In an article titled "Rust Belt Cities and the New Urban Agrarianism," Huffington Post writer Aaron Bartley states, “Cities like Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee and Buffalo have shown special promise as sites of food production. By melding a critical analysis of the corporate food chain with innovative and resourceful community-based production techniques, grassroots groups in these cities have reclaimed large swaths of vacant land for a range of urban agricultural experiments."
 
Cleveland, like so many other Rust Belt cities, is experiencing poverty, depopulation, and overall deterioration.  With such decline also comes the opportunity to do something great for the benefit of all.
 
In a detailed story highlighting numerous cities, Bartley mentions that in Cleveland, Evergreen Coops broke ground last November on a massive greenhouse operation on five acres of urban land that will eventually produce three million heads of lettuce and 300,000 pounds of herbs annually to be sold and distributed across Northeastern Ohio. 
 
The facility, named Green City Growers, is set to open this spring.
 
Read the full Huffington Post story here.

“It won't be easy or cheap, but creating a new bus rapid transit system could help metro Detroit restore reliability to public transportation, attract new riders and spur economic redevelopment,” writes Matt Helms of the Detroit Free Press, in regards to the city’s public transportation concerns.
 
Helms writes that "Cleveland -- a Rust Belt city like Detroit that many had written off -- has seen $4.3 billion in economic expansion along its main thoroughfare, Euclid Avenue" through speedy and modern transit improvements that have boosted ridership and led to redevelopment in once rundown areas.
 
"If our attitude was rail or nothing, it would have been nothing," Greater Cleveland Regional Transportation Authority general manager Joe Calabrese is quoted in the piece.
 
While Detroit’s transportation issues cannot be solved with a "quick-fix" solution, similar cities such as Cleveland at least show working-model solutions that can solicit a desired outcome.

Citing a recently released study, CBS News reports that Ohio stands to gain $4.9 billion and 65,000 new jobs from shale drilling.
 
Led by a team of economics, energy and geology experts from Cleveland State University, Ohio State University and Marietta College's Department of Petroleum, the study looked at the probable economic gains that would come from the controversial practice of "fracking" -- hydraulic fracturing.
 
"By 2014, about $4.9 billion would be invested in Ohio's economy by the industry; almost 66,000 jobs would be created or 'supported' by industry growth; $433 million in local and state taxes would be generated; and energy companies would be paying wages and benefits totaling $3.3 billion," the item states.
 
"Altogether, the industry will generate $1.7 billion for Ohio's economy this year, $5.8 billion next year, and nearly $10 billion in 2014, the research found. Gross state product could grow by 1 percent, a significant increase from the 0.6 percent average for the past 13 years."
 
Read the rest of the news article here.

See the Ohio Shale Coalition Study here.

Just as every chef clears his or her schedule to attend the annual South Beach Wine and Food Festival (they don't call it Spring Break for chefs for nothing), so too do members of the media, all promising to swap ink for access.
 
It's no surprise then that media outlets from all across the nation gladly trumpeted news of Cleveland chef Michael Symon's win at the annual Burger Bash. Besting chefs from around the globe, Symon claimed top honors for an unprecedented third year in a row at the sold-out event.
 
B Spot served up approximately 2,100 Porky burgers, beef and pork patties topped with pulled pork, slaw, spicy pickle and Stadium Mustard.
 
When asked what his secret was, Symon told reporters, "You want to know the secret? Great people -- that's the secret."
 
Read one example here.

Celebrity chef and Cleveland native Michael Symon is expanding his culinary empire once again with the opening of his fifth B Spot location, inside the city’s soon-to-open Horseshoe Casino, according to a PR Newswire press release on the Wall Street Journal’s Market Watch.
 
In addition to his B Spot -- a gourmet burger bar -- concept, Symon operates the acclaimed Lolita in Cleveland’s Tremont neighborhood, his flagship Lola on E. 4th Street, and Roast in Detroit.
 
B Spot will join Corky & Lenny’s Deli in the casino’s three-restaurant food court.  The establishment will also feature a 400-seat buffet restaurant, all expected to open in May. The menu will feature a selection of his award-winning burgers such as the Fat Doug, his signature Lola fries, and unique milkshakes. The new location will create about 20 jobs. 
 
"We are ecstatic to have the opportunity to be part of this groundbreaking project in the heart of the greatest city in the nation," said Symon. "We can't wait to fill the Horseshoe with the aroma of our delicious burgers, brats and bologna."
 
Read the full Wall Street Journal story here.

Groups such as Buddy Holly and the Crickets and Bill Haley and the Comets are known and loved throughout the music world. Up until now, just the frontmen are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Earlier this year, the Rock Hall announced it would induct the backup groups for six previous solo inductees, according to a story by David Hinckley of the New York Daily News.
 
The six groups include the Famous Flames, who backed 1986 inductee James Brown; the Crickets, who backed 1986 inductee Buddy Holly; the Comets, who backed 1987 inductee Bill Haley; the Miracles, who backed 1987 inductee Smokey Robinson; the Midnighters, who backed 1990 inductee Hank Ballard; and the Blue Caps, who backed 1998 inductee Gene Vincent.
 
Other notable bands left out of this initial induction include the Belmonts, who backed up Dion, the E Street Band, who backed up Bruce Springsteen, and the Wailers, who backed up reggae legend Bob Marley.
 
The six groups will be inducted at the Hall’s annual dinner, which will take place on April 14 in Cleveland.
 
Read the full New York Daily News story here.

The Horseshoe Casino Cleveland, half owned by Caesars Entertainment Corp., is scheduled to open the week of May 14, 2012, according to an article written by Howard Stutz of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
 
The Casino will feature 2,100 slot machines, 65 table games including a World Series of Poker-themed room, as well as several restaurants, such as Corky & Lenny’s Deli and Michael Symon’s B Spot.
 
Caesars, along with Ohio developer Rock Gaming, owns the $350 million downtown development. The pair is also developing the Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati, which is slated to open in spring of 2013.
 
Read the full Las Vegas Review-Journal story here.

Chef Rocco Whalen of Tremont’s Fahrenheit restaurant continues to get national praise not just for his weight loss efforts on Food Network’s "Fat Chef," but also for his food.  Lou Harry of the Indiana Business Journal listed the chef's Nuekse’s Bacon-Wrapped Dates with Chorizo among his favorite dishes at the popular Taste of the NFL event.
 
"Nuekse's Bacon Wrapped Dates Stuff with Chorizo courtesy of Rocco Whalen, chef for Cleveland's Fahrenheit Restaurant. Note to self: Next time in Cleveland, it's date night at Fahrenheit," wrote Harry in his Arts & Entertainment column.
 
The charity event, this year supporting Gleaners Food Bank, is held annually the evening before the Super Bowl.  The event features chefs from each of the NFL team cities as well as an autograph friendly alumnus from that town’s team.
 
While Whalen continues to receive attention for his physical transformation, his food continues to be praised wherever he is.
 
Read the full Indiana Business Journal story here.

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine neuroscientist Gary Landreth and colleagues reported Thursday that bexarotene quickly cleared away beta-amyloid plaque, believed to cause the cognitive deficits of Alzheimer's disease, from the brains of genetically engineered mice, reports the Los Angeles Times.
 
While this is undeniably an exciting breakthrough in Alzheimer’s research, it is important to realize that even in the best-case scenario, usage of bexarotene in humans for treatment is at least six years away.
 
The excitement from this latest finding lies in the potential to find additional clues in the puzzle of Alzheimer’s disease.
 
"It's very uncommon, so far, that treatments for mice translate for humans," Dr. Lon S. Schneider, an Alzheimer's researcher at USC's Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles said. "People should not get immediately excited, or try to buy this drug from Canada."
 
Read the full Los Angeles Times story here.

Ervin Dyer writes for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that, "In Cleveland, my goal was to walk where [Langston Hughes] walked and uncover Hughes' connection to this grand American city."

In this lengthy feature, she does just that.
 
"Born 110 years ago, the poet laureate of black Americans is indelibly linked with Harlem," she writes. But Hughes' literary sense was shaped in Pittsburgh's mirror city on Lake Erie.
 
Langston Hughes, called the poet laureate of black Americans, lived in Cleveland from 1916 to 1920. The first day of February marked the 110th anniversary of his birth. Hughes lived at 2266 E. 86th Street, boarded in the attic, alone, as his mother and stepfather had returned to Chicago for work. 
 
Hughes attended Cleveland’s Central High School, one of the first public high schools to enroll black students before the Civil War. It was there where he began to hone his craft as the editor of the school’s annual and the class poet.
 
In a 1957 letter, written while living in Harlem, Hughes said that his "most valuable guidance" in writing came in high school.

Read the full Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story here.

There is no denying that Rocco Whalen, chef-owner of Fahrenheit in the Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland, is one of the most beloved people in Cleveland. His warm personality and outgoing demeanor still could not hide the fact he was morbidly obese.

While the mainstream media depicts the modern chef as a healthy tattooed rock star, in many kitchens across the country and in Cleveland, chefs often battle with their weight due to “tasting” during the day and large “gorging” meals when work is done for the evening, only to continue the same pattern day in and day out according to the TIME article "When Chefs Get Fat," written by TIME food writer Josh Ozersky.
 
Whalen appeared on Food Network’s “Fat Chef” along with Auburn Township’s Kimberly McCune Gibson, a chef-caterer. The show chronicles the struggle of chefs and their attempt to lose the weight they have packed on over the years.
 
While sometimes hard to watch, the show is also remarkably inspiring. As for Whalen, he has shed well over 100 pounds and is now living a healthier lifestyle as he continues to work toward his goal weight.
 
Read the full TIME story here.

There once was a time when Cleveland’s Galleria at Erieview was a bustling shopping mall. These days it is closed on the weekends and is down to just a handful of retailers, food vendors, and a couple of businesses according to a recent article in The New York Times.
 
The article lauds efforts by the Galleria's director of marketing, Vicky Poole, to utilize existing unused space to benefit the greater good, planting herbs in retail carts and small plots lettuce, strawberries, basil, and spinach elsewhere, which are in turn sold to visitors and used in the mall’s catering business.
 
"The shift to gardening began with the carts that used to sell jewelry or candles, where Ms. Poole, the director of marketing events, had herbs planted in the disused retail carts inside the mall. She learned how quickly aphids proliferate indoors (solution: release 1,500 ladybugs into the mall)," the article states.
 
Since the mall made these changes in how it operates, there has been an influx of visitors prompting new retailers to open in the mall. “This has been sustaining us throughout these hard years, but now we’re looking at the potential of turning things around,” Ms. Poole is quoted in the piece.
 
Read the full New York Times story here.

In a recent article by The L Magazine, a New York publication devoted to all things local, Cleveland's Melt Bar & Grilled gets huge props.
 
In this fun feature titled "Ten Restaurants Brooklyn is Desperately Missing," writer and (I assume) Brooklyn resident Kara Zuaro dreams up a wish list of new establishments for her neighborhood. Plucked from locales near and far, indie hot spots like Cleveland's Melt and Columbus-based Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams make the list.
 
"I’d like to think that Pok Pok is opening a Brooklyn branch because I wished really hard for it," she begins. "So, as I impatiently await the opening of the restaurant I willed into being, I’m making a list of 10 more restaurants -- with original locations across America -- that could be wildly successful if they opened new branches here in Brooklyn."
 
Of Cleveland-based Melt, she writes:
 
"The grilled cheese sandwiches at Cleveland’s Melt don’t even make sense. When I visited, I ate a belly-buster that was piled with pimento cheese, collards, fried chicken and cornbread. There was bread on the outside, but then there was cornbread in the sandwich. It ruled. The current sandwich-of-the-month at Melt, the "Hungry Hungarian Paprikash," involves pulled roasted chicken, huge homemade dumplings, creamy paprikash sauce, and Provolone cheese. There’s also a vegetarian version available. What! Also, they have a crazy beer selection, and it’s kind of a sports bar. We need this in our lives."
 
The article also includes our good friends down south in Columbus, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream.

See the rest of the good eats here.

The Euclid Avenue Church of God and the former Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration continue to draw national attention in the absence of a congregation and money for general operations. This article in the Huffington Post is the most recent example.
 
The Cleveland Restoration Society desires to keep the landmarks in tact while the Cleveland Clinic would love to use the land for continued expansion. Unfortunately, the Clinic has no use for the churches but has offered to pay $500,000 for the land.
 
The Cleveland Restoration Society would like to renovate the buildings and offer them up to new congregations but there have been very few bites. They are not against repurposing the buildings as long as they are not demolished. In the end, a tough decision will have to be made.
 
Read the full Huffington Post story here.

The movie "Fun Size," directed by Josh Schwartz and staring Victoria Justice, Johnny Knoxville, and Chelsea Handler, is set to release on October 12, 2012.
 
Filmed on location at Boulevard Elementary School, Coventry Food Mart, and the Coventry Road Business District in Shaker Heights, this film about a teen girl who loses her little brother on Halloween and her desperate attempt to track him down is reminiscent of John Hughes-style hits according to The New York Times.
 
While the rest of Cleveland waits on the May 4, 2012 release date of the highly anticipated and action-packed “The Avengers,” filmed downtown last summer, Cleveland continues to be in the national spotlight for additional movies.
 
Read the full New York Times story here.

USA Today's popular PopCandy blog recently ran a round-up of Cleveland's most compelling attractions. Titled "The Pop Traveler: 11 Reasons to Visit Cleveland," the regular feature gives insiders a chance to name their city's top pop-culture hot spots.
 
In the article, which begins "Eleven ways that Cleveland rocks," a writer who goes by the pseudonym Big Business ticks of his (or her?) favorite finds.
 
Michael Symon restaurants:
The James Beard Award-winning chef brings a lot of pride and excitement to the restaurant landscape in Cleveland. Lola Bistro is the signature restaurant, but for a fun lunch, the B-Spot is a great place to just get a burger and fries.
 
Beachland Ballroom:
This concert club is a former Croatian ballroom and Cleveland landmark. The two-stage venue hosts up-and-coming local bands like The Suede Brothers, Afternoon Naps, bears and Cloud Nothings; regional performers and national acts.
 
Christmas Story House:
Located in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood, 'twas where they filmed the exterior and some interior shots from the holiday classic A Christmas Story.
 
West Side Market:
You can buy small portions of items to eat while you stroll through the more than 100 vendors selling fresh fruits and vegetables, fine meats, seafood, baked goods, dairy and cheese.
 
Big Fun
"Come shopping ... leave smiling." It's that simple at Big Fun. They strive to find the coolest toys and gifts out there, and what you'll find is a veritable cornucopia of delights like G.I. Joe, Star Wars, My Little Pony and Strawberry Shortcake.
 
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cedar Lee Theatre, Burning River Roller Girls, Chucklefck comedy nights, Machine Gun Kelly and Stadium Mustard also made the list.
 
Check out the rest here.

Cleveland has been selected as one of 15 cities where America’s Navy will “come home” in 2012, giving area residents an opportunity to meet Sailors and learn about the Navy’s capabilities and relevance to national security.
 
Navy Weeks are designed to educate Americans on the importance of Naval service, understand the investment they make in their Navy, and to increase awareness in cities which might not otherwise see the Navy at work on a regular basis.
 
Each year, about 20 Navy Weeks are led by the Navy Office of Community Outreach. Cities are selected based on a wide range of criteria with consideration given to aspects such as anchor events, Blue Angels air shows, asset availability, city size, demographic make-up, geographic region, relationship building, relationship sustainment and new outreach opportunities.
 
Navy Weeks typically are organized around a large anchor event, in this case, the Cleveland National Air Show.
 
On tap during the festivities: Blue Angels, (Navy Flight Demonstration Team), Leap Frogs (Navy Parachute Team), visiting U.S. Navy Ships, sailors from the USS Cleveland, and the Navy Band.
 
Navy Week Cleveland will run Aug. 27 through Sept. 4.

TEDxCLE 2012 will be held on Friday, April 20th, 2012.

TEDxCLE is an annual forum that gathers the region’s big thinkers to "share ideas worth spreading." Organizers -- and recent "brain gains" -- Hallie Bram and Eric Kogelschatz seek to change the perceptions of people who live here as well as those outside the region by sharing stories of success, innovation and inspiration.

TED is a New York-based, international nonprofit whose mission is to spread innovative ideas in the areas of “technology, entertainment and design.” Founded in 1984, TED now hosts conferences in 80 countries.

Bram and Kogelschatz came up with the idea of launching TEDxCLE shortly after relocating in 2009 from Boston to Cleveland’s Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood.

“We realized that there are so many amazing things happening here," explains Bram, "but many people just don’t know about them.”

The first two years of TEDxCLE sold out in literally minutes. Fortunately, this year's conference has been moved to a larger venue -- the Gartner Auditorium at The Cleveland Museum of Art -- which will provide an additional 300 seats.

There is still time to submit speaker nominations. You can send them here until Friday, February 17th.

Cleveland bars scored a hat trick on DRAFT magazine’s "100 Best Beer Bars" list for 2012.

Lakewood’s local-brew institution the Buckeye Beer Engine was lauded for its ever-expanding beer list and “topnotch burger menu [that] keeps things interesting with wacky specials like the Xmas Dinner: a patty piled high with ham and sweet potatoes."

Oft-awarded Ohio City staple McNulty’s Bier Markt made the ranks not only for its Belgian and Belgian-inspired beer menu, but for the “test-drive” dynamic it shares with owner Sam McNulty’s new spot, Market Garden Brewery, across the street.

Of Bier Markt, the mag says, "The crowd’s young and cool, the bottle list is long, and the prices are on point: $24 for a 10-beer sampler? Yes, please."

Pulling for the East Side, La Cave du Vin was praised for its hearty collection of limited edition and rarity beers, with editors encouraging a trip to the Cleveland Heights beer bar “when management decides to dip into the archives.” Give us a call -- we locals are never too far away.

Drink up the rest of the good news here.

Great Lakes Brewing Company's Blackout Stout, Edmund Fitzgerald Porter and Christmas Ale all claimed medals at this year's World Beer Championships, conducted by the Beverage Testing Institute of Chicago and considered one of the top beer judging events in the craft beer industry.
 
Edmund Fitzgerald, available year-round, scored 93 points for a rating of “Exceptional,” earning the brew a gold medal in the “Porter” category.
 
Blackout Stout, a seasonal, scored 94 points for a rating of “Exceptional,” earning the beer a gold medal in the “Imperial Stout” category.
 
Christmas Ale, a seasonal favorite, scored 89 points for a rating of “Highly Recommended,” earning it a silver medal in the “Winter Ale” category.
 
Read the rest of the delicious news here.