June 22, 200618 yr Armed assailant rapes woman in Westlake Cleveland.com 10:55 a.m. A 23-year-old Brazilian au pair was kidnapped at gunpoint early Wednesday from the Promenade shopping center in Westlake and raped, police said. The woman told police that a man forced his way into her car about midnight, pushed her into the passenger seat and covered her head. She said he sexually assaulted her twice and drove her around for approximately four hours before letting her go on Lands End Lane. The assailant took her car and the victim went to a house where the residents called 9-1-1. Emergency workers took the woman to St. John-Westshore Hospital. Police are searching for the attacker who may still be driving the victim's car, a silver four-door 1999 Honda Civic with Ohio license plate DNG9567. Anyone with information on the incident can call police at 440-871-3311
June 22, 200618 yr This is deplorable. Just when I was starting to think positively about Stark, he pulls something like this! Cracker Park doesn't deserve any culture... Free Times, June 23, 2006 Chatter: Will Beck Seek Its Fortunes Out West? Beck Center For the Arts Considers Its Future, Possibly In Westlake Just in case anyone was wondering, it looks like Beck Center for the Arts does have something in common with the Cleveland Cavaliers after all. Just like the basketball team, the community-based performing and visual arts center is feeling the pull of a distant suburb. Beck Center COO Jim Walton confirmed long-circulating rumors that the arts complex formerly known as Lakewood Little Theater is considering redevelopment options, one of which includes relocation to now-vacant land near Crocker Park shopping center, in Westlake. .........
June 22, 200618 yr Armed assailant rapes woman in Westlake Cleveland.com 10:55 a.m. A 23-year-old Brazilian au pair was kidnapped at gunpoint early Wednesday from the Promenade shopping center in Westlake and raped, police said. The woman told police that a man forced his way into her car about midnight, pushed her into the passenger seat and covered her head. She said he sexually assaulted her twice and drove her around for approximately four hours before letting her go on Lands End Lane. The assailant took her car and the victim went to a house where the residents called 9-1-1. Emergency workers took the woman to St. John-Westshore Hospital. Police are searching for the attacker who may still be driving the victim's car, a silver four-door 1999 Honda Civic with Ohio license plate DNG9567. Anyone with information on the incident can call police at 440-871-3311 Just asking but, shouldn't this be in the cleveland crime thread instead?
June 22, 200618 yr Just asking but, shouldn't this be in the cleveland crime thread instead? At first I thought you were referring to the possibility of Beck Center going to Crocker Park! "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 22, 200618 yr In regards to the Beck Center, It would be an absolute shame if it left Lakewood all together. The Beck Center does provide some great classes and programs - especially for children. I wouldn't be opposed to them openning a small satelite campus in Crocker Park to attract a new market and earn more revenue, but they really should keep their main campus in Lakewood. Beck Center has always seemed to me like one of Lakewood's greatest assets (other than St. Edward).
June 23, 200618 yr I'd hate to poach from Lakewood, but wouldn't it be great if this thriving cultural institution could be brought Downtown? They could raise their own profile with the move, and bring vibrancy to Downtown. Instead of suggesting to me that they move west, the fact that 75% of their market comes from Lakewood-West tells me that there is plenty of room for them to capture more market if they were more visible to the rest of the metro area.
July 11, 200618 yr Here is another little odd novelty they've added to Crocker Park. They have actually added carriage rides. I was extremely skeptical about this succeeding, because the route through Crocker Park isn't that long to merrit a carriage ride in my opinion - but people are using it quite frequently. Not only is it being used frequently, but occasionaly there are lines of people waiting.
July 11, 200618 yr Borders on? I'd say it crossed the line when the idea was still a twinkle in Bob Stark's eye.
July 11, 200618 yr I don't think you can deny that Crocker Park is a pretty intelligent development for a city like Westlake, but when then do things like this it certainly does border on the absurd. Did you know they are putting croquet lawns in the residential phase being designed by Coral Co.?
July 15, 200618 yr Yeah, but some are going ape over Crocker Park.... ________________ Monkey business in Westlake 4:48 p.m. Westlake - Thursday proved to be a night of monkey business for police dealing with calls at Crocker Park. Just before 10 p.m., police and security guards were dealing with a complaint at a restaurant when they witnessed someone clad in a gorilla suit playing in the shopping center’s fountain. As they approached and ordered the prankster to stop, the "ape" took off, loping away simian-style and drawing laughter from bystanders, according to police. The fleet-footed joker disappeared into the Union Street garage, where police later found the abandoned gorilla outfit. The suit now sits in a police property room. By Damian Guevara, [email protected] "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 15, 200618 yr This gorilla guy is infamous for crashing backyard parties throughout Westlake. He doesn't cause any trouble, and most people in Westlake find it humorous. Most people have no idea about his identity, but he is recent graduate of Westlake High. I don't know him personally, but I know people who know him.
July 28, 200618 yr From West Life, 7/26/06: Crocker Park requests changes in remaining development Revised building plan moves hotel site, adds Cleveland Clinic building By Kevin Kelley Westlake Published July 26, 2006 Crocker Park officials are requesting significant changes to the development plan Westlake City Council approved in the summer of 2000. The changes include: Building a hotel at the corner of Detroit and Crocker roads, just east of The Promenade Shopping Center. Adding a freestanding medical office building at the south end of the retail/residential district. The building would contain doctor offices and other medical facilities associated with the Cleveland Clinic, according to Robert Parry, the citys director of planning and economic development. Extending Main Street south an additional block. But instead of first floor retail stores with apartments above, the new block would have townhouses on the ground level. The townhouses represent residential space previously slotted for the medical office building site. Robert Stark, chief executive officer of Stark Enterprises, the developer of Crocker Park, said in an e-mail that extending Main Street with townhouses will locate more residents in the heart of the community. READ MORE AT: http://www.westlifenews.com/2006/07-26/cp-changes.html
October 30, 200618 yr On Crocker Park's 2nd anniversary, progress and more plans When Bob Stark unveiled Crocker Park in Westlake two years ago this month, some had doubts it would be anything more than another shopping center, let alone the mixed-use lifestyle center the developer had promised. ....A look at Stark's latest efforts reveals an emphasis not on upscale shopping but on: -- Upscale housing. Coral Co. of Beachwood has begun construction on Westhampton, which will include 116 for-sale homes ranging in price from $290,000 to more than $700,000. -- Upscale hotels. For more than a year Stark has been talking about a "boutique-style" hotel he originally expected to open in the summer. Delays have pushed back construction to 2007, but Stark is not discouraged. "Actually, I'd like to be able to build two," the developer said. -- Arts and entertainment. Stark aggressively pitched, but ultimately failed, to lure the Beck Center for the Arts away from nearby Lakewood. The effort is emblematic of his pursuit of more community-oriented services, such as a Central Park-style gathering area with chess garden. -- Health and wellness. Construction has begun on a Gold's Gym, expected to open next spring. The 46,520-square-foot location will include a pool, elevated track, and basketball, racquetball and squash courts as well as more than 150 cardio machines and a women-only fitness area. In the past, "we've just settled for mediocre fitness facilities," Stark bragged. Stark said he's also in negotiations with the Cleveland Clinic to open a $75 million suburban campus on the property. It would be just as much a coup as snagging the Beck Center, but a Clinic spokeswoman would not confirm Crocker Park as a possible destination for an expanded, West Side family health center. The Clinic has a facility nearby on Clemens Road. -- Education. Another potential recruit is Cuyahoga Community College, which is interested in opening an adult-learning branch at Crocker Park. Tri-C spokesman Michael Devlin said the college is "in very serious discussions with Bob Stark," but trying to determine funding. Gross! I can't believe he even put Crocker Park and Central Park in the same sentence. And I only lived in NYC for three months, but I thought Washington Square Park was the chess mecca.
October 31, 200618 yr The full Crocker Park article was printed today. It was kind of amusing... http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/1162287766173250.xml&coll=2 Tuesday, October 31, 2006 Henry J. Gomez Plain Dealer Reporter When Bob Stark unveiled Crocker Park in Westlake two years ago this month, some had doubts it would be anything more than another shopping center, let alone the mixed-use lifestyle center the developer had promised. It didn't help that only six stores were ready for the grand opening. West Siders expected a splashy debut, much like the arrival of Legacy Village on the East Side a year earlier. Today, 52 retailers are open at Crocker Park. The more than 150 apartments built above the street-level stores are 98 percent leased. And with several big projects in the works, the property has become one of the hottest pieces of real estate in Cleveland's western suburbs. READ MORE AT THE LINK ABOVE
November 1, 200618 yr I boycott reading the rest of this. Henry Gomez, come back when you write something that doesn't make me feel icky!
November 1, 200618 yr good, then you wont see me making fun of you in this thread. Oh, Pope, I stopped reading your comments days ago.
June 7, 200718 yr Link contains a photo. From West Life, 2/28/07: Hoggys Restaurant closes By Kevin Kelley Westlake Published Feb. 28, 2007 Crocker Park experienced its first commercial casualty. Hoggys Restaurant closed at the end of business Feb. 18. Tim Huter, the chains CEO, personally drove from corporate headquarters in Columbus to tell employees the news. It was a pretty sad day for us, Huter told West Life. Weve never closed a location before because of poor sales. Employees reacted with tears and sadness, Huter said, but not anger. The locations 30 employees have been offered jobs at the chains other Cleveland area restaurant in Valley View. Huter said due to employees schedules and transportation issues, its still unclear how many will accept jobs in Valley View. All of the managers are relocating with Hoggys, he said. Hoggys in Valley View is doing great, Huter added. READ MORE AT: http://www.westlifenews.com/2007/02-28/hoggysclose.html
June 7, 200718 yr Where is the article implying that Hoggy's departure (a beloved community fixture, of course) means certain commercial doom for Crocker Park?
June 7, 200718 yr Where is the article implying that Hoggy's departure (a beloved community fixture, of course) means certain commercial doom for Crocker Park? that article only comes out if happens in Cleveland Proper.
June 7, 200718 yr honestly, the whole place could go under for all I care! the concept of cheesecake and over sized chess sets doesn't appeal to you? Don't forget the "stylish" denim lounge who only sells sevens and true religion...
June 7, 200718 yr honestly, the whole place could go under for all I care! the concept of cheesecake and over sized chess sets doesn't appeal to you? Don't forget the "stylish" denim lounge who only sells sevens and true religion... ummmm.....NO! As a self admitted shop-a-holic, even I won't shop a Cracker Park!
June 7, 200718 yr Well, there's nothing there you can't get anywhere else. But when you live in Lakewood, it's the closet place to find pants that don't have 12 pleats.
June 8, 200718 yr I know i've said it before on another thread, but I think people on urbanohio are too critical of Crocker Park. I understand why people have issues with it not being an "infill" development, but it could be a lot worse. Let's face it; an upper mid level shopping center on the west side was inevitable. We could have ended up with a lot of the same stores in a sprawling shopping mall in Lorain County instead as proposed by Jacob's. It's realy a lesser of two evils. And as far as I can tell, it is the best large scale example of new urbanism by a single developer in Cleveland since Shaker Square. Crocker Park isn't really isn't a "lifestyle" center like Legacy Village or even Easton where its just all about retail and the streetscape. It is a "mixed-use" development with a diverse retail mix including independants and regional chains, basic neighborhood services, residential units, public transit, public space, offices, and parking garages. And it was planned more seamless into the community than people on this forum would like to realize. You have multi-tenant buildings being built just east of Crocker Park on Crocker Road, and medium density housing just south of Crocker Parck all the way to Hilliard. As someone who has grown up in the western suburbs, but is more urban-inclined, I see Crocker Park as an important warm-up for the suburban population. Most people in Westlake were actually afraid of Crocker Park when they heard about it, because they were afraid of density. I remember sitting outside the cafe at Borders when Crocker Park was being built and I overheard a woman say "Why are they building it so close [to the Promenade]?!" In fact I know some people who were so outraged that Crocker Park was approved for construction that they moved to Avon Lake. I'm not sure if they regret the move today, but the point is those people ended up liking Crocker Park and shopping there. Crocker Park has done a good job at proving to a suburban-inclined population that density and mixed-use development aren't bad things. In fact, I think it will create a greater demand for even higher density and mixed-development in Cleveland, which is a good thing.
June 8, 200718 yr Well said, Vulpster. I totally agree. I would much rather see this type of construction within the county then crap like Legacy... or even the worse crap in Avon.
June 8, 200718 yr well said. I was suprised but some peoples joy in the fact that Hoggy's closed at Crocker Park - what NEO does NOT need is additional vacant stores in retail centers across the area. Whether or not you shop at Crocker Park - its success has a great impact on whether or not additional retailers will located to the various projects happening downtown and the suburbs.
June 8, 200718 yr if DaninDC were still here, he'd babble on about the cannibalization of NEO. Didn't we talk about that in a different thread? Waaaay, to much retail space?
June 8, 200718 yr Vulpster, what are you comparing Crocker Park to? If you are saying it isn't that bad in relation to Legacy, Eaton, or whatever hellhole shopping mall, you're comparing shit against worst shit? And as far as warming people up to urban living, I think that is a false analysis. If anything, it gives a false impression of what real urbanism is, and probably scares them from the real thing. The city is more than streetside chain restaurants and clothing stores. It's the small family run badega, buses chugging down the street, the babbling homeless guy on the corner, the abandoned building being turned into housing, buildings not built with styrofoam. Granted, Cleveland could be a bit more dense and contain les homeless, but it gives people something to get behind and make better. The same will never be said about the love child of urban sprawl and the consumer society. I know you are saying it was an inevitible development, but it trying to pass itself off as something "urban" is something I will not patronize, or buy into. I unhappily go to Great Northern when need be.
June 8, 200718 yr There is always demand for retail in newer suburban areas. If they're going to build it, keep building it like this. It looks nice, there are not massive surface lots, good landscaping, and it has mixed uses. I can't understand what people think what look better than this for a suburban shopping area.
June 8, 200718 yr Vulpster, what are you comparing Crocker Park to? If you are saying it isn't that bad in relation to Legacy, Eaton, or whatever hellhole shopping mall, you're comparing shit against worst shit? And as far as warming people up to urban living, I think that is a false analysis. If anything, it gives a false impression of what real urbanism is, and probably scares them from the real thing. The city is more than streetside chain restaurants and clothing stores. It's the small family run badega, buses chugging down the street, the babbling homeless guy on the corner, the abandoned building being turned into housing, buildings not built with styrofoam. Granted, Cleveland could be a bit more dense and contain les homeless, but it gives people something to get behind and make better. The same will never be said about the love child of urban sprawl and the consumer society. I know you are saying it was an inevitible development, but it trying to pass itself off as something "urban" is something I will not patronize, or buy into. I unhappily go to Great Northern when need be. A) Its B o dega, not Badega. Aye dios Mio! B) Our homeless population is small compared to other cities our size c) I agree its a faux "urban" piece of crap!
June 8, 200718 yr A) Its B o dega, not Badega. Aye dios Mio! B) Our homeless population is small compared to other cities our size c) I agree its a faux "urban" piece of crap! oh please dear god, no one dive into that bullet point. (I'm serious)
June 8, 200718 yr Me either. I suppose 50 years from now, the youngsters of the time will be complaining that the new retail is not being built like it was in the good old days in the early 2000's. They will be saying, "Why don't developers build things like they did with Crocker Park," just like we say regarding Shaker Square. I applaud Westlake and everyone involved with the building of the development. There is no way any city will build things like they were in Cleveland, Lakewood, etc. Those were built over a long period of time. Westlake has not only retail, but office and housing. Plus (I have to tell this to people who will "never set foot" in the area), the spin off development is a reality. There is construction all over the place. Don't get me wrong, I am disappointed this is not happening in Cleveland. But I would rather loose opportunities to Westlake doing things as best as they can then to suburbs building purely for their own misinformed "economic development." And I am really sick of hearing people complain about Crocker Park. Do I expect it to stop? NO! Thats how people are... always giving there subjective opinion about things. I'm crabby - I need to eat lunch now. I wish I had money to go to Champps in Westlake. :-D
June 8, 200718 yr If Stark had built a redux of the strip center Promenade, which he built in 1990 next door, we'd be reaming him for an unimaginative, surface-parking dominated sprawlplex. I think Crocker Park helps suburbanites realize there is nothing to fear with density, a type of remedial urbanism or "density for dummies." On that score, I can't fault Stark. But I don't like it when people who should know better call Crocker Park something it's not. Like Westlake Mayor Dennis Clough calling it "downtown Westlake." Or RTA GM Joe Calabrese calling it a transit-oriented development when no effort was made to substitute transit accessibility for parking needs. In reality, transit was a minor afterthought at Crocker Park. The place is simply faux urbanism. Even Stark called it a laboratory experiment for what he wants to do in downtown Cleveland (a real downtown!). "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 8, 200718 yr I know you are saying it was an inevitible development, but it trying to pass itself off as something "urban" is something I will not patronize, or buy into. I unhappily go to Great Northern when need be. So you shop at the sprawling parking lot-city that is Great Northern out of spite? Yeah, that makes alot of sense.
June 8, 200718 yr Does anyone know what they are building on the corner of Detroit and Crocker? I assume its just some outparcel restaurant, but isn't that where they were supposed to build a hotel?
June 8, 200718 yr Vulpster, what are you comparing Crocker Park to? If you are saying it isn't that bad in relation to Legacy, Eaton, or whatever hellhole shopping mall, you're comparing shit against worst shit? And as far as warming people up to urban living, I think that is a false analysis. If anything, it gives a false impression of what real urbanism is, and probably scares them from the real thing. The city is more than streetside chain restaurants and clothing stores. It's the small family run badega, buses chugging down the street, the babbling homeless guy on the corner, the abandoned building being turned into housing, buildings not built with styrofoam. Granted, Cleveland could be a bit more dense and contain les homeless, but it gives people something to get behind and make better. The same will never be said about the love child of urban sprawl and the consumer society. I know you are saying it was an inevitible development, but it trying to pass itself off as something "urban" is something I will not patronize, or buy into. I unhappily go to Great Northern when need be. W.28th - To some degree I agree with several of your points, but I'm saying that it is apparent to me that many people viewed density and mixed-use as something inherently distasteful. They liked the sprawling shopping malls like Great Northern, and big box developments with restaurant out parcels like Avon Commons. That's what they associated with higher quality of life; sprawl, chains, and surface parking lots. Crocker Park has completely reversed that notion. For instance, for a long time people had idealized the single family homes with yards and attached garages, and large shopping centers with free parking. Developments like Crocker Park are motivating more people now to idealize mixed use development and walkability. I believe we need to curb urban sprawl and revitalize the metropolitan core, but all of Northeast Ohio should be more responsible for sustainable development, even places like Westlake.
June 8, 200718 yr morningT, thanks for your input that I don't care about. I'm pretty sure I stated that I UNHAPPILY go to the sprawling, parking lot dependant Great Northern Mall. I go there because I want to be no part of a supposed "lifestyle" that is going on at CP. They may not be fooling anybody on this forum, but you can be damn sure the average soccer mom and clueless professional think it's a real city. That place will get no money of mine. Obviously density is a plus, but I don't think it should happen at the expense of the urban core.
Create an account or sign in to comment