Featured Stories

Small grants lend big support to residents' art and culture projects
Seventy-two diverse projects are set to bloom across Cleveland and East Cleveland courtesy of more than $200,000 in grants from Neighborhood Connections and partner organization Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.
Holiday shopping with a side of culture
This roundup of unique gift shops on the doorsteps of your favorite museums and cultural centers is perfect for those seeking a truly alt-holiday shopping excursion.
Biomimicry: nature meets industrial design at CIA
Cleveland Institute of Art professor Doug Paige is showing students how to take a page out of Mother Nature's playbook when it comes to industrial design.
First person: A playwright's tale
Fresh off his success of "Selfies at the Clown Motel," Cleveland playwright Christopher Johnston recounts 25 years inside the local indie theatre scene and gives newbies tips on how to break into it.
 
I Live Here (now): Ronnie Collins, Hilton Cleveland Downtown
After initial reluctance to becoming director of sales and marketing at the Hilton Cleveland Downtown, Ronnie Collins now sees what the city has to offer and has become a vocal advocate for all things 216.
Quiet Land Conservancy tackles blight, spreads green throughout Northern Ohio
From the reclamation of the Henninger Landfill to saving a Russell Township farm, the Western Reserve Land Conservancy fosters thriving urban centers, green space and more by preserving some 5,000 acres annually.
 
PHOTOS: Dia de Muertos
Dazzling images captured by Fresh Water managing photographer Bob Perkoski from "Day of the Dead" celebrations in Gordon Square.
Cleveland insider: meet three stalwart volunteers
Three long-time area volunteers reveal what drives them to give so generously, how they've soldiered through the tough times and the ways in which their efforts pay back – and then some.
Grassroots success: residents unite to brighten Duck Island
The Duck Island Block Club, with the help of residents, a local small business and Neighborhood Connections, is bringing new life to its neck of the woods.
New curator brings New York sophistication, public art experience to MOCA
Andria Hickey, MOCA's new senior curator, has "hit the ground running," coordinating an event apropos of the swirling political season - with a host of other exhibits to follow in 2017.
Climate Ambassadors: street-level environmental activism
Orchestrated by regional organizations and led by residents, this grassroots initiative tackles climate change where it has a disproportionate impact: amid lower income citizens.
 
Five things: little known facts from inside the Cleveland Institute of Art
From an anthropomorphic aardvark to a golden guy named Oscar, the venerable CIA is brimming with surprises of fine art, pop culture and a heaping helping of quirk.
With cutting-edge architecture and creations by locals, art is rising in the Moreland district
Whether it's a national design competition, kids making their own space or locals splashing color amid an active greenspace, Shaker Heights' Moreland district is alive with art and community collaboration.
Local entrepreneurs find the clean and green side of healthy eats
These local food entrepreneurs have found the sweet spot between 'clean-labeling' and good taste. The results are flavored with success.
Artist finds his voice in art, builds an international reputation
With a new show at the Cleveland Botanical Garden, Cleveland Heights artist Seth Chwast further establishes himself in the local art scene. That he was diagnosed with autism when he was a toddler only underscores his achievements.
How big is Cleveland's heart?
In this special op-ed for Fresh Water, Brandon Chrostowski, founder of EDWINS Leadership & Restaurant Institute, gives Clevelanders powerful and sobering reminders on the heels of the city's remarkable summer of 2016.
 
PHOTOS: 21 Cleveland hot spots born after Fresh Water
This week marks Fresh Water's sixth birthday and to celebrate, managing photographer Bob Perkoski visually catalogs a few things that came along after our humble inception.
 
La Villa Hispana: an economic and cultural Latino hub
Years in the making, plans for La Villa Hispana – a center celebrating Latino heritage and commerce in the Clark Fulton neighborhood – will be unveiled next month at a City Planning Commission meeting.
VIDEO: Take a stand against poverty in Cleveland
This effort from the Sisters of Charity Health System invites Clevelanders to join the conversation and #SpeakUpCLE.
Artist Rehabilitation Coalition leverages the Bard to inspire inmates
Cleveland actor Lara Mielcarek's fledgling coalition is bringing Shakespeare – and a new dimension of life – to area inmates.