Design + Build
.jpg?s=lf)
League Park, the historic Hough ballfield where baseball legend Babe Ruth hit his 500th home run over the outfield wall in 1929, is set to reopen this weekend following a complete renovation. The reopening, in the works for years, will not only house the Baseball Heritage Museum, but also a replica of the original ticketing facility, a community room and a huge, new ballfield. It mimics the original down to the fact that home plate is set in the same spot as when Babe Ruth stood there.
Councilman T. J. Dow hopes that the project will spark reinvestment in the Hough neighborhood. "We love the fact that we have a recreational park in the community, but it will also serve as an economic development piece," he says. "Many of the new homeowners moved here with the expectation that League Park would be rebuilt. We believe that it will serve as an anchor."
Dow also believes that the park will serve as a tourist attraction, drawing baseball and history lovers from Greater Cleveland and beyond. The park has a special significance for the African-American community, since many black teams played here and the Buckeyes won the Negro World Series at League Park in 1920.
The restored League Park will also serve as home field for many Cleveland Municipal School District teams, a special privilege since the park is quite large and has brand-new astroturf. Outside organizations can rent the field for a fee, and the money earned will go back into maintaining the park. The ticketing office and museum will be open for regular hours during the week and on weekends.
"We have Hough residents who are starting up baseball clubs," says Dow, touting ways in which enhanced recreational opportunities will help the neighborhood. "They could play on the League Park field during the championship games."
Although there is no active community development corporation in Hough and redevelopment plans stalled out in the recession, that could change. Dow is currently in the process of kicking off a neighborhood planning process, and envisions new housing built on tracts of vacant land around League Park.
League Park is located at East 66th Street and Lexington Avenue. A grand opening party is set for Saturday, August 23rd at 1 p.m., and will feature the unveiling of the Fannie M. Lewis sculpture, an appearance by the Cleveland Blues vintage baseball team, a Home Run Derby and other activities.
Councilman T. J. Dow hopes that the project will spark reinvestment in the Hough neighborhood. "We love the fact that we have a recreational park in the community, but it will also serve as an economic development piece," he says. "Many of the new homeowners moved here with the expectation that League Park would be rebuilt. We believe that it will serve as an anchor."
Dow also believes that the park will serve as a tourist attraction, drawing baseball and history lovers from Greater Cleveland and beyond. The park has a special significance for the African-American community, since many black teams played here and the Buckeyes won the Negro World Series at League Park in 1920.
The restored League Park will also serve as home field for many Cleveland Municipal School District teams, a special privilege since the park is quite large and has brand-new astroturf. Outside organizations can rent the field for a fee, and the money earned will go back into maintaining the park. The ticketing office and museum will be open for regular hours during the week and on weekends.
"We have Hough residents who are starting up baseball clubs," says Dow, touting ways in which enhanced recreational opportunities will help the neighborhood. "They could play on the League Park field during the championship games."
Although there is no active community development corporation in Hough and redevelopment plans stalled out in the recession, that could change. Dow is currently in the process of kicking off a neighborhood planning process, and envisions new housing built on tracts of vacant land around League Park.
League Park is located at East 66th Street and Lexington Avenue. A grand opening party is set for Saturday, August 23rd at 1 p.m., and will feature the unveiling of the Fannie M. Lewis sculpture, an appearance by the Cleveland Blues vintage baseball team, a Home Run Derby and other activities.
Once among the tallest buildings in the world, the Terminal Tower remains the signature landmark of the Cleveland skyline. Following a massive top-to-bottom, inside-out renovation in 2005, the iconic structure is welcoming a host of new commercial tenants, including start-ups looking for co-working space.
Case Western Reserve University has opened the new Tinkham Veale University Center just in time for the start of the school year. In the coming weeks, six new eateries will be unveiled. The addition of mouthwatering new venues like Melt University, the latest from Matt Fish of Melt Bar & Grilled fame; Naan, an Indian venue by James Beard Award nominee Chef Raghavan Iyer; and Cool Beanz, which will serve Zingerman's Coffee out of Ann Arbor, are enough to make us want to go back to school.
Fortunately, we won't have to. All of the venues are open to the public, and the soon-to-be-named restaurant (a student contest will determine its name) will serve a prix fixe menu when the orchestra plays in town. Cleveland Botanical Garden Executive Chef Tony Smoody will serve as chef of the restaurant.
Additional eateries include 8Twenty6, where customers can build their own salad from an eight-foot counter stocked with 20 seasonal ingredients and six housemade dressings, and Pinzas, which serves personal pizzas, pasta bowls and Italian sandwiches served on pagnotelle rolls. Melt University will serve items off the Melt Bar & Grilled menu as well as "exclusive CWRU-themed sandwiches only available at Melt U, the Case Western BBQ and The Spartan Burger," according to a press release from Bon Appetit Management, the food service company.
"This is an opportunity to showcase the beauty of regional Indian cooking," said Iyer during a recent visit to the university center. "What you typically see in the U.S. is just a sliver of Indian cooking, and what I bring is multi-regional cooking."
CWRU has a large population of foreign-born students, so the ethnic diversity of these options will no doubt prove popular. The university has not only transformed its physical environment in recent years, adding student amenities that create a more vibrant campus, but has also seen a dramatic increase in enrollment.
Previously, there was no full-service restaurant on the CWRU campus, and dining options were a bit limited. These six new eateries add to the increasing vibrancy that can be found on campus and throughout University Circle.
Fortunately, we won't have to. All of the venues are open to the public, and the soon-to-be-named restaurant (a student contest will determine its name) will serve a prix fixe menu when the orchestra plays in town. Cleveland Botanical Garden Executive Chef Tony Smoody will serve as chef of the restaurant.
Additional eateries include 8Twenty6, where customers can build their own salad from an eight-foot counter stocked with 20 seasonal ingredients and six housemade dressings, and Pinzas, which serves personal pizzas, pasta bowls and Italian sandwiches served on pagnotelle rolls. Melt University will serve items off the Melt Bar & Grilled menu as well as "exclusive CWRU-themed sandwiches only available at Melt U, the Case Western BBQ and The Spartan Burger," according to a press release from Bon Appetit Management, the food service company.
"This is an opportunity to showcase the beauty of regional Indian cooking," said Iyer during a recent visit to the university center. "What you typically see in the U.S. is just a sliver of Indian cooking, and what I bring is multi-regional cooking."
CWRU has a large population of foreign-born students, so the ethnic diversity of these options will no doubt prove popular. The university has not only transformed its physical environment in recent years, adding student amenities that create a more vibrant campus, but has also seen a dramatic increase in enrollment.
Previously, there was no full-service restaurant on the CWRU campus, and dining options were a bit limited. These six new eateries add to the increasing vibrancy that can be found on campus and throughout University Circle.
Last weekend, downtown Cleveland literally was glowing. Thanks to the coinciding of a handful of marquee events like the Gay Games Opening Ceremonies and AHA! festival of lights and art, downtown was percolating with energy. Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski was there to record all the colorful action.
'prodigal son' and award-winning director comes home to find revitalized cleveland
Antwone Fisher began life in Cleveland as a Ward of the State, raised in foster care until the ripe-old age of 18. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy and ended up in Los Angeles.
Twenty four years later, he returned to Cleveland to film “Finding Fish,” the story of his life along with director Denzel Washington, cast and crew.
“My hometown welcomed me back with all the ceremony of a much-loved native son. Each day of filming brought out bigger and bigger crowds,” he writes.
“Clearly, the city was moving into the future, readying for a big comeback. This was evident when I arrived at the city's theater district that's now revitalized with businesses, restaurants, shops and boutiques. The old buildings that I remember have been sandblasted, steamed clean and remodeled as apartments and condominiums for downtown living.”
“LeBron will only add to this revival,” he notes.
“The truth is Cleveland belongs to all of us who have ever had roots there. I know that every city has its issues, but this great American city has given the world so much from the Industrial Revolution to this brand new age and it's still ‘the best location in the nation.’”
Read the rest right here.
Twenty four years later, he returned to Cleveland to film “Finding Fish,” the story of his life along with director Denzel Washington, cast and crew.
“My hometown welcomed me back with all the ceremony of a much-loved native son. Each day of filming brought out bigger and bigger crowds,” he writes.
“Clearly, the city was moving into the future, readying for a big comeback. This was evident when I arrived at the city's theater district that's now revitalized with businesses, restaurants, shops and boutiques. The old buildings that I remember have been sandblasted, steamed clean and remodeled as apartments and condominiums for downtown living.”
“LeBron will only add to this revival,” he notes.
“The truth is Cleveland belongs to all of us who have ever had roots there. I know that every city has its issues, but this great American city has given the world so much from the Industrial Revolution to this brand new age and it's still ‘the best location in the nation.’”
Read the rest right here.
Fresh Water has been on top of the dramatic new business development currently taking place in Lakewood, covering it here, here and here. The west side 'burb has seen an explosion of new shops, pubs and eateries in recent years, thanks in large part to a pedestrian-friendly Detroit Avenue streetscape that was completed in 2012. Now the city is poised for another wave of growth, with several new businesses set to open this year.
In a recent chat with Planning Director Dru Siley, we learned about Cleveland Vegan, which is set to open a storefront catering operation in the next 45 days (13611 Detroit), with a planned eatery to follow; Brown Sugar Thai, which will open its fourth location in a 2,600-square-foot space in the Bailey Building at Detroit and Warren; Birdtown Restaurant and Brewing, a project from restaurateur Tom Leneghan, will open next year in the old St. Gregory's Church on Madison; The Bevy, a new restaurant and music venue that will open in the old Winchester Music Hall; and The Stache, a hip new speakeasy set to open in the former Johnny Malloys/Gepettos space (17103 Detroit Ave.).
These are just a few of the new businesses flocking to Lakewood, which has seen impressive business growth along its Detroit and Madison commercial corridors.
"Part of what we've noticed is that Lakewood is a great place to open a first business, such as Beat Cycles, but it's also a good place for a business to do a second location," says Siley. "We're seeing that as a bit of a trend. Business owners are doing some intentional planning, and they're looking at Lakewood."
Although Lakewood is chock-full of independents, plenty of chains are getting in on the action, too. Another new addition to Lakewood is Bob Evan's, which opened up a surprisingly contemporary-looking eatery in downtown Lakewood. "It's the busiest 4:30 dinner spot in the entire world right now," jokes Siley.
In a recent chat with Planning Director Dru Siley, we learned about Cleveland Vegan, which is set to open a storefront catering operation in the next 45 days (13611 Detroit), with a planned eatery to follow; Brown Sugar Thai, which will open its fourth location in a 2,600-square-foot space in the Bailey Building at Detroit and Warren; Birdtown Restaurant and Brewing, a project from restaurateur Tom Leneghan, will open next year in the old St. Gregory's Church on Madison; The Bevy, a new restaurant and music venue that will open in the old Winchester Music Hall; and The Stache, a hip new speakeasy set to open in the former Johnny Malloys/Gepettos space (17103 Detroit Ave.).
These are just a few of the new businesses flocking to Lakewood, which has seen impressive business growth along its Detroit and Madison commercial corridors.
"Part of what we've noticed is that Lakewood is a great place to open a first business, such as Beat Cycles, but it's also a good place for a business to do a second location," says Siley. "We're seeing that as a bit of a trend. Business owners are doing some intentional planning, and they're looking at Lakewood."
Although Lakewood is chock-full of independents, plenty of chains are getting in on the action, too. Another new addition to Lakewood is Bob Evan's, which opened up a surprisingly contemporary-looking eatery in downtown Lakewood. "It's the busiest 4:30 dinner spot in the entire world right now," jokes Siley.
There’s no shortage of food trucks on Cleveland streets these days, but Ron Nelson offers a way for aspiring mobile food entrepreneurs to hit the road for less thanks to his food buggies.
When Cleveland launched its pilot street-food program back in 2009, Nelson was working for a non-profit that helped down-on-their-luck folks re-enter society. He saw food trucks as one way to do this, yet the costs were too high for the average person just starting out. And back then, there were no commercial kitchens around in which to do prep work.
So Nelson developed his buggies, which have lower startup costs, lower licensing fees and lower operational costs. He launched his company Food Buggy in 2013.
Food Buggy units cost between $4,000 and $12,000 compared to the $40,000 to $200,000 for fully equipped food trucks. The buggies have a lower operating cost, are lightweight and fit into a single parking space. “The food buggies have two advantages,” says Nelson. “The cost is much lower, and it also allows you to transport it using your own vehicle. And it’s easy enough for two people to set up quickly.”
Nelson is quick to point out that his buggies don’t replace food trucks – they are an alternative. “It allows the entrepreneur to start up with limited resources,” he explains. “Yet it gives all the flexibility to get exposed and build a business.”
Nelson touts other advantages his buggies have over the competition: “It’s far better than a hotdog cart because with a hotdog cart you can’t cook anything,” he explains. “It’s better than a food truck because it doesn’t take up space. You can build up your business to the point you need a food truck.” And commercial kitchens like the Cleveland Culinary Launch and Kitchen allow cooks access to prep space.
Food Buggies already has received orders from a couple of Cleveland food entrepreneurs. Nelson expects more custom orders as word gets out of his products’ advantages and custom designs.
When Cleveland launched its pilot street-food program back in 2009, Nelson was working for a non-profit that helped down-on-their-luck folks re-enter society. He saw food trucks as one way to do this, yet the costs were too high for the average person just starting out. And back then, there were no commercial kitchens around in which to do prep work.
So Nelson developed his buggies, which have lower startup costs, lower licensing fees and lower operational costs. He launched his company Food Buggy in 2013.
Food Buggy units cost between $4,000 and $12,000 compared to the $40,000 to $200,000 for fully equipped food trucks. The buggies have a lower operating cost, are lightweight and fit into a single parking space. “The food buggies have two advantages,” says Nelson. “The cost is much lower, and it also allows you to transport it using your own vehicle. And it’s easy enough for two people to set up quickly.”
Nelson is quick to point out that his buggies don’t replace food trucks – they are an alternative. “It allows the entrepreneur to start up with limited resources,” he explains. “Yet it gives all the flexibility to get exposed and build a business.”
Nelson touts other advantages his buggies have over the competition: “It’s far better than a hotdog cart because with a hotdog cart you can’t cook anything,” he explains. “It’s better than a food truck because it doesn’t take up space. You can build up your business to the point you need a food truck.” And commercial kitchens like the Cleveland Culinary Launch and Kitchen allow cooks access to prep space.
Food Buggies already has received orders from a couple of Cleveland food entrepreneurs. Nelson expects more custom orders as word gets out of his products’ advantages and custom designs.
For those who have suffered a traumatic injury to the skull and face -- be it from an accident, cancer or deformity -- OsteoSymbionics leads the way in facial reconstruction. The Cleveland-based manufacturer of custom craniofacial implants serves surgeons at hospitals across the United States. OsteoSymbionics’ products provide both skull rebuilding and is cosmetically attractive.
Founded in 2006by Cynthia Brogan, OsteoSymbionics is known for using a special plastic in its craniofacial implants that doesn’t break and exactly fits the patient's face or skull. “We’re a well-respected player in the marketplace,” says CEO Dorothy Baunach. “The type of plastic we use is a market niche and it’s done really well in its ability to be shaped to the skull opening without crumbling or breaking.”
Today, OsteoSymbionics has a line of products that range from a clear implant that allows surgeons to see brain function during placement, to hard and soft tissue implants. Housed in the Incubator at MAGNET, the company employs six full-time and two part-time employees who have backgrounds that range from medical artists and sculptors to biomedical engineers and materials scientists.
Many of the artists on staff are graduates of Cleveland Institute of Art’s biomedical program. “They’re really our secret weapon,” says Baunach. “The fit and forming is more of an art than a science. Because of the talent of the students at CIA, they can do things that are pretty complex.”
Baunach plans to double sales by the end of the year and add sales reps across the country. “It’s really about growing sales and the company,” she says. “Sales are built on surgeons’ preferences.”
Founded in 2006by Cynthia Brogan, OsteoSymbionics is known for using a special plastic in its craniofacial implants that doesn’t break and exactly fits the patient's face or skull. “We’re a well-respected player in the marketplace,” says CEO Dorothy Baunach. “The type of plastic we use is a market niche and it’s done really well in its ability to be shaped to the skull opening without crumbling or breaking.”
Today, OsteoSymbionics has a line of products that range from a clear implant that allows surgeons to see brain function during placement, to hard and soft tissue implants. Housed in the Incubator at MAGNET, the company employs six full-time and two part-time employees who have backgrounds that range from medical artists and sculptors to biomedical engineers and materials scientists.
Many of the artists on staff are graduates of Cleveland Institute of Art’s biomedical program. “They’re really our secret weapon,” says Baunach. “The fit and forming is more of an art than a science. Because of the talent of the students at CIA, they can do things that are pretty complex.”
Baunach plans to double sales by the end of the year and add sales reps across the country. “It’s really about growing sales and the company,” she says. “Sales are built on surgeons’ preferences.”
Remember the skate park built for the Dew Games held at North Coast Harbor in 2008? Well, it's been dismantled, but the concrete slab remains, surrounded by a metal-flame fence. Very soon the space will be home to the city's first shipping container-based restaurant, Blazing Bistro, which is scheduled to open in late July, adding to the amenities on downtown's lakefront.
"We've recognized for a while that one of the missing amenities on the lakefront is a gathering place for people while they're at the Rock Hall etc.," says Michael Deemer, Vice President of Business Development and Legal Services at Downtown Cleveland Alliance. "We worked with the city and with Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries to build off the success of Cleveland's food truck renaissance."
Blazing Bistro will take up residence in a recycled shipping container repurposed by Cleveland Customer Trucks. Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries (LMM), which operates the successful Manna food truck and employs formerly incarcerated and homeless individuals, was awarded the contract after responding to an RFP from the city.
The days and hours of operation are not set in stone, but likely will be lunch Wednesday through Sunday with some evening hours added as well. The shipping container idea grew out of the Small Box Initiative, a program of the Historic Warehouse District Development Corporation to develop retail in parking lots on West 9th Street.
As the new lakefront development takes off, Blazing Bistro can be picked up and moved to other locations, either in the harbor or other parts of downtown.
Blazing Bistro also will be open during various events taking place at North Coast Harbor, including the new Anchors and Ales event, held August 22-23 and September 13-14 in conjunction with Cleveland Browns home games.
Deemer says the seasonal restaurant is a win-win-win for the city, residents and visitors. "It's not enough to have a park on the lakefront; we have to actively drive people there with events and amenities," he says. "We've seen food truck owners open up brick and mortar stores with great success. This is a new wrinkle."
"We've recognized for a while that one of the missing amenities on the lakefront is a gathering place for people while they're at the Rock Hall etc.," says Michael Deemer, Vice President of Business Development and Legal Services at Downtown Cleveland Alliance. "We worked with the city and with Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries to build off the success of Cleveland's food truck renaissance."
Blazing Bistro will take up residence in a recycled shipping container repurposed by Cleveland Customer Trucks. Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries (LMM), which operates the successful Manna food truck and employs formerly incarcerated and homeless individuals, was awarded the contract after responding to an RFP from the city.
The days and hours of operation are not set in stone, but likely will be lunch Wednesday through Sunday with some evening hours added as well. The shipping container idea grew out of the Small Box Initiative, a program of the Historic Warehouse District Development Corporation to develop retail in parking lots on West 9th Street.
As the new lakefront development takes off, Blazing Bistro can be picked up and moved to other locations, either in the harbor or other parts of downtown.
Blazing Bistro also will be open during various events taking place at North Coast Harbor, including the new Anchors and Ales event, held August 22-23 and September 13-14 in conjunction with Cleveland Browns home games.
Deemer says the seasonal restaurant is a win-win-win for the city, residents and visitors. "It's not enough to have a park on the lakefront; we have to actively drive people there with events and amenities," he says. "We've seen food truck owners open up brick and mortar stores with great success. This is a new wrinkle."
From Charles F. Brush to John D. Rockefeller, Cleveland has been home to entrepreneurs with innovations that helped shape the world. We take a look at some of Cleveland’s ground breaking companies -- some old, some new -- to see what makes the company unique, how it achieved its success, and where they stand today.
new york times takes a shine to cleveland's reuse policies
In the Travel section of the New York Times, writer Peter Larson details the robust reuse approach to development taking place in Cleveland. Titled “Cleveland, a City Repurposed,” the article describes various projects in the city that made use of vacant historic structures.
“If there had to be a slogan to describe Cleveland as it is today, ‘what’s old is new again’ would undoubtedly be it,” Larson writes. “In the last few years, locals and businesses in this Midwest metropolis have been repurposing historic buildings from its heyday in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and turning them into restaurants, stores and draws for both residents and tourists. Many of these structures had sat empty for a decade or more before restoration efforts began infusing a vibrancy into this once-somewhat-downtrodden city.”
Examples given include Cowell & Hubbard, Zack Bruell’s upscale French restaurant that opened in a former jewelry boutique of the same name. The Horseshoe Casino, which now occupies the first four floors of the former Higbee’s department store. Ohio City’s Transformer Station, which was built in 1924 as a power-converter station for the local streetcar line. And the Greater Cleveland Aquarium, also built in a defunct power station.
Read the rest right here.
“If there had to be a slogan to describe Cleveland as it is today, ‘what’s old is new again’ would undoubtedly be it,” Larson writes. “In the last few years, locals and businesses in this Midwest metropolis have been repurposing historic buildings from its heyday in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and turning them into restaurants, stores and draws for both residents and tourists. Many of these structures had sat empty for a decade or more before restoration efforts began infusing a vibrancy into this once-somewhat-downtrodden city.”
Examples given include Cowell & Hubbard, Zack Bruell’s upscale French restaurant that opened in a former jewelry boutique of the same name. The Horseshoe Casino, which now occupies the first four floors of the former Higbee’s department store. Ohio City’s Transformer Station, which was built in 1924 as a power-converter station for the local streetcar line. And the Greater Cleveland Aquarium, also built in a defunct power station.
Read the rest right here.
After decades of population loss, cities like Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Pittsburgh are now growing faster than the rest of their metro areas. Urban developers are trying to attract the right amenities to support the new wave of urbanites. So what’s needed to sustain a dense and vibrant city? The answers might surprise you.
wall street journal digs into cleveland's lakefront development plan
In a feature titled, “In Cleveland, Developer Puts Down Stakes by the Lake,” Wall Street Journal scribe Chelsey Dulaney writes about the ambitious lakefront development plans currently taking shape in downtown Cleveland.
“Cleveland's longtime dream of developing its Lake Erie waterfront took a step forward last month when its City Council approved plans for a $700 million development,” she writes.
Spurred by increasing residential demand from new residents interested in a more urban lifestyle, the project is on its way to fruition.
“The downtown's population has risen by 88% since 2000 to more than 12,500, according to a Downtown Cleveland Alliance report published in April. Restaurants, microbreweries and art galleries dot Cleveland's once-lifeless streets.”
Among the plans is a school, boutique hotel and restaurants. Apartment rents will range from $1,000 to $2,000 a month, “making them affordable to young professionals, empty-nesters and families.”
"When I left Cleveland after college, downtown wasn't the place to be," Mr. Halloran said. "Now everybody coming back to Cleveland wants to be downtown. There's life there."
Read the rest right here.
“Cleveland's longtime dream of developing its Lake Erie waterfront took a step forward last month when its City Council approved plans for a $700 million development,” she writes.
Spurred by increasing residential demand from new residents interested in a more urban lifestyle, the project is on its way to fruition.
“The downtown's population has risen by 88% since 2000 to more than 12,500, according to a Downtown Cleveland Alliance report published in April. Restaurants, microbreweries and art galleries dot Cleveland's once-lifeless streets.”
Among the plans is a school, boutique hotel and restaurants. Apartment rents will range from $1,000 to $2,000 a month, “making them affordable to young professionals, empty-nesters and families.”
"When I left Cleveland after college, downtown wasn't the place to be," Mr. Halloran said. "Now everybody coming back to Cleveland wants to be downtown. There's life there."
Read the rest right here.
Graphic design is a form of visual storytelling, where a few well-crafted images can speak to the viewer in a language more powerful than words. Cuyahoga Community College's graphic design program helps students to harness that power for themselves, with the story they're telling going straight into their portfolios.
Artists are often the first to move into urban neighborhoods, and also the first to move out when rents escalate. Yet in the post-recession landscape, many communities are working with artists to transform blight, engage residents and reimagine their neighborhoods.