Local writer, speaker and entrepreneur Craig James has some big ideas. In fact, he is a regular contributor to NEOtropolis's "What’s the Big Idea" segment on PBS. He and his partner Sue James formed CatalystStrategies, which helps organizations best communicate their message, market and meaning. In this "Letter to Cleveland," James pens an open letter to the city he loves.

Leaders of the institutions that anchor University Circle have long wished for a hotel within walking distance of all of the amenities that the neighborhood has to offer. Now, a public-private partnership, along with $15 million in New Markets Tax Credits and completion of the University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, have finally brought that idea to life.

This month, The Snavely Group broke ground on an eight-story, 153-room Courtyard by Marriott that is scheduled to open this time next year. The hotel is located on Cornell Drive -- just off of Euclid Avenue -- and directly across from the new Seidman Cancer Center and the University Hospitals main campus. The $27 million project is expected to create 135 construction jobs and 55 full-time equivalent jobs.

"The anchor of the Seidman Cancer Center has really given us a market," says Chris Ronayne, President of University Circle Incorporated (UCI), the nonprofit organization that shepherded the project along by assembling the land, securing tax credits and seeking a developer. "Beyond patients and their families, that market is also students, parents, businesspeople and culture-goers."

The new hotel also adds to the impressive development boom that has occurred in University Circle. "This location is the epicenter of a $2 billion Euclid Avenue transformation from East 105th to Lakeview Cemetery," says Ronayne.


Source: Chris Ronayne
Writer: Lee Chilcote

There is a surprisingly rich community of accomplished authors living in Cleveland. In fact, if you take a stroll through Cleveland Heights -- and other artsy neighbs -- you might even bump into one of them. Fresh Water recently bumped into three of them: Dan Chaon, Mary Doria Russell and Thrity Umrigar.

Adam and Susan Fleischer of the Wine Spot in Cleveland Heights have opened a boutique wine and craft beer store at a time when many big box retailers are vying for this same business. Yet, spend a few minutes with them and you'll realize that their infectious enthusiasm and love of wine is also backed up by creativity and a solid business plan.

Adam Fleischer first developed the store concept as a way to ditch his fast-paced corporate lifestyle, spend more time with his family and do something he loves.

"My wife and I came back to Cleveland from Washington D.C. after our son was born, but my job had me traveling 100 percent of the time," he explains. "I got burned out on the corporate scene and really began to miss my family. So we decided to take our passion and hobby and turn it into a business."

Fleischer freely admits that opening a retail wine and beer store is a "high-risk proposition" these days, yet says he's identified a niche market that is a unique destination. The Wine Spot is more than just a run-of-the-mill beverage store; rather, it's a place where one comes to learn about wine and beer, sample new favorites, and simply enjoy the company of others in a great atmosphere.

Once patrons discover the gorgeous interior, most won't want to leave, Fleischer adds. The store is filled with custom-built wine racks, tables built from repurposed wood by A Piece of Cleveland, an authentic tile floor from the days when it housed Bruder's Dairy, and a large, comfortable bar area. For more than 50 years, the space housed neighborhood favorite Seitz-Agin Hardware.

Fleischer says it's perfect for his diverse Cleveland Heights clientele, who are all passionate about the history represented in the community. "It still feels like an old Cleveland Heights shop, but with all of the modern conveniences."


Source: Adam Fleischer
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Video games no longer are child's play. A multi-billion dollar industry, video game development seduces countless wannabes, each hoping to design the next Call of Duty. Helping to train those people is Cleveland Institute of Art, which recently launched its Game Design program. Combining classes in 3D modeling, game mapping, screenwriting and sound design, this challenging program is no child's play either.

CitizenGroove has changed the way music schools take applications. CEO John Knific and three CWRU classmates wanted to solve the paper problem involved with applying to music schools.

“We were initially inspired by the problem music school were having -- they were getting 1,500 to 3,000 DVDs with bundles of paper,” recalls Knific. “We thought, every kid who is applying to music school knows how to use YouTube and FaceBook and other social media.”
 
So, in 2010, CitizenGroove emerged as a streamlined way for students to upload auditions and present them to the schools they were applying to. The idea took off. The company of eight is split between New York and Cleveland -- four of which are located in Lakewood offices. Knific hopes to double his staff this year, and the company continues to launch new tools and improve on its product.
 
CitizenGroove is continuing to grow in popularity among music schools. “We went from 12 schools to 50 schools and we’re hoping for 100 schools by the end of the year,” says Knific. “We went from using arm wrestling maneuvers to get schools to choose us to now schools are calling us.”
 
CitizenGroove is a finalist in the Intel Innovation Awards. They are rallying people to vote for them on the company’s FaceBook page in hopes of winning the $100,000 prize.

 
Source: John Knific
Writer: Karin Connelly

At last count, Ohio City was home to nearly 90 nonprofit organizations and community groups. Combined they employ 3,000 individuals and have a collective budget totaling several hundred million dollars. They also attract over 100,000 customers annually, and boast more than 10,000 committed volunteers.

Since the recession began, the groups that make up this sizeable nonprofit community have met regularly to discuss ways to combine purchasing, share services and leverage their resources. Such conversations have led to Ohio City Dialogues, an effort to bring together and strengthen the nonprofits in the neighborhood that is being managed by the community development corporation Ohio City Inc.

"These groups are able to accomplish more and better achieve their missions by working together," says Jeffrey Verespej, Director of Operations and Advocacy with Ohio City Inc. "They are able to get better services at lower rates because they're sharing the burden across so many different organizations."

The group is now working with the Sourcing Office, a local company that helps governments, businesses and nonprofits obtain competitive rates for goods and services. Recently, they crafted a Request for Proposals for an information technology provider and selected Onelink, a Westlake-based company.

Verespej says that the Ohio City Dialogues group will display its growing influence in the coming year. The group is planning to hold its annual meeting in March, with Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson scheduled to deliver the keynote address.

"There's a real nonprofit economy here, and nonprofits have an economic impact that's not often seen," Verespej says. "We think we can tell a different story, and leverage nonprofits into a stronger impact for the community."


Source: Jeff Verespej
Writer: Lee Chilcote

A few short months ago, the vacant, boarded-up commercial property at E. 156th Street and Waterloo Road was like a "Berlin Wall," says Brian Friedman, director of Northeast Shores Community Development Corporation. Passers-by on their way to concerts at the popular Beachland Ballroom were treated to the building's dark, unfriendly visage. Rather than a  welcoming gateway to this up-and-coming, arts-friendly community, the structure served as an ugly reminder of the blight nipping at its heels.

Today, the building remains stubbornly vacant. Yet, it's been festooned with a bright, colorful mural signaling the entrance to the the Waterloo Arts District, thanks to a partnership between Northeast Shores and a local graffiti artist.

"The mural is designed to be temporary, since we'd prefer the building to be occupied, but unfortunately difficult commercial projects can take years," says Friedman. "The mural also works well with our recently-launched Artists in Residence initiative, a grant program to deal with issues like vacancy."

The $5,000 mural was completed by Massillon artist Steve Ehret, who has participated in several pop-up galleries in the neighborhood. Friedman hopes it will become the first of many such creative, artistic interventions in North Collinwood.

Last summer, North Collinwood was selected as the location for a two-year, $500,000 pilot program that will use artist-based development to revitalize one urban neighborhood. The program is being managed by the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture (CPAC) and Northeast Shores.


Source: Brian Friedman
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Liz Maugins of Zygote Press remembers the moment in 2008 when she realized just how fragile her own organization's existence was in Cleveland's ever-shrinking nonprofit ecosystem. Like many nonprofit groups, she was looking at fewer philanthropic dollars during the worst recession in decades. Meanwhile, many foundations were stressing collaboration or proposing outright mergers.

"Like a lot of nonprofit leaders, I was freaking out and wondering what would come our way," recounts Maugins, who worried that her small nonprofit would be wiped out by the tidal wave of the national recession. "So I started sending out messages to other arts leaders to see if they were feeling the same thing."

Not surprisingly, other nonprofit leaders were losing sleep over their situations, too. Yet rather than retreating to their own private islands to struggle in maudlin isolation, Maugins and her colleagues banded together for survival.

"The number one challenge was that we had no exposure, especially with the dwindling arts coverage locally," says Maugins. "Yet we knew that our arts organizations were doing amazing things with education and other programming, and we're the economic engines of our neighborhoods."

Today, Zygote and 27 other groups in Northeast Ohio have banded together to form the Collective Arts Network (CAN), received a grant from the Ohio Arts Council, and produced a magazine-style journal touting their work. Ten thousand copies have been distributed to galleries and other hotspots in the city.

Next up, the CAN group is working on other kinds of collaboration, including programming, events and sustaining the journal as a quarterly publication.


Source: Liz Maugins
Writer: Lee Chilcote

If the printed book business is dead, don't tell Mike Zubal. His family's Zubal Books is one of the largest booksellers in the country, moving about a quarter million titles per year. Though you'd never know it, roughly four million books fill a nondescript warren of buildings about a mile from the West Side Market. Never heard of the place? You're not alone.

Ever wanted to learn about how human beings all are just descendants of quantum flotsam? No? Well, how about the ways in which quantum mechanical jitterings in the universe helped create galaxies, stars, planets and people?

Even if you're not a science geek, you'll probably enjoy a new event at Happy Dog entitled "Life, the Universe and Hot Dogs," which takes place downstairs (Underdog) at 7:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month. After all, nothing brings the meaning of life into focus like a pint or two of hoppy IPA.

The series is the latest attempt by the entrepreneurial Gordon Square Arts District venue to spread its wings and form linkages between University Circle and the near west side. The Happy Dog also has partnered with the Cleveland Orchestra to shuttle westsiders to and from Severance Hall for concerts.

"The partnership was created when Happy Dog owner Sean Watterson contacted me," explains Glenn Starkman, Director of the Institute for the Science of Origins at Case Western Reserve University, a collaboration of faculty and researchers across scientific disciplines seeking to understand how complex systems emerge and evolve. "I went down there with a couple of friends and had a few hot dogs and a beer or two, and Sean said, 'How 'bout we do this next week?'"

Starkman is hoping to use the event series as an opportunity to bring scientific understanding to a wider audience. "People think, 'Oh, science is hard,' but so is playing basketball and we watch it without expecting to be able to dunk like Jordon," he says. "We want to increase people's comfort with science and teach them how it is useful in helping us to make decisions about the world."


Source: Glenn Starkman
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The City of Cleveland has scheduled two meetings to allow public comment on its new lakefront plan, the most ambitious effort in years to redevelop the city's long-dormant downtown shoreline. Portions of the plan, including an event series to be launched this summer, could begin to show progress this year.

The City plans to hire a Harbor Manager in the next few months, who will be responsible for overseeing waterfront activities, including management of the contract for a planned 53-slip marina. Other responsibilities will include property management, overseeing a vending program to allow food trucks and other vendors to sell their wares on the East 9th Street pier, and organizing lakeside concerts and festivals to be added to the city's lineup of summer events.

"The vision is to try to create more activity on the waterfront, and we're in the process of finalizing our strategy," says Ricky Smith, Director of Port Control for the City of Cleveland. Smith added that he expects construction on the marina, which has already been funded and will allow for short-term docking, to begin this year and wrap up in spring of 2013. He expects the same timeline for an iconic, moveable pedestrian bridge that is slated to traverse the North Coast Harbor.


Source: Ricky Smith
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The New Music Program at Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM), a two-year old initiative that pairs budding CIM composers with student artists from another discipline to create new work, plans to screen a series of short, original films featuring new music at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History's Planetarium on Thursday, February 23rd.

"It's very important for students to collaborate with other artists outside of the school so they have that experience when they leave here," explains Keith Fitch, Head of the Composition Department at CIM and Director of the CIM New Music Ensemble. "I believe that students need to have as many tools as they can in their compositional toolbox."

The experience of creating a short film paired with original music is not unlike completing an internship in the commercial film industry, a business that many of his students are keenly interested in, Fitch says. "I've been lucky to find work as a composer, but the days when you get a job right out of school are over," he says. "As the world becomes more connected and the role of the composer changes, students need to have one foot in the concert world and one foot in the commercial world."

The Planetarium Project will be unveiled on Feb. 23rd in CMNH's planetarium dome. The filmmakers are students at the Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA). The films will screen several times throughout the evening, and after the premiere, they will become a part of the planetarium's regular programming.


Source: Keith Fitch
Writer: Lee Chilcote

A $3.2 million grant from the federal government's Paul S. Sarbanes Transit in Parks program announced last week will help pay for green upgrades to the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. The private, nonprofit rail line carries nearly 200,000 passengers yearly, including more than 25,000 who carry bikes aboard the train, as it traverses through the picturesque Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Nearly half of the grant funding -- about $1.4 million -- will go towards building a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Cuyahoga River at Rockside Road. The bridge will span from the Rockside Station parking lot to the Lock 39 Trailhead along the Towpath Trail. It will facilitate safer, easier access for bikers and hikers who wish to ride the rail and take advantage of the scenic Towpath.

Steve Wait, President and CEO of the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, says that the funds will also help the rail line integrate technology that will make it more efficient and environmentally friendly. "We'll be investing money in upgrading and rebuilding an older locomotive to save up to 75 percent in fuel and also reduce emissions," he says. "Many commercial railroads are investing heavily in newer green technologies, but as a small nonprofit we never had the money before."

Other planned improvements for the rail line include rebuilding an older passenger car to make it more accessible, retooling a baggage car to add extra room for bikes, and replacing an old power generator rail car to make it greener and more efficient.


Source: Steve Wait
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Fresh Water commissioned local videographer David Wester to take viewers inside the newly opened Greater Cleveland Aquarium. While there, Wester was guided by general manager Tami Brown, who discussed the nature and scope of the watery exhibits. Already off to a swimming start, the attraction aims to lure 500,000 visitors per year.