Douglas J. Guth
The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) is making progress on a new rapid station set for the site of the current station at 2830 E. 34th St. A community meeting to discuss the proposed improvements will take place tonight at 6 p.m. at Cuyahoga Community College's Metro Campus Student Center.
The preliminary design for the $7.5 million project was shown to RTA's board of trustees on March 1, while an updated station design proposal was completed earlier this month. The new station, which like its current iteration on East 34th Street, will serve all three rapid lines, and be upgraded with better lighting and ADA-compliant features.
Attendees of tonight's get-together will see the same design concept presented to board members, says Mike Schipper, RTA assistant general manager of engineering.
"Our next step is to get feedback from the public," says Schipper.
The plan's design phase will wrap by December, when RTA also expects to begin the construction bidding process. Work is scheduled to start next spring and will take a year to complete, officials say.
Plans for the new station include relocating the main entrance to the intersection of East 34th Street and Broadway Avenue, a space which will also offer a covered waiting area for riders, says Schipper. New LED lighting and a disabled-accessible ramp are among the project's other highlights.
Though close to Tri-C's metro campus, the East 34th Street station currently does not get much use, Schipper says. However, thanks in part to the advocacy of Campus District stakeholders, RTA agreed to design and build a new facility instead of closing it altogether.
The district's community development group has committed to work with RTA after the new station is finished to promote increased ridership. Proximity to Tri-C as well as special rates for students could give those figures an additional boost.
"We hope as we rebuild the station Tri-C will engage surrounding businesses and the Campus District as a whole," says Schipper, adding that a built-out rapid facility can also compliment a community that's undergone heavy development in recent years.
"This is our investment in the area," says Schipper. "We look forward to growing with the neighborhood."
The preliminary design for the $7.5 million project was shown to RTA's board of trustees on March 1, while an updated station design proposal was completed earlier this month. The new station, which like its current iteration on East 34th Street, will serve all three rapid lines, and be upgraded with better lighting and ADA-compliant features.
Attendees of tonight's get-together will see the same design concept presented to board members, says Mike Schipper, RTA assistant general manager of engineering.
"Our next step is to get feedback from the public," says Schipper.
The plan's design phase will wrap by December, when RTA also expects to begin the construction bidding process. Work is scheduled to start next spring and will take a year to complete, officials say.
Plans for the new station include relocating the main entrance to the intersection of East 34th Street and Broadway Avenue, a space which will also offer a covered waiting area for riders, says Schipper. New LED lighting and a disabled-accessible ramp are among the project's other highlights.
Though close to Tri-C's metro campus, the East 34th Street station currently does not get much use, Schipper says. However, thanks in part to the advocacy of Campus District stakeholders, RTA agreed to design and build a new facility instead of closing it altogether.
The district's community development group has committed to work with RTA after the new station is finished to promote increased ridership. Proximity to Tri-C as well as special rates for students could give those figures an additional boost.
"We hope as we rebuild the station Tri-C will engage surrounding businesses and the Campus District as a whole," says Schipper, adding that a built-out rapid facility can also compliment a community that's undergone heavy development in recent years.
"This is our investment in the area," says Schipper. "We look forward to growing with the neighborhood."
Joe Purton had almost two decades in the nonprofit realm when he decided to accelerate into a career as the owner of CycleBar in Beachwood.
Purton, the former vice president of Sisters of Charity Health System, recently opened the high-energy cycling studio in a 3,400-square-foot space at 3355 Richmond Road. Early returns are positive, with CycleBar classes drawing big numbers for what the new entrepreneur calls an intoxicating fusion of mind, body and music.
"It's a kind of multisensory journey," Purton says of an indoor cycling experience that melds thumping electronic music with videos and colorful lighting. "If gives you a feeling like you're in a club."
CycleBar's tiered theater holds 55 custom bikes along with two 80-inch televisions. Rides focus on upper body work and drills of varying speed, while personal data monitors allow participants to go at their own pace or compete with other riders. Instructors, called "CycleStars," lead the classes, which number about 30 a week, a figure Purton expects to increase in the coming months.
Though classes can be rigorous, the up-tempo affair is not meant to be intimidating for newcomers, says Purton, 48.
"That's the beauty of cycling," he says. "You can control how much resistance you have on the flywheel and make it as difficult or easy as you want."
The Beachwood CycleBar, part of a company with 200 studios nationwide, represents Northeast Ohio's first indoor cycling franchise. Purton opened his studio in mid-March, fulfilling an entrepreneurial spirit for fitness that had been gestating for years.
Purton had been working at Sisters of Charity since 1994, organizing budgeting mechanisms and cost report filings across the faith-based healthcare system. The University Heights resident is also a former cycling instructor who taught classes in the late 1990's. While nonprofit work was lucrative, Purton recognized an opportunity at CycleBar he couldn't pass up.
"CycleBar allowed me to combine my passion for cycling with my accounting and finance background as well as a desire to run a business," he says.
Purton is currently working more hours per week than he ever has; a small price to pay for delivering something far beyond a standard cardio-fitness workout. Within the next two years, the burgeoning business owner hopes to open a studio downtown and another on the West Side.
"Everything I've been putting into this I'm going to benefit from," says Purton. "That (hard work) is what makes it more fun and rewarding."
Purton, the former vice president of Sisters of Charity Health System, recently opened the high-energy cycling studio in a 3,400-square-foot space at 3355 Richmond Road. Early returns are positive, with CycleBar classes drawing big numbers for what the new entrepreneur calls an intoxicating fusion of mind, body and music.
"It's a kind of multisensory journey," Purton says of an indoor cycling experience that melds thumping electronic music with videos and colorful lighting. "If gives you a feeling like you're in a club."
CycleBar's tiered theater holds 55 custom bikes along with two 80-inch televisions. Rides focus on upper body work and drills of varying speed, while personal data monitors allow participants to go at their own pace or compete with other riders. Instructors, called "CycleStars," lead the classes, which number about 30 a week, a figure Purton expects to increase in the coming months.
Though classes can be rigorous, the up-tempo affair is not meant to be intimidating for newcomers, says Purton, 48.
"That's the beauty of cycling," he says. "You can control how much resistance you have on the flywheel and make it as difficult or easy as you want."
The Beachwood CycleBar, part of a company with 200 studios nationwide, represents Northeast Ohio's first indoor cycling franchise. Purton opened his studio in mid-March, fulfilling an entrepreneurial spirit for fitness that had been gestating for years.
Purton had been working at Sisters of Charity since 1994, organizing budgeting mechanisms and cost report filings across the faith-based healthcare system. The University Heights resident is also a former cycling instructor who taught classes in the late 1990's. While nonprofit work was lucrative, Purton recognized an opportunity at CycleBar he couldn't pass up.
"CycleBar allowed me to combine my passion for cycling with my accounting and finance background as well as a desire to run a business," he says.
Purton is currently working more hours per week than he ever has; a small price to pay for delivering something far beyond a standard cardio-fitness workout. Within the next two years, the burgeoning business owner hopes to open a studio downtown and another on the West Side.
"Everything I've been putting into this I'm going to benefit from," says Purton. "That (hard work) is what makes it more fun and rewarding."
Experimental theater company convergence-continuum (con-con) has raised 10 percent of the funds needed to buy the Liminis building, 2438 Scranton Rd., its home since 2002.
Con-con's board launched a $200,000 capital campaign in January to purchase the property in the Scranton South Historic District in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood from Clyde Simon, the company's artistic director and a founding member. The building can be had for $130,000, the exact amount Simon needs to pay off mortgage and closing costs. The remaining $70,000 would be placed in reserve for future repair and operation costs.
Simon, 69, will not be making a profit from the sale, he notes. The theater official, along with co-founder Brian Breth, paid $160,000 for the space in 2000, spending another $100,000 for a new lighting system and other improvements. Board voice president Geoffrey Hoffman, a realtor with Howard Hanna, recently estimated the property's market value at $230,000 to $250,000.
"I'm taking a loss from my initial purchase price, plus all I've invested in upgrading the property in its conversion into a theater," says Simon.
Selling below market value is no problem for Simon, who single-handedly manages the 6,000-square-foot building while living in the theater’s backstage apartment. Not only have the duties of ownership become financially untenable, Simon says, using an extension ladder to clean the gutters isn't how he wants to spend his golden years.
"I want the company to stay right where it is," says Simon, who bought out his partner Breth's share of the 150-year-old structure in 2005. "I've been doing less of the artistic stuff to keep it going."
Simon is confidant con-con can raise the needed money before the end of 2016, when he would need to put the theater on the market. Con-con is already receiving cash donations, and will be approaching foundations for funding help in spring. In addition, $200,000 is a fairly modest amount when compared to a capital campaign arts' scene that can run into the tens of millions.
"Our board is working their connections," says Simon. "Their enthusiasm makes me optimistic."
Simon looks forward to being relived of his managerial responsibilities so he can focus his energies on directing, acting and set designing.
"I'm only directing one show this year; before that I was much more active," he says. "I want to be a bigger part of the exciting stuff rather than having to pay the mortgage and fix the roof."
Con-con's board launched a $200,000 capital campaign in January to purchase the property in the Scranton South Historic District in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood from Clyde Simon, the company's artistic director and a founding member. The building can be had for $130,000, the exact amount Simon needs to pay off mortgage and closing costs. The remaining $70,000 would be placed in reserve for future repair and operation costs.
Simon, 69, will not be making a profit from the sale, he notes. The theater official, along with co-founder Brian Breth, paid $160,000 for the space in 2000, spending another $100,000 for a new lighting system and other improvements. Board voice president Geoffrey Hoffman, a realtor with Howard Hanna, recently estimated the property's market value at $230,000 to $250,000.
"I'm taking a loss from my initial purchase price, plus all I've invested in upgrading the property in its conversion into a theater," says Simon.
Selling below market value is no problem for Simon, who single-handedly manages the 6,000-square-foot building while living in the theater’s backstage apartment. Not only have the duties of ownership become financially untenable, Simon says, using an extension ladder to clean the gutters isn't how he wants to spend his golden years.
"I want the company to stay right where it is," says Simon, who bought out his partner Breth's share of the 150-year-old structure in 2005. "I've been doing less of the artistic stuff to keep it going."
Simon is confidant con-con can raise the needed money before the end of 2016, when he would need to put the theater on the market. Con-con is already receiving cash donations, and will be approaching foundations for funding help in spring. In addition, $200,000 is a fairly modest amount when compared to a capital campaign arts' scene that can run into the tens of millions.
"Our board is working their connections," says Simon. "Their enthusiasm makes me optimistic."
Simon looks forward to being relived of his managerial responsibilities so he can focus his energies on directing, acting and set designing.
"I'm only directing one show this year; before that I was much more active," he says. "I want to be a bigger part of the exciting stuff rather than having to pay the mortgage and fix the roof."
"That's so gay" is a phrase common in most high-school settings, says Liz O’Donnell, co-founder of Dare2Care, a Cleveland nonprofit aiming to create a harassment-free environment for lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-questioning (LGBTQ) students.
The slur's casual nature, often used alongside words like "fag" or "dyke," typifies the many insidious ways LGTBQ students are bullied, says O'Donnell. According to the Human Rights Campaign, nine out of 10 students who identify as LGTBQ experience harassment and nearly two-thirds feel unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation.
Dare2Care is shedding light on what group officials believe is a hidden issue by training students as anti-bullying ambassadors. The goal is to inspire these young people to create communities free of harassment and intimidation.
"(LGBTQ) is often a taboo topic among school administrators," says O'Donnell, a mental health professional who launched the organization in 2011 with co-founder Don Wismer. "But students who attempt suicide are far more likely to identify as LGBTQ, or are perceived by their peers that way."
The nonprofit will endeavor to educate Greater Cleveland high school students on the importance of leadership and diversity through a free workshop on March 11 at St. Edward's High School. The workshop, held in partnership with the Global Youth Leadership Institute, will address color, culture and class, with participants encouraged to share their personal stories. About 90 students are expected to attend the program, along with 17 faculty members from representative private and public schools.
"We wanted to invite different schools that normally wouldn’t interact with one another,” says O'Donnell. "In that space, we'll already be creating a level of diversity that requires students to think differently."
Ideally, attendees will leave with an understanding of their personal identities, while recognizing their fellow students without the crutch of harmful stereotypes. The event, the second such program offered by Dare2Care, is reaching people at that critical stage of development where identity is being shaped, O'Donnell says. Those emerging from the workshop, meanwhile, will ostensibly have the tools to confront bullying in a non-punitive manner.
"Kids should be able to understand the impacts their words can have," says O'Donnell. "It's more than anti-bullying: We want to give students skills that allow them to make broader decisions in the larger world."
The slur's casual nature, often used alongside words like "fag" or "dyke," typifies the many insidious ways LGTBQ students are bullied, says O'Donnell. According to the Human Rights Campaign, nine out of 10 students who identify as LGTBQ experience harassment and nearly two-thirds feel unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation.
Dare2Care is shedding light on what group officials believe is a hidden issue by training students as anti-bullying ambassadors. The goal is to inspire these young people to create communities free of harassment and intimidation.
"(LGBTQ) is often a taboo topic among school administrators," says O'Donnell, a mental health professional who launched the organization in 2011 with co-founder Don Wismer. "But students who attempt suicide are far more likely to identify as LGBTQ, or are perceived by their peers that way."
The nonprofit will endeavor to educate Greater Cleveland high school students on the importance of leadership and diversity through a free workshop on March 11 at St. Edward's High School. The workshop, held in partnership with the Global Youth Leadership Institute, will address color, culture and class, with participants encouraged to share their personal stories. About 90 students are expected to attend the program, along with 17 faculty members from representative private and public schools.
"We wanted to invite different schools that normally wouldn’t interact with one another,” says O'Donnell. "In that space, we'll already be creating a level of diversity that requires students to think differently."
Ideally, attendees will leave with an understanding of their personal identities, while recognizing their fellow students without the crutch of harmful stereotypes. The event, the second such program offered by Dare2Care, is reaching people at that critical stage of development where identity is being shaped, O'Donnell says. Those emerging from the workshop, meanwhile, will ostensibly have the tools to confront bullying in a non-punitive manner.
"Kids should be able to understand the impacts their words can have," says O'Donnell. "It's more than anti-bullying: We want to give students skills that allow them to make broader decisions in the larger world."
The YMCA's 40,000 square feet of premium health and wellness space is finally set to open at its new home in the Galleria.
Current members are invited to the two-story Parker Hannifin Downtown YMCA starting March 21, with a grand opening celebration slated for March 29, says marketing director Amanda Lloyd.
Amenities at the much-anticipated facility include over 70 pieces of cardio and strength equipment and a three-lane lap pool. Members can also enjoy group exercise studios, a spinning area, message therapy rooms, and a health clinic complete with an on-site physician.
Pilates, acupuncture, hot yoga and biometric screenings will be among the programming available, notes Lloyd. The new YMCA is expected to house twice as many fitness devotees as its current location at East 22nd Street and Prospect Avenue, which holds nearly 3,250 members.
The Prospect location will close March 20, meaning members won't have a delay in service, Lloyd says. The old building, sold to a Texas-based company last year, will be maintained as private student housing.
All of the YMCA's functions will move to the Galleria, where the gym will take up a former retail space. The organization has raised $7 million for a project budgeted at $12 million, with $3 million coming from Parker Hannifin. YMCA will tap grant money and individual donations for the balance of the financial package. The project is also set to employ 40 full-time and part-time workers, including personal trainers, lifeguards and housekeepers.
Membership enrollment will cost $50 monthly for young professionals ages 18 to 29, $65 for adults and $105 for a household.
YMCA officials believe the gym can be an anchor for a downtown population projected by Downtown Cleveland Alliance to balloon to 18,000 within the next two years.
"There are some vacant storefronts (in the Galleria), but around us there's a good core of corporations and people living downtown," says Lloyd. "Moving to this space seemed like the perfect fit."
Current members are invited to the two-story Parker Hannifin Downtown YMCA starting March 21, with a grand opening celebration slated for March 29, says marketing director Amanda Lloyd.
Amenities at the much-anticipated facility include over 70 pieces of cardio and strength equipment and a three-lane lap pool. Members can also enjoy group exercise studios, a spinning area, message therapy rooms, and a health clinic complete with an on-site physician.
Pilates, acupuncture, hot yoga and biometric screenings will be among the programming available, notes Lloyd. The new YMCA is expected to house twice as many fitness devotees as its current location at East 22nd Street and Prospect Avenue, which holds nearly 3,250 members.
The Prospect location will close March 20, meaning members won't have a delay in service, Lloyd says. The old building, sold to a Texas-based company last year, will be maintained as private student housing.
All of the YMCA's functions will move to the Galleria, where the gym will take up a former retail space. The organization has raised $7 million for a project budgeted at $12 million, with $3 million coming from Parker Hannifin. YMCA will tap grant money and individual donations for the balance of the financial package. The project is also set to employ 40 full-time and part-time workers, including personal trainers, lifeguards and housekeepers.
Membership enrollment will cost $50 monthly for young professionals ages 18 to 29, $65 for adults and $105 for a household.
YMCA officials believe the gym can be an anchor for a downtown population projected by Downtown Cleveland Alliance to balloon to 18,000 within the next two years.
"There are some vacant storefronts (in the Galleria), but around us there's a good core of corporations and people living downtown," says Lloyd. "Moving to this space seemed like the perfect fit."
