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.

MMPI, owner and operator of the forthcoming Medical Mart & Convention Center, stands to save $5 million over 14 years thanks to a newly signed contract with Cleveland Thermal. Rather than build its own on-site heating and cooling system, the mart and convention center will use heating and cooling energy provided by Cleveland Thermal.

Cleveland Thermal is a district energy supplier that serves about 125 commercial, institutional, municipal and federal buildings in Cleveland. The 117-year-old company delivers thermal heat and chilled water through underground pipes that connect to Cleveland Thermal's power plant.

Cleveland Thermal's infrastructure was technically already in place to serve the mart and convention center. According to the company, the existing piping has been disconnected to allow for safe demolition of the old buildings. The new facility will be reconnected to the heating and cooling system later this year.

Cleveland Thermal, which employs 47 people, would not disclose the amount of the contract with MMPI.

Karpinski Engineering, which is handling mechanical system and mapping for the new facility, recommended Cleveland Thermal. Dennis Wessel, senior vice president, points out that MMPI will not have to worry about installing and operating onsite heating and cooling equipment, which will save money. What's more, Wessel says. "this arrangement will enable MMPI to allocate valuable additional floor space to other uses."

MMPI also recently announced that it will seek LEED Silver Certification for the facility, a designation determined by the U.S. Green Building Council. Using an existing heating and cooling source will lessen the environmental impact of the new facility, according to MMPI.


SOURCES: Cleveland Thermal, Karpinski Engineering, MMPI
WRITER: Diane DiPiero

The idea behind Urban Infant came to Eric Eichhorn when his sister Kelly Friedl had her first child. "All of the baby gear had ducks, bunnies or bears on it," he recalls. "I wanted to get beyond pink and blue to something that had solid, hip colors and was edgy."

Eichhorn and Friedl, who lived in Chicago, dreamed of products that would be geared towards parents "making the conscious decision to raise kids in an urban environment," Eichhorn explains. Friedl's expertise in graphic design combined with Eichhorn's business background led to the formation, in 2001, of Urban Infant.

Today, the Urban Infant has taken on a life of its own and sales are growing. In January, the partners leased a workshop in the 78th Street Studios, a complex of creative-minded businesses in the Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood. "We used to work out of our homes and closets, but then we went to an L.A. trade show, got a rep and began to expand," explains Eichhorn, who moved to Cleveland in 2004.

The Urban Infant's biggest seller is the Tot Cot, an all-in-one pillow, blanket and bed sheet that makes naptime simple for toddlers attending daycare or preschool. The Tot Cot's bedding is made of recycled PET plastic bottles. "It's cool to give someone something that has a previous life," says Eichhorn, who has made sustainability a core aspect of the business.

The Urban Infant also recently created a line of washable bibs made from recycled plastic bags. The bibs, each of which is unique and handmade, feature slogans such as "Thank You" and "American Greetings" (where Eichhorn now works as a business consultant). Priced at $18, the bibs are available at boutiques and museum stores across the country, as well as online.

The bibs are created by fusing together layers of plastic bags using a heat press. Eichhorn regularly scours the recycling bin at Dave's Supermarket in Ohio City for bags, ignoring strange looks from passers-by. He has also enlisted his friends in foreign countries to help collect bags, especially unusual ones.

Although Eichhorn and Friedl have yet to quit their day jobs, Urban Infant has gained a following. In January, the company's products were featured in Parenting magazine and on the Today Show.

Eichhorn and his wife recently celebrated the birth of their daughter Essa. Despite not getting enough sleep, Eichhorn is already working on several new product lines. And now that he has a child of his own, he's even more dialed in to the needs of urban parents.


Source: Eric Eichhorn
Writer: Lee Chilcote

While the verdict is still out on how powerful the Medical Mart and Convention Center will be to Cleveland's economic growth, the construction that's currently going on is definitely bringing jobs to the area. The Medical Mart reports that more than 200 construction workers are currently on site.

The numbers are impressive for small business enterprise (SBE) companies, with more than 25 SBE subcontractors hired for specific jobs thus far.

Job creation for the construction project is being coordinated by MMPI, the Medical Mart management company; Cuyahoga County; Minority Business Solutions; and Turner Construction Company. Together, these entities have hosted five SBE certification and outreach events, the last of which resulted in 175 interview opportunities for SBE contractors.

There is much work to be done for these employees. Demolition of various buildings is ongoing, with more than 100 trucks hauling away concrete to be recycled each day.


SOURCE: Medical Mart and Convention Center
WRITER: Diane DiPiero

Brian Cook stands in the oval-shaped dining room of an apartment at Ludlow Castle, a signature Tudor-style building off Shaker Square. The distinctive room has hardwood floors and opens up to a sunken living room with wood-burning fireplace and a wall of windows overlooking the street.

"My wife would kill for an oval-shaped dining room like this," Cook says, "and for the closet space in these units."

The neighborhoods of Shaker Square have long been a popular draw for individuals and families that are seeking the conveniences and amenities of apartment living. Now, a Cleveland real estate developer is restoring and rejuvenating many of the apartment buildings on North and South Moreland, a densely populated apartment corridor.

Cook represents Crossroads Property Management, a real estate management and development firm owned by Paul Gabrail. CPM operates 14 buildings on North and South Moreland between Larchmere Boulevard and Buckeye Road -- a concentration of over 300 units, or nearly half of the total units on these two blocks. Over the past few years, the owner has steadily upgraded and improved these apartments.

"We want our buildings to set the tone for the street," says Cook.

Asked why he has chosen the Shaker Square area to focus on, Cook cites the fact that he and his wife are homeowners who are raising a family in nearby Shaker Heights. "I believe that Shaker Square and the surrounding neighborhoods have to stay strong," Cook says. "We have a great city neighborhood -- a dense, walkable community with affordable housing that's close to public transit."

The redevelopment of North and South Moreland apartment buildings is a sound investment, Cook and Gabrail argue, since the neighborhood continues to attract apartment dwellers and maintain relatively low vacancy rates. Tenants range from the "Meds and Eds" of University Circle to downtown-commuting professionals and long-time neighborhood residents seeking a low-maintenance lifestyle.

Cook is confident that his buildings will hold their value and prove successful over time. As the quality of the properties have been improved, he and Gabrail have been able to increase rents and improve resident-retention rates, thus garnering a more professional tenant base while maintaining the economic diversity of the neighborhood.

"These properties were built very well and the improvements we are doing will secure their place in the market for many years to come," Cook says.


Source: Brian Cook
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Ever wonder who is responsible for the elements of a restaurant that guests don't eat? This engaging video offers a behind-the-scenes look at the artistic players who had a hand in designing Michael Symon's B Spot restaurant. Like Symon, these characters are all "CIA grads." But rather than attending the Culinary Institute of America, Scott Richardson, Paul Sobota and Alexander Lombardo graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art. Thanks to Jeff Mancinetti for providing the video.

James DeRosa purchased the old Marshall McCarron's bar at Randall and John Avenue in Ohio City with dreams of reviving it as a hip restaurant.

Then, in 2008, the economy did a spectacular nosedive. Unable to get a loan to make even basic repairs on the dilapidated property, DeRosa and his partners put their dreams on hold. A mounting list of code violations soon landed them in housing court.

"We were faced with the option of tearing the property down or fixing it up," says DeRosa. "The neighbors thought it was important that this corner building be saved, and we didn't want to create another vacant lot in the city of Cleveland."

Eventually DeRosa and his partners Beth Kalapos and Thomas Stickney were able to obtain rehabilitation financing through Cleveland Action to Support Housing (CASH), a nonprofit whose mission is to revitalize Cleveland neighborhoods through repair and rehabilitation lending.

"This project wouldn't have happened without the CASH program," says DeRosa. "They helped us get a reduced interest rate on our rehab loan so the project would have cash flow."

CASH uses Community Development Block Grant funds from the City of Cleveland to subsidize rates through a linked deposit program. The interest rate that CASH offers is 3% below the typical bank rate -- right now, the rate is 2.6%. The nonprofit also helps owners to hire a contractor, develop a list of repairs, and complete inspections.

Today, the old Marshall McCarron's has been renovated into two new market-rate apartments -- a two-story, townhouse-style unit on the street and a three-story apartment in the back. There's also a new, stamped concrete patio where the bar's patio once sat.

The tavern, which was built in the late 1800's, has an illustrious history. The original property had likely been two separate houses, DeRosa says. They were pulled together -- most likely by horses -- to create the tavern.

"When we renovated the property, we found the seam between the two original houses, and we put the dividing wall back in to create two apartments," he says.

In the end, the historic tavern was not only saved, but handsomely restored. "We made mistakes, but we learned a lot and are proud of the project," says DeRosa.


Source: Jamie DeRosa
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Homeowners were taking out equity loans with alarming abandon just a few years ago, yet now many are reluctant to invest money in their homes. "With housing values falling, demand for home repair loans has also fallen," says Larry Slenczka, Vice President of Community Development for Dollar Bank.

Yet Dollar Bank continues to finance home rehabs through a partnership with Cleveland Action to Support Housing (CASH), a nonprofit whose mission is to revitalize Cleveland neighborhoods through home repair lending.

"CASH has been successful in identifying projects driven by investors," says Slenczka. "Their transactions tend to be very solid loans that have a very low default rate." CASH offers investors and owner-occupants a reduced interest rate. Currently, that interest rate is 2.6%.

Even as the average homeowner sits on the sidelines, some rehabbers are jumping in and finding deals. And the glut of vacant properties in Cleveland has presented an opportunity for savvy investors; while foreclosure rates nationwide reached their lowest level in four years last month, Cleveland still has a backlog of empty homes.

Yet while it seems anyone with a credit card can snap up a cheap foreclosure -- plumbing optional, of course -- that's just the beginning of the process. Getting a loan is no simple feat. Struggling with unsold inventories, many banks are cautious about lending to investors, while others aren't lending at all.

That's where CASH comes in. The nonprofit's partnerships with Dollar Bank and other lenders help owners get financing. In addition to offering a reduced rate, CASH helps owners to pick a contractor, develop a list of repairs, and inspect the work.

"Everybody wins," says Slenczka. "The neighborhood benefits from reinvestment, the benefits from private investment, and the bank benefits from a healthy market return."


Source: Larry Slenczka
Writer: Lee Chilcote

When TV crews descended on Slavic Village three years ago, the neighborhood was dubbed the "epicenter" of the foreclosure crisis. While that infamy was brief -- the crisis soon expanded to other parts of the country, with California, Florida and Nevada among the hardest hit -- the damage it left behind was real.

However, this resilient neighborhood is now becoming known for its innovative response to foreclosures. Through its Neighbors Invest in Broadway program, Slavic Village has been acquiring vacant, bank-owned homes and selling them to qualified rehabbers.

"After the housing market collapsed, we began to look at how we could rebuild our neighborhood," explains Marie Kittredge, Executive Director of Slavic Village Development (SVD), the nonprofit community group that serves the neighborhood.

Since launching the program, SVD has acquired 28 homes and sold 17. Eight of these homes were sold to owner-occupants. "When we launched the program, we were selling most of the homes to investors," says Kittredge. "But recently we've had more owner-occupants."

Purchasers, who must demonstrate the financial ability to bring the properties up to code, obtain the homes for $5,000. Such bank-owned properties are often stripped of plumbing and need major repairs. Due to the investment required to repair them, and because supply outstrips demand, they often hold little value. Lenders have been willing to donate the properties to SVD or the city of Cleveland.

After acquiring the property, SVD issues a Request for Proposals. It then selects the most qualified proposal, giving preference to owner-occupants. After selling the home, SVD follows up to ensure the work is completed according to the specifications.

"We want to make sure the home is decent, but it doesn't need a new Jacuzzi or kitchen," explains Kittredge. "We'll work with the owner throughout the process."


Source: Marie Kittredge
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The stately Tudor Arms has been vacant since 2007 when its last tenant, Cleveland Job Corps, moved to a new home. Now, thanks to a $22 million restoration project, the landmark property appears set to reclaim some of its former glory when it reopens this spring as a Double Tree Hotel. The project is the latest in a string of successful urban developments by local firm MRN Ltd.

Last week, the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (MOCA) figuratively broke ground on its new home at Euclid Avenue and Mayfield Road in University Circle.

Yet much like spring in Cleveland, MOCA's literal ground breaking, one hopes, isn't too far off. The 34,000-square-foot facility, which will cost nearly $27 million to build, is scheduled to begin construction within the next two months. The grand opening is slated to follow one year later.

Like other contemporary art museums, MOCA started small. In fact, the new museum represents something of a homecoming, since MOCA's original, late-1960s home was a rented house on nearby Bellflower Avenue. As modern art began to receive its due, so too did MOCA, expanding to the second floor of the Cleveland Playhouse on Carnegie, a spot that it has occupied for decades.

The new building, which was designed by London-based Foreign Office Architects (FOA), is itself a showpiece of modern architecture. Renderings of MOCA's new home show a sleek black stainless steel and glass exterior, with the luminescent, gem-like building lighting up the prominent corner at Euclid and Mayfield.

"This is the prow of the ship, the entry point into University Circle's Uptown neighborhood, and MOCA will be a beacon for something new and different," said Stuart Kohl, the co-chair of MOCA's capital campaign, at the groundbreaking.

The possibility of relocating to University Circle became real five years ago when Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), which owned the site, approached MOCA. "You don't just walk up and buy land in this unique principality," Kohl joked to supporters.

Jill Snyder, the museum's director, said that "pathological optimism" is required to make a large building project such as this one happen in the midst of a recession.

David Abbott, President of the Gund Foundation, told supporters that projects like this one are necessary for Cleveland to remain competitive in the global economy.

"Successful communities are in competition for global talent," he said. "Creating vibrant places is an essential part of recruiting and keeping talent in Northeast Ohio."


Source: Jill Snyder, Stuart Kohl, David Abbott
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Artist Nicolette Capuano has spent the past year painstakingly restoring the ornate plaster trim and low relief sculptures in the Tudor Arms building.

Yet she's doing more than simply recreating the past; she has worked closely with building owner Rick Maron and designer Cindy Rae Cohen to create her own masterpieces -- original, hand-painted murals -- that will grace the landmark structure.

"We wanted to highlight the beauty of this historic building while adding a more contemporary touch," says Capuano, who started her company, Beyond the Wall Mural Design, after graduating from Columbus College of Art and Design in 2005.

"Blending the historic and contemporary is definitely a trend in interior design these days," Capuano adds. "We wanted to create something that felt somewhat timeless."

In April, MRN Ltd. will complete a $22 million restoration of the Tudor Arms building, converting it to a new 154-room Double Tree Hotel. The vestibule that Capuano restored will be the hotel's main entrance, while the rejuvenated ballrooms will be used for special events. (See comprehensive Tudor Arms feature in next week's Fresh Water.)

In addition to the mural restoration, Capuano also helped repair the building's one-of-a-kind plaster work where it was damaged or missing pieces. This labor-intensive process required making custom molds, recreating each piece by hand, and patching it in.

When she couldn't find the color she wanted for the trim, Capuano created one from scratch.

"The Tudor umber that we used to glaze the plaster work was hand-mixed," says Capuano. "I went through all of the Sherwin-Williams colors, but I couldn't find exactly what we wanted. I'm a perfectionist, so I kept mixing colors until I got it right."



Source: Nicolette Capuano
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History (CMNH) will soon break ground on SmartHome Cleveland, a passively-heated home that does not require a furnace and is designed to challenge the way that people think about the issue of climate change.

The 2,500-square-foot, three-bedroom home will be presented in conjunction with the traveling exhibit, Climate Change, from June to September 2011.

"The SmartHome will show that it's possible to use dramatically less energy in our buildings -- and they can be wonderful places to live," says David Beach, Executive Director of Green City Blue Lake (GCBL), a center for regional sustainability located at the museum.

The SmartHome, which was designed by Doty and Miller Architects and will be the first of its kind in Cleveland, incorporates Passive House Methodology. This approach includes high levels of insulation, featuring wall thicknesses of up to 18 inches, a carefully sealed building envelope that combines minimal air leakage with efficient heat-recovery ventilation, and triple-pane windows.

Heated by a small, supplementary heater, the SmartHome's energy efficient design along with the solar panels on a detached garage will make it a net-zero energy consumer.

Beach describes bringing the SmartHome to University Circle as "something of a barn raising." While planning the project, GCBL worked with neighboring institutions and community groups to identify how the home could best fit into the community.

Ultimately, they decided that a home this smart couldn't remain a museum showpiece for long. This fall, the home will be transported to a vacant lot on nearby Wade Park Avenue in Glenville, where it will be offered for sale to a buyer. The home, which will cost about $525,000 to build, will be priced between $300,000 and $400,000.

Beach is already honing his sales pitch for winter-weary Northeast Ohioans. Tired of paying high heating bills? "You could heat this house with a hairdryer," he jokes.


Source: David Beach
Writer: Lee Chilcote

At a public meeting held last week at Market Avenue Wine Bar, planners showed off designs for the future Market Square Park, an Ohio City park slated to receive a $1.5 million makeover this year from the city.

"We hope the new Market Square Park will become the de facto outdoor dining room for the West Side Market," says Ben Trimble, Program Manager with the Ohio City Near West Development Corporation (OCNW). Trimble says the park, located at the corner of Lorain and West 25th, will complement the redevelopment taking place elsewhere in the area.

Plans for revamping the park, which was completed in 1979, date back to at least 2004. OCNW selected it as a candidate for overhaul because of its dated design, lack of connection to the commercial district, and a perception that the park is unsafe.

The park, which was the original site for the West Side Market before the current building was constructed in 1912, has been a focus area for OCNW. The nonprofit helps to coordinate Open Air in Market Square, an outdoor bazaar that takes place on Saturdays throughout the summer, as well as other park programs.

When construction wraps up this fall, Trimble says the park will have "harvest tables" with bench seating, rows of new trees, public artwork with an "orchard ladder" theme defining the park's entranceway, attractive brick pavers, and an elevated stage that will be used for live music, outdoor movies, and other public performances.

Attractive new bus shelters will also be installed outside of Market Square Park. Parkworks and Cleveland Public Art, two nonprofit groups that worked on the park's redesign, say the bus shelters will be well-used. The Lorain and West 25th intersection has the second highest use of any transit waiting area in the city, second only to Public Square.


Source: Ben Trimble
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Valerie Mayen may have left Season 8 of Project Runway prematurely, but she won't be leaving Cleveland anytime soon. In addition to headquartering her burgeoning fashion label Yellowcake here, the Corpus Christie native will soon launch an innovative sewing co-op for budding designers. And that is just the beginning.

Verb Ballets, a national repertory dance company based in Cleveland Heights, is planning to expand this year to a larger space in a Shaker Heights church.

The city of Shaker Heights will provide a $10,000 job creation grant to the dance company to facilitate their move to the basement of Christ Episcopal Church on Warrensville Center road. Shaker Heights has recently gained attention for its proactive efforts to recruit new commercial tenants to the city, which has historically had a largely residential tax base.

The grant will be used to defray moving expenses and purchase equipment. Verb Ballets has negotiated a five-year lease with Christ Episcopal Church, where the basement will serve as an office, studio and future black box theatre.

Phase I of the project will include construction of the studio and offices. Verb Ballets anticipates being able to generate additional income from tuitions and rentals to independent artists.

Phase II of the project calls for theatrical lighting equipment, sound board, stage and seating area. This black box space will then be used for Verb Ballets performances, and also leased to other artists for performance use. Verb Ballets expects Phase I to be completed this year. There is no timeline yet for Phase II.

Income tax revenues from Verb Ballets' new Shaker Heights location are expected to repay the $10,000 job creation grant in a little over two years, according to the city of Shaker Heights.

This season, Verb Ballets will perform at Cleveland Public Theatre and St. Ignatius High School. The dance company has also performed at Cain Park.


Source: The City of Shaker Heights
Writer: Lee Chilcote