Another Firm HQ Coming Downtown from the Burbs

From downtowncleveland.com:

MCPc, Inc signed lease to move HQ Downtown

Last month, MCPc, Inc. signed its ten-year, 98,000-square-foot lease to move its corporate headquarters to 1801 Superior Ave., in downtown Cleveland. The technology products and solutions provider plans to move from 21555 Drake Rd. in Strongsville, Ohio, during the summer of 2011.

“Now that our relocation plans are official, we are focused on the next steps, and helping to make Cleveland a center of technology in the United States,” said Mike Trebilcock, chairman and chief executive officer of MCPc. “We’re looking forward to being in the heart of Cleveland, and expanding our relationships with local business-technology organizations and the community at large.”

MCPc will occupy the third floor of the 1801 Superior building. It will also build out a portion of the first-floor parking garage to accommodate its Technology Center, which will include a state-of-the-art Computer Configuration Lab and Warehouse. The 1801 Superior building is the recognized home of The Plain Dealer, which will continue to occupy space on the remaining floors of the building.

In addition to the new Technology Center, MCPc will develop a 4,000-square foot Customer Experience Center that will allow customers to see, touch, test, research and evaluate new technologies prior to making purchase decisions. Along with onsite meeting facilities and videoconferencing capabilities, including an Executive Briefing Center, this will help MCPc educate, collaborate and bring cutting-edge technologies to its customers all over the country.

For more details on the relocation, or to stay updated about the process and plans visit the company’s business-technology blog at http://blog.mcpc.com/. To learn about MCPc Inc visit http://www.MCPc.com

This entry was written by Maura Reilly, posted on January 10, 2011 at 12:49 pm, filed under Business News,Developments, Downtown News and tagged Downtown Cleveland. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post. Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

Canal Basin District Plan Approved with Unanimous Vote by CPC

Repost from Downtown Cleveland:

Cleveland City Planning Commission Approves the Canal Basin District Plan

View of the Towpath along Scranton Road facing Downtown

On Friday last week, the Cleveland City Planning Commission, by unanimous vote, adopted the Canal Basin District Plan. The plan, which is sponsored by Downtown Cleveland Alliance, the City of Cleveland and Ohio Canal Corridor, was presented by Greg Calpino of the nationally prominent landscape architecture firm JJR. The overview of the project and the plan was given by Tom Yablonsky, Executive Vice President of Downtown Cleveland Alliance.

The centerpiece of the Canal Basin District Plan is the proposed Canal Basin Park, which will include the current Settlers Landing Park and expand it to a new 24 acre signature park for the city. In addition to the park, the plan coordinates necessary linkages to nearby neighborhoods and from the last phase of the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail.

“This plan is significant because it builds on our city’s legacy of the Emerald Necklace,” said Tom Yablonsky, Vice President of Downtown Cleveland Alliance. “In that spirit, the Canal Basin District Plan proposes a dynamic and comprehensive framework of trail investments that build upon the proposed Canal Basin Park. Together, the park and its trail linkages will become the northern terminus of both the Towpath Trail and the 110 mile Ohio & Erie Canalway. The plan provides the vision for access to world-class parks for Downtown and Cleveland’s most central neighborhoods, access that Cleveland’s surrounding neighborhoods and suburbs have enjoyed for decades.”

The Canal Basin District Park Plan identified and evaluated all possible trail linkages that could connect Canal Basin Park to adjacent Downtown amenities and nearby city neighborhoods. Based on public input and subsequent planning and engineering analysis, three strategic trail loops have been proposed:

• Lakefront Loop: which links Canal Basin Park to Nautica, Wendy Park and Edgewater Park. The loop also incorporates the proposed West Shoreway Improvements.
• Downtown Loop: which links the park to downtown neighborhoods through key links to the Flats East Bank, The Historic Warehouse District, Northcoast Harbor, Public Square and the Convention Center/Medical Mart
• Canal District Loop: which links the park to key river front projects including the newly proposed Cleveland Rowing Foundation location, Hart Crane Park and the proposed ParkWorks Lake Link Trail.
  
  For a map of the proposed loops, click here (PDF - 1.76 MB)

For more information on the next steps towards implementing the Canal Basin District Plan and the larger Towpath Trail project contact Tom Yablonsky at tyablonsky@dcacleveland.net or 216-736-7799. To view the presentation to the City Planning Commission, click here (PDF - 6.19 MB). For a map of the overall Canal Basin District Plan, click here (PDF - 4.42 MB)

This entry was written by Josh, posted on May 10, 2010 at 2:48 pm

Construction on Cleveland's New Bike Station to Start this spring

Reposted from GreenCityBlueLake

                

Art will brighten Cleveland's bike station 

Submitted by Marc Lefkowitz | Last edited January 11, 2010 - 2:43pm

Public art that taps nostalgia and a retro ‘80s palette will liven up the downtown Cleveland bike station. Last Friday, the Cleveland Planning Commission approved Cleveland Institute of Art graduate Mark Reigelman and undergrad Scott Stibich’s idea to adhere hundreds of metallic-blue bike handlebars festooned with green streamers on a blue-painted façade of a city owned garage at E. 2nd Street, just north of The Q. The pair won the design competition hosted by Cleveland Public Art – supported by a grant from local giving circle, Cleveland Colectivo – from 30 eligible submissions.

The station, dubbed The Bike Rack, is on track for a spring 2010 groundbreaking, Cleveland City Planner, Marty Cader, reported, and a summer grand opening. The city is funding the build out of the 6,500 sq. ft. space, which will include indoor rack space for 50 bikes, men’s and women’s shower and locker rooms and a repair shop. Downtown Cleveland Alliance (DCA) will manage the operation and plans to hire a manager whose duties will include individual and corporate membership sales and services.

Companies such as Medical Mutual have expressed interest in buying memberships for employees, Cader said. DCA is considering operating a bike rental program from the station, he added, and has discussed with The Cleveland Indians a bike valet service. At least two other staffers could be hired to manage the front desk and to run the repair shop.

The artists will paint the horizontal decks of the five-story garage in deep blue and then use an industrial strength adhesive tape to affix more than 800 locally milled, recycled aluminum bike handles which will be painted a sky blue and accented with a bright green streamers made of nautical nylon rope. The colors were actually borrowed from the Sustainable Cleveland 2019 Summit logo (not Miami Vice).

“When we put hundreds of these on the building, you’ll have a surface that’s in constant motion,” says Reigelman.

The art was inspired by childhood memories of riding a bike for the first time. In addition to improving the drab white façade, the artists developed sign materials. The commission approved the design of The Bike Rack and a ‘b’ inside a circle, which plays off of the universal parking symbol of a ‘P’ inside a circle.

“Is 50 racks enough space to meet demand?” Commission member David Bowen wondered afterwards. Cader responded that University Circle and Cleveland State University are also working on bike station plans, and he suggested that filling the downtown station could lead to more stations.

“Are these stations profitable?” Commission chair Tony Coyne asked. Cader said Cleveland is building on the business model of Chicago’s bike station at Millennium Park, which depends largely on its bike rental income (it also has corporate sponsors including McDonald’s), and Bikestation, a facility located at Union Station in Washington, D.C. reportedly generates income, and includes a bike valet service.

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The Planning Commission acknowledged the ongoing conversations between its members and bike and pedestrian advocates to include a bike/ped path on the Innerbelt Bridge. At the end of the meeting, the commission discussed a resolution of support, and decided to explore how a resolution can impact the bridge design-build process. One option being discussed is adding an ‘add alt’ or an additional alternative that would allow the proposals to include non-motorized amenities on the bridge in the RFQ. Sustainable transportation advocates present provided feedback, including a stronger approach may be to include a requirement as part of the main RFQ. The commission will take up the matter again at its next meeting, on Jan. 22 in Room 217 in Cleveland City Hall.

Grant News: Cleveland Foundation awards $11.9 million

Press release from the Cleveland Foundation:

Cleveland Foundation awards $11.9 million

March 27, 2007

At its quarterly meeting today, the board of directors of The Cleveland Foundation authorized $11.9 million in grants to fund programs and services that address some of Cleveland's most vital issues.

Those receiving funding this quarter include:

Neighborhoods and Housing

Neighborhood Progress Inc. (NPI) received a three-year, $4.2 million grant to support its operations and those of 14 to 16 community development corporations (CDCs) in Cleveland. A CDC is a nonprofit group that helps to strengthen a neighborhood through improved housing and commercial opportunities, job creation, and similar activities. Six area CDCs – those in the Buckeye, Detroit Shoreway, Fairfax, Glenville, Slavic Village, and Tremont neighborhoods – have benefited over the past three years from NPI's "Strategic Investment Initiative," which seeks to produce exemplary "neighborhoods of choice" and local market recovery. The new funds will extend these benefits across the rest of Cleveland's CDCs, with a strong emphasis on teaching them business and organizational skills like planning, marketing, and coordination of services. In addition, part of the grant will support the Village Capital Corporation, a subsidiary of NPI that assists with real estate development projects.

The board also authorized a $450,000 grant to the Downtown Cleveland Alliance for ongoing operations and priority initiatives to strengthen downtown Cleveland. Among those initiatives are economic development, marketing, and "Clean and Safe," a program designed to make the downtown environment friendlier, cleaner, and safer, in part through the use of 45 "Downtown Ambassadors."

Public School Improvement

The Foundation allocated $300,000 to assist with planning and design of six new "Opportunity Schools" within the Cleveland Municipal School District. Those schools include four single-gender K through 8 academies, the Ginn Academy for high school boys, and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics school.

A grant of $90,000 was directed to the Ohio Grantmakers Forum (OGF) to support that organization's work in education. In December, the OGF released a report titled "Education for Ohio's Future," which described the challenges facing the state educational system and set forth a number of policy-related recommendations. The next phase of the project will focus on engaging government officials, grantmakers and the community on educational reform in Ohio.

The board also agreed to support the new Cleveland School of Science and Medicine through a $70,000 grant to create a teaching and learning plan, foster professional development among faculty, procure instructional materials, and recruit teachers.

Advanced Energy

The board granted $200,000 to the Cuyahoga County Commissioners to help fund a feasibility study around the installation of electricity-producing wind turbines in Lake Erie. The project was proposed last year by the Cuyahoga Regional Energy Development Task Force.

Early Childhood and Youth Development

The Foundation has also earmarked $135,000 to hire a consultant to help design a comprehensive youth development initiative for Cuyahoga County. The initiative will aim to improve the lives of children ages 5 to 17 in such areas as health, behavior, and family and housing conditions. A youth development taskforce has been meeting since February and will continue to review best practices, interview community experts, assess past youth development-related grantmaking in the county, and analyze public and private funding options. The board also authorized a grant of $11,621 to The Center for Community Solutions to gather data on the county's youth.