The recession pushed many people to trade in conventional careers for artistic pursuits. But establishing an arts studio or workshop is expensive and time consuming. Enter the ready-made studio. From community darkrooms and wood shops to collaborative sewing and printmaking co-ops, collaborative arts studios continue to pop up to serve the burgeoning "maker class."

If you don't know the name Scott Kim, then you likely have been missing out on some of the most thrilling food presently served in Cleveland. Kim's Shaker Square restaurant Sasa encourages exploration through a bevy of Japanese small plates. With Accent, slated to open in just weeks, the chef's culinary borders will expand past those of Japan to include influences from Korea, India, China and beyond.

When it comes to attracting talent from outside the city, Cleveland "has room for improvement," according to recruiters and other pros tasked with the job. But numerous developments currently taking place in the city are major steps in the right direction, say those same pros.

As city dwellers, we tend to focus on buildings. But it's the spaces in between those structures that matter most, say urban planners. Public spaces bring communities together, improve our physical and mental well-being, and drive social and economic change. The presence and quality of our public spaces is a measure of the desirability of a city.

Neighborhoods that experience revitalization often do so at the expense of their distinctiveness. As an area becomes more appealing, vacant spaces fill up, and higher rents crowd out all but the deepest pockets. Ohio City business owners, developers, and community development groups are fighting that with an unprecedented level of cooperation.

Thanks to crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter, entrepreneurs often overlooked by traditional investment sources are securing much-needed capital to launch their startups. In addition to raising cash, these sites are proving invaluable for testing new ideas, developing a customer base, gaining exposure, and launching ideas into a larger marketplace.

In recent years, Cleveland Municipal School District has opened 14 new high-performing public schools rated Excellent or Effective by the State. The Cleveland Plan, approved this summer by state legislators, will pave the way for even more improvements to the district's schools, making it more likely that urban parents will choose to remain in the city.

Northeast Ohio's 80-plus young professional organizations play a critical role in plugging new talent into Cleveland. Research shows that there’s a 90-day window from when people move to a city to influence them and give them reasons to stay. Once plugged in, these YPs are helping to reshape the city’s future.

High-profile projects like a wind turbine and solar panels combined with aggressive recycling and composting programs give the Tribe a green leg up on much of the competition. By using their standing in the community, the Indians are getting people to think about sustainability, alternative energy, and recycling.

What's next? It's a question we all wish we had the answer to. But for folks looking to settle down, that question undoubtedly refers to place. In this running series, Fresh Water explores emerging Cleveland neighborhoods that are primed for growth. This week, writer Joe Baur examines Slavic Village.

Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski takes us on a visual tour of some of Cleveland's most popular free, outdoor events. With stops at Wade Oval Wednesday, Lakewood Library's Front Porch Concert Series, and Tremont's Arts in August, this colorful sideshow gives viewers a front seat to fun, Cleveland-style.

In the best of cases, getting a book published can take one to three years from start to finish. Or, you can do it the way Richey Piiparinen and Anne Trubek did with Rust Belt Chic: The Cleveland Anthology. The pair of Cleveland writers managed to compress the entire Sisyphean process into an implausible three-month timeframe.

The communities competing for the $1 million Talent Dividend Prize have a modest goal: boosting the number of college degrees in their city by one percentage point. If every participating city meets that goal, it could raise national earnings by a stunning $124 billion.

On Saturday, Aug. 4, the 2012 class was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In this video interview, Dave Motts of the Hall discusses the past, present and future of this remarkable sports repository. Opened in 1963, the Hall of Fame is 50 years old -- and getting ready to embark on its next 50 years of excellence.

When late summer rolls around, my kids and I are desperate for adventure. From our house in the Heights, that usually means we’re heading down the hill to Cleveland, where over the years we’ve discovered countless family-friendly things to see and do. The options are many and growing, but here is our pick for Top 10.

"The burlesque performer was the original sex symbol of America," states Bella Sin, a third generation performer herself. "It was an art form." Come see one of the hottest entertainment forms from the 1950s -- and 2010s -- on Saturday, August 4, when 35 neo-burlesque performers steam up the Beachland Ballroom during the 2nd Annual Ohio Burlesque Festival.

Thanks to the efforts of numerous neighborhood activists, once-blighted properties in Glenville and throughout Cleveland are being transformed into orchards, gardens and inviting green spaces. These incremental quality-of-life improvements are helping to craft a smaller city of higher quality.