Mike Kubinski is positively full of holiday cheer. The co-founder of CLE Clothing Company, known for its funky, Cleveland-themed T-shirts and other apparel, just quit his day job and opened a new store at E. 4th and Euclid in downtown Cleveland. Since the venue opened just in time for Black Friday, it's been flush with visitors.

Kubinski's new apparel shop also is a big, fat present to Cleveland. Bearing the catchy slogan "Spreading Cleveland pride one T-shirt at a time," CLE Clothing has brought a fresh, new concept into retail-starved downtown Cleveland.

"Ari [Maron] really didn't want another restaurant; he wanted retail," says Kubinski, who hurried together the store concept after being recruited earlier this year by Maron, a principal of developer MRN Ltd. "It was a good fit because we offer something cool, positive and different from what's already there."

The downtown CLE Clothing outlet actually is the company's second store; the first, called Native Cleveland, is located on Waterloo in North Collinwood.

"We built our business online first, but then we had an overwhelming response when we did pop-up stores," says Kubinski. "We opened Native Cleveland as a test, and then Ari Maron approached us about a store on E. 4th Street."

The new store is located adjacent to Positively Cleveland, the travel and tourism agency for Northeast Ohio. A passageway allows visitors to travel between the two locations.

"We sort of act as the gift shop for people visiting downtown Cleveland," says Kubinski. "It's a cool relationship that's just beginning."


Source: Mike Kubinski
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The November CBIZ Small Business Employment Index (SBEI), a barometer for hiring trends among companies with 300 or fewer employees, increased by .35 percent in November. While the trend reflects companies surveyed across the country, “a good number of the survey respondents are from the Cleveland area,” says Phillip Noftsinger, business unit president of CBIZ Payroll Services.

While the trend is typical for the holiday season, Noftsinger is optimistic that the increase may lead to future job growth. “I think this time of year we would expect to see growth during the holiday season,” he says. “But we’re hoping a strong holiday season will support a longer term trend in these numbers. It’s a little early to tell though.”
 
A good holiday shopping season has the potential to continue into the new year. “Strong consumer spending sustains growth,” says Noftsinger. “We hope to see a continued strong holiday season, which leads to income growth and labor growth and an upward spiral in employment.”

 
Source: Phillip Noftsinger
Writer: Karin Connelly

Valerie Mayen of Yellowcake, a fashion designer who became the poster child for Cleveland's nascent design industry after she appeared on Project Runway, will launch a nonprofit sewing studio to push the city's young talent into the spotlight.

The new loft studio, which is called Buzz and Growl, intends to offer work space, professional equipment, coaching and classes to young artists and entrepreneurs. It is located at 1400 East 30th Street in the St. Clair Superior neighborhood. Mayen is raising funds and plans to open the space sometime next year.

"I see a lot of artists that are making products here, but they're not saleable yet," says Mayen. "This is about helping them to hone and polish what they have, so they can become reputable businesses and sustain themselves in Cleveland."

Mayen says that Buzz and Growl already has a waiting list for new members. So far, she has raised $11,000 towards the costs of renovating the studio, and has invested some of her own resources as well. Mayen and her cohorts now hope to raise an additional $15,000 to purchase equipment and open the doors.

"This is the hard part, the frustrating search for money," says Mayen, who will serve as the Executive Director of Buzz and Growl. "Yet we've been able to attract grassroots support because people know this is about creating jobs."

To that end, Mayen is hosting an invitation-only "friendraiser" at Buzz and Growl's new studio on December 8th. Despite the challenging hunt for grant dollars, she is confident that the city will support this fledgling effort.

This year, Mayen hired several new employees for her business and opened and closed a series of pop-up stores. Beyond Buzz and Growl, she wants to launch a permanent Yellowcake shop in Ohio City or Detroit Shoreway by Fall of 2012.


Source: Valerie Mayen
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The City of Cleveland Heights has released a Request for Development Proposals (RDFP) that it hopes will lure new office space, jobs and tax revenue to the inner ring suburb. The city is asking for development ideas for a 39,000-square-foot parcel at Lee and Meadowbrook roads in the heart of the Cedar-Lee commercial district. Responses are due in January.

Given that two high-end condo projects proposed here in the mid-2000's never came to fruition, the city evidently is hoping the third time's the charm. After the demise of these projects, the city land-banked the site, tearing up the asphalt parking lot and planting grass.

Yet Howard Thompson, the city's Director of Economic Development, says there is reason for optimism in the city's new approach, which is more broadly focused on economic development rather than pinpointing for-sale housing.

"I see the growth happening in University Circle, and I want to tap into that," he says. "There are healthcare and technology professionals living in Cleveland Heights, and my goal is to drive business development opportunities here."

Although this streetcar suburb is isolated from highways, Thompson says it enjoys many locational advantages, including its walkable, urban streetscape and amenity-rich environment. "Areas like MidTown are still at the beginning stages, yet here you have 27 different restaurants directly around you," he says.

The city also owns a 377-space parking garage directly behind the project site, 82 spaces of which are dedicated towards whatever building is ultimately developed.

As for public-private partnerships, Thompson says that the City of Cleveland Heights is ready to provide assistance if it is needed. "We're asking developers to spell out in their proposals what kinds of assistance they'd be asking for."


Source: Howard Thompson
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The Burton D. Morgan Foundation in Hudson and the Blackstone Charitable Foundation have committed $3.2 million to train area young entrepreneurs through Blackstone LaunchPad, a venture coach program developed at the University of Miami, Florida in 2008.
 
Students, faculty and alumni at Baldwin-Wallace College, CWRU, Kent State and Lorain County Community College will have the chance to participate in the program, which takes applicants from idea to full-fledged business.
 
“A lot of schools around Northeast Ohio have strong entrepreneurship programs, but there’s an experiential gap for the students,” says Deborah D. Hoover, president and CEO of the Burton D. Morgan Foundation. “There are a lot of really good ideas simmering on campuses but the commercialization is lacking. This program will help with that.”
 
The Blackstone LaunchPad was first started in Detroit in 2010 at two colleges. The program provides participants with advice, mentors, resources, counsel and networks necessary to get their ideas started. Since 2008 Blackstone LaunchPad has generated 65 start-up ventures, 120 new jobs, and drawn nearly 2,000 student participants.
 
“One of the reasons they selected Cleveland was they are looking at regions being hit hard by economic downturns,” says Hoover of Blackstone’s decision. Participants will be selected in early 2012 and be in full swing by fall.
 

Source: Deborah D. Hoover
Writer: Karin Connelly
 
 

Kendall Embrescia’s greeting cards get to the point of the sentiment -- but usually not in the traditional way. As chief creative officer and “head skootcher” at Squirt & Skootch, Embrescia produces cards that are edgy, funny, off-the-wall and well received.
 
The idea for Squirt & Skootch was originally conceived in 2009 by Embrescia and a friend who wanted to start a business that united their love of writing, creativity and travel. The peculiar name is based on their childhood nicknames.

“One of the universal things I found when I traveled was mail,” recalls Embrescia. “No matter where I was I would send a postcard.”
 
So, in fall 2009, "Squirt" and "Skootch" gave their cards a trial run at the Tremont Arts Festival. Boasting sayings like “I have a heart on for you” and other spicy sentiments, the cards were very well received.
 
Then Squirt moved on and Embrescia’s friend Sandy Hridel joined the team. The two hit some stationary shows and developed a full line of cards, covering categories that ranged from Love and Sex to Holiday and Encouragement. Embrescia and Hridel formally formed an LLC in fall of 2010, hired Embrescia’s niece Kendra Kwasniewski to illustrate the cards, and got a crash course in running a business.
 
“We started identifying places that would sell our cards, cold calling people and walking into stores to sell our cards,” says Embrescia. “I’m a really creative person and learning the business stuff was really intense.” But the hard work paid off. Today, Squirt & Skootch can be found in stores around Northeast Ohio, as well as in Pittsburgh, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Colorado.
 
The company plans on hiring a web developer and some salespeople to go after mid-sized retailers. “Growth is certainly key,” says Embrescia. “We’ve been able to be creative and build an infrastructure, but now the emphasis is on growth.”

 
Source: Kendall Embrescia
Writer: Karin Connelly

At a recent community meeting for Launch Lorain, a grassroots planning process to plot the future of that street, Ohio City advocates eager to push W. 25th Street's development onto gritty Lorain gave a cry akin to Westward Ho!

Yet they were met with beleaguered skepticism by residents and business owners who believe more attention should be paid to basic safety and city services. Other attendees expressed the viewpoint that attracting residents and businesses to the area would create an engaged constituency that demands more from the city.

“When my building got broken into, the police came and told me this is what I get for living in this neighborhood,” said David Ellison, an architect who is rehabilitating a building at W. 41st and Lorain. “Before we look at adding fancy crosswalks, the city needs to fix the basic things such as potholes and crime."

"The best thing that we can do to create a safer Lorain is to get people there for the right reasons," countered Eric Wobser, Director of Ohio City Inc.

Planners believe they can breathe new life into Lorain by improving its streetscape, targeting empty buildings for redevelopment, and creating new housing. The street has the right retail fabric to become the community's main street and spur redevelopment south of Lorain, they argue.

"If you want to live on W. 25th Street, get in line," said Ward 3 Councilman Joe Cimperman. "We need to pull the energy of W. 25th Street up Lorain."

The three-day planning process included meetings with stakeholders and businesses, a group walk through the neighborhood at night and a chili cook-off at Palookaville Chili, one of a handful of new businesses that recently moved into the area. Now that the initial process is complete, planners will continue to gather input as they prepare a new strategic plan for the area.


Sources: David Ellison, Eric Wobser, Joe Cimperman
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Since the Capitol Theatre at W. 65th and Detroit reopened in 2008 as a state-of-the-art, three-screen movie house, it has incrementally grown its audience by hosting special events and screening must-see indie films. Yet this week, the hottest attraction at this restored vaudeville theatre will be its striking new blade sign.

This Thursday, a holiday-themed lighting ceremony will celebrate this iconic piece of street art. The "Bright Night" event begins at 6:15 p.m. with the lighting of the sign. A street party will follow. The area's unique indie retailers and restaurants also will be open for the occasion.

"The new sign is a near exact replica of the original blade sign that was installed at the theatre in 1921," says Marilyn Mosinski, Director of Economic Development with the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization (DSCDO), the group which has spearheaded the $50,000 project over the past three years.

Needless to say, after such a long wait Mosinsky and her cohorts are ready to celebrate. Adding to the festivities is a trio of pop-up shops that are opening for the season this week in the Gordon Square Arts District. In recent years, the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood has become known for its one-of-a-kind holiday shopping options.

Valerie Mayen of Yellowcake is setting up a temporary apparel shop at the corner of W. 65th and Detroit. The Gordon Square Holiday Market is also set to open in the Near West Lofts Building at W. 67th and Detroit.
 
Finally, a new gallery called Double Feature is also popping up in the district. Located in a two-room space on W. 65th next to the Capitol, it will host artwork, a unique shop and an array of events throughout the season.

Bright Night is a part of Yuletide on the Near West Side, a series of holiday events in the Detroit Shoreway, Ohio City and Tremont neighborhoods.


Sources: Genna Petrolla, Marilyn Mosinski
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Impact Armor Technologies, a manufacturer of ceramic components used in military and law enforcement armor, listened to their customers and developed a bullet-proof clipboard. The clipboard provides protection from multiple gunshots and point-blank range.
 
“Basically, our company was in the business of producing custom armor,” says Matt Raplenovich, Impact Armor’s director of operations. “We try to be very involved with our end-users. Instead of designing a product for them, it was designed by them and it’s worked out well for us.”
 
The clipboard has generated interest from law enforcement agencies around the world. “The response has been very good,” says Rob Slattery, a former police officer and Impact Armor’s law enforcement sales manager. “There are other clipboards on the market, but ours is lighter and provides more protection.”
 
With police fatalities from firearms up 22 percent this year, Impact Armor has secured the endorsement from the Greater Cleveland Peace Officers Memorial Society. Slattery says paramedics have also expressed an interest in the clipboard.
 
Impact Armor has doubled in size since its founding in 2006 -- going from six employees to 12 -- and has a commitment to keeping production local. “Our mission is to provide protection to officers,” says Raplenovich. “But in doing so, we want to create jobs locally. Growth is of course our plan, but we try to keep it local.”

 
Source: Matt Raplenovich and Rob Slattery
Writer: Karin Connelly

LaRick Calhoun has been an entrepreneur since he was 11 years old, when he started cutting hair for people in his neighborhood. His mother was a hair stylist and for $5, Calhoun would create his own styles.

“That’s where it all began,” he says. Then, years later as a real estate loan officer, Calhoun realized he could teach others the skills they need to be successful in business and created 2Excel Group.
 
“I noticed that at 100 percent commission, we really didn’t have any resources in training and development,” Calhoun recalls. “So I built 2Excel Group to provide resources to independent real estate professionals. Then I expanded it to all kinds of entrepreneurs. They really liked our meetings, and they didn’t want to miss any of our events.”
 
Officially launched in 2005, 2Excel Group is a marketing and consulting company that offers regular seminars on starting and growing a business. The company picked up speed in 2009 and now has four core people on staff, a business center in Garfield Heights, and plans to open satellite centers in East Cleveland and Warrensville Heights, as well as hire event and meeting planners. The business center is part incubator, part workspace, part inspirational and motivational center.
 
Calhoun plans to focus on young entrepreneur in 2012 with the Young Entrepreneur Professional Network. “We will have out-of-the-box activities for small businesses and entrepreneurs who want to be part of something fresh,” he says. “We will be an aggressive, different network. We have to prepare tomorrow’s leaders; we have to talk to them at a young age to motivate them.”

 
Source: LaRick Calhoun
Writer: Karin Connelly

Dwellworks, a company that provides a suite of services for the relocation, real estate and mortgage lending industries, has announced plans to relocate its own corporate headquarters to the historic F. W. Woolworth building in PlayhouseSquare.

"We fell in love with PlayhouseSquare and wanted to be a part of the revitalization of downtown," says Gene Novak, CFO and Executive VP of Dwellworks. "It's hard to say enough about the reception and welcome we received from PlayhouseSquare, the City of Cleveland and Downtown Cleveland Alliance."

That reception included a financial incentives package from the City of Cleveland and a presentation from Downtown Cleveland Alliance to the entire Dwellworks staff about the benefits and logistics of moving downtown. Dwellworks secured a forgivable loan through the Vacant Property Initiative Program and a grant based on new job creation through the Citywide Business Grant Program.

PlayhouseSquare Real Estate Services also obtained federal and state historic tax credits that lowered the cost of renovating the office space by one-third.

Dwellworks plans to move its staff of 30 to 40 employees downtown initially. Its appraisal services department will stay in Warrensville Heights for the remaining two years on its lease. Yet Novak says that the firm is already studying plans for a Phase II that would centralize its operations in the heart of downtown Cleveland.


Source: Gene Novak
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The City of East Cleveland, a community that has lost thousands of residents in recent years due to the foreclosure crisis and decades of disinvestment, has celebrated two groundbreakings in as many months, suggesting that the city's new pro-development approach may be working.

Officials from the city, Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA), the Cuyahoga Land Bank and Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing this week celebrated the groundbreaking of a new 39-unit senior apartment building. It is being built on a patch of vacant land at Euclid Avenue and Belmore Road.

Last month, East Cleveland leaders were on hand to give speeches at the groundbreaking for the Circle East Townhomes, a cluster of market-rate apartments on Euclid being developed by the Finch Group.  

"We really encourage building in the City of East Cleveland," Mayor Gary Norton said at the groundbreaking ceremony for the senior building. "This project will give the senior citizens in our community a high-quality place to live." The small, enthusiastic crowd, who appeared as hungry for new development as the mayor, all but said "Amen!" each time Norton paused during his speech.

Mayor Norton has been called an effective new leader for this once-prosperous suburb. The Circle East Townhomes project has also been hailed as a rare instance of University Circle's development fervor spreading into East Cleveland. Yet while these two groundbreakings are no doubt worth celebrating, the rows of blighted properties along Euclid suggest the mammoth task that still lies ahead.

CMHA is building the Euclid-Belmore Senior Building with the aid of Neighborhood Stabilization Program funding. It will be built using Enterprise Green Standards to ensure that it is comfortable, energy-efficient and environmentally friendly.


Source: CMHA, Gary Norton
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The behemothic stone mansion that looms over Franklin Boulevard in Ohio City looks like the perfect spot to film a horror movie -- though some say the frightening events rumored to have taken place here a century ago are even stranger than fiction.

Franklin Castle was built in 1865 by Hannes Tiedemann, a German immigrant. After several of his children died -- some of unknown causes -- he reportedly built gargoyles, turrets and a huge, fourth-floor ballroom to distract his wife from her grief. Ever since, rumors have abounded about strange, illicit activities that may have taken place in the house, as well as ghosts that might occupy it.

Yet, the Castle's new owner was evidently not spooked by its reputation as the most haunted house in Ohio -- nor by its fire-damaged interior and squatting caretaker. She plunked down $260,000 for it after receiving approval from the City of Cleveland to rezone it into a three-family property. She told city officials she plans to renovate the entire property, live in one unit and rent the other two.

Michele Anderson, a realtor with Progressive Urban Real Estate (PURE), says that when her media-shy client first contacted her, she thought it was a put on. "This woman said she was from Italy and wanted to buy a house in Cleveland, and I thought, Yeah, right," she says. "Then I realized she was the real deal."

The buyer's seemingly genuine plans to renovate the property and live there have put neighbors somewhat at ease. The property has changed hands several times since the 1980s, but renovations were never completed. Ever since a tragic fire scarred the interior in 1999, the fate of Franklin Castle has been sitting in limbo.

Now that the landmark property is in the hands of a new caretaker, neighbors hope she'll be able to evict the ghosts that have reputedly squatted here -- rent-free -- for over a century. If nothing else, she'll be able to host some killer parties.


Source: Michele Anderson
Writer: Lee Chilcote

As part of the JobsOhio initiative, Team NEO has asked regional organizations to submit their ideas for job creation and economic development. As one of six JobsOhio regional offices, Team NEO received $4.1 million from the Third Frontier Commission to fund the office and support economic development programs.
 
“The purpose of the money is to improve the economic development system in Ohio,” says Team NEO CEO Tom Waltermire. “We have been spending quite a bit of time working with the board of trustees on how to spend the $4.1 million. We decided to make it into a proposal process, extending it to organizations that represent the 18 counties.”
 
Waltermire says they are encouraging the organizations to work together on ideas that will attract business to Northeast Ohio and create jobs. “We’re looking for proposals that will have broad regional benefits,” he says. “Ultimately, we want proposals that result in job creation, attraction, retention and expansion of business.”
 
Team NEO has received 15 letters of intent. Proposals are due by November 11 and will then be reviewed by a Team NEO task force. The board of trustees will make decisions on December 6. “We’re not just handing out money and hoping for the best,” says Waltermire of the selection process. “We’re going to have some very rigorous reporting requirements from the grantees. We’re holding people accountable and asking them to explain the results they are getting.”
 
Waltermire is optimistic that the proposed plans will have a positive impact on job creation in the area. “The result should be some fresh thinking and new ideas for ways to help the economy in Northeast Ohio,” he says.

 
Source: Tom Waltermire
Writer: Karin Connelly

Jared Rube has a love for both photography and technology. As a third year photography student at Rochester Institute of Technology, Rube got his feet wet in the entrepreneurial world as an intern at Shaker LaunchHouse before creating True Frame Media, which provides video content creators with the ability to standardize work-flow and produce films through online pre and post production processes.
 
Out of True Frame Media came CinaMaker, a cloud-based collaborative environment for producing films online. The company is a marriage of Rube’s two loves.

“It started as marketing and storage, and grew into editing,” recalls Rube. “Then it grew into ‘Why don’t we make it collaborative?’”
 
Running a startup business while going to school full time has not been easy. But Rube has gotten a lot of support from the RIT faculty, LaunchHouse, friends and family. And he’s enjoying every bit of the experience. “It’s a really cool learning experience,” he says, “Doing it all, learning how to run a business.”
 
CinaMaker is quickly growing. Rube has one “unofficial” business partner, one programmer and one designer. He plans on hiring subcontractors to help with the programming. He foresees soon having five to eight programmers and two designers on staff. He also has been working with local and overseas production companies and fellow LaunchHouse company Tiny Giant Studio.

“It’s really moving fast,” he says. “I’m just trying to keep up with it.”

 
Source: Jared Rube
Writer: Karin Connelly

The odyssey that led Deba Gray and Serena Harragin, the couple behind Gray's Auctioneers, to Cleveland is as fascinating as the work they do. The journey, which ends in Lakewood, meandered through Key West and Chicago. It includes a career change in New York, a heart-wrenching epiphany, and the convincing of a reluctant partner.

What is most unusual about Trailside at Morgana Run, a new development of 100-plus new homes in the Slavic Village neighborhood of Cleveland, is not simply that it is a rare example of speculative housing development in today’s morbid real estate market.

No, what seems even more unique is that Third Federal Bank, whose headquarters is located adjacent to the site, is actually the developer of the project. Typically, banks do not take an active role in development.

“Third Federal has historically been all about homeownership,” says Joe Del Re of Zaremba Homes, the urban homebuilder that has been hired to oversee construction. “What better statement could they possibly make to the community than to not only put their headquarters here, but also to build homes?”

Trailside features new, single-family homes that are priced from $135,000 to $150,000. The 2- to 3-bedroom units are highly energy-efficient and have access to green space filled with native plantings. Morgana Run, a trail that weaves through Slavic Village and connects to Mill Creek Reservation, runs by the site. 

Del Re says the project might appeal to young professionals as well as older homebuyers seeking to downsize from larger neighborhood homes. The units feature a first-floor bedroom option, yards and detached two-car garages.

Zaremba, Third Federal and Slavic Village Development worked together for more than five years to acquire and redevelop the project site, which was an environmentally contaminated brownfield until it was cleaned up a few years ago.

Del Re says that Third Federal is taking on the project because of its commitment to Slavic Village and because the site is literally located in its backyard.
 

Source: Joe Del Re
Writer: Lee Chilcote