Save Our Land: Breuer Tower Debate at CPC

The drama continues:
Thanks to Tim for keeping us updated. For even more info, follow the link to read the comments.

Friday, June 08, 2007

interesting dialogue brewing over Breuer Tower

We spent four hours this morning in a meeting of the City/Cleveland Planning Commission (CPC) going over the county's request to demolish the Breuer Tower. It was interesting. All the public non-insider commentary was against granting the demolition permit.

We got the start of a great community dialogue, hitherto suppressed except for a few forays by the PD's Steve Litt, Peter Lawson Jones, tons of NEO blogs, and a MeetTheBloggers podcast. The public commentary was delivered by Jennifer Coleman (lots of good insights and citings of what the standards really are), Hunter Morrison (super delivery, wish we had it on tape), Steve McQuillin, Paul Volpe, David Ellison, Daryl Davis, Peter Lawson Jones, Susan Miller, Bob Miller (a former Cleveland Trust employee, there at the beginning, with some fantastic background materials) of the Generation Foundation, Anthony Hiti for the local AIA chapter, Tom Yablonski, Todd deGarmo (who has worked on the Pentagon and describes the Breuer Tower as the "jewel" among all such buildings), Gloria, and myself--and I've missed a few others whom I don't know so well. All in all, it's a great collation of new thought on what the two dark commissioners consider a done deal. It was all done out of the dark and the shadows, in the full light of day.

Then, the CPC took a poll of who was for denying the permit, and 4 would deny it and 3 were against denying it. Then, the downtown councilman mentioned that to deny the demolition would show a lack of cooperation with the county commissioners, and he had to make nice with them so he could continue to work with them--yes, it was that meretricious, and silly. So, over Norm Krumholz' objections, they dragged the issue out of the light of day and back into the shadows, to meet again next Friday, when Norm won't be there, to see if they can keep wearing away at the issue until they get the vote where they need it, in favor of granting the permit for demolition.

Folks, the downtown councilman Cimperman and county commissioners DiMora and Hagan are trying to give this short shrift and a quick burial, despite what all the rest of the public say and do. They are not serving the public interest. They are ignoring the numbers. They are not working for you. They have other, more special interests in mind, because they certainly ignore the public interest. Hunter Morrison specifically and in great detail delineated the absence of a suitable process at the city level, like what they had with the Society Tower and Gateway.

More on this later. I'm beginning to think the three of them--Cimperman, DiMore, and Hagan--are unfit for public office.

I'm hoping a transcript or a recording of this session will surface somehow, someplace.

Posted by Tim Ferris at 3:18 PM

Cleveland Colectivo: Second Round Grants Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Lee Chilcote
216/406-3750 or leechilcote@gmail.com

SMALL GRANTS FOR BIG IDEAS: TWO YEAR OLD GIVING CIRCLE AWARDS MONEY TO SIX INNOVATIVE PROJECTS IN 2007

The Cleveland Colectivo, a two-year-old Cleveland-based “giving circle” whose members make collective contributions to innovative projects in Cleveland, has selected six projects for funding in 2007. Reflecting the group’s determination to transform Cleveland, these projects, selected from more than 150 applications, focus on creativity, social justice, economic development, environmental sustainability, youth and alternative media. In total, the Colectivo gave away $13,500 in 2007 (nearly twice as much as the group gave away in 2006).

“The Cleveland Colectivo is a part of a national trend – giving circles are growing across the country,” said Walter Wright, one of the group’s founding members. “We believe that philanthropy is something that anyone can participate in, and we want to celebrate the grassroots projects happening in Cleveland.”

The Colectivo provided grants to six different projects in 2007:

• Zygote Press, a print-making collaborative, was awarded $2,000 for the Artzreach Program. The funds will help purchase materials and pay teacher stipends for an initiative to provide arts programming to individuals in detention and re-entry programs, in the Broadway neighborhood of Cleveland. Find out more information about Zygote Press at www.zygotepress.com.

• ArtHouse, a community arts center in the Brooklyn Centre neighborhood, was awarded $2,000 for the Fresh Stop – Studio Stop program. A first time collaboration between ArtHouse and CityFresh, these groups will host a “Fresh Stop” farmers market two days per month in the ArtHouse parking lot at 3119 Denison Rd. The market will offer locally grown produce at affordable prices. During the farmers market, ArtHouse will offer a free, open-door studio at its facility, allowing the public to take advantage of arts programming and classes. Find out more information about ArtHouse at www.arthouseinc.org, and CityFresh at www.gotthenac.org.

• The Nueva Luz Urban Resource Center, a non-profit that focuses on fostering stronger relationships among youth and families of color, was awarded $5,000 for the African American and Latino Male Youth Dialogue program. The funds will be used for four quarterly dialogue sessions, estimated to impact 200 youth and fathers. The goal of the sessions is to create stronger intergenerational relationships, and to help youth change the projected outcomes of their lives. Contact the Nueva Luz Urban Resource Center at 216/651-8236.

• The Wendy Park Foundation, a non-profit that promotes and educates Clevelanders about Wendy Park at Whiskey Island, was awarded $2,500 for the WHISTLE Program – a three-week summer boat-building and sailing camp for Cleveland kids. The funds will be used to purchase materials. This innovative program exposes youth to Whiskey Island and the natural environment. Find out more about this group at www.wendyparkfoundation.org.

• Meet the Bloggers, a media organization that provides an alternative news source on issues that face Northeast Ohio, was awarded $500 for web hosting, newsletter maintenance, and pod-casting. Meet the Bloggers is known for hosting its interviews in Cleveland neighborhoods, bringing attention to under-reported issues, and for promoting an “open source” approach towards information and news. The Colectivo grant will help this grassroots group to expand its audience. Find out more about Meet the Bloggers at www.meetthebloggers.net.

• Parish Hall Cleveland, a music and arts non-profit housed in a former church hall in the Gordon Square Arts District of the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood, was awarded $1,500 towards a Gallery Renovations project. The funds will provide seed funding for the group to construct moveable walls, allowing them expand their programs. The moveable walls will create additional gallery space for art shows and other events. Find out more at www.parishhall.wordpress.com.

The Cleveland Colectivo was formed in January of 2005. Unlike traditional foundations, the group has created a giving circle model with no formal executive director, board of trustees or overhead – except for occasional purchases of pizza and drinks. Decisions are made by consensus at monthly meetings and membership is open. Voting members contribute at least $100 per quarter. For more information about the Cleveland Colectivo, visit www.clevelandcolectivo.org.

The Cleveland Colectivo mission statement is: “Clevelanders coming together to strengthen our community through collective investments that identify and nurture innovative projects.”

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