buildings) which embraced the idea. The idea was then worked into the Euclid Avenue Retail Plan developed through DCA, HGN, and PHSF (the areas of which this section of euclid goes through).  That to me is the single best thing of the Euclid Avenue Retail plan, for one of the first times in recent memory you have different entities and property owners collaborating on a comprehensive plan for the area. The DoD is really a very small piece of this puzzle.

wow! lots of conversation! good stuff everyone. I am very excited about the dod.. i think it is one of the many steps that can be taken to making this city/downtown really LOOK and FEEL like the major city it is.

 

i think the private/public debate is..well.. debatable, however you can imagine it is going to interact with the street in ways that will ultimately benefit euclid greatly. the storefronts alone will brighten the area with images of progress, downtown shopping (a HUGE need), and a simple sense of commerce. i would think that there will be mixed areas of public access throughout the area.

 

i love cleveland for its establishment of district. i think its extremely important to a vibrant city, though there needs to be a fluid connection between them, which is where we will hopefully be in 10 years.

 

 

My understanding is that, while the primary focus of the district would not be retail per se, the public would be engaged in at least three ways:

 

1) One of the potential draws is that it can be a hub for consumer research. Cleveland and Columbus are already sites for all sorts of product testing because the metros reflect something of an "average American". This type of concentrated district allows the tenants the ability to host special events where they test new product concepts with the general public ... a purveyor of fine coffeemakers has a coffee tasting, a furniture designer has an ergonomic workshop, etc. These could either be focus groups or open to the general public; either way, it begins to bring in residents in an unconventional way. Designers get to test concepts before proceeding to general distribution, tweak anything that doesn't appeal to the consumers, take their recommendations for quality improvements, etc. Clevelanders, meanwhile, get to experience products before the vast majority of Americans do.

 

2) Some of these tenants would indeed have a retail component ... it just wouldn't be the main focus. So you might have storeroom offerings that are not available to the general public but have a small display area that is. Again, if you're a fine coffeemaker designer, your primary interest may be bringing in major buyers, but since you're renting the space anyway, you can dedicate a portion of the storefront to retail space. The beauty of this is that because it's not your primary purpose, you don't have to support your full rent by selling coffeemakers; even if you sell one every three months, your only real loss is the opportunity cost of not using that 200 or 300 sq ft for "buyers' storeroom" space. So it gives us the opportunity to have a retail presence in an area where there is not yet enough retail demand to fully justify the rent costs.

 

3) Some of these spaces would indeed be more focused on the general public than buyers. One type of potential client is one that would be interested in engaging the general public around the history, culture, etc. of product/industrial design; think the V&A in London or the Bauhaus Archives in Berlin or the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen ... or the proposed Schreckengost Archives in Cleveland. Beyond this, there will also be the potential to support more retail establishments in the vacinity because of the clustering of additional workers and students, who themselves would be potential consumers in the neighborhood.

 

I don't know; I love the concept because it could go in so many different positive directions, and almost anything would be additive to a district that, despite its beauty, can feel a little sleepy. And having an emerging design district here may be an additional amenity that can be marketed to potential tenants for the outlet retail strategy forming on Lower Euclid.

 

Cleveland Furniture and Millwork Fair coming to downtown in July

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

May 17, 2010, 5:35PM

 

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Supporters of a downtown district showcasing the region's strengths in product design will test the concept with a furniture fair in mid July.

 

The Cleveland Furniture and Millwork Fair will gather the region's furniture makers -- most of them Amish -- at the Halle Building on Euclid Avenue.

 

For more than 3 years, top officials at Cleveland State University and the Cleveland Institute of Art have pitched the idea of a District of Design near PlayhouseSquare. The area would feature consumer-product showrooms and design studios that would attract buyers from across the country.

 

MORE AT http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/05/furniture_fair_coming_to_downt.html

Remember what Riverfest did the Flats? This could do the same for the District of Design.

 

OK for all you youngin's who have no pre-1990 memories -- Sohio [ok, another update: Sohio was a Cleveland-based predecessor to oil-spill expert BP!] sponsored a family-friendly event called Riverfest in the 1970s and 80s that raised public awareness about the Flats and accelerated the opening of restaurants along the banks of the river. By the early 2000s, the city failed to manage the Flats and it got out of control, scaring off the families and such.

My understanding is that the city killed the Flats on purpose, because all the success down there was not sufficiently family friendly.  As it began to falter, buildings were bought up and left empty to rot, and this helped drive out what life still remained.  The city didn't so much fail as willfully withhold support, in yet another misguided attempt to suburbanize itself after the early 90s upsurge. 

 

Not everything can or should be family friendly.  We had something awesome and organic and we blew it. 

 

Re: DoD I'm still not sold on the concept, but this sounds like a great temporary use for the Halle Building.

My understanding is that the city killed the Flats on purpose, because all the success down there was not sufficiently family friendly.  As it began to falter, buildings were bought up and left empty to rot, and this helped drive out what life still remained.  The city didn't so much fail as willfully withhold support, in yet another misguided attempt to suburbanize itself after the early 90s upsurge. 

 

Not everything can or should be family friendly.  We had something awesome and organic and we blew it. 

 

 

Wow - so many things I want to ask, but I'll let the thread stay on topic.

Downtown furniture fair tests Cleveland's plan to create a District of Design

Published: Monday, July 12, 2010, 8:57 PM

Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

 

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A grand plan to establish a stretch of Euclid Avenue downtown as a hub of product design edges into the spotlight Wednesday and Thursday with a furniture fair.

 

The Cleveland Furniture and Millwork Fair 1.0 features seminars aimed at helping local craftsmen, especially the Amish, build their business and design capacity.

 

The fair culminates more than three years of pitching by Edward "Ned" Hill of Cleveland State University and Daniel Cuffaro of the Cleveland Institute of Art, who believe the region's strength in consumer product design can be leveraged to make Cleveland the "Milan of the Midwest."

 

Their vision includes product showrooms and design studios near PlayhouseSquare. Regional and national buyers would travel here to see cutting-edge product design during the day and enjoy downtown restaurants and entertainment at night.

 

Now, Hill, Cuffaro and supporters that include the Downtown Cleveland Alliance, the city of Cleveland and PlayhouseSquare hope to build momentum again, based on prospective tenants who haven't lost interest -- Amish furniture makers.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/07/downtown_furniture_fair_tests.html

 

^^Is anyone planning on going to this?

Day Two Will Be Open to the Public All Day!

 

 

Cleveland Ohio - Due to the number of requests and inquiries from the general public, the organizers and exhibitors of Cleveland's First Furniture and Millwork Fair have graciously decided to open the exhibits of the fair to the general public for the entire day of Thursday, July 15th. Doors open at 8am.

 

This first-of-its-kind fair is currently taking place in The Halle Building (1212 Huron Rd, E) and features dozens of Northeast Ohio's finest furniture and millwork manufacturers along with several Greater Cleveland artisan woodworkers and local organizations that focus on design techniques and sustainability. Exhibitors include several large and small Amish furniture and millwork manufacturers from Holmes County.

 

At 5:00pm tomorrow, display models will be available for sale to the general public. Do not miss this amazing opportunity to purchase exquisitely crafted hardwood furniture for your home.

 

http://downtowncleveland.com/page/furnitureshow.aspx?parent=12

 

Interesting video:

 

Focus: 'Furniture Fair' is preview of 'Design District'

Jeff Maynor   

Updated: 7/14/2010 7:34:25 PM 

 

CLEVELAND -- You don't see many Amish people at the glitzy theatrical productions at Playhouse Square. Catching a Broadway show doesn't exactly fit their simple way of life.

 

 

But this week you will see Amish visitors around Playhouse Square. Amish furniture makers from Holmes County have come to the city for Cleveland's Furniture Fair.

 

"Until a few years ago, our products sold themselves," said Roy Miller, of Country View Woodworking. "Then things turned down. We hadn't had to market our products before, so we never learned how."

http://www.wkyc.com/news/local/news_article.aspx?storyid=139907&catid=3

 

Why not extend this to the weekend and have more convenient hours for the public?

Why not extend this to the weekend and have more convenient hours for the public?

 

Granted, this could have been an opportunity for those not familiar with merchandise marts to know how they work and how they will bring business into the city.

 

When fully built out, there will be very little public access.  Just like the MM this will be specifically for designers, architects, decorators, etc.

 

You rarely go to the firms in Beachwood.  For instance when they are selling floor samples, as is.  Or off loading bolts of fabric or wallpaper. 

In other words, get used to it folks.  Main Street is not longer for you, John Q Public.

 

District of Design is the right idea, but the wrong place.

I dunno....If retail arrives right next door (E.9-E.12) there is nothing bad about having something that draws people from all over the country in our storefronts.  I mean, how could we possibly fill ALL of them anyways within the next 5+ years? 

 

I personally love the use of E.4th street with the BODIES exhibit, and would much rather it be a showroom/moving event storefront year-round (meaning other exhibts besides the current one).  It adds another draw and dynamic to our Downtown area, and gives another reason for people to come Downtown and to Cleveland.

In other words, get used to it folks.  Main Street is not longer for you, John Q Public.

 

District of Design is the right idea, but the wrong place.

 

Not necessarily.  Are these going to be first floor/street level locations?  If they are located on the second floor or above then I see nothing wrong.  Retail on first floor and the showrooms for various design and design related businesses above.

Unless I'm mistaken, the plan is to use the storefronts for the showrooms (which will not be open to the public, usually).  Again, I could be mistaken, but the DOD is supposed to incorporate Euclid up to 9th, so that should include that storefront space as well.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love the idea.  I just got back from the Furniture and Millwork Fair, which was great.  I just wish that it was going into someplace different, like maybe the warehouses on Superior between East 18th and E. 30th.

Unless I'm mistaken, the plan is to use the storefronts for the showrooms (which will not be open to the public, usually).  Again, I could be mistaken, but the DOD is supposed to incorporate Euclid up to 9th, so that should include that storefront space as well.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love the idea.  I just got back from the Furniture and Millwork Fair, which was great.  I just wish that it was going into someplace different, like maybe the warehouses on Superior between East 18th and E. 30th.

 

HUMM.. Well possibly the showrooms that allow residential sales would be on the ground floor.  However the plus is we get beautiful window displays and the sales in store are at a much higher price point than clothing retail.

^^ Provided that we assume that Euclid Ave. will eventually become a popular street for pedestrians, it would become unprofitable for non-public showrooms to take up streetfront retail (or at least they're leaving money on the table). For now, I don't think it matters, as long as there's some open-to-the-public businesses interspersed and it is not entirely devoted to a single use. Workers and customers will provide the on-foot street traffic needed to support diverse retail.

^^ Provided that we assume that Euclid Ave. will eventually become a popular street for pedestrians, it would become unprofitable for non-public showrooms to take up streetfront retail (or at least they're leaving money on the table). For now, I don't think it matters, as long as there's some open-to-the-public businesses interspersed and it is not entirely devoted to a single use. Workers and customers will provide the on-foot street traffic needed to support diverse retail.

 

Really?  Those showrooms are high dollar sales floors.  This isn't a $50 shirt we're talking about.  Your designer/decorator is spending on a fridge; Fabric, paint, fixtures, etc.  And that could be spread over several store.  Lets not forget, just because the showrooms are there that doesn't mean other home furnishing, design related business that move to or open up in the area wont have retail sales.

 

The way I interpret this, it's not just opening showrooms but creating an entire industry in the district.

Really? Those showrooms are high dollar sales floors. This isn't a $50 shirt we're talking about. Your designer/decorator is spending on a fridge; Fabric, paint, fixtures, etc. And that could be spread over several store. Lets not forget, just because the showrooms are there that doesn't mean other home furnishing, design related business that move to or open up in the area wont have retail sales.

 

The way I interpret this, it's not just opening showrooms but creating an entire industry in the district.

 

Maybe I misunderstood the plan, but if the showrooms are not open to the public, then wouldn't their customers deliberately seek them out instead of just "stroll down the street?" If that's the case, what value does a storefront add to their business? I can see showrooms with similar goods trying to "poach" other clients through street advertising, but aren't we talking about a wide diversity of products here rather than just Amish furniture?

 

Don't get me wrong, I don't mind showrooms opening storefronts. But if we're truly aiming to urbanize the area, streetfront property will need to mostly be devoted to public uses. A closed-to-the-public storefront creates a dead spot of life on that street and throws up a subconscious barrier for the pedestrian. This is fine if it's interspersed with diverse attractions like stores, restaurants, art galleries within view, but I'd be much more worried if the plan is to have a solid, unbroken chain of nonpublic uses. My worries might be unfounded--I haven't seen the master retail plan.

I agree with ccars.  I thought the vision for Euclid was to be some kind of pseudo Magnificent Mile.  im not sure that areas not intended for public use would be best for the street.  I could be off base, but thats the impression I get.

i think we are all due for a nice reading of the DOD website. the spaces are meant to be all over the area, not just euclid streetfront property. also, at the end there is a final mission statement/idea to make a "furniture mart" which would be an open mall-type program to the public for access to the products that are designed and produced.

i think we are all due for a nice reading of the DOD website.

 

Could you possibly scare us up a link, Scav? At least, for that retail plan referred to earlier? (the website seems quite sparse)

Wasn't there also a plan also that called for factory/outlet stores on lower Euclid?

Wasn't there also a plan also that called for factory/outlet stores on lower Euclid?

 

Never.  Having "low cost" stores in a "high rent" area doesn't make since.  I doubt we'll ever see numerous factory/outlet stores concentrated in a downtown.

Wasn't there also a plan also that called for factory/outlet stores on lower Euclid?

 

Yes, sort of.  They called for "upscale outlet" retail, but nothing really on Euclid, more on Superior.  Here's a few links:

 

http://www.downtownclevelandalliance.com/uploads/Work/Euclid%20Corridor/Retail%20Study/euclid%20corridor%20phase%20II%20_smaller%20version.pdf

 

http://blog.cleveland.com/business/2009/03/clevelands_downtown_considered.html

 

That is separate from the District of Design, though.  There's a discussion in the Cleveland Retail News thread.

i think we are all due for a nice reading of the DOD website.

 

Could you possibly scare us up a link, Scav? At least, for that retail plan referred to earlier? (the website seems quite sparse)

 

yea yea no worries, when i wrote the comment i was at work and a little rushed ;)

 

but here you can see a plan view of where the "district" is they want to create.

http://www.districtofdesign.com/geo_over.html

 

and here is where they talk about the eventual goal of a public market. this is of course years down the road though:

http://www.districtofdesign.com/market.html

Yeah I thought about that too Jborger.  If medical suppliers get shut out, there is plenty of space for them to lease downtown to set up their own showroom. 

 

Can the Design District proposed for Euclid Avenue be morphed into a medical showroom district? It is on the HealthLine, after all! ;)