Portrait of a neighborhood: How cultural hub La Villa Hispana is evolving and embracing its future
On a recent Thursday in April, Jenice Contreras walked in front of 32 investors, architects, and community development corporation reps to announce some long-awaited news. “It’s a perfect storm,” she announced to the group at the Greater Cleveland Partnership offices downtown. “It took three decades. But we no longer need three decades to make it happen. All the right elements are now in place.”
A place at the Table: How the Open Table Model is opening doors for CLE's foster care youth
When Ebony Naylor received her cosmetology license two years ago, she figured she’d mark the achievement by herself. The eight women who had mentored her for a year had other ideas.
Oh, buoy! Lake Erie's mission to become a "smart" lake just got a few more IQ points
Make no mistake—the buoy gently bobbing in the waves eight miles offshore in Lake Erie is not like the others.
Baseball Heritage Museum hits home run with new exhibit and plans to expand
While little remains of the original League Park, it ranks among America's top neighborhood baseball parks, and the memories of the iconic Cleveland landmark are still vivid in many people’s minds. Now those memories are coming back to life with a brand-new scale model and revitalization efforts for the surrounding neighborhood of Hough.
PHOTOS: See the views from the new Stage 3 section of the Towpath Trail in Tremont
Last year, we wrote about the ever-evolving Towpath Trail Extension Project, and this week, we got the chance to check out Stage Three for ourselves. Almost two miles long, the trail runs from the northern entrance of Steelyard Commons to Literary Avenue in Tremont. Get a first look at the views from this new part of the Towpath Trail, courtesy of our managing photographer Bob Perkoski.
Just for kicks: Cleveland's soccer scene is on the rise
Mention Cleveland sports and the Browns, Cavs, or Indians probably spring to mind. But, if the weeks ahead are any indication, soccer might be ready to join that list. Everywhere you look, the beautiful game is taking off in Northeast Ohio.
Better together: CAC's annual report highlights its mission to unify the region via arts and culture
As a member of the South Dakota-based Cheyenne River Sioux tribe, lifelong Clevelander, and chairperson of the Lake Erie Native American Council (LENAC), Marlys Rambeau is accustomed to area organizations approaching her when they need a Native American to play a role in a theatrical production, but she says people usually just want someone who can play a stereotypical part. They’re not always interested in depicting the true Native American cultural story.
One in 11 Ohioans has a felony conviction. Isn't it time they received a second chance?
Your spirits will be instantly uplifted within mere seconds of sitting down with Karen McAlpine. The 38-year-old mother of three radiates a positive energy that is no less than supremely infectious. Currently, McAlpine is seeking an opportunity to channel her gift of an inspiring personality into a career where she can help people, make a difference, and somehow give back. Her ever-present smile only falters when she reflects on her experiences trying to secure such a job.
Is 10 years the magic number when it comes to a more sustainable future for CLE?
When the Cuyahoga River caught fire on June 22, 1969, a 23-year-old Frank G. Jackson had just returned home from his tour of duty in the Vietnam War, and he remembers the eco-catastrophe as being “probably the last thing on [his] mind” at that time. A lot has changed in 50 years, and the now-Mayor of Cleveland is squarely focused on not only the health of the Cuyahoga River, but the city’s sustainability as a whole.
Seeing red: This fast-growing wine company is run by a 25-year-old Clevelander
Is it possible that the mere mention of free hot wings could alter one’s destiny? For RedHead wines founder Marisa Sergi, the answer to that question was a resounding “Yes.”
Opioid-related deaths in NEO have risen 125%. These two agencies are tackling the problem head-on.
Timothy Gerber started using Percocet and Adderall when he was 15 years old. By the time he was 21, Gerber was addicted to heroin. When he was 24, in February 2015, his mother died of a heroin overdose—and so began Gerber’s own road to recovery at Stella Maris, a drug and alcohol treatment center in Tremont.
Inside the Cuyahoga County Early Childhood Equity Forum—and why it matters so much
From its perch atop a hill in Shaker Square-Buckeye, the Benjamin Rose Institute for Aging boasts an expansive view of Cleveland and its skyline that makes it easy to feel like anything is possible—and that was exactly the vibe at the conclusion of the Early Childhood Equity Forum, held there last Friday, April 12.
Leadership in the green space is mostly white, but this Cleveland group is working to add more color
When Kent Whitley talks about environmental issues, he doesn’t start with words like “sustainability” or terms like “carbon footprint."

“It’s so hard to talk with these big words. You have to go to the dictionary,” he says with a laugh.
Instead he brings the issues down to earth, to air, and to water.

“I say, ‘The lake is dirty...and it’s affecting you.’”

That kind of bluntness is how Whitley and others plan to convince African Americans that they have a stake in environmental policy.

 
Now hear this: The five Cleveland podcasts you need to add to your rotation right now
When Lakewood resident Katie Tackett started her Muse Room podcast in late 2018, fellow podcaster Katie Dalebout shared some sage wisdom: “Podcasting is the new networking.” This assertion rings true for just about every podcaster—affording the chance to curate a dream lineup of interviewees—and we listeners get to go along for the ride. 
Meet the movers and vapers shaping Cleveland's growing cannabis scene
When Terrasana opened its doors on March 28 to become Cuyahoga County's first medical marijuana dispensary, it brought a sigh of relief to cannabis users throughout the Cleveland area. Prior to the opening of its Garfield Heights store, Ohio Marijuana Card holders had to travel to dispensaries in Canton or Wickliffe to get doctor-prescribed cannabis to treat the 21 state-approved medical conditions that qualify.
Bohemian rhapsodies and business woes: Coventry routinely cycles through good times and bad
As businesses depart the street and pedestrian traffic wanes, Cleveland Heights' iconic street is gearing up to get its groove back.
Government checks and balances: How the border wall pushes the limits
Our Founding Fathers designed "separation of powers" as a way to keep any single branch — executive, legislative, or judicial — from gaining too much power.
Five generations later, Dave's Supermarket is still feeding the needs of Cleveland
On the surface, a Cleveland-area supermarket naming their aisles after local streets is a smile-inducing novelty. But this isn’t your run-of-the-mill supermarket. This is the newly opened Dave's Market & Eatery on E. 61st St. and Chester Ave. in Midtown—an ambitious venture that simultaneously honors a storied past, addresses the current needs of the community, and lays the groundwork for a vibrant future.