Joel Borwick has owned Seitz-Agin Hardware in Cleveland Heights for 38 of the store's 56 years. To loyal customers, he and his staff are well-known for dispensing home repair tips, doling out contractor referrals, and selling only what shoppers need.

The store has proudly survived the onslaught of big box stores. When Home Depot and Wal-Mart opened at nearby Severance, Seitz-Agin trundled on, propelled by a loyal fan base and friendly personal service. Years of customer appreciation awards and press clippings from local publications adorn the walls.

Now, after decades as a fixture on Lee Road, Seitz-Again will close its doors for good on June 18th. Borwick has inked a deal to sell the building to Heights merchant Bill Mitchell, who owns Mitchell's Fine Chocolates just down the block.

In the end, it wasn't the big box stores that did the shop in, explains Borwick. Ultimately, it was the economic downturn and change in consumer buying habits that bested Borwick. The store began losing money several years ago when its contractor business dropped off. When the housing market stalled, many contractors were out of work.

Today's homeowners also prefer to hire contractors rather than fix up homes themselves. And they look online first for products, Borwick says. This shift has made it tough for small hardware stores to keep their doors open.

Since news broke about Seitz-Agin's departure, a steady stream of customers have stopped by each day to purchase one last can of paint or tube of caulk, and to wish Borwick and his staff well and thank them for their years of service.

Mitchell says he hopes to find a new tenant for the Seitz-Agin storefront by Labor Day.


Source: Seitz-Agin
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Salty Not Sweet, an independent boutique and letterpress studio, opened this month in a storefront on West 25th Street in Ohio City. It is one of several new businesses that have opened this year in the Market District, adding to a redevelopment trend in the area.

The store, which first opened a year ago in the Waterloo Arts District, features unique wares that are carefully sourced by co-owner Candra Squire, including merchandise from Megan Lee Designs (a screen-printed clothing line from Chicago) and Helen Pe (a Brooklyn artist who makes tiny original drawings in ring settings).

The new Salty Not Sweet also features vintage goods. In fact, most of the shop displays are made from vintage materials, including old soda crates, refinished furniture and tea cups that are all for sale.

The new location is primed to become a local crafters' paradise. Co-owner Melissa Major makes soap, candles and original lines of handmade home and body goods in a studio in the back of the store. Customers can watch Major work while they browse the store's offerings. The "Salty girls" promise to add public workshops that will be taught by area artists and crafters in the coming months.

Co-owner Candra Squire came up with the name "Salty Not Sweet" when a friend asked her to describe her work a few years ago, and it stuck. In addition to representing out-of-state artists, the shop offers Squire's original, tongue-in-cheek greeting cards (which are plenty salty, and not at all sweet).

Salty Not Sweet is located at 2074 West 25th Street.


Source: Salty Not Sweet
Writer: Lee Chilcote

A recent study by the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture (CPAC) examines where artists are living in Northeast Ohio. Perhaps it's no surprise that artists tend to populate urban neighborhoods where they can find spacious, affordable housing (including space for studios), walkable streets, diversity and public spaces that foster social interaction.

The report shows that Cleveland Heights is Northeast Ohio's top community for artists -- collectively, the Cedar-Fairmount, Coventry, Severance, Forest Hills, Cedar-Lee and Shaker Square neighborhoods contain 19.4 percent of the region's artists. Other artist-rich neighborhoods include Little Italy/University Circle, Lakewood and Detroit Shoreway.

Yet CPAC's report, entitled "Putting Artists on the Map," also suggests that successful artist-based community development is about more than just counting galleries or lofts where artists congregate. Artist-based development builds relationships between artists and community members, fostering lasting ties that fuel the artist's creativity while aiding the neighborhood's redevelopment.

"Artist-based community development is more than opening an art gallery or having an artist move into a neighborhood," CPAC's report states. "This type of development involves the creation of a more organic relationship between artists and their neighbors."

"This can mean a neighborhood takes steps to identify its hidden arts and culture assets by finding its gathering places and influential figures. Artists can be engaged by making beautiful and interesting public spaces and help unite residents in the process."

The report suggests that neighborhoods like Cleveland Heights, University Circle and Detroit Shoreway should gear their community development programs and policies towards promoting artist-based community development. This spring, CPAC launched its own Artist Community Development Initiative.

To complete the analysis, CPAC mined the databases of large arts organizations such as the Ohio Arts Council to determine where artists live.


Source: CPAC
Writer: Lee Chilcote

It's a well known fact that institutions such as the Cleveland Clinic, Case Western Reserve University and University Hospitals are growth engines in Cleveland's economy these days. A lesser-known fact is that these institutions and others have emerged as leaders in greening Northeast Ohio's economy.

In recent months, Case, University Hospitals, Cleveland Clinic, Tri-C, Kent State, Oberlin College, Cleveland State University and the Fowler Center for Sustainable Value at Case's Weatherhead School of Management have all hired Sustainability Managers.

It's a sign that sustainability efforts -- once the domain of graduate students, volunteer committees or a staff person whose responsibilities were already stretched -- have infiltrated the culture of these organizations. These full-time staffers are responsible for implementing sustainable business practices.

Take University Hospitals (UH) as one example. Aparna Bole, a staff doctor, recently replaced an all- volunteer team that has led efforts for several years. She is now working to develop a sustainability plan, add two additional full-time staff people, and ensure that all new UH buildings meet EnergyStar standards (a 15-percent energy use reduction when compared to typical construction).

Cleveland State University (CSU) has also ramped up its sustainability efforts. Recently, CSU President Ronald Berkman signed the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment, requiring that CSU develop a carbon reduction goal and track carbon emissions from buildings. Nathan Engstrom, CSU's Campus Sustainability Coordinator, is responsible for leading these efforts.

The new hires indicate that Sustainable Cleveland 2019, an effort launched by the city of Cleveland and environmental groups to make Cleveland a model of sustainability, is taking root in some pretty big places.


Source: Green City Blue Lake
Writer: Lee Chilcote

"Flour Girl" Bridget Cavanaugh Thiebault creates artfully decorated cakes, cookies and pastries that are as dreamy to gaze upon as they are to devour. In the past, however, her delectable confections were available only through custom orders or at special events. You practically had to get married to have a taste.

That will change later this month when Thiebault opens Luna Bakery and Café in the Cedar-Fairmount district of Cleveland Heights. Partnering with Stone Oven owners Tatyana Rehn and John Emerman, Thiebault has created an intimate, full-service café that will feature Flour Girl's made-from-scratch pastries, breakfast, lunch and dinner options, and for those who didn't get invited to the wedding, cake by the slice.

Thiebault lived and worked in New York City and Chicago as a pastry chef, food stylist and culinary consultant before returning to her hometown of Cleveland Heights to launch Flour Girl. Her business began as a creative side project while Thiebault was still living in the Big Apple, but quickly morphed into her main dish and has been going strong ever since.

Thiebault was looking for an opportunity to expand her business into a storefront when she broached the topic with Rehn and Emerman of the popular Stone Oven group of local cafes. The successful owners loved the idea and agreed to help. They promise that Luna will have its own distinctive identity, and won't try to duplicate Stone Oven's signature sandwiches, salads and soups.

Luna Bakery and Café will have indoor seating for about 15, with a sidewalk patio during the summer months. It will be open seven days a week and in the evenings.

Luna will be located at 2482 Fairmount Boulevard.


Source: Flour Girl
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Explorys has formed one of the largest healthcare databases in the world, helping medical professionals provide better patient care and diagnoses. Spun off from the Cleveland Clinic in 2009 by Charlie Lougheed and Stephen McHale, Explorys has become one of the world's largest data platforms with over three billion clinical events and partner agreements with major healthcare systems that span over 10 million patients nationwide.

In its short life, Explorys has gotten six major healthcare providers on board, with the likes of Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, Summa Health System, MetroHealth and MedStar. These providers use Explorys solutions to discover actionable correlations and trends in treatments and outcomes to improve safety, increase quality, and to create cost efficiencies in delivering care.

"Explorys takes the data and puts it on a larger scale," says Lougheed. "We're changing the game in terms of how we treat populations and sub-populations of patients."

The company has grown to 25 employees. "We plan to double by the end of the year and double again next year," says Lougheed. "It's all in Cleveland and they're all high-tech jobs. We're pretty excited about what we can do in the community. We think we can grow this company into the hundreds in Northeast Ohio."

That growth will be possible thanks to $11.5 million in Series C financing led by Austin Ventures and Foundation Medical Partners, with follow-on investments from Santé Ventures and Cleveland Clinic.

"The validation that came from a group like Austin Ventures in a Cleveland-based company was really fulfilling," says Lougheed. "Others outside of Ohio really do see a good thing happening in this part of the country."


Source: Charlie Lougheed
Writer: Karin Connelly

Old Brooklyn has long been considered a hidden gem by its residents. Minutes from downtown and within walking distance of the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, the neighborhood boasts quiet, tree-lined streets and a bevy of independent shops and friendly taverns.

Yet neighborhood advocates are hoping it won't be a well-kept secret much longer. That's why they've organized Pop Up Pearl, a one day block party that will fill the empty storefronts on Pearl Avenue with shops, entertainment and food vendors, and invited their neighbors to join in the festivities.

The event, which is modeled after the Better Block project in Dallas, Texas, is intended to act as a living charrette that allows visitors, residents and property owners to imagine a more vibrant future for Old Brooklyn's downtown. They're also hoping to attract investment after the party is over.

Pop Up Pearl, which was spearheaded by the Old Brooklyn Community Development Corporation (OBCDC), takes place on Pearl Road between Wildlife Way and State Road this Saturday, May 21st from noon until dusk. It will include a "complete streets" demonstration, adding temporary bike lanes along Pearl Road. Entertainment from Progressive Arts Alliance and other groups also is planned.

Pop Up Pearl will also feature a youth arts studio with zoo-themed artwork from local nonprofit ArtHouse, artwork fashioned from recycled materials from Nicole McGee of Plenty Underfoot, and a shop filled with 100 percent locally made goods from Crafty Goodness in Lakewood.

The Better Block project began when a grassroots group transformed a city street in Oak Cliff, Texas into an inclusive, pedestrian- and bike-friendly street. Better Blocks projects "increase the perception of safety in an area, stimulate economic activity in vacant or blighted corridors and help to implement 'Complete Streets' projects," according to the group's website.


Source: Old Brooklyn Community Development Corporation
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Pedal for Prizes is a two-wheeled treasure hunt through Cleveland's Old Brooklyn neighborhood that will offer participants a chance to win more than $2,000 worth of prizes simply by visiting neighborhood businesses. The event takes place this Saturday, May 21st at Loew Park.

Here's how it will work: Upon check-in, bicyclists receive a map of 20 destinations and points of interest in Old Brooklyn. While exploring the neighborhood, riders make pit-stops at local landmarks like Michael's Bakery, Gentile's Imported Italian Foods, and Jack Frost Donuts, collecting raffle tickets at each one. They'll return to Loew Park in the afternoon to enter the tickets into a Chinese-style raffle.

Prizes include two new Trek 7000 hybrid bikes, a one-year membership to the downtown branch of the Cleveland YMCA, a $100 Honey Hut Ice Cream gift basket, a $50 gift certificate to Steelyard Commons, and gift certificates to area restaurants.

Organizers say Pedal for Prizes will not only promote Old Brooklyn as a bike-friendly neighborhood that is chock-full of charming local businesses, but also encourage participants to come back for a closer look.

"It gives neighborhood merchants a unique opportunity to bring hundreds of new people from throughout the region into their shops," says Old Brooklyn resident and event organizer Jeffrey Sugalski. "We hope that they'll return and become patrons in the future."

Pedal for Prizes is supported by Neighborhood Connections, a program of the Cleveland Foundation that provides small grants to grassroots community projects.

Loew Park is located at 3121 Oak Park Avenue in Cleveland. The free event begins at 12 pm.


Source: Jeffrey Sugalski
Writer: Lee Chilcote

After 35 years in the ad game -- and induction into the Advertising Hall of Fame -- Alan Glazen retired, looking forward long days spent swinging on his Lake Erie island hammock. But that's not what happened. Despite not knowing the first thing about running a restaurant, Glazen reluctantly found himself doing exactly that. As the owner of three successful concepts, Glazen wants others to join him.

What started as a business plan competition at Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania in 2003 has today turned into a thriving pet insurance business for CEO Laura Bennett and chief marketing officer Alex Krooglik. Embrace Pet Insurance offers comprehensive insurance plans for pets with a focus on customer service.

"It came about when a friend's cat got sick," explains Bennett. "She spent $5,000 to take care of it. We saw pet insurance had huge potential, it's an unpenetrated market." While 25 percent of pet owners in the U.K. have pet insurance, only sixth-tenths of one percent insure their pets in the U.S.

Pet care is a $50 billion a year market, according to the American Pet Products Association, $14 billion of which is spent on veterinarian bills.

"People are still spending on their pets, even in a recession," says Bennett. "This is for people who would spend anything to bring their pet back to health, to do what is right." The two won the business plan competition, graduated and decided to launch Embrace in Beachwood in 2003.

After a somewhat rocky start, they found funding through JumpStart in 2004 and sold the first policy, to Bennett, in 2006. They've received additional investments over the years, and have relied mostly on word of mouth for their growth and success.

Bennett, who has a background in finance, crafts the policies like traditional insurance plans for cars and trucks. Policy owners can pick and choose their level of coverage, and even hereditary and chronic conditions can be covered. "We give a lot of options, even a health spending account for pet wellness," says Bennett. "There's a lot of actuarial science behind it."

In an industry that is growing by 25 percent annually, Embrace Pet Insurance has grown exponentially. They now have 23 employees and are continuing to hire. "We want to build on that momentum," says Bennett. "I see us in the next five years going from 23 people to 50 to 60."

"Alex and I created this out of nothing, it was just something in our heads," says Bennett. "We've struggled, we've worked really hard, it's been fantastic."


Source: Laura Bennett
Writer: Karin Connelly

As a law student at CSU's Cleveland Marshall College of Law, Art Geigel noticed a flaw in the way he and his fellow students took notes in class. Almost everybody took notes using their laptops and Microsoft Word, compiling seemingly endless documents with no way of organizing the information.

"I kept thinking to myself, 'There's a better way to do this than to keep taking notes in one constantly growing Word document,'" says Geigel.

That "better way," says Geigel, is GroundBooth, an online program for law students to take notes, share outlines and collaborate. "The whole goal is to make technology work for law school students better than it has been. We're trying to tailor GroundBooth to the habits of law students."

The service is free. GroundBooth plans to earn income from ad revenue, supplemental sales of reference materials and additional website features. The company is currently in talks with Supreme Bar Review about a partnership. The website now supports 13 law schools including Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Marshall, Stanford, and Harvard.

Geigel, who just finished his second year of law school, studied computer science as an undergrad at Hiram College and was a web developer before creating GroundBooth. He officially launched the company with three friends in January, and has partnered with Shaker LaunchHouse, which has matched GroundBooth with several mentors and is providing office space, in addition to a cash investment.


Source: Art Geigel
Writer: Karin Connelly

Tucked between University Circle and Cleveland Heights, Little Italy is one of Cleveland's most charming and historic neighborhoods. Aluminum-sided doubles nestle against modern pastel-colored townhomes, while art galleries and Italian restaurants dot Mayfield and Murray Hill roads.

Although Italians no longer are the neighborhood's predominant ethnic group, much of the real estate is still owned by the Italian families that settled here nearly a century ago. Popular with Case Western Reserve University students and hospital employees, the area's mix of residents now reflects the diversity of University Circle.

Yet while today's Little Italy may have "just as many Chinese as Italians," says Ray Kristosik, Executive Director of the Little Italy Redevelopment Corporation, a new wave of immigrants is arriving on these shores, and they're less likely to come from Sicily than Mayfield Heights and Solon.

"Empty-nesters are beginning to move back to the area, including Italian-Americans that have family roots in the neighborhood," he says. "People love its proximity to University Circle, and the fact that while we have development, parts of the Little Italy look just like they did 80 years ago."

The influx of empty-nesters has been facilitated in part by the development of new and rehabilitated housing. Townhome projects such as Villa Carabelli, Random Road Lofts and 27 Coltman have provided contemporary, upscale housing choices for professionals seeking a low-maintenance lifestyle.

Although Kristosik says that it's important to ensure that that the area's historic housing is preserved, he believes that the new development taking place is contributing to the area's revitalization by attracting people to move back to the urban core.

In fact, Kristosik is looking forward to the day his own kids head off to college. "I can't wait for them to grow up so I can move back to the neighborhood," he says.


Source: Ray Kristosik
Writer: Lee Chilcote

When Murray Hill Market opened in Little Italy in January, owner Michelle Iacobelli Buckholtz revived the tradition of the small neighborhood market that existed when her father grew up in the area.

This summer, Buckholtz will bring back another grand neighborhood tradition: the sidewalk cafe and alfresco market. Having obtained her peddler's license, she plans to add outdoor seating and sales displays this summer.

"We want to be different from Whole Foods and other grocery stores, and one way to do that is to offer a unique experience and personal service," says Buckholtz.

Buckholtz says that Murray Hill Market, which offers fresh fruits and vegetables as well as gourmet prepared foods, has been successful at reaching a wide audience, including students living in the neighborhood, older Italian families seeking to reconnect with their roots, University Circle employees and East Siders who work downtown. "People stop to pick up dinner on their way home," she says.

Buckholtz was inspired to create the market after a trip to New York to visit her son in college. After she observed the mouth-watering, fresh fare at every corner store, she decided to create a market in Cleveland. She knew it would work because there are no fresh, high-quality grocery stores in University Circle, an area that is on track to create 10,000 new jobs between 2005 and 2015.

Yet her international-flavored market, which Buckholtz describes as "Italian with a twist," does not seek to recreate the past. Although Little Italy's restaurant mix remains mostly Italian, the Murray Hill Market offers a contemporary mix of cuisine, including Jewish and French pastries, Middle Eastern dishes, and Puerto Rican rice and beans.

"This area is part of University Circle, and I wanted to create an international market with more than just Italian food," Buckholtz says.

Buckholtz regularly serves meatball subs with her mother's sauce, yet finds the older Italian women that shop here are often the toughest critics. "Everyone's mother makes the best sauce," she says with a laugh.


Source: Michelle Iacobelli Buckholtz
Writer: Lee Chilcote

COSE members will bring their causes to Columbus on Wednesday, May 25, for COSE Day at the Capitol. For the past five years, COSE members have used the day to meet with policy makers, network and bring their issues to the table.

"People don't have to be political," says Brynn Allio, director of government and external relations for COSE. "They just have to be willing to share their stories."

About 50 participants will board a bus in Cleveland at 6:30 a.m. at the Holiday Inn Independence and attend a reception breakfast at 9:15 a.m. in Columbus. Members will then spend the day talking to legislators -- speaker of the house William Batchelder, senate president pro tem Keith Faber, senate minority leader Capri Cafaro, and BWC administrator Steve Buehrer.

"They will break into groups to meet with the legislators and talk about their issues of concern," explains Allio. "Small business owners are really busy, but they are taking a day to talk with legislators. It's always nice when legislators connect with small business owners and we like to facilitate that when we can."

Some hot topics Allio expects to be covered include access to capital and healthcare. "Small business owners generally want to be able to offer health insurance to their employees, but it's increasingly difficult with rising rates," she says.

The day culminates with a reception before participants board the bus home to Cleveland. The event is only open to COSE members and costs $20 for the day. Call 216-592-2497 for more information.


Source: Brynn Allio
Writer: Karin Connelly

When Tyler Elevator moved its facilities to the 'burbs, it left behind over one million square feet of vacant warehouse space. A labyrinth of two-dozen brick buildings spread across 10 acres, Tyler possessed more than its share of challenges when it was acquired by Graystone Properties. Today, Tyler has been reborn as a thriving entrepreneurial district -- a bona fide urban village on the fringes of downtown.

Architect David Ellison had been watching the dilapidated cluster of buildings at the southwest corner of W. 41st and Lorain fall apart for years. His dismay only grew as copper thieves looted the property, rainwater poured through the roof, and illegal activity soared in the shadows of the boarded-up building.

When Ellison learned that the City of Cleveland had granted a permit to tear the buildings down, he decided to do something. "One way to improve real estate values is to remove eyesores," he says. "Since I'm a homeowner in the neighborhood, I wanted to protect my investment."

Ellison had a different idea. He purchased the condemned buildings from Ohio City Near West (now Ohio City, Inc.). Four years later, thanks to extensive renovations, he has preserved an important piece of Ohio City's history. After peeling off layers of rotting additions, he brought back to life a beautiful brick Victorian. During the intervening span, he battled city bureaucracy, cost overruns, the credit crunch and the recession.

Ellison recently moved his architectural offices into half of the first floor, and has plans to renovate the second floor as leasable office space. He has applied for financing to finish the project, but has not been able to obtain a loan in part because Lorain Avenue's commercial rental rates make it difficult to justify the costs.

Renovating the upstairs into apartments is another option, but financing for mixed-use projects is notoriously difficult to obtain. "It's tough to get financing for a residential project in a commercial zone," he says.

Although he's discouraged by the slow pace of his project, Ellison says that Lorain Avenue has steadily improved over the years, and his renovation has helped. "The street needs more occupancy so we can push the criminal activity away," he says.

Ellison says that the rebirth witnessed in the Gordon Square Arts District can happen here. The key to success, he says, is diversifying the retail offerings on Lorain so that they serve local residents' needs while also attracting shoppers that live outside the neighborhood.


Source: David Ellison
Writer: Lee Chilcote