Entrepreneurs + Innovators
Hyland Software has
"strong management, a clear strategy, happy customers and a
vertical-market focus." That, according to the IT research and advisory
company Gartner, is part of the reason Hyland Software is on its list of
leaders in the enterprise content management (ECM) industry. Gartner's
Magic Quadrant 2010 puts Hyland Software in good company, as it shares
the title "leader" with the likes of Microsoft, Oracle and IBM. The
annual Magic Quadrant is used by the IT industry to evaluate ECM vendor
options.
The review from Gartner also pointed to Hyland's sales growth and success selling a version of the company's OnBase software that runs over the Internet. OnBase features document, business process and records management services.
A.J. Hyland, president and CEO of the Westlake-based company, says that Hyland's success relies on staying true to its own mission. "Since the beginning, Hyland strategically decided not to pursue two of Gartner's requirements to be a leader: team collaboration and WCM (web content management)," Hyland wrote on his company blog. "Instead, it stayed focused on this: integrated document imaging, management and workflow capabilities that meet the needs of targeted vertical industries."
This appears to have been a successful strategy. The company has had a banner year adding to its market share through acquisitions. New to the Hyland Software family in 2010 are eWebHealth, which specializes in Software as a Service (Saas); Hershey Systems, which focuses on the higher education market; and Computer Systems Company, a business and clinical healthcare software entity.
SOURCE: Hyland Software
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
The review from Gartner also pointed to Hyland's sales growth and success selling a version of the company's OnBase software that runs over the Internet. OnBase features document, business process and records management services.
A.J. Hyland, president and CEO of the Westlake-based company, says that Hyland's success relies on staying true to its own mission. "Since the beginning, Hyland strategically decided not to pursue two of Gartner's requirements to be a leader: team collaboration and WCM (web content management)," Hyland wrote on his company blog. "Instead, it stayed focused on this: integrated document imaging, management and workflow capabilities that meet the needs of targeted vertical industries."
This appears to have been a successful strategy. The company has had a banner year adding to its market share through acquisitions. New to the Hyland Software family in 2010 are eWebHealth, which specializes in Software as a Service (Saas); Hershey Systems, which focuses on the higher education market; and Computer Systems Company, a business and clinical healthcare software entity.
SOURCE: Hyland Software
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Creative signs are making a comeback in Cleveland. Dramatic signage not only perks up a neighborhood visually, it makes them more competitive by helping indie retailers stand out from national chains. For proof, look at East Fourth Street.
what torino can teach cleveland
Torino has been called the Detroit of Italy. And like that -- and our -- city, it succeeded or failed on the backs of a few large manufacturers. In the 1980s, the shutdown of some of those big companies cost the Torino region more than 100,000 jobs. That city wouldn't turn things around economically for nearly 20 years.
But turn things around it did, says this Time article, which states that Torino has "become a model of how a city can transform itself after an industrial collapse." Civic and business leaders there fashioned an aggressive urban plan that included expansion into international markets, investments in innovation, and the buildup of new sectors like food and tourism. Today, Torino's per capita GDP is more than 10% higher than the national average.
Lessons learned there can -- and in some cases already are, says Time -- being implemented here in Cleveland.
"Once a powerhouse of heavy industry -- steel, rubber, automobiles -- Cleveland has struggled for decades to find its footing. Recently, however, the city and the surrounding area have established agencies like those in Torino to help young companies get off the ground, assist midsize businesses with finding new markets, and guide the city's old manufacturing base into faster-growing sectors such as medical supplies, flexible electronics, clean energy and next-generation polymers."
And efforts are already paying off: "Cleveland and its region are now home to 19 venture-capital firms -- up from two in 2000 -- and are focused on working to help existing firms find their places in the new economy."
Read the entire article here.
But turn things around it did, says this Time article, which states that Torino has "become a model of how a city can transform itself after an industrial collapse." Civic and business leaders there fashioned an aggressive urban plan that included expansion into international markets, investments in innovation, and the buildup of new sectors like food and tourism. Today, Torino's per capita GDP is more than 10% higher than the national average.
Lessons learned there can -- and in some cases already are, says Time -- being implemented here in Cleveland.
"Once a powerhouse of heavy industry -- steel, rubber, automobiles -- Cleveland has struggled for decades to find its footing. Recently, however, the city and the surrounding area have established agencies like those in Torino to help young companies get off the ground, assist midsize businesses with finding new markets, and guide the city's old manufacturing base into faster-growing sectors such as medical supplies, flexible electronics, clean energy and next-generation polymers."
And efforts are already paying off: "Cleveland and its region are now home to 19 venture-capital firms -- up from two in 2000 -- and are focused on working to help existing firms find their places in the new economy."
Read the entire article here.
In the fiscal year ending September 30, 2010, Huntington Bank
led other lenders in Northeast Ohio in number of small business loans,
total dollars lent and amount of minority lending. This report from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Cleveland District Office signals the second year in a row that Huntington was the regional leader in loan support to small business owners.
In the past year, Huntington gave out 365 loans and $59 million, including $8 million in minority lending, in the Cleveland region.
These numbers indicate the bank's commitment to growing the local economy through financial lending to entrepreneurs and small business owners, according to Dan Walsh, regional president for Huntington in the Greater Cleveland Region. "Through Huntington's continued partnership with the SBA, we've helped businesses in Cleveland and across our markets retain and grow jobs, expand their services or buy new equipment and become stronger and better positioned for the future," he says.
"When we put dollars in the hands of local small business owners, new businesses can start or be rescued, jobs are created and our economy is jump started," Walsh adds.
Huntington is the fifth-largest SBA lender in the country in number of loans, according to bank sources.
SOURCE: Huntington Bank
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
In the past year, Huntington gave out 365 loans and $59 million, including $8 million in minority lending, in the Cleveland region.
These numbers indicate the bank's commitment to growing the local economy through financial lending to entrepreneurs and small business owners, according to Dan Walsh, regional president for Huntington in the Greater Cleveland Region. "Through Huntington's continued partnership with the SBA, we've helped businesses in Cleveland and across our markets retain and grow jobs, expand their services or buy new equipment and become stronger and better positioned for the future," he says.
"When we put dollars in the hands of local small business owners, new businesses can start or be rescued, jobs are created and our economy is jump started," Walsh adds.
Huntington is the fifth-largest SBA lender in the country in number of loans, according to bank sources.
SOURCE: Huntington Bank
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Prfessor.com officially launched this year, beckoning anybody who knows something about a subject to create an online course for the benefit of others. According to Jim Kukral, one of three owners of the Rocky River-based e-learning curriculum designer, "hundreds of thousands of visitors and students have experienced Prfessor." Topics currently on the site range from marketing to green living.
Now Prfessor is promoting the use of its online resource for businesses that want to educate staff without the expense and time-consuming nature of classroom-style training. Prfessor offers corporations, small businesses and nonprofits a variety of advanced interactive tools designed to encourage self-paced learning.
This style of training benefits both employer and employee, according to Kukral. " "Prfessor.com helps you control your costs as you improve the quality of your staff and they, in turn, improve profits by doing their jobs better selling more products, providing better customer service and leading their teams effectively," he says. "Prfessor allows anyone, without tech skills, to go out and teach what they know."
Businesses and organizations can take advantage of Prfessor by signing up online to create unlimited courses, develop quizzes to gauge students' understanding of topics and make use of A/V, PowerPoint and graphics to stimulate the learning process.
Kukral foresees strong growth in Prfessor's future, thanks to ever-expanding use of the Internet for educational purposes. "The market for education online is growing by leaps and bounds," Kukral says. Prfessor is designed to encourage users to "empty your head onto the Web," he adds.
SOURCE: Jim Kukral, Prfessor.com
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Now Prfessor is promoting the use of its online resource for businesses that want to educate staff without the expense and time-consuming nature of classroom-style training. Prfessor offers corporations, small businesses and nonprofits a variety of advanced interactive tools designed to encourage self-paced learning.
This style of training benefits both employer and employee, according to Kukral. " "Prfessor.com helps you control your costs as you improve the quality of your staff and they, in turn, improve profits by doing their jobs better selling more products, providing better customer service and leading their teams effectively," he says. "Prfessor allows anyone, without tech skills, to go out and teach what they know."
Businesses and organizations can take advantage of Prfessor by signing up online to create unlimited courses, develop quizzes to gauge students' understanding of topics and make use of A/V, PowerPoint and graphics to stimulate the learning process.
Kukral foresees strong growth in Prfessor's future, thanks to ever-expanding use of the Internet for educational purposes. "The market for education online is growing by leaps and bounds," Kukral says. Prfessor is designed to encourage users to "empty your head onto the Web," he adds.
SOURCE: Jim Kukral, Prfessor.com
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
chef's garden a 'showpiece of agricultural ingenuity'
In this podcast of The Story, broadcast on American Public Media, host Dick Gordon chats with Lee Jones of the Chef's Garden. Taped during a live discussion in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the conversation delves into the genesis of what may be the nation's finest gourmet garden.
Located in Huron, near the shores of Lake Erie, the Chef's Garden grows produce year-round outdoors, in cold frames, and under glass. That produce is picked fresh and shipped to chefs and restaurants worldwide, even as far as Japan.
The always passionate Farmer Jones discusses how his family transformed a failed conventional farm into what Gordon calls a "showpiece of agricultural ingenuity."
Download or listen to the podcast here.
Located in Huron, near the shores of Lake Erie, the Chef's Garden grows produce year-round outdoors, in cold frames, and under glass. That produce is picked fresh and shipped to chefs and restaurants worldwide, even as far as Japan.
The always passionate Farmer Jones discusses how his family transformed a failed conventional farm into what Gordon calls a "showpiece of agricultural ingenuity."
Download or listen to the podcast here.
nPower peg pegged as one of wired's 'perfect gifts'
Tremont Electric's nPower PEG, a kinetic energy harvesting battery charger, was tapped as one of Wired magazine's "100 Perfect Gifts Whether You've Been Naughty or Nice!" Actually, the nifty device nailed the #5 spot.
Comparing the device to a self-winding watch, the entry says "this 9-inch cylinder captures watts via movement. A short walk charges the battery with enough juice to power up a dead cell phone for an emergency call -- like, say, to the pizzeria. Enjoy that slice; you earned it!"
Scroll through the entire list -- both naughty and nice -- here.
With their city's centennial coming up in less than 13 months, Shaker
Heights officials will spend a lot of time in the new year preparing to
celebrate history. But many are already looking much farther into the
future, implementing the Economic Development Strategy adopted by Shaker City Council last month.
Crafted over several months with a consulting firm in Maryland, the plan outlines steps Shaker can take now and in the foreseeable future to ensure a stable and growing tax base. The fundamental step: "Instead of concentrating solely on the maintenance and improvement of Shaker Heights as a premier residential community, it must also aggressively encourage commercial development."
And not just retail development, which, the report notes, is important but less lucrative than offices. The plan names industries to target: health care and social services; design services; information systems; government and regulatory agencies; and small law firms.
The problem, the report notes, is that "Shaker Heights, similar to most first suburbs, has many commercial properties that are functionally obsolete. [The city] will need to create a climate of commercial property investment that will upgrade or replace existing facilities as well as catalyze the development of new office buildings suitable for modern tenants looking for space in a supply-rich leasing environment."
Tania Menesse, Shaker's director of economic development, is looking at several ways to achieve this citywide renovation, including tax abatements, matching funds for building improvements, and partnerships with the community development departments of local banks.
"Everything," she says, "is focused on making the [office space] supply more attractive." Two areas of Chagrin Boulevard – near Lee Road, and near Warrensville Center Road – are especially promising, due to the commercials spaces available for lease or purchase there. She foresees many new and relocating small businesses moving into these areas, once buildings constructed for larger tenants have gotten new looks and floor plans.
"As a community, we've always done a good job focusing on our neighborhoods and parks and schools," Menesse says. "But we haven't done as good a job with our commercial districts."
The timing couldn't be better, what with the Shaker Launch House business incubator opening in a former car dealership in February. Says Menesse, "We want to be the east side place for people looking to start a company."
Source: Tania Menesse
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Crafted over several months with a consulting firm in Maryland, the plan outlines steps Shaker can take now and in the foreseeable future to ensure a stable and growing tax base. The fundamental step: "Instead of concentrating solely on the maintenance and improvement of Shaker Heights as a premier residential community, it must also aggressively encourage commercial development."
And not just retail development, which, the report notes, is important but less lucrative than offices. The plan names industries to target: health care and social services; design services; information systems; government and regulatory agencies; and small law firms.
The problem, the report notes, is that "Shaker Heights, similar to most first suburbs, has many commercial properties that are functionally obsolete. [The city] will need to create a climate of commercial property investment that will upgrade or replace existing facilities as well as catalyze the development of new office buildings suitable for modern tenants looking for space in a supply-rich leasing environment."
Tania Menesse, Shaker's director of economic development, is looking at several ways to achieve this citywide renovation, including tax abatements, matching funds for building improvements, and partnerships with the community development departments of local banks.
"Everything," she says, "is focused on making the [office space] supply more attractive." Two areas of Chagrin Boulevard – near Lee Road, and near Warrensville Center Road – are especially promising, due to the commercials spaces available for lease or purchase there. She foresees many new and relocating small businesses moving into these areas, once buildings constructed for larger tenants have gotten new looks and floor plans.
"As a community, we've always done a good job focusing on our neighborhoods and parks and schools," Menesse says. "But we haven't done as good a job with our commercial districts."
The timing couldn't be better, what with the Shaker Launch House business incubator opening in a former car dealership in February. Says Menesse, "We want to be the east side place for people looking to start a company."
Source: Tania Menesse
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
The St. Clair Superior neighborhood welcomed two new businesses recently, a café and a coffee shop, both in former factories, and both indicative of the forces that have been driving development in the area in recent years.
The 30th Street Café opened in Asia Plaza at East 30th and Payne, serving selections from Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese cuisines. Owned by the Hom family, prominent local entrepreneurs, Asia Plaza is a two-story retail center that was once a manufacturing plant.
Across Superior, in a warren of brick buildings once devoted to elevator manufacturing, the aptly named Pulley's Coffeehouse is serving beverages and food from Artefino Café to the growing number of people working there. Now known as Tyler Village, the 1.2-million-square-foot, 25-building, 10-acre complex is one of the largest downtown redevelopment projects in the city's history, according to developer Graystone Properties. It currently houses a charter school, Digiknow, APG Office Furnishings, Analiza Medical Lab, Solutions at Work and an office of the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities, whose clients staff Pulley's.
"Tyler is definitely the biggest development [in the neighborhood], and it's driving a lot of the investment," says Jamar Doyle, project manager for the St. Clair Superior Development Corporation. But he adds that there's a history of entrepreneurship in the local Asian-American community, and points to the almost 40 Asian restaurants now serving the area.
St. Clair Superior Development also plans streetscape improvements next year, with grant money from the Northeast Ohio Area Coordinating Agency.
Source: St. Clair Superior Development Corporation
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
The 30th Street Café opened in Asia Plaza at East 30th and Payne, serving selections from Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese cuisines. Owned by the Hom family, prominent local entrepreneurs, Asia Plaza is a two-story retail center that was once a manufacturing plant.
Across Superior, in a warren of brick buildings once devoted to elevator manufacturing, the aptly named Pulley's Coffeehouse is serving beverages and food from Artefino Café to the growing number of people working there. Now known as Tyler Village, the 1.2-million-square-foot, 25-building, 10-acre complex is one of the largest downtown redevelopment projects in the city's history, according to developer Graystone Properties. It currently houses a charter school, Digiknow, APG Office Furnishings, Analiza Medical Lab, Solutions at Work and an office of the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities, whose clients staff Pulley's.
"Tyler is definitely the biggest development [in the neighborhood], and it's driving a lot of the investment," says Jamar Doyle, project manager for the St. Clair Superior Development Corporation. But he adds that there's a history of entrepreneurship in the local Asian-American community, and points to the almost 40 Asian restaurants now serving the area.
St. Clair Superior Development also plans streetscape improvements next year, with grant money from the Northeast Ohio Area Coordinating Agency.
Source: St. Clair Superior Development Corporation
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Along with her fiancé, José Andrade, Leticia Ortiz recently launched La Bamba Tortilleria in Ohio City. The minority-owned start-up has filled a gap in the Mexican foods market for fresh, local tortillas while at the same time growing jobs.
Whether it's an empty nook in their attic or a corner table at the local Starbuck's, home-based businesspeople are constantly searching for the ideal spot to do research, make phone calls or meet with clients. Come June of 2011, East Side entrepreneurs will be able to take advantage of specially designed space at the Shaker Heights Public Library's main branch on Lee Road.
The Community Entrepreneurial Office -- CEO for short -- will be a pilot program featuring workspace and services for home-based business owners. The Shaker Heights Public Library announced this fall that it had received a $37,645 grant from the state to set up the facilities.
An existing computer area on the library's second floor is being redesigned to make way for 10 workstations and a conference area, which will be available free of charge. Entrepreneurs will also have access to business software. Faxing, photocopying and related services will be fee-based.
"We see that people come here to do certain business and then they have to go elsewhere to finish," notes Margaret Simon, who will head up the library's CEO program. "So we said we'll be the finisher." Home-based entrepreneurs can think of the CEO as a one-stop resource for their businesses, Simon adds.
She says she would like to build a staff around the CEO program as it grows. "My hope is that it will become a self-sustaining business that will generate jobs."
The Shaker Heights Library is in proximity to Shaker Launch House, a business incubator also opening in 2011. Simon is set to meet with developers of Launch House to discuss ways each can help local entrepreneurs. "I think we have parallel services and we can make them intersect," she says.
SOURCE: Margaret Simon
WRITER: Diane DiPIero
The Community Entrepreneurial Office -- CEO for short -- will be a pilot program featuring workspace and services for home-based business owners. The Shaker Heights Public Library announced this fall that it had received a $37,645 grant from the state to set up the facilities.
An existing computer area on the library's second floor is being redesigned to make way for 10 workstations and a conference area, which will be available free of charge. Entrepreneurs will also have access to business software. Faxing, photocopying and related services will be fee-based.
"We see that people come here to do certain business and then they have to go elsewhere to finish," notes Margaret Simon, who will head up the library's CEO program. "So we said we'll be the finisher." Home-based entrepreneurs can think of the CEO as a one-stop resource for their businesses, Simon adds.
She says she would like to build a staff around the CEO program as it grows. "My hope is that it will become a self-sustaining business that will generate jobs."
The Shaker Heights Library is in proximity to Shaker Launch House, a business incubator also opening in 2011. Simon is set to meet with developers of Launch House to discuss ways each can help local entrepreneurs. "I think we have parallel services and we can make them intersect," she says.
SOURCE: Margaret Simon
WRITER: Diane DiPIero
Health Information Technology (HIT) is a rapidly emerging field that will likely grow much faster than the average jobs, according to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Midwest Community College HIT Consortium is designed to ready a trained workforce for jobs in the HIT sector.
The consortium is comprised of 17 large community colleges in 10 Midwest states, and is being led by Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C). Last month, the consortium launched a new website to educate potential students and employers about the training offered through these community colleges. The website lists workforce roles within HIT and the training opportunities available at each community college and through virtual learning.
Executive director of the consortium, Norma Morganti, says that the website is another tool to help the consortium reach its goal of training 2,700 people annually for HIT jobs. "Studies indicate that as many as 50,000 additional HIT professionals may be needed over the next five years," she notes. The consortium was created to support national electronic health records implementation, Morganti adds.
Tri-C received the ARRA/HITECH Grant through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to be the lead college for the consortium. As a result, Tri-C created several short-term, non-credit training programs to fill HIT jobs such as implementation support specialists, clinician/practitioner consultants and technical/software support staff.
Applicants for the short-term programs at Tri-C should have IT or IS experience in a business or health care environment or related work with medical billing, health information management or medical records.
SOURCE: Norma Morganti
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
The consortium is comprised of 17 large community colleges in 10 Midwest states, and is being led by Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C). Last month, the consortium launched a new website to educate potential students and employers about the training offered through these community colleges. The website lists workforce roles within HIT and the training opportunities available at each community college and through virtual learning.
Executive director of the consortium, Norma Morganti, says that the website is another tool to help the consortium reach its goal of training 2,700 people annually for HIT jobs. "Studies indicate that as many as 50,000 additional HIT professionals may be needed over the next five years," she notes. The consortium was created to support national electronic health records implementation, Morganti adds.
Tri-C received the ARRA/HITECH Grant through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to be the lead college for the consortium. As a result, Tri-C created several short-term, non-credit training programs to fill HIT jobs such as implementation support specialists, clinician/practitioner consultants and technical/software support staff.
Applicants for the short-term programs at Tri-C should have IT or IS experience in a business or health care environment or related work with medical billing, health information management or medical records.
SOURCE: Norma Morganti
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
When Cleveland Heights resident Michael Adams first got serious about making the switch from law to opening a restaurant, he looked at lots of forgettable locations -- "kind of cookie-cutter," he recalls. Then someone told him about a space on the second floor of the Rockefeller Building, at the corner of Mayfeild and Lee roads. For Adams, it was love at first sight.
"It's a gorgeous space," Adams says of the former bank, with its original, well-preserved stone floors, fireplace, plaster walls, oak rafters and soaring ceilings. "A space like that needs to be seen." And, thus, Rockefeller's was born.
The building, which now houses a Starbucks, sporting goods store and other retail on the first floor, was built in the 1930s by John D. Rockefeller Jr., as a commercial center for the family's residential development along the Cleveland Heights-East Cleveland border. Later, Ameritrust Bank occupied the second floor. After Ameritrust went out of business, a kitchen was added and for decades the site was rented out for parties and events.
A portion of the large space will be given over to a bar and lounge (with its own menu), while the rest will be reserved for more upscale dining. Adams, a first-time restaurateur, has hired Jill Vedaa as executive chef. Vedaa's resume includes stints at Lola, Flying Fig, Wine Bar in Rocky River, Mise and Saucy Bistro. Adams promises an American menu, with lots of local food and seasonal changes.
Rockefeller's is scheduled to open on January 11, 2011.
Source: Michael Adams
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
"It's a gorgeous space," Adams says of the former bank, with its original, well-preserved stone floors, fireplace, plaster walls, oak rafters and soaring ceilings. "A space like that needs to be seen." And, thus, Rockefeller's was born.
The building, which now houses a Starbucks, sporting goods store and other retail on the first floor, was built in the 1930s by John D. Rockefeller Jr., as a commercial center for the family's residential development along the Cleveland Heights-East Cleveland border. Later, Ameritrust Bank occupied the second floor. After Ameritrust went out of business, a kitchen was added and for decades the site was rented out for parties and events.
A portion of the large space will be given over to a bar and lounge (with its own menu), while the rest will be reserved for more upscale dining. Adams, a first-time restaurateur, has hired Jill Vedaa as executive chef. Vedaa's resume includes stints at Lola, Flying Fig, Wine Bar in Rocky River, Mise and Saucy Bistro. Adams promises an American menu, with lots of local food and seasonal changes.
Rockefeller's is scheduled to open on January 11, 2011.
Source: Michael Adams
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
as-yet-unopen market garden brewery already drafting buzz
Sam McNulty's Market Garden Brewery is still months shy of its grand opening, but that hasn't stopped the Ohio City establishment from attracting national attention. In the latest issue of Draft Magazine, the national brewing glossy ran a feature titled "12 breweries to watch in 2011." Claiming one of the dozen spots is none other than Market Garden.
After dubbing McNulty the "beer god responsible for Cleveland spots like the Belgian-laden Bier Markt and pizza-slinging Bar Cento," the article goes on to sing the praises of brewmaster Andy Tveekrem, formerly of the matchless Dogfish Head.
Brew fans can look forward to German-style bock, a Belgian tripel, a honey barleywine, and an American pale ale, says the clip. "But the pair won't stop with beer: Tveekrem will try his hand at distilling with whiskeys, infused vodkas and gin, while McNulty hones a menu of picnic-style eats, perfect for casual meals in the brewery's 3,000-square-foot cobblestoned American beer garden."
Drink up the whole feature here.
After dubbing McNulty the "beer god responsible for Cleveland spots like the Belgian-laden Bier Markt and pizza-slinging Bar Cento," the article goes on to sing the praises of brewmaster Andy Tveekrem, formerly of the matchless Dogfish Head.
Brew fans can look forward to German-style bock, a Belgian tripel, a honey barleywine, and an American pale ale, says the clip. "But the pair won't stop with beer: Tveekrem will try his hand at distilling with whiskeys, infused vodkas and gin, while McNulty hones a menu of picnic-style eats, perfect for casual meals in the brewery's 3,000-square-foot cobblestoned American beer garden."
Drink up the whole feature here.
You'd be forgiven for thinking that "Indians Snow Days" refers to contingency plans in the event of a repeat of 2007, when the home opener was delayed, and finally called, due to snow. In April. Actually, Snow Days is an entirely different first in Major League Baseball: an off-season theme park inside a stadium, with the theme being wintertime fun.
According to Rob Campbell of the Indians' communications department, Snow Days was inspired by the National Hockey League's surprisingly successful Winter Classic, an outdoor hockey game played each New Year's Day. In its first year, 2008, the game filled Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, where the Bills play. The 2009 game, played at Chicago's Wrigley Field, set TV ratings records for pro hockey. Last year's match, at Fenway in Boston, was the finale of a Super Bowl-like week of events.
Lacking an NHL franchise, Cleveland would seem to have no chance of attracting the Winter Classic. Still, says Campbell, Dennis Lehman, the Indians' executive vice president for business, and Jim Folk, v.p. for park operations, were intrigued by the notion of opening the gates of Progressive Field in months when it's typically dark and quiet.
Campbell says that a great deal of market research went into determining what would lure folks downtown during the day in winter, a tradition that had gone the way of Higbee's and ice skating on Public Square. Some Metroparks offer snow tubing, and there's an outdoor skating rink at Wade Oval. But Snow Days brings these activities, and others, together in one place -- a place that's surrounded by restaurants and shops. And ultimately, says Campbell, making downtown a wintertime destination again is what it's is all about. Opening weekend attracted more than 6,000 visitors, and the team hopes for more than 50,000 before the whole thing wraps up on January 2.
"They're taking a huge step in [promoting downtown]," says Joe Marinucci, president and CEO of the Downtown Cleveland Alliance. "I'd love to see them expand it beyond the holiday season." That's definitely a possibility next year, Campbell says.
Snow Days was a hot topic at MLB's November meetings, Campbell adds. Once again, Cleveland is a national leader in creative reuse of vacant land.
Source: Cleveland Indians
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
According to Rob Campbell of the Indians' communications department, Snow Days was inspired by the National Hockey League's surprisingly successful Winter Classic, an outdoor hockey game played each New Year's Day. In its first year, 2008, the game filled Ralph Wilson Stadium in Buffalo, where the Bills play. The 2009 game, played at Chicago's Wrigley Field, set TV ratings records for pro hockey. Last year's match, at Fenway in Boston, was the finale of a Super Bowl-like week of events.
Lacking an NHL franchise, Cleveland would seem to have no chance of attracting the Winter Classic. Still, says Campbell, Dennis Lehman, the Indians' executive vice president for business, and Jim Folk, v.p. for park operations, were intrigued by the notion of opening the gates of Progressive Field in months when it's typically dark and quiet.
Campbell says that a great deal of market research went into determining what would lure folks downtown during the day in winter, a tradition that had gone the way of Higbee's and ice skating on Public Square. Some Metroparks offer snow tubing, and there's an outdoor skating rink at Wade Oval. But Snow Days brings these activities, and others, together in one place -- a place that's surrounded by restaurants and shops. And ultimately, says Campbell, making downtown a wintertime destination again is what it's is all about. Opening weekend attracted more than 6,000 visitors, and the team hopes for more than 50,000 before the whole thing wraps up on January 2.
"They're taking a huge step in [promoting downtown]," says Joe Marinucci, president and CEO of the Downtown Cleveland Alliance. "I'd love to see them expand it beyond the holiday season." That's definitely a possibility next year, Campbell says.
Snow Days was a hot topic at MLB's November meetings, Campbell adds. Once again, Cleveland is a national leader in creative reuse of vacant land.
Source: Cleveland Indians
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
There is no downtown "plan," per se, but there is a hell of a lot going
on. The newest piece to the revitalization puzzle is the NineTwelve
District, a new identity for the declining business corridor between
East 9th and East 12th streets, and Euclid and Lakeside.
The area once known as the financial district "is really going through a change," says Joseph Marinucci, president and CEO of the non-profit development group Downtown Cleveland Alliance. "Change" is a polite way of noting the slow but steady erosion of businesses there, exacerbated by the recession. More than a quarter of the office space is currently vacant, and more major employers -- including Key, Eaton and some law firms -- are expected to leave in the next few years.
Marinucci says the committee of stakeholders that is pushing the NineTwelve plan forward sees a mixed-use community, with more residential options, street-level retail, public spaces, perhaps even trolley service. He likens this thinking to public broadcasting entity ideastream's move to Playhouse Square, which has been beneficial for both.
"Young people especially are looking to be in a more vibrant district," he explains. "They pay attention to the environment they're living and working in."
The project is still in the "visioning" phase, Marinucci notes, and DCA is looking for funding for preliminary elements like branding and the development of public spaces. He warns that patience will be needed: "This is a multi-year strategy. We can't just wave a wand and in 12 months have a new district."
Source: Downtown Cleveland Alliance
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
The area once known as the financial district "is really going through a change," says Joseph Marinucci, president and CEO of the non-profit development group Downtown Cleveland Alliance. "Change" is a polite way of noting the slow but steady erosion of businesses there, exacerbated by the recession. More than a quarter of the office space is currently vacant, and more major employers -- including Key, Eaton and some law firms -- are expected to leave in the next few years.
Marinucci says the committee of stakeholders that is pushing the NineTwelve plan forward sees a mixed-use community, with more residential options, street-level retail, public spaces, perhaps even trolley service. He likens this thinking to public broadcasting entity ideastream's move to Playhouse Square, which has been beneficial for both.
"Young people especially are looking to be in a more vibrant district," he explains. "They pay attention to the environment they're living and working in."
The project is still in the "visioning" phase, Marinucci notes, and DCA is looking for funding for preliminary elements like branding and the development of public spaces. He warns that patience will be needed: "This is a multi-year strategy. We can't just wave a wand and in 12 months have a new district."
Source: Downtown Cleveland Alliance
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Experts estimate that the global flexible electronics market will grow to $250 billion by 2025. Northeast Ohio wants to ride that wave of innovation and market growth, and a recently unveiled plan for the region to become a global epicenter for the flexible electronics industry will play a part in realizing that goal.
Developed by NorTech, a technology-based economic development organization, The Northeast Ohio Flexible Electronics Road Map outlines strategies and initiatives to develop low-cost manufacturing of electronic devices printed on flexible materials with multiple global market applications. According to the plan, five key initiatives must be met in order for this mission to be successful:
* Identifying and pursuing market opportunities
* Increasing public funding and private investment
* Strengthening cluster alignment, communication and partnering
* Improving visibility and recognition
* Monitoring and reporting cluster growth and outcomes
By establishing a global epicenter for the flexible electronics industry in Northeast Ohio, the region could gain 1,500 jobs, $75 million in payroll and $100 million in capital by 2017.
"Further developing this industry will help us diversify our regional economy and ultimately create jobs, attract capital and have a positive economic impact in Northeast Ohio," says Rebecca O. Bagley, NorTech president and CEO. NorTech partnered with 23 technology and industry experts in the region to develop the Northeast Ohio Flexible Electronics Road Map. In September, NorTech was awarded a $500,000 federal grant to help small businesses that want to be involved in the expansion of the flexible electronics industry in Northeast Ohio.
Read the entire pdf Road Map here.
SOURCE: NorTech
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Developed by NorTech, a technology-based economic development organization, The Northeast Ohio Flexible Electronics Road Map outlines strategies and initiatives to develop low-cost manufacturing of electronic devices printed on flexible materials with multiple global market applications. According to the plan, five key initiatives must be met in order for this mission to be successful:
* Identifying and pursuing market opportunities
* Increasing public funding and private investment
* Strengthening cluster alignment, communication and partnering
* Improving visibility and recognition
* Monitoring and reporting cluster growth and outcomes
By establishing a global epicenter for the flexible electronics industry in Northeast Ohio, the region could gain 1,500 jobs, $75 million in payroll and $100 million in capital by 2017.
"Further developing this industry will help us diversify our regional economy and ultimately create jobs, attract capital and have a positive economic impact in Northeast Ohio," says Rebecca O. Bagley, NorTech president and CEO. NorTech partnered with 23 technology and industry experts in the region to develop the Northeast Ohio Flexible Electronics Road Map. In September, NorTech was awarded a $500,000 federal grant to help small businesses that want to be involved in the expansion of the flexible electronics industry in Northeast Ohio.
Read the entire pdf Road Map here.
SOURCE: NorTech
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
NBC nightly news highlights evergreen coops
When it rains it pours for Cleveland's Evergreen Cooperatives, which continues to attract local, regional and national attention for its approach to job creation and neighborhood development.
Recently, John Yang of NBC Nightly News visited Evergreen Cooperative Laundry to see how that green operation is giving traditionally "hard-to-hire" folks living wage jobs and a path to company ownership.
Watch the video here.
Recently, John Yang of NBC Nightly News visited Evergreen Cooperative Laundry to see how that green operation is giving traditionally "hard-to-hire" folks living wage jobs and a path to company ownership.
Watch the video here.
For several years, Kim Crow watched as the contracting newspaper business shed people, including many of her friends and colleagues, and laid ever-increasing burdens on those still employed. So relinquishing her duties at the Plain Dealer -- editing three sections, supervising six reporters and, the work she's best known for, writing a fashion column -- was the easy part.
At least compared to opening a store.
Crow recently unveiled Evie Lou -- "A contemporary boutique that embraces personal style and fantastic fit across the size spectrum" -- in Tremont. The journey from clothing pundit to clothing retailer was longer and more frustrating than she'd anticipated. Loan rejections took months, she says, and some small ones that were approved still haven't come through. High credit-card limits, from years as a sort-of professional shopper, kept her afloat.
But it was worth it; even the surprises have been encouraging. For example, she'd anticipated more evening business, when the nearby restaurants and galleries are hopping. Instead, she's been far busier during the day, "and that's great because it's the neighborhood supporting me."
She's a one-woman operation for now, but hopes to hire an employee soon. Not just anyone, however; this person will have to share Crow's commitment to the "size spectrum" portion of the store's mission statement. She is spending about 15 percent of her buying budget on plus sizes, an amount almost unheard of in boutiques. It's something of an experiment, she admits.
"Every day I hear someone say, 'I'm not buying anything until I lose 20 pounds," Crow says. "In the dressing room there is so much more going on than just 'That's a cute top.' Women bring all their baggage in there with them. There's a lot of psychology to it."
And fodder for her new writing outlet, the Evie Lou blog.
Source: Kim Crow
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
At least compared to opening a store.
Crow recently unveiled Evie Lou -- "A contemporary boutique that embraces personal style and fantastic fit across the size spectrum" -- in Tremont. The journey from clothing pundit to clothing retailer was longer and more frustrating than she'd anticipated. Loan rejections took months, she says, and some small ones that were approved still haven't come through. High credit-card limits, from years as a sort-of professional shopper, kept her afloat.
But it was worth it; even the surprises have been encouraging. For example, she'd anticipated more evening business, when the nearby restaurants and galleries are hopping. Instead, she's been far busier during the day, "and that's great because it's the neighborhood supporting me."
She's a one-woman operation for now, but hopes to hire an employee soon. Not just anyone, however; this person will have to share Crow's commitment to the "size spectrum" portion of the store's mission statement. She is spending about 15 percent of her buying budget on plus sizes, an amount almost unheard of in boutiques. It's something of an experiment, she admits.
"Every day I hear someone say, 'I'm not buying anything until I lose 20 pounds," Crow says. "In the dressing room there is so much more going on than just 'That's a cute top.' Women bring all their baggage in there with them. There's a lot of psychology to it."
And fodder for her new writing outlet, the Evie Lou blog.
Source: Kim Crow
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
shelterforce touts evergreen's green roots
Shelterforce, the nation's oldest continually published housing and community development magazine, recently devoted considerable attention to Cleveland's Evergreen Cooperatives. Written by Miriam Axel-Lute, an associate director at the National Housing Institute, the article tells how cities and governments are taking notice of the paradigm.
Titled "Green Jobs with Roots," the piece begins with powerful lede:
In a couple years, residents of some of the poorest neighborhoods in Cleveland will be the collective owners of the largest collection of solar panels in the state of Ohio. Next door, sixty locations on the Cleveland Clinic's campus will be serving salads made from locally grown lettuce year-round—where local means not "a farm closer than California," but a greenhouse staffed and owned by neighborhood residents on a former brownfield mere miles away.
In this paragraph, Axel-Lute gets to the heart of the Evergreen model of buying local on an institutional level:
The local procurement angle means that the coop's customers are likely to stay put as well. Rather than launching businesses based on workforce skill sets or entrepreneurial ideas, the Evergreen working group started by looking at the $3 billion per year that the 40 some University Circle anchor institutions already spend on goods and services and asking what parts of that spending they could redirect locally.
And finally, Axel-Lute writes that other cities and national officials are taking notice.
Even though it's just getting off the ground, queries about the Evergreen model have been pouring in, with cities from Pittsburgh to Atlanta meeting with Howard or filling up busloads of community leaders to visit Cleveland. Evergreen has been the subject of numerous high-level briefings at the federal level and visits by top HUD officials.
Read the entire analysis here.