CSU Wants to Move Footprint West

This is a good move for CSU as this will help free land for the center of the campus. This, in turn, will lead to further development of the Master Plan.

Cleveland State University Art Department could move to PlayhouseSquare's Middough Building

By Steven Litt, The Plain Dealer

January 05, 2010, 6:29PM

Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer

Ron Ledin, president and CEO of Middough Inc., posed in 1997 front of the building his company just purchased in PlayhouseSquare. Middough may sell the building to Cleveland State University.

The art gallery at Cleveland State University may soon see the light of day.

The university administration is negotiating to buy an early 20th century office and loft building at 1901 E. 13th St. owned by Middough Inc., an architecture, engineering and management company with offices in 17 U.S. cities including Chicago, Atlanta and Phoenix.

The plan is to move the Art Department and the classroom and rehearsal spaces for the Theater Department from their present buildings off Chester Avenue at E. 23rd Street into the Middough building, located in the heart of the city's theater district, said John Boyle, the university's vice president for business and finance.

"We're hoping they can go to PlayhouseSquare," Boyle said.

The deal could mean relocating the busy CSU Art Gallery to the Haig Avedesian building at 1317 Euclid Avenue, where it could have frontage on the avenue, and proximity to the Middough building next door, Boyle said.

"That might be nice, actually," said George Mauersberger, chairman of the art department. "We wouldn't have our cavelike gallery."

The moves would be part of a series transactions designed to make way for a new housing development just north of campus, for which the university is soliciting bids from developers.

The timing of moving the art and theater departments depends on negotiations over a purchase price with Middough, although Boyle said he hoped the move could be accomplished by the fall of 2011.

Ron Ledin, Middough's president and CEO, said the discussions with CSU are in early stages, but that he liked the idea of selling to the university and becoming a tenant.

"We have a lot of space here and they have some needs and our building is strategically located, being an integral part of the theater district," he said.

Under the arrangement, the CSU art and theater programs would occupy the second and fifth floors of the Middough building. Middough Inc., which bought the building in 1997, would remain on the third and fourth floors, and would lease from CSU.

The ground floor of the Middough building is a parking garage.

Built in the early 20th century, the building has served as home to the 13th Street Racquet Club and a U.S. Navy finance center. Ledin said the building was original built as a two-story parking garage, and was later expanded to five floors. At one time, it housed the city's convention center, he said.

Moving to the building would nearly double the 65,000 square feet of space the art and theater departments currently occupy in their CSU homes. Each floor of the Middough building measures roughly 60,000 square feet, Boyle said.

The buildings currently occupied by the art and theater departments would be demolished to make way for 200 to 500 units of market-rate rental housing along Chester Avenue, which the university is trying to develop in collaboration with private developers.

Boyle said the university has received five bids from developers interested in building apartments along the north side of Chester Avenue from East 21st to East 24th streets.

If the art and theater departments can't move immediately to the Middough building, the developers would have to build around the structures.

If they can move quickly, the housing developers could start with a tabula rasa.

The consolidation of CSU cultural activities at PlayhouseSquare is related to earlier plans announced in 2009 to move performances by CSU's Theater Department to the Allen Theater, where it would share space with the Cleveland Play House.

The Play House decided last year to sell its home at 8500 Euclid Ave. to the Cleveland Clinic for $13 million. Proceeds from the sale will help remodel the Allen for its new tenants.

Boyle said that the Middough property would give the CSU Theater Department the rehearsal space it would lack in the Allen Theatre.

If the deal with Middough falls through, CSU would have to find theater rehearsal space somewhere else in PlayhouseSquare, Boyle said.

Over the long term, CSU would like to build an arts complex on its own campus east of the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at E. 18th Street and Euclid Avenue. Land has been cleared for the arts complex, but that project awaits a donor, Boyle said.

© 2010 cleveland.com. All rights reserved.

Yet more Medical Mart News - This Time Cleveland vs. New York

As Cleveland settles medical mart questions, rival New York project raises new ones | Cuyahoga County Insider - cleveland.com


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As Cleveland settles medical mart questions, rival New York project raises new ones

By Henry J. Gomez, The Plain Dealer

January 07, 2010, 7:21PM

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Marvin Fong, The Plain Dealer

Cuyahoga County Commissioner Tim Hagan, shown above with MMPI President Chris Kennedy at a City Club forum in June, believes Cleveland remains the frontrunner in the medical mart sweepstakes despite a revised plan in New York.

With Plain Dealer reporter Laura Johnston

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Though plans for a Cleveland medical martcrystallized Thursday, backers of a similar concept in New York City believe revisions to their proposal should allow them to open well ahead of the competing project here.

Instead of anchoring a new 60-story tower in Manhattan as first envisioned, the World Product Centre will start out small and expand in phases to make a speedier debut, a company official said.

The first phase will use up to 350,000 square feet of existing space somewhere in New York, said John Strong, president of World Product Centre Marketing. He believes the showplace for medical equipment can open in about 18 months -- more than two years before Cleveland's.

"Many of the people that we've talked to are highly interested but want something more quickly," Strong said in a phone interview. "We want to accommodate that."

Cleveland and New York are two of the three cities locked in a derby to boast the nation's first medical mart. A complex three times as large as Cleveland's is planned in Nashville, Tenn.

In the past, executives with MMPI, the private developer behind the Cleveland project, have said that being the first to introduce the untested medical mart concept is considered critical to their project's success. Officials with the Chicago company did not respond to a request for comment Thursday regarding the latest version of the World Product Centre plans.

Local backers believe that Northeast Ohio remains the frontrunner. They cite public financing in place since 2007 -- courtesy of an increase to the Cuyahoga County sales tax -- and other factors, such as a renowned, built-in medical industry that can drive business.

"The Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals and MetroHealth in one city -- we are the health care capital of the world," said Councilman Joe Cimperman, whose ward includes downtown. "New York might have great Broadway shows, but they don't have the public funding, and they don't have the ability to bring in the vendors that these guys do."

The Cleveland mart will be built at the northeast corner of St. Clair Avenue and Ontario Street, in tandem with a new convention center. On Thursday, MMPI and county commissioners agreed to a new pact that makes it likely ground will break on the complex by October.

Construction is expected to take 36 months, so Cleveland's mart would be on pace to open sometime in 2013. Officials in Tennessee have targeted that year, as well.

A spokeswoman with Market Center Management Co., which is pursuing the downtown Nashville medical mart, did not return a phone call seeking comment Thursday.

Cuyahoga Commissioner Tim Hagan downplayed the idea of a three-city race.

"The bottom line is that we're not competing with anybody," Hagan said. "We've got a unique setting here. What we have is 70,000 or so people working in the health care industry in the community ... the dominance of the Cleveland Clinic nationally and internationally.

"It's comparing apples and oranges here."

© 2010 cleveland.com. All rights reserved.

The Economist - Restoring Cleveland

Restoring Cleveland

The hopeful laundry

Jan 7th 2010 | CLEVELAND, OHIO

Micro-projects aim to restore a shattered area

Reuters

Can Cleveland flower again?

FOR decades, they have stood in stark juxtaposition: the manicured landscapes and tranquil grounds, the Van Goghs and Monets displayed in cavernous marble halls; and the abject poverty, crime and joblessness just outside. University Circle is home to Cleveland’s most cherished cultural and public-service gems, institutions built with the wealth of Ohio’s long-gone industrial era of steel and manufacturing: the Cleveland Museum of Art, Severance Hall, Case Western Reserve University and the city’s famous hospital district, centred on the Cleveland Clinic.

But encircling this oasis of gentility, the six surrounding neighbourhoods languish, home to 43,000 mostly black residents living in households where the median income is $18,500. A wave of recent foreclosures and the perennial signifiers of urban decay abound—drugs, crime and intractable unemployment. Despite the millions spent on job-training programmes this ring of impoverished neighbourhoods remains a gloomy gauntlet to be run by the 45,000 workers driving into the area daily, and a safety threat on evening outings to the Cleveland Orchestra.

The recession has exacerbated the divide, as has the billion or more dollars poured into expansion projects in the University Circle area in recent years. Four cranes block out the skyline, but the foreground is row upon row of boarded-up houses and shuttered storefronts. The Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals are powerhouses of economic activity, spending a combined $3 billion on goods and services annually. But little of that money stays local.

So what if some of that financial largesse could be deployed within the surrounding city blocks, creating assets and new wealth within the underclass? If it seeped out not via insecure low-wage jobs, but jobs offering living wages and benefits, even entrepreneurial businesses that workers could own? That is the idea behind the Evergreen Co-operative Initiative, an effort aimed at closing this wealth gap by creating 10 green, for-profit businesses that local residents will own and operate.

The Evergreen Co-operative Laundry opened in October 2009 after spending $5.7 million in start-up costs on building and equipment. Ohio Solar Co-operative, a solar-panel installation company, also launched in October. Green City Growers opens later this year and will grow lettuce and herbs on 14 acres of once-abandoned lots, selling produce to nearby hospitals and competing with goods trucked in from Californian farms. Each of the ten projects aims to employ around 50 local workers.

On a cold and rainy December morning, eight workers bustle inside the Evergreen Co-operative Laundry. The staff load dirty bed sheets and towels onto a conveyor belt which runs into an industrial-sized, energy-efficient washer that uses a third of the water of traditional machines.

After the load is washed, Mienyon Smith studiously places the sheets into an enormous roller that irons the damp whites dry. It’s the first time this 31-year-old mother of five has earned more than minimum wage in her life, let alone contemplated the idea of owning a business. After eight years with the company, she could own a stake worth $65,000. “I just plan on being here for a long, long time and being a role model to my kids,” she said, during a break. “I can say I was the first to lay the foundation for Evergreen to be everywhere in the neighbourhoods.”

Snow Removal Plan & Possible Parking Ban for Tonight

Just passing on the information.




Office of the Mayor
Andrea V. Taylor, Press Secretary
Office of the Mayor
(216) 664-4171 or (216) 857-7998
Belinda I. Saldaña, Deputy Press Secretary

(216) 664-2223 or (216) 857-3808

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 7, 2010

Snow Removal Plan & Possible Parking Ban for Tonight

Cleveland Department of Aging Contacts Over 50,000 Seniors

CLEVELAND – To manage this afternoon’s snowfall, 52 units of the City of Cleveland snow removal fleet were dispatched at 12:00 noon to begin pre-salting the main streets in order to prevent the likelihood of rush hour gridlock due to snow or ice on the roads. Snow removal crews will be fully staffed with 52 drivers around the clock for the next 24 to 48 hours. Initially, all primary main and secondary main streets will be serviced. Tandem plowing will occur based on what the weather conditions are, with the drivers remaining on the main and secondary streets until the snow subsides and the roads are in good/passable condition. Crews will transition into residential streets with systematic salting and plowing 8 hours after the snowfall ends completely. The goal is to have all streets serviced within 24 to 36 hours depending on the actual amount of snow fall. This work plan will be ongoing until main thoroughfares and residential streets are clear.

When and if snow accumulation exceeds 2 inches or more, the Public Safety Director of the City of Cleveland may enact a Snow Emergency Parking Ban. This will allow snow plows sufficient time to remove snow and ice and move through city streets at a good pace. When a snow ban goes into effect, stopping, standing, and parking of vehicles will be restricted and prohibited on City streets with posted red and white signs. Once the parking ban begins it will continue UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE, anyone who fails to comply will be ticketed and towed.

Additionally, the City of Cleveland is requesting voluntary compliance from residents who are parked in areas that do not have parking bans. This will ensure that plows can service the entire width of the street – curb-to-curb.

As part of the City’s winter weather plan, the Department of Aging made 50,865 calls to Cleveland seniors 65 and older with a message to stay safe in the coming days of severe weather. Click here to hear the message.

This plan is based on snow accumulation not exceeding 8 inches in 24 hours. Updates will be available as the forecasted snow event progresses. Residents with snow removal concerns should call (216) 664-2510.

Josh Taylor

Public Relations & Marketing Manager

Downtown Cleveland Alliance

50 Public Square, Ste 825

Cleveland, OH 44113

p. 216-736-7799

f . 216-736-7792

Web: www.downtowncleveland.com  

Seems Brooklyn is beginning to feel Cleveland's pain

First the word Hogo Boss will close their operations in town, then this. Its likely only a matter of time before the PeeDee plant starts downsizing as more and more people go to the interwebs for the information.

American Greetings to consider alternatives to current Brooklyn headquarters - Crain's Cleveland Business

By STAN BULLARD  -  3:03 pm, January 7, 2010 

American Greetings Corp. (NYSE: AG) is undertaking a search for a new corporate headquarters that may take it out of its longtime Brooklyn home. 

Patrice Sadd, an American Greetings spokeswoman, said the company has told the 2,000 employees at its headquarters that it wants to see “what is available” following an income tax hike last year by the city of Brooklyn. 

The suburb last June 1 increased its income tax rate to 2.5% from 2%. 

Ms. Sadd said the search includes “looking at all our options.” 

That opens the door to a potential move outside Northeast Ohio or the state. Other states likely will call on the greeting card maker because of the public disclosure of its site search. 

Asked if a need to upgrade its global headquarters or adapt its size to changing staffing needs supported the drive for a search, Ms. Sadd said the tax issue brought the headquarters issue to a head. 

American Greetings set up shop in Brooklyn in 1956. All told, the global company employs 17,800 associates. 

Ms. Sadd said the company has retained an outside real estate consultant to conduct its search. She would not identify the consultant. 

Brooklyn Mayor Richard H. Balbier said addressing American Greetings' tax complaint would not be easy because the suburb's voters approved the tax hike in an election last May. He said he thinks there are more motives to the greeting card maker's search than the tax issue, such as a substantial amount of unused space at its 1 million-square-foot building. 

The mayor said he did not have a figure for how much income tax the company pays the city yearly. However, Mayor Balbier said losing the company would be a “tremendous loss.” 

“They are our largest employer,” he noted. 

He said he hopes to meet with the company soon.

An additional Med Mart article

Cleveland convention center, medical mart project could get in gear by fall - Crain's Cleveland Business

Big news on Cleveland's Medical Mart

It appears talks have resumed with property owners around the previous preferred location for the Medical Mart. This means the Mall C location that had come up last year as the new choice is likely off the table. Further more, the PeeDee is reported:

"Developer MMPI could break ground by October on a much-anticipated medical mart for downtown Cleveland, according to a construction agreement introduced to Cuyahoga County commissioners this morning."

As a person who was involved with the original Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Convention Facilities Authority (now defunct), all I can say is "FINALLY."

Cleveland: Medical Mart getting back on track

 Tom Beres     Updated: 1/7/2010 12:23:49 PM  Posted: 1/6/2010 5:42:10 PM

CLEVELAND -- The long-delayed Medical Mart project seems to be moving in a more postive direction.

Late last year, it seemed the project was relocating to a site on Mall C, overlooking the lakefront.

That was because property owners at the original site at the corner of Ontario Street and St. Clair Avenue were making what the county considered exorbitant demands for their property.

But those talks have restarted and seem to be close to resolution, according to Cuyahoga County Commissioner Tim Hagan.

"In all probability, it's going back to the original site. We were negotiating deals with people who were trying to get what they could," he said.

That will avoid an emotional debate about using the valuable and cherished Mall property for this project.

On Thursday, the county commissioners will also hear details of a construction agreement that addresses critics' issues and concerns about the county's preliminary agreement with project developer MMPI.

Lawyer Jeff Appelbaum helped broker terms and conditions surrounding the Gateway projects. He's been involved with dozens of significant projects nationwide.

He will tell commissioners he's arranged a deal that is easier for the public to understand, provides more chances for local companies to be part of the bidding process, and addresses diversity concerns.

"It's going to be more transparent, an iron-clad agreement that will give opportunites for local companies to be engaged," Hagan claimed.

Hagan understands public impatience and skepticism with a project that many perceive as slow-moving.

"Everybody is a critic. But they don't have our responsibility. This methodical approach is the only way to do big projects like this," he said.

Appelbaum is in talks with the City of Cleveland to address concerns about Public Hall.

MMPI revealed problems with electrical, plumbing and other systems in the building.

Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson must decide how much of the revenue the city gets in the final deal to spend on making improvements to keep the building usable  and how much to demand from the county and MMPI.

"I envision a deal. I believe anything beyond 2010 will create a big problem with us being competitive, " Jackson said, in apparent reference to similar projects being pursued in other cities.

Hagan's predicts, "Work will begin this year for sure. It's going to get done. MMPI, the county and the city are going to make this happen."

Hagan said he would not be opposed to extending the 20-year sales tax for the project to help with possible cost issue.

He says the switch to a new form of county government next year will not delay progress this year.

City Councilman Joe Cimperman is organizing a series of four public meetings in February to discuss different aspects of the Medical Mart/Convention Center project.

© 2009 WKYC-TV

MMPI could break ground on a Cleveland medical mart by October

By Laura Johnston, The Plain Dealer

January 07, 2010, 11:29AM

Plain Dealer

The proposed medical mart will likely be built on the northeast corner of St. Clair Avenue and Ontario Street, rather than on the north edge of the Mall.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Developer MMPI could break ground by October on a much-anticipated medical mart for downtown Cleveland, according to a construction agreement introduced to Cuyahoga County commissioners this morning.

The county's contract attorney also said MMPI will abandon controversial plans to build the mart -- part of a taxpayer-financed $425 million convention center complex -- on the north end of the downtown Mall, between City Hall and the Lakeside Avenue courthouse.

Instead, as reported last month by the Plain Dealer, the Chicago firm will build the showplace for medical technology on the northeast corner of St. Clair Avenue and Ontario Street.

The 67-page agreement also spells out how what taxpayers will get for their money. A $333,333 monthly fee paid by the county to MMPI will cover all salaries and benefits for company officials and affiliates involved with the project.

MMPI also will receive no more than $3.2 million as reimbursement for rent, travel and office expenses and must pick up the tab for all cost overruns. And the company is forbidden from paying kickbacks to contractors vying for a piece of the project.

Other highlights of the contract include:

• Once MMPI and the county agree on a guaranteed maximum price for the project, MMPI cannot walk away. That agreement should come about nine months after a deal to buy the St. Clair property. Construction will start soon after.

• The county must approve MMPI's choice of an architect.

• MMPI must seek competitive proposals from companies hoping to design and build the project.

• The builder must seek at least three competitive bids for subcontracts of more than $100,000, including excavation, concrete and electrical work.

• MMPI must parcel out a quarter of the work to small businesses certified by the county and hire Cuyahoga County residents to make up 40 percent of the construction workforce.

• The county plans to sign an option to buy an office building on St. Clair from L& R Investment Co., said the attorney, Jeff Appelbaum. And eminent domain could be used to transform other property into a public park.

Appelbaum did not say which property, but the Sportsman's Restaurant is sandwiched between L&R's office building at 113 St. Clair and its parking garage.

The county also is renegotiating a deal to buy the city's existing convention center.

MMPI's original proposal called for renovating the underground convention center, creating high-tech meeting rooms in the adjoining Public Auditorium and building the mart on St. Clair.

But in November, the company abandoned those plans after estimates to repair the 88-year-old auditorium came in tens of millions of dollars over budget. MMPI cut out Public Auditorium and instead imagined the mart as a modern glass edifice, rising at the north end of Mall C and connecting to the convention center below.

MMPI's public dismissal of Public Auditorium infuriated Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and City Council, which last spring signed off on a $20 million deal to sell the existing convention center. And the change worried architects and preservationists, who urged against destroying the mall.

The furor drove county officials to reopen talks with St. Clair property owners.

© 2010 cleveland.com. All rights reserved.

ODOT and ORDC Evaluate Proposed 3C Rail Line Station in Southwest Cleveland - 3C is ME

3C is ME

ODOT and ORDC Evaluate Proposed 3C Rail Line Station in Southwest Cleveland

On Thursday, January 7, 2010, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) evaluated the City of Cleveland’s proposed southwest train station at the GCRTA’s Puritas Rapid site.

The preferred southwest Cleveland station would be located at the current GCRTA Puritas Rapid Red Line station. The $2.2 million investment would be for construction of the 500-foot station platform, modification of pedestrian bridge, and installation of platform lighting, seating, signage and Ticket Vending Machines (TVMs).

Extending passenger service to Cleveland is critical to the 3C "Quick Start" Passenger Rail Plan, as Cleveland is the largest metro area in Ohio, with more than 2 million residents. The Cleveland metro area is also home to a dozen colleges and universities, a group identified by Amtrak as a major component to the success of the 3C rail line.

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EfficientGovNow Program Returns with Round Two Launch - EfficientGovNow

EfficientGovNow Program Returns with Round Two Launch - EfficientGovNow


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Filing Opens For New Council Seats / WCPN.org

For the many of us who have been out of work (2 yrs and counting for me), at least eleven new positions are open as part of the new council seats created as part of the Cuyahoga County reboot. That's one position for each council seat. I imagine there will be some support staff openings a year from now as well, but that's not going to pay the bills right now.

Filing Opens For New Council Seats / WCPN.org

Another phase of redesigning Cuyahoga County's government began in earnest today (Monday), as potential candidates took first steps to qualify for the newly-created council seats. Ideastream®'s Rick Jackson reports.

Several contenders for Cuyahoga County’s 11 new county council seats used the first business day of the new year to kick-start their election campaigns by taking qualifying petitions from the Board of Elections. The new council, and a chief executive, will replace the current three-commissioner governing the county in 2011.

Council candidates only need to gather 50 signatures to get on the September primary ballot, a relatively low threshold as elections go.

Elections Director Jane Platten says the criteria to file `could have been’ raised when the new charter was drawn up last year - but was never addressed.

JANE PLATTEN: “Had the charter had a section relative to a different number of signatures to be collected in order to be qualified for the ballot, we would have followed what the charter stated - but the charter was silent, so Ohio revised code is what drives the number now.”

With so few supporting signatures needed, the council races could be flooded with candidates, but Platten doesn’t expect that to be a problem.

By Monday noon - candidates hoping to represent Districts 1, 6, and 9 had already claimed petitions. Those included a former candidate for Clevelands’ mayoral seat, and a suburban city council member.

The part time council seats will pay $45,000 per year. The County Executive position pays $175,000 per year. The filing deadline for the seats is in late June.

Additional Information

Cuyahoga County Board Of Elections

Abandoned rail bed along Cuyahoga River would make Cleveland's waterfronts more accessible -- editorial

I've known for years (as have many others) about Irishtown Bend's slope problems. The city surely has known since they repaved it every year or so while the shortcut between the east and west bank was open; that is, a shortcut during the shipping season's inevitable closing of a lift bridge while a ship made its way to and from the steel yards. I bet one could find at least a foot thick layer of asphalt at the corner where most of the slippage is happening. Does the additional weight of this asphalt perpetuate the slippage?

A somewhat similar thing happened to a portion of I-71 between the Denison Avenue Bridge and the Fulton Road/West 25th Street exit ramp. Much of that are of I-71 is built on a landfill. This particular portion of the freeway would develop a dip and every year or so ODOT would come in and add a layer of pavement. Don't know how many years this was going on, but someone somewhere made the decision to fix it permanently.

I had the opportunity to be on site halfway through the project. I was at least 30 ft below the southbound portion of the freeway - the northbound portion was completely dug up and sent away. Walking around the site was a test in foot skills. There were little spots of earth-like material which, when step on, would become a soft batter-like substance. If the pancake-sized spots were large enough, a person could have easily been sucked in. As it were, if one unknowingly stepped into one of the spots in a certain way, they easily could have tripped and then have some stinky, landfill batter on their boots.

The asphalt layer was a site to behold. When first driving up to it, you could see it was large. But when I was right up to it - well, as close as they would let me - the enormity was mind blowing. No joke - a SUV or minivan could be buried inside of the asphalt and nobody would have known. After they removed the asphalt and as mush of the unstable soil as they could, new soil was added to the site and then about a 10 foot thick layer of some man-made compound that is supposed to keep the ground stable enough to handle the weight of the traffic, as well as the actual infrastructure. 

Is this something that could be used for Irishtown Bend? Don't know - I'm not an engineer. There is also Puritas Hill to think about. There are/were slope issues there before it was closed and the road stabilized. I don't have story for that - it just popped into my head. Regardless, it will be a great day when the Tow Path Trail is complete. Hopefully it won't take as long as the PeeDee implies.

Abandoned rail bed along Cuyahoga River would make Cleveland's waterfronts more accessible -- editorial

By The Plain Dealer Editorial Board

January 03, 2010, 4:02AM

The deal that enables Parkworks, the superb Cleveland nonprofit, to take ownership of a 1.3-mile strip of abandoned rail bed along the west bank of the Cuyahoga River represents the culmination of many months of careful work, planning and negotiating by a wide coalition of public and private actors who share a common goal: to help make Cleveland a more beautiful, livable, exciting city by making its waterfronts more accessible.

But the $3.2 million transaction -- engineered by the conservation group Trust for Public Land, with a $1.2 million grant from the state of Ohio and a $2 million donation from property-owner Earl Walker, a local investor and college professor -- is far from the end of this collaboration's efforts.

Parkworks now will hire -- with help from the George Gund Foundation -- a design and engineering team to turn the coalition's vision of riverside trails, green space and wetlands into a workable plan.

As cost estimates emerge, Parkworks and other partners will begin looking for sources to pay for it.

Eventually, the idea is to link this system with the Towpath Trail -- which, when complete, will stretch for 110 miles from Tuscarawas County to Canal Basin Park on the east bank of the river -- and with the county's Wendy Park on Whiskey Island.

City and county officials have been working to secure money -- much of it from Washington, they hope -- to build two pedestrian walkways and to rehabilitate the old Whiskey Island Coast Guard station.

They also are seeking grants to stabilize a slope along Irishtown Bend that engineers fear could slide into the Cuyahoga.

Discussions of this project began in 2006. Two years later, landscape architects from San Francisco doing survey work in the Flats noticed an overgrown track bed that had been built in 1856 as part of the Ohio & Mahoning Railroad. They realized that it not only offered an ideal connection from Ohio City and Tremont north to Whiskey Island, it also ran smack into property under the Main Avenue Bridge that the county already owns.

Completing this project will take years. But the cooperation and civic leadership that have brought it this far bode well for its success.

Aaaand, we're live (mostly)....

After a bit of a break to regain some mental, emotional, and social clarity, Cleveland vs. the World is back. It is my intention to bring to you information regarding all of the great things happening in and around the City of Cleveland. When I started this a few years ago there were only a handful of voices promoting the city online; however, due to the wonders of the internets, everyone and their mother can give voice promoting whatever it is they hold true - including more pro-Cleveland voices then I can count. So it would appear I have much to do in order to gain/regain the followers I previously had.

I believe the product I presented before, with a little tweeking, will be something readers will want to see. For new readers, this will consist of... well, what is says up top. Its New Years Eve, I have home-made potstickers to make, and I want to make this short.

We are just a few hours away from the perceived start of a new decade. My friends at PLANetizen just posted an article from US News and Reports stating Urban Planning will be one of the "top 50 careers of 2010." Hot damn! I hope this true. Since graduating with my Masters in early 2007, I've been unemployed (except for a few temp jobs - most of them related to my field). To me, THIS is the way to start out a new decade.

Urban Planner - US News and World Report

Urban Planner

As one of the 50 best careers of 2010, this should have strong growth over the next decade

Posted: December 28, 2009

The rundown:

Building a new park is no walk in the park. You'll need to study how the land is currently used, hold public hearings to get community input, and forecast how many people will use the park. Then, factor in zoning and environmental regulations, where sewer systems and fire hydrants will go, and staying within the city's budget. The same goes for building a new housing development or school. If all goes well, urban planners change the face of the city or at least make sure that its water and electricity continue to hum behind the scenes. But you'll need to be a bit of a diplomat to get all the stakeholders to agree to your plan.

[See all of this year's Best Careers.]

The outlook:

An expanding population has created the need for additional transportation systems, affordable housing, and schools in many parts of the country. The urban and regional planning field is expected to grow 19 percent from 38,400 jobs in 2008 to 45,700 jobs by 2018. Most of the new jobs will be with state and local governments.

Upward mobility:

Experienced public-sector planners can transfer to larger cities with more complex problems or move into related occupations, such as director of community or economic development. Some urban planners also go on to work in the private sector designing corporate campuses or outfitting firms with seamless security systems.

Activity level:

Urban planners travel frequently to inspect land under consideration for new building projects or regulation. A considerable amount of time is also spent using a computer to analyze data and projecting outcomes under various scenarios. Reports and proposals must be presented to legislative committees and elected officials. Anticipate evening and weekend public hearings about how shared spaces should be used.

[See all Education and Civic careers.]

Stress level:

Urban planners often have tight deadlines and work schedules. They may also face acute pressure from citizens groups or politicians who strongly favor or oppose specific building projects. Be prepared to explain and defend your ideas and negotiate compromises.

Education and preparation:

Most positions require a master's degree in urban planning. Those with additional computer skills, particularly GIS software, will have an advantage in the job market. Certification through the American Institute of Certified Planners may be helpful for promotion.

[See U.S. News's Public Affairs Specialty rankings: City Management & Urban Policy.]

Money:

Urban and regional planners earn a median salary of $59,810. Those working for local governments make less on average ($58,260), than, say, those working for architectural or engineering firms ($63,770). The top 10 percent of planners make more than $91,520 annually.

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I also am relaunching View from the Dashboard in the next day or so. Its live now, so please check it out - your feedback is always welcome.

LAST DAY TO REGISTER - Cleveland Design Competition - Project 2009: Lakefront Station

Cleveland Design Competition - Project 2009: Lakefront Station

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Legislative Action: 10th District and State - 012808

American Planning Assn presents:

January 28, 2008 In this MegaVote for Ohio's 10th Congressional District: Recent Congressional Votes - Senate: National Defense Authorization Act, FY2008 House: Veto Override on Children’s Health Insurance Program Extension and Improvement Upcoming Congressional Bills - Senate: FISA Amendments Act of 2007 House: Economic Stimulus Package

Recent Senate Votes

National Defense Authorization Act, FY2008 - Vote Passed (91-3, 6 Not Voting) The Senate approved a modified version of the defense authorization bill, which addressed concerns that caused President Bush to unexpectedly veto the original bill last month. Sen. George Voinovich voted YES......send e-mail or see bio Sen. Sherrod Brown voted YES......send e-mail or see bio

Recent House Votes

Veto Override on Children’s Health Insurance Program Extension and Improvement - Vote Failed (260-152, 19 Not Voting) The House fell 15 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to override President Bush’s veto of this bill reauthorizing and expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Rep. Dennis Kucinich voted YES......send e-mail or see bio

Upcoming Votes

FISA Amendments Act of 2007 - S.2248 The Senate is scheduled to vote on this intelligence surveillance bill. Economic Stimulus Package - H.R.____ The House will vote on this economic stimulus bill early in the week.

Legislative Action: 10th District and State - 012108

American Planning Assn presents:

January 21, 2008 In this MegaVote for Ohio's 10th Congressional District: Recent Congressional Votes - House: S-MINER Act House: National Defense Authorization Act, FY2008 House: HOPE VI Improvement and Reauthorization Act Upcoming Congressional Bills - Senate: National Defense Authorization Act, FY2008 House: Veto Override on Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 Editor's Note: The Senate was in recess last week and will return on Tuesday, January 22.

Recent House Votes

S-MINER Act - Vote Passed (214-199, 17 Not Voting) The House passed the S-MINER Act in an attempt to improve mine safety standards. Rep. Dennis Kucinich voted YES......send e-mail or see bio National Defense Authorization Act, FY2008 - Vote Passed (369-46, 15 Not Voting) On Wednesday the House approved a modified version of the defense authorization bill, which addressed concerns that caused the President to unexpectedly veto the original bill last month. Rep. Dennis Kucinich voted NO......send e-mail or see bio HOPE VI Improvement and Reauthorization Act - Vote Passed (271-130, 29 Not Voting) The House passed this bill to reauthorize the HOPE VI grant program that revitalizes severely distressed public housing. Rep. Dennis Kucinich voted YES......send e-mail or see bio

Upcoming Votes

National Defense Authorization Act, FY2008 - H.R.4986 The Senate is likely to take up this defense policy bill when it returns from recess. Veto Override on Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 - H.R.3963 The House is expected to vote on overriding the president’s veto of this bill to expand the Children’s Health Insurance Program.

ORDC Commissioners OK Rail Vision for 2008

ORDC Press Release:

OHIO RAIL
DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
50 W. Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215
(614) 644-0306 telephone or fax (614) 728-4520
http://www.dot.state.oh.us/ohiorail/


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: January 18, 2008
CONTACT: Stu Nicholson
614-644-0513

ORDC Commissioners OK Rail Vision for 2008
Action Plan Approved Along with Ohio Hub Resolution

(Columbus) – Citing the increasing need to address a variety of economic, mobility and quality of life issues by moving more people and freight by rail in and through Ohio, ORDC Commissioners have approved a 2008 Action Plan aimed at a number of goals and funding strategies.

The plan is the result of discussions ORDC Chairwoman Jolene Molitoris has had with individual Commissioners since being named Chairwoman by Governor Ted Strickland late last year. The Governor has prominently featured the role of railroads in his “Turn Around Ohio” plan for Ohio’s economy.

The ORDC action plan takes a multi-tiered approach toward:

· Seeking funding for rail infrastructure initiatives for freight, passenger and rail safety
· Accelerating efforts to develop inter-city passenger rail through exploring opportunities for Amtrak start-up services and continuing to build a long-term system of fast, corridor-based passenger trains under the Ohio Hub Plan
· Develop a State Rail Strategy Plan in cooperation with ODOT and other state agencies like the Ohio Department of Development to identify challenges like rail choke-points and needs like increasing capacity for more trains
· Continuing Ohio’s strong commitment to improving rail safety projects that benefit the public and improve delivery of those projects.

In a related action, Commissioners approved a resolution asking Ohio Congressional delegation “to work to establish a federal program with the long-term funding necessary for full participation in the development of the Ohio Hub corridors.” The resolution also requests each member of Ohio’s Congressional delegation to support the development of an intercity/interstate passenger rail system by funding a “program-level” environmental impact statement (PEIS) for the Ohio Hub passenger rail corridors that will serve the citizens of their districts.

That resolution is already being communicated to Ohio’s members of Congress.

In still more actions:

Commissioners approved a $200-thousand dollar matching grant to build a 2,500 foot rail spur to serve the Case Farms feed mill near Massillon. The project will expand operations and allow creation of 20 new jobs at the mill. It will also enable Case Farms to expand their chicken processing operations at Winesburg in Holmes County and create 200 new jobs at that facility. $100,000 in matching funds for the project will come from Case Farms, the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railroad and local sources.

Another impact of the project is that it also opens up 150 to 350 new acres of land in a local industrial park to attract new rail-related industries and more jobs.

In a second rail spur project, Commissioners approved a staff-recommended $300,000 loan to MGQ Inc. (Maple Grove Quarry) to help offset the costs of building 4,200-feet of new track to better accommodate unit trains of aggregates at the quarry near Maple Grove (near Tiffin) in Seneca County. The project will help improve operations for both MGQ and the Norfolk Southern Railroad and eliminate the cost and loss of time in storing empty hopper cars several miles away from the quarry site. Completion of the project will also help create 6 to 20 news jobs and increase car-loadings from 750 to 4,000 new carloads.

In other business, Commissioners approved a new committee to begin considering possible
legislative remedies for insurance liability relief as it relates to operation of excursion trains, rail trails and other non-railroad activities in active freight rail corridors. It was determined that the issue needs to be addressed as a statewide concern. Three commissioners will serve on the Committee and work with staff on a possible legislative solution.

(The Ohio Rail Development Commission is an independent agency operating within the Ohio Department of Transportation. ORDC is responsible for economic development through the improvement and expansion of passenger and freight rail service, railroad grade crossing safety and rail travel & tourism issues. For more information about what ORDC does for Ohio, visit our website at http://www.dot.state.oh.us/ohiorail/)


Stu Nicholson
Public Information Officer
Ohio Rail Development Commission
50 West Broad Street
15th Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43215
http://www.dot.state.oh.us/ohiorail/
614-644-0513
stuart.nicholson@dot.state.oh.us

"Passenger Rail: the penicillin for pain at the pump."
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