Stephen Manka has installed public art throughout the city. His subtle methods, however, reveal myriad connections between Clevelanders, their spaces and their history.

Fresh Water managing photographer Bob Perkoski rarely lets a Cleveland icon go unrecorded no matter how humble it may be.

Liz Ferro, founder of Girls With Sole, is on a mission to help girls turn to fitness for healing in the long run.

The Spring 2016 issue of CAN Journal marks the beginning of a partnership between Collective Arts Network and the Cleveland Foundation to broaden awareness of the Foundation's Creative Fusion international artist residency program. The new issue will be released at the Bonfoey Gallery, 1710 Euclid Avenue, in tandem with the opening of Ron Barron's Gleanings with a reception from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, March 4. This event is free and open to the public.

Each year since 2008, the Foundation has brought artists from around the world to Cleveland for three-month residencies hosted by local nonprofit organizations. The new issue of CAN introduces audiences to the Spring 2016 cohort, which is hosted by Zygote Press, the Cleveland Print Room, Verb Ballets, Inlet Dance Theater, The Center for Arts-Inspired Learning, and The Sculpture Center. Artists of the Spring cohort hail from Albania, Pakistan, South Africa, and Taiwan.

In addition to Creative Fusion, the new issue of CAN includes feature stories on two African American artists whose work deals with race matters, Darius Steward and Clotilde Jimenez, and on what the Cleveland Institute of Art's new unified campus means to the organization's past and future, a review of Unfixed at Transformer Station, comprehensive event listings, and previews of upcoming shows at three-dozen galleries.

The YMCA's 40,000 square feet of premium health and wellness space is finally set to open at its new home in the Galleria.

Current members are invited to the two-story Parker Hannifin Downtown YMCA  starting March 21, with a grand opening celebration slated for March 29, says marketing director Amanda Lloyd.

Amenities at the much-anticipated facility include over 70 pieces of cardio and strength equipment and a three-lane lap pool. Members can also enjoy group exercise studios, a spinning area, message therapy rooms, and a health clinic complete with an on-site physician.

Pilates, acupuncture, hot yoga and biometric screenings will be among the programming available, notes Lloyd. The new YMCA is expected to house twice as many fitness devotees as its current location at East 22nd Street and Prospect Avenue, which holds nearly 3,250 members.

The Prospect location will close March 20, meaning members won't have a delay in service, Lloyd says. The old building, sold to a Texas-based company last year, will be maintained as private student housing.

All of the YMCA's functions will move to the Galleria, where the gym will take up a former retail space. The organization has raised $7 million for a project budgeted at $12 million, with $3 million coming from Parker Hannifin. YMCA will tap grant money and individual donations for the balance of the financial package. The project is also set to employ 40 full-time and part-time workers, including personal trainers, lifeguards and housekeepers.

Membership enrollment will cost $50 monthly for young professionals ages 18 to 29, $65 for adults and $105 for a household.

YMCA officials believe the gym can be an anchor for a downtown population projected by Downtown Cleveland Alliance to balloon to 18,000 within the next two years.

"There are some vacant storefronts (in the Galleria), but around us there's a good core of corporations and people living downtown," says Lloyd. "Moving to this space seemed like the perfect fit." 

Didn't Fresh Water just report on the benefits of the Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit? Why, yes, we did. And then this pops into our feed from MoviePilot:

"They didn’t share any 'Captain America: Civil War' spoilers, but directors Joe and Anthony Russo told fans that 'Avengers: Infinity War' could land in Cleveland.

'It’s on the list,' said Anthony.

The reveal took place Saturday during a Wizard World Comic-Con Cleveland panel titled 'Let’s Shut Down Some Streets: Bringing the Avengers, Captain America and the Russo Brothers to Cleveland.'

The Russos, who grew up in Cleveland and graduated from Case Western Reserve University, were joined by Ivan Schwarz, director of the Greater Cleveland Film Commission. The trio discussed how the region could grow its production slate and how it could attract more features to Northeast Ohio.

The first step, said Schwarz, was getting the Ohio legislature to raise the motion picture tax incentive from $25 million a year to $75 million. That’s legislation will go before Ohio lawmakers this spring."

Get the whole story here.

A tip of the hat to Tom Tenant, who champions films and filmmaking in the Midwest - primarily Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Detroit (but mostly Cleveland), for this great tip. Readers can follow his musings on Midwest Movie Maker.

Earlier this month, Burton D. Morgan Foundation Trustees approved more than $3.2 million in grants to organizations that promote entrepreneurship in Northeast Ohio. 
 
Beneficiaries include:

St. Clair Superior Development Corporation - $100,000 to develop youth entrepreneurship opportunities that integrate the unique maker culture of the St. Clair Superior neighborhood into Northeast Ohio’s rich entrepreneurship programming (2 years).

JumpStart - $1,000,000 to support the expansion of the Burton D. Morgan Mentoring Program to serve companies in new sectors (3 years).

Case Western Reserve University - $193,381 to support the publication of a book and the design and execution of data collection protocols associated with the Beyond Silicon Valley massive online open course (2 years).

Hawken School - $100,000 to support the development of a digital platform for the Hawken Educators Workshop, and provide scholarships for public school educators in Northeast Ohio to attend the workshop (2 years).

Notre Dame College - $100,000 to support entrepreneurship programming in 2016 and 2017 ($50,000) and to secure and improve program space on campus in 2016 ($50,000).
 
A complete list of grantees is available here.

While Interstate highways connected Cleveland proper with points across the county and beyond, the street-level impact on dense urban neighborhoods was profound and enduring. Guest contributor Tim Kovach reveals this topic with a sobering bird's eye view.

The Ohio Motion Picture Tax Credit has created the equivalent of 1,729 full-time jobs since 2011 and generated more than $400 million in economic impact - and Northeast Ohio has had a starring role in all of it.

Approximately 200,000 Leap Year babies in the United States celebrate their real birthday once every four years on Feb. 29. This year, if they do so at the area's Hard Rock Cafes' downtown or Northfield Park locations, they'll receive a free entree from Hard Rock Cafe’s "Leaplings Eat Free" menu, items on which include Twisted Mac, Chicken & Cheese; the Veggie Leggie and the Hickory-Smoked Pulled Pork Sandwich among others.
 
Get all the details here.

It may still be February, but March is set to come in like a lion, with a bevy of short alt films, a celebration of Leonard Bernstein and a glittering green art opening.

Joe Calabrese, CEO and General Manager of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) advocated for more transit funding in testimony on Feb. 16 at the Statehouse.

"RTA is the largest public transportation agency in Ohio. My employees, who reside in 16 of Ohio counties, serve approximately 50 million customers each year in Cuyahoga and several neighboring counties," said Calabrese in his address.

"Public transit in Ohio is a $900 million industry that supports many manufacturers, suppliers and jobs.

Public transit gets workers to work, students to school, connects important destinations, drives economic development and provides mobility to many Ohioans who have no other mobility option due to economic realities or disabilities."

Read his comments in their entirety here.