Back by popular demand, the second annual Entrovation will be held on Friday, May 2, at the Beachwood Community Center. The event is an opportunity for entrepreneurs and businesses of all sizes to showcase their companies and learn from each other. Organized by Beachwood High School marketing teacher and Junior Achievement advisor Greg Perry, the event is touted as the largest Northeast Ohio business fair that connects businesses and entrepreneurs.

“We will have everything from salsa to solar panels,” says Perry. The event is the culmination of a year-long Beachwood Junior Achievement Company Program taken by 24 students from Beachwood, Mayfield and Brush high schools.
 
The students work on Entrovation all year, planning every detail and learning about entrepreneurship. “The class operates like a company,” explains Perry. “My students' company is an entrepreneurial event planning company.”
 
More than 170 businesses, from small startups to large local players like CWRU, Parker Hannifin and Sherwin Williams, will exhibit. “These companies encourage their employees to think like entrepreneurs, even though they work for very big companies and universities,” says Perry. “And it’s a really great way for young entrepreneurs to establish local contacts.”
 
The Burton D. Morgan Foundation will sponsor the Innovative Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in which five companies will be chosen by attendees at Entrovation. The top five entrepreneurs will be invited to pitch their companies on May 28 for a chance to win $3,000, $1,500 and $500 prizes.
 
Entrepreneurial companies will have their goods for sale, Collection Auto Group will have cars on display and six food trucks will be on hand. Perry is expecting about 5,000 people to attend this year’s event, which is free and runs from noon to 6 p.m.
 

Source: Greg Perry
Writer: Karin Connelly

University Circle Inc. has announced plans to construct a $130 million, 20-plus story apartment highrise on the current site of the Children's Museum, as well as surrounding land owned by UCI. The nonprofit has selected Mitchell Schneider of First Interstate Properties and Sam Petros of Petros Homes to lead the development team.

The announcement is the fruit of years of discussion about a luxury residential tower in University Circle. UCI has long set its sights on building such a tower, seeing unmet demand for housing in an area experiencing strong job growth, near 100-percent rental occupancy and growth in commercial amenities.

The project will include about 280 units ranging in size from 720 to 4,200 square feet. The structure will have floor-to-ceiling windows and views of the downtown skyline and Lake Erie. Initial plans call for a building that is 25 to 28 stories tall. The property also will be green-built and offer easy access to public transportation.
 
"There is substantial demand for this type of housing in University Circle," explained Chris Ronayne, President of UCI, in a release. "One University Circle will provide a quality urban design solution that meets a market demand, brings greater density to University Circle and supports neighborhood businesses with new residents. We believe this project will continue the momentum of University Circle and the renaissance underway in Cleveland... One University Circle will be a welcoming gateway to the institutions of University Circle and a home for their employees coming from all over the world.”

In keeping with a luxury urban apartment building, One University Circle will offer concierge services, a fitness center and an indoor pool. The project also will include a green rooftop and other shared amenities. Ronayne says work could begin in 2015, with the first residents moving in two years later.

The Children's Museum currently is seeking a new location in Cleveland that will accommodate its plans for expansion. The developers have announced that they intend to work with the City of Cleveland to craft a community benefits agreement for the project. The agreement will stipulate goals for hiring local and minority tradespeople and working with area high schools to provide internships.


Source: Chris Ronayne
Writer: Lee Chilcote

As a small business owner, Carl Baldesare knows the headaches associated with growing a company. With a background as a small business advisor and, more recently, owner of Specialty Renovations construction company, Baldesare grew frustrated with the expense and limited resources available in growing his small company.

Then about nine months ago, Baldesare had an idea for growing all the small businesses in Cleveland: Keep it Local Cleveland Project. “I just started wondering, why don’t people help these small businesses out,” he recalls. “I realized number one is they didn’t know the business existed, or they were afraid to try it.”
 
The Keep it Local Cleveland Project is a membership based group dedicated to promoting and growing small businesses of all kinds in Cleveland. Businesses can run promotions and specials through the website. “I created an all-encompassing Cleveland chamber,” Baldesare boasts. “We connect local people to local businesses. We do this by telling you where to find them, and give you a little incentive to find them.”
 
Member businesses get access to monthly networking events, a mention on social media and radio, and promotion on Keep it Local’s website marketplace. “It’s a pretty slick setup,” says Baldesare. Consumers can access deals and promotions, or simply research local businesses. “When you buy from independent local businesses, more of your money goes to other independent local businesses.”
 
The project already has generated a loyal following, with more than 3,000 followers on Facebook. The organization now has five employees.
 
Keep it Local Cleveland officially kicks off on Sunday with a free concert at the Beachland Ballroom featuring local bands, of course. A ticket is required to get into the concert.

 
Source: Carl Baldesare
Writer: Karin Connelly

As the processing of shale oil increases, oil refineries are looking for an ecologically effective way to dispose of catalyst. Three local companies -- Metaloy, Redimet and Evergreen Environmental -- have teamed up to create METPro Recovery, working with Skye Metal in Marietta.

“It’s a joint venture relationship to deal with the increased amount of catalyst coming from oil refineries and shale oil mining,” explains Claude Kennard, Metaloy president. “Four refineries in Ohio will be processing these new crudes.”
 
METPro Recovery identifies companies producing catalysts containing heavy metals such as molybdenum, nickel, iron, titanium and cobalt. METPro then delivers these catalysts to Skye Metal’s Marietta facility to produce super alloys and usable raw materials.
 
METPro is able to accept hazardous and non-hazardous “K Waste” materials through a variance granted by the state. The company’s process focuses on sustainability and being environmentally safe. “It goes from the refinery to METPro and the customer without creating additional waste,” explains Kennard. “The gasses that come off in the process go through a scrubber. There’s nothing bad coming out of our plants.”
 
The added benefit to METPro’s process is that there is demand for a product. “The sweet spot of our application is the steel mills will always need the materials we have,” says Kennard. In fact, the recycled materials are cheaper than sourcing naturally occurring materials. The company is reaching out to all of the major industry players.
 
Kennard says the partnership will create jobs within all four of the partnering companies. Metaloy will hire three to five people in the next year, while Redimet plans to hire two people and Evergreen plans to hire four.
 
METPro plans to start with processing 500 tons of catalyst a month and eventually ramp up to its 4,000-ton capacity, with a potential to generate $10 million in sales.

 
Source: Claude Kennard
Writer: Karin Connelly
 

More than 100 business-minded entrepreneurs are expected to attend this weekend’s Cleveland Startup Weekend in Tyler Village (3615 Superior Ave.) to present their business ideas, mingle and team up to create business plans.

Startup Weekend, an international event, returned to Cleveland last year for the first time in five years to a warm reception. So organizers Ryan Marimon and Bryan Adams decided to do it again this year.
 
The weekend, which runs from Friday night, April 11, through Sunday, April 13, is about education, mentoring and hands-on skill development. “Startup Weekends are all about learning by doing, whether you’re learning a new skill or a new way of thinking,” says Marimon. “Don’t just listen to theory; build your own strategy and test it as you go.”
 
Participants will gather on Friday to pitch their ideas. Teams are then formed around the best ideas, via vote, and the teams spend the rest of the weekend working on a business model. The weekend culminates with pitch sessions and a winner is selected by a panel of judges.
 
Last year, eight teams pitched on Sunday night. Marimon says he expects as many as 16 teams to pitch at the end of the weekend this year.
 
Marimon says there’s nothing to lose in exploring ideas. “The risk of failure for the weekend is really low, so there is no reason not to get out and try things,” he says. “At the end of the day, we are all about fostering lasting relationships and fostering a community of doers right here in Cleveland.”
 
Registration for the event is $99 and is open up until the weekend’s start. As a special for Fresh Water readers, use the code FRESH to register for only $59.

 
Source: Ryan Marimon
Writer: Karin Connelly

In Cleveland’s ever-evolving social media community, there is a wide variety of contributors to the civic dialogue. We've complied a list of some of our favorite voices -- a mix of up-and-comers and seasoned vets from different corners of the web who are using their blogs, podcasts and Twitter feeds to give the city a voice.

We live in one of the most important cities for biomedical research in the country, and yet it often feels as though the general public has no clue about what's going on behind the doors of research labs at the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals and Case Western Reserve University. This new column is an attempt to change that.

Creativity is a unifying theme for many who elect to make their home in the city. From an airy Tremont loft with city views to what just might be the greenest home in Cleveland, Fresh Water takes a look at some of the coolest dwellings to pop up in urban 'hoods.

Issue Media Group publications such as Yonge Street in Toronto, High Ground in Memphis and Model D in Detroit cover "what's next" for urban centers. In this recurring feature, we highlight the top stories in urban innovation from all across our national network.

Deacon Burns, front man for the alternative punk-hop group Kounterclockwise, is the star of a new sci-fi animated movie, “Kounterclockwise in Forever-Land.” Burns, who attended Cleveland Heights High School, worked with Los Angeles-based animator Jim Lujan for more than a year to create the film, which takes place in Cleveland.
 
The movie chronicles the adventures of Burns and bandmate Kaya Rogue through the streets of Cleveland in search of a magical glove that was stolen from the Rock Hall. The project has been a lifelong dream for Burns. “It was just incredible,” he says. “I always wanted to do an animated show and it was a blast. I loved every minute of it.”
 
Burns and Lujas have never met; Lujas actually hasn’t even been to Cleveland. But the two put the film together long-distance. “It just goes to show how far technology has come that we can do this,” says Burns.
 
Forever-Land features scenes from the Lake Erie shore, Coventry and Stevenson’s Bar and Grille in Euclid (renamed the Wandering Eye in the movie). Burns, who was left paralyzed after an accident in 2007, describes the movie as positive, inspirational and for all ages. “Kounterclockwise in Forever-Land is the first-ever disabled hip-hop inter-galactic animated hero that saves the day in a wheelchair,” boasts Burns.
 
The Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival will sponsor the movie’s big screen premier on April 24 at the Atlas Theater in Euclid.

 
Sources: Deacon Burns, Jim Lujan
Writer: Karin Connelly

Perspectus Architecture recently completed a merger with HFP/Ambuske Architects, bringing five jobs from Beachwood to Cleveland. Perspectus will remain in its second floor offices on the southeast quadrant of Shaker Square, where it has doubled its office space and is in the process of remodeling.

"Our focus is firmly based in healthcare," says Perspectus principal Larry Fischer of both companies. "We saw a lot of advantages in getting together."

Staying and growing at Shaker Square seemed like a no-brainer, he adds. "When we were looking for space, we wanted a venue or neighborhood that had a certain cool factor to it," says Fischer, who has expanded from a single 900-square-foot office to 10,000 square feet on the entire second floor of his building in the past 14 years. "We probably couldn’t afford being downtown in the primary core. There's a lot happening at Shaker Square."

The new offices are just as cool. There are now a total of 36 staffers in the redesigned space. "Being a contemporary firm, we wanted the space to really represent the work we're doing," says Fischer. "We kept a lot of the mahogany moldings and doors, then contrasted them with clean, light walls and contemporary light fixtures. At two ends, we actually exposed the old wood structure. There’s a contradiction of styles that works pretty well for us."

One big change is that Perspectus' new offices now reflect the movement towards open, connected spaces. "That was a big deal to us," Fischer says. "We didn’t want to be in an old, stodgy environment. We also reorganized the studio -- all or our architects worked in teams, but they weren’t sitting in teams. Now they're more organized and have more space. We really wanted to create a space that supported how we work, and that encouraged mentoring, interaction and collaboration."

That open environment goes for the bosses, too. "There are some people that wish I had my own office," Fischer adds wryly. "But I'm out in the open, too."

Fischer praised the Coral Company for its willingness to work closely with the firm to customize the layout. Perspectus employees continue to enjoy "problem-solving walks" around the Square, taking inspiration from the architecture.

Prospectus is headquartered in Cleveland, but also has offices in Columbus and Charleston, West Virginia.


Source: Larry Fischer
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The students in the Math Corps at CSU program are not just there to sharpen their math skills. For the third summer, a group of middle school and high school students will come to the CSU campus from Cleveland schools for a four-week program that not only teaches math through mentoring, but also provides a nurturing, supportive environment.

The Math Corps at CSU is a spinoff of a program at Wayne State University in Detroit, which has since 1990 offered a combined academic enrichment and mentoring program to Detroit Public Schools students. Since 1995, more than 95 percent of Detroit’s Math Corps students have graduated from high school and 80 percent have gone on to college.
Organizers in Cleveland looked to Detroit when launching a similar program here. Beyond strong mathematical foundations, the Math Corps provides a safe, caring environment in which children are able to recognize and nurture excellence.
 
“It’s really about a way of seeing kids and a way of seeing math,” explains Dionissi Aliprantis, associate director of the Math Corps. “It’s about helping kids realize their greatness. All kids have greatness in them. We use math as a way to bring it out of them.”
 
The seventh and eighth graders learn from high school teaching assistants (TAs), who have been through the program. There also are six college instructors. The participants are divided into teams of 10 middle school students at the same grade level, one college student who serves as team leader, and five TAs. Students emerge loving math, loving themselves and knowing how to respect others.
 
“There’s a lot you can learn from math: hard work, the courage to fail and it’s kind of fun,” says Aliprantis. “We do all that in the context of a caring community. We have high expectations and we tell them we actually care about each other and take care of each other.”
 
While the program is open to all Cleveland area middle and high school students, organizers see the Math Corps as a way to support struggling Cleveland public schools. “It’s about creating this community,” says Math Corps co-founder and instructor Francisca Richter. “You have to have commitment, a sense of responsibility and the drive to want to learn. We hope to reach out to more children.”
 
This year the Math Corps will accept 40 incoming seventh graders to attend the camp from July 14 to Aug. 7, as well as 20 eighth graders and 30 high school teaching assistants. Applications are due by Friday, April 11.

 
Sources: Dionissi Aliprantis and Francisca Richter
Writer: Karin Connelly
 

Sometimes a single effort makes a thousand-fold difference. The theory holds true across the North Coast: From one small business that transformed Cleveland's image on the international stage to a silent flock of gleaming blue birds, the 216 is home to projects that while small in scale reap big rewards.

Developer Mike DeCesare had far greater success with the Waverly Station Townhomes than he'd originally envisioned. Anticipating that it would take three to four years to sell and build the units, he was surprised to find that he was able to sell all 22 units in about two years. Now he's getting ready to launch his next development, the seven-unit Harborview Townhomes at W. 54th and Herman Avenue, which offer lake and downtown views.

The developer, who has made the Gordon Square neighborhood his home and has developed several projects there in the past decade, says this project builds upon his previous work, and the location, design and views are strong selling points.

"They're larger units with higher end finishes and considerably different views," says DeCesare. "They've got some amazing views of downtown and the lake and what I call the 'Inner Harbor,' the area around Wendy Park and the salt mines."

Most of the units are two bedrooms, but a couple of them offer three. All seven units have fourth floor roof decks -- perfect for watching fireworks or Lake Erie sunsets. There also are attached two-car garages and compact backyards.

The units start at $269,900 and top out at $350,000. Bamboo hardwood flooring, granite countertops and stainless steel appliances come standard, according to the website. Green features include a 92-percent efficient furnace and sustainable exterior materials. At present, two of the seven units already are reserved.

DeCesare has not yet received final approvals from the City of Cleveland, but he is confident that the project will be well-received. He has eschewed bank financing, preferring to work with private investors who are committed to the neighborhood. He plans to break ground this year and have the first units occupied by December.

"The fact that we have two in reservation is incredibly encouraging to us," he says.

No city subsidy has been invested in the project, but the units are eligible for 15-year, 100-percent tax abatements on improved value (they pay taxes on the land).


Source: Mike DeCesare
Writer: Lee Chilcote