Leaders of the institutions that anchor University Circle have long wished for a hotel within walking distance of all of the amenities that the neighborhood has to offer. Now, a public-private partnership, along with $15 million in New Markets Tax Credits and completion of the University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, have finally brought that idea to life.

This month, The Snavely Group broke ground on an eight-story, 153-room Courtyard by Marriott that is scheduled to open this time next year. The hotel is located on Cornell Drive -- just off of Euclid Avenue -- and directly across from the new Seidman Cancer Center and the University Hospitals main campus. The $27 million project is expected to create 135 construction jobs and 55 full-time equivalent jobs.

"The anchor of the Seidman Cancer Center has really given us a market," says Chris Ronayne, President of University Circle Incorporated (UCI), the nonprofit organization that shepherded the project along by assembling the land, securing tax credits and seeking a developer. "Beyond patients and their families, that market is also students, parents, businesspeople and culture-goers."

The new hotel also adds to the impressive development boom that has occurred in University Circle. "This location is the epicenter of a $2 billion Euclid Avenue transformation from East 105th to Lakeview Cemetery," says Ronayne.


Source: Chris Ronayne
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Last month, Jenita McGowan was sworn in as Cleveland's new Chief of Sustainability, replacing the outgoing Andrew Watterson. A Northeast Ohio resident since 1996, McGowan's an adopted Clevelander in every sense. Fresh Water contributor Erin O'Brien sat down with McGowan and got the lowdown on the status of sustainability in Cleveland.

On Tuesday, February 7, Global Cleveland opened the doors to its Public Square welcome center. The organization is tasked with attracting and retaining talent to the region from around the globe, with the goal of adding 100,000 people to the region. Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski was at the ribbon cutting.

Video games no longer are child's play. A multi-billion dollar industry, video game development seduces countless wannabes, each hoping to design the next Call of Duty. Helping to train those people is Cleveland Institute of Art, which recently launched its Game Design program. Combining classes in 3D modeling, game mapping, screenwriting and sound design, this challenging program is no child's play either.

The foreclosure prevention plans that President Obama announced in his recent State of the Union address may help struggling Northeast Ohio homeowners, says Lou Tisler of the nonprofit Neighborhood Housing Services (NHS), but our hard-hit region is not out of the woods yet.

"When lenders and government-sponsored entities such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac look at what keeps people out of foreclosure, they see it's principal reduction," says Tisler. "The new program that the Obama administration has proposed offers triple the incentives to lenders to keep people in their homes through principal reduction."

Although Tisler says that it's "obscene" that the government must provide lenders with additional help, he adds that it's crucial that lenders come to the table and negotiate. "Banks continue to say that they can't reduce principal because that would mean that every homeowner would want a reduction. Yet we're not seeing people strategically defaulting and trashing their credit ratings. People are coming through our door nonstop, and until they're gainfully employed, it won't stop."

Unfortunately, Tisler does see an end to the steady stream of people calling his office seeking help. Yet he believes that principal reductions, more effective foreclosure relief and an economic uptick that reduces unemployment will eventually reduce foreclosures. Until then, he says, Northeast Ohio can continue to expect the foreclosure problem to be an unwelcome guest on its doorstep.


Source: Lou Tisler
Writer: Lee Chilcote

NorTech has announced 14 finalists in its 12th annual Innovation Awards. The winners will be announced at a ceremony on Thursday, March 22 at LaCentre in Westlake.
 
The awards, which for the past four years have been co-sponsored with Crain’s Cleveland Business, honors the top innovations in technologies such as advanced energy, advanced materials, bioscience, flexible electronics and instrument controls.

“The NorTech Innovation Awards showcase breakthrough technologies being developed and commercialized in Northeast Ohio,” says Rebecca O. Bagley, NorTech president and CEO. “We believe these innovations will have a positive impact on the region’s economy through job creation, capital attraction and overall business growth. Ultimately, the organizations being recognized this year are laying the foundation for a strong economic future for our region.”

NorTech received more than 40 applications this year. A panel of nine judges will evaluate the finalists on creativity, feasibility and triple bottom line impact. South estimates nine winners will be chosen. The panel of judges is selected to represent a broad range of expertise from academia, venture capital, private industry and economic development from throughout the Northeast Ohio region.

 
Source: Rebecca Bagley
Writer: Karin Connelly

If the printed book business is dead, don't tell Mike Zubal. His family's Zubal Books is one of the largest booksellers in the country, moving about a quarter million titles per year. Though you'd never know it, roughly four million books fill a nondescript warren of buildings about a mile from the West Side Market. Never heard of the place? You're not alone.

The inaugural Manufacturing EXPO will take place at the Galleria on February 14 and 15, showing off the inner workings of the manufacturing world and promoting the many components that go into creating a product.
 
“In America, there are 300,000 manufacturers and this will allow the American public to realize the strength of the parts and pieces in manufacturing,” says Mary Kaye Denning, president and founder of the Manufacturing Mart. “It’s these parts and pieces companies that we want to introduce to the American public so they can increase those companies’ growth rates.”
 
More than 3,000 industry-related professionals from the United States and Canada are expected to attend the event, which will feature more than 175 exhibitors from virtually every type of manufacturing. The point is to illustrate that even if a product is not assembled in America, most likely the many components that make up the product were.
 
Additionally, the Manufacturing EXPO will feature experts in the industry who will speak on changing trends and challenges in manufacturing.
 
Attendees must pre-register for the event. Denning encourages the general public to attend and learn more about the manufacturing world.

“Most manufacturing trade shows are usually in space apart from everyday life and are industry specific,” she says. “We have an expo representing all industries that make equipment. Northeast Ohio has all of these extraordinary capabilities and we should make people aware of that.”

 
Source: Mary Kaye Denning
Writer: Karin Connelly

The City of Cleveland has scheduled two meetings to allow public comment on its new lakefront plan, the most ambitious effort in years to redevelop the city's long-dormant downtown shoreline. Portions of the plan, including an event series to be launched this summer, could begin to show progress this year.

The City plans to hire a Harbor Manager in the next few months, who will be responsible for overseeing waterfront activities, including management of the contract for a planned 53-slip marina. Other responsibilities will include property management, overseeing a vending program to allow food trucks and other vendors to sell their wares on the East 9th Street pier, and organizing lakeside concerts and festivals to be added to the city's lineup of summer events.

"The vision is to try to create more activity on the waterfront, and we're in the process of finalizing our strategy," says Ricky Smith, Director of Port Control for the City of Cleveland. Smith added that he expects construction on the marina, which has already been funded and will allow for short-term docking, to begin this year and wrap up in spring of 2013. He expects the same timeline for an iconic, moveable pedestrian bridge that is slated to traverse the North Coast Harbor.


Source: Ricky Smith
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Explorys, a rapidly growing healthcare database company spun out of the Cleveland Clinic, is celebrating two years in business with a party. They will take over the House of Blues on Wednesday, Feb. 1 from 5 to 10 p.m. to celebrate the advancements in healthcare from their technology, show off what's next for the company, and offer a place for healthcare and IT professionals to network.
 
"We're almost two years old and we've been running really hard since we got started," says Explorys president and CTO Charlie Lougheed. "This is our way to say thanks to our employees, customers and partners."
 
While drinks will flow and CEO Stephen McHale's band will perform, the networking event is designed to present Explorys' developments, promote Cleveland as a great place for technology jobs and attract the top high-tech talent to the company. Lougheed says they will continue to grow their employee base.
 
"It's a good way to get word out among possible job candidates," says Lougheed. "If you're in technology or data, it's a great time in your career. We really believe Cleveland is a great place to start a company and we don't want to have brain drain. If you have a connection to the tech community we encourage you to come."
 
Interested people must pre-register for the event.

 
Source: Charlie Lougheed
Writer: Karin Connelly

Rene Polin, president and founder of Balance Product Development in Chagrin Falls, likes to find solutions to problems. The product design house was formed in 2004 and has developed products for a number of other companies. But Polin wanted to create something out of his own ideas.
 
That idea came when Polin watched his seven-year-old daughter playing with his iPad. “Rene would come home and hand over this expensive piece of equipment to his daughter,” recalls Polin's partner Anthony DeMore, Balance vice president of strategy and business development. That’s when the idea hit to make a foam case to protect the iPad from accidental drops and other damage.
 
After seeing his iPad slide off the kitchen table one too many times, Polin and DeMore developed the Fomation iPad2 case -- a soft but durable foam protective case. The foam material, which is often used in commercial applications like airplane seats and roller coasters, protects the iPad from the bumps, bruises, shakes and rattles of everyday life.
 
“We wanted to create an elegant, beautiful, but very protective foam case,” says Polin. “When we started researching, we found that there were foam cases, but they were made overseas and typically were made with unsafe chemicals and processes.” The Fomation is made out of foam manufactured safely by a Lorain County manufacturer.
 
Balance put the Fomation idea on Kickstarter.com to secure funding for the product, and the company is in talks to secure a partnership with a local college that provides iPads to all first-year students. Balance plans to launch Fomation even if they don’t meet their goal on Kickstarter.

 
Source: Rene Polin and Anthony DeMore
Writer: Karin Connelly

Former County Treasurer Jim Rokakis, who prophesied Ohio's foreclosure crisis as early as 2000 and was a prime mover behind Ohio's land banking law and the Cuyahoga Land Bank, is now working with the newly formed Thriving Communities Institute to form land banks throughout Ohio.

The Thriving Communities Institute was formed last year by the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, a nonprofit that works to preserve undeveloped land in Northeast Ohio, as a way to spread the successful land banking movement. It has since grown rapidly, and Rokakis now finds himself traveling throughout Ohio to provide technical assistance and help counties set up land banks.

Since the Cuyahoga Land Bank was formed, Rokakis says, it has effectively shut down the supply of low value properties to investors in the county, secured agreements with lenders to acquire distressed properties, and facilitated over 1,000 demolitions of eyesore properties throughout Cleveland.

Now other counties in Ohio are following Cuyahoga County's lead. "There's a land bank in Montgomery County now, Franklin is close and we've just been hired by Hamilton County," says Rokakis, stressing that vacant properties are not just an urban issue. "Land banks work in urban, rural and suburban settings."

The gradually declining numbers of foreclosures are misleading, Rokakis says, because they don't reflect the number of delinquent homeowners or the fact that banks are frequently walking away from properties without taking title. To address these ongoing problems, cities and counties need more tools and money for acquisition and redevelopment. "If we don't take the eyesores and turn them into things of beauty, the problem will only get worse," he says. "This isn't just about demolition, it's also about positioning properties for redevelopment."

The long-term solution? Instead of another bank bailout, relief for underwater homeowners and communities saddled with foreclosures is needed, he says. Rokakis is now working with a group of state and federal legislators to propose a federal tax credit that would create a pool of money for property redevelopment.


Source: Jim Rokakis
Writer: Lee Chilcote

A $3.2 million grant from the federal government's Paul S. Sarbanes Transit in Parks program announced last week will help pay for green upgrades to the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. The private, nonprofit rail line carries nearly 200,000 passengers yearly, including more than 25,000 who carry bikes aboard the train, as it traverses through the picturesque Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Nearly half of the grant funding -- about $1.4 million -- will go towards building a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge over the Cuyahoga River at Rockside Road. The bridge will span from the Rockside Station parking lot to the Lock 39 Trailhead along the Towpath Trail. It will facilitate safer, easier access for bikers and hikers who wish to ride the rail and take advantage of the scenic Towpath.

Steve Wait, President and CEO of the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, says that the funds will also help the rail line integrate technology that will make it more efficient and environmentally friendly. "We'll be investing money in upgrading and rebuilding an older locomotive to save up to 75 percent in fuel and also reduce emissions," he says. "Many commercial railroads are investing heavily in newer green technologies, but as a small nonprofit we never had the money before."

Other planned improvements for the rail line include rebuilding an older passenger car to make it more accessible, retooling a baggage car to add extra room for bikes, and replacing an old power generator rail car to make it greener and more efficient.


Source: Steve Wait
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Fresh Water commissioned local videographer David Wester to take viewers inside the newly opened Greater Cleveland Aquarium. While there, Wester was guided by general manager Tami Brown, who discussed the nature and scope of the watery exhibits. Already off to a swimming start, the attraction aims to lure 500,000 visitors per year.

It’s not exactly a news flash that tattoos have become decidedly more mainstream. Long the province of drug-addled rock stars, ex-cons and bikers, tats now can be spotted on even the most civilized among us. And as the tattoo market continues to heat up, more talented artists are finding work in Cleveland's new tattoo studios.