Sustainability + Environment
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.
Remember when your youthful imagination turned a large cardboard box into a race car or a castle? Mike Welsh does, and now he has started a company that gives kids the stuff they need to create the playhouses of their dreams.
Build a Dream Playhouses is a newly launched producer of corrugated cardboard boxes that can be painted, colored and decorated to make one-of-a-kind playhouses. Welsh, a father and an established entrepreneur, thought of the idea and recruited two recent college grads, Andy Carcioppolo and Sam Cahill, to bring his vision to life. With a degree in business and industrial design, respectively, Carcioppolo and Cahill found they could make use of their talents and stay in Cleveland.
Build a Dream Playhouses was created through a collaboration with Nottingham-Spirk Design Associates, an industrial design firm based in Cleveland, and Smurfit Stone, a paperboard manufacturer in Ravenna.
"We believe that creating jobs in Cleveland, in the State of Ohio and ultimately across the globe is an important part of Build a Dream Playhouses," says Carcioppolo, who serves as COO. "We're thrilled to have an opportunity to do that in our hometown and to be a part of helping our region grow and thrive."
Build a Dream's products, which range from the "Cosmic Cruiser" to the "Pop 'n Play Kitchen," are made from 80 percent recycled materials, and are 100 percent recyclable.
As part of its launch efforts, the Build a Dream Playhouses team will be at the Children's Museum of Cleveland on Saturday, November 20, where kids can color their own cardboard creations.
SOURCE: Cleveland Children's Museum, Build a Dream Playhouse
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Build a Dream Playhouses is a newly launched producer of corrugated cardboard boxes that can be painted, colored and decorated to make one-of-a-kind playhouses. Welsh, a father and an established entrepreneur, thought of the idea and recruited two recent college grads, Andy Carcioppolo and Sam Cahill, to bring his vision to life. With a degree in business and industrial design, respectively, Carcioppolo and Cahill found they could make use of their talents and stay in Cleveland.
Build a Dream Playhouses was created through a collaboration with Nottingham-Spirk Design Associates, an industrial design firm based in Cleveland, and Smurfit Stone, a paperboard manufacturer in Ravenna.
"We believe that creating jobs in Cleveland, in the State of Ohio and ultimately across the globe is an important part of Build a Dream Playhouses," says Carcioppolo, who serves as COO. "We're thrilled to have an opportunity to do that in our hometown and to be a part of helping our region grow and thrive."
Build a Dream's products, which range from the "Cosmic Cruiser" to the "Pop 'n Play Kitchen," are made from 80 percent recycled materials, and are 100 percent recyclable.
As part of its launch efforts, the Build a Dream Playhouses team will be at the Children's Museum of Cleveland on Saturday, November 20, where kids can color their own cardboard creations.
SOURCE: Cleveland Children's Museum, Build a Dream Playhouse
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
There are far windier places in the US than Ohio, but there may be few better in which to site a commercial-scale wind farm. Thanks to a combination of factors -- not the least of which is recently enacted legislation -- Ohio finally has reached the wind-power tipping point. Even the faintest breeze promises to send Ohio tumbling to the top of the renewable energy heap.
Essentially a buy-local campaign on steroids, Evergreen Cooperatives is launching multiple for-profit businesses that leverage the enormous procurement power of Cleveland's largest medical, educational and cultural institutions. And what's now being called "the Cleveland Model" is attracting attention nationwide.
PBS special makes a stop in cleveland
In a one-hour PBS special that airs tonight (November 18th), NOW host David Brancaccio visits communities across America that are using innovative approaches to create jobs and build prosperity in our new economy.
The special, which is called "Fixing the Future," includes a visit to Cleveland, where Brancaccio highlights the successes of Evergreen Cooperatives. During the segment, he speaks to Mendrick Addison, a worker-owner of Evergreen Cooperative Laundry, and Ted Howard, one of the model's architects.
For more information click here.
Check local listings for time and channel.
The special, which is called "Fixing the Future," includes a visit to Cleveland, where Brancaccio highlights the successes of Evergreen Cooperatives. During the segment, he speaks to Mendrick Addison, a worker-owner of Evergreen Cooperative Laundry, and Ted Howard, one of the model's architects.
For more information click here.
Check local listings for time and channel.
cle-based garick grows company by focusing on triple-bottom line
Cleveland's Garick, LLC distributes, processes and recycles natural resource products for the United States and Canada. The sustainability-focused company follows the triple-bottom line philosophy, which concentrates on the economic, environmental and social value it brings to the marketplace and the community.
Garick's Earth-friendly products include Nature's Helper(R) Soil Conditioner, the Paygro line of mulches and top soils, and Rooflite(R) material for "green roof" applications. Garick has four composting facilities around the country and produces composts and mulches that are 100 percent organic.
Sticking close to the triple-bottom line approach to sustainable business has allowed Garick to grow its company with the most efficient impact possible. Recently, Garick made two executive and three managerial hires. The company is currently looking to fill about 10 new positions, ranging from intern-level to managerial posts.
In September, Garick was acquired by Houston-based Waste Management. Gary Trinetti, CEO of Garick, views the agreement as a win-win situation that will allow Garick to expand its geographic footprint. The ability to leverage Waste Management's existing infrastructure, coupled with their commitment to redirecting organic waste streams to higher and better uses, will help close the loop for our mutual customers in accomplishing their recycling and sustainability goals," he says.
SOURCE: Garick, LLC
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Garick's Earth-friendly products include Nature's Helper(R) Soil Conditioner, the Paygro line of mulches and top soils, and Rooflite(R) material for "green roof" applications. Garick has four composting facilities around the country and produces composts and mulches that are 100 percent organic.
Sticking close to the triple-bottom line approach to sustainable business has allowed Garick to grow its company with the most efficient impact possible. Recently, Garick made two executive and three managerial hires. The company is currently looking to fill about 10 new positions, ranging from intern-level to managerial posts.
In September, Garick was acquired by Houston-based Waste Management. Gary Trinetti, CEO of Garick, views the agreement as a win-win situation that will allow Garick to expand its geographic footprint. The ability to leverage Waste Management's existing infrastructure, coupled with their commitment to redirecting organic waste streams to higher and better uses, will help close the loop for our mutual customers in accomplishing their recycling and sustainability goals," he says.
SOURCE: Garick, LLC
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Hundreds of Northeast Ohioans bike to work downtown. Many more surely
would, but for the challenges that present themselves upon arrival --
like parking and, well, sweating. But next year the city will have an
answer to those deterrents: The Bike Rack, set to open next spring in
the ground level of the parking garage at East 4th and High streets,
between Harry Buffalo restaurant and Quicken Loans Arena. Ground was
broken there in late October.
Modeled on bike stations in Europe and a growing number of American cities, The Bike Rack will offer bike commuters secure parking, lockers and facilities for showering and changing. The site will also rent bicycles, and the staff will include a technician who can help with repairs.
Kevin Cronin of Cleveland Bikes, which worked with the Jackson administration to develop the project, says that long-term goals include establishing relationships with hotels and promoting bike tours, to tap into the expanding bicycle tourism market.
"These are the things that open up when you have these sorts of facilities," he says. He also hopes that the project will raise awareness of biking among residents, and galvanize the bike community to rally for more bike-friendly infrastructure. A similar station in Chicago has been so popular, Cronin says, that plans for a second are under way.
The Downtown Cleveland Alliance will administer the site, and recently posted the job of operations manager. Cleveland Public Art is overseeing the design of the façade.
Source: Cleveland Bikes
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Modeled on bike stations in Europe and a growing number of American cities, The Bike Rack will offer bike commuters secure parking, lockers and facilities for showering and changing. The site will also rent bicycles, and the staff will include a technician who can help with repairs.
Kevin Cronin of Cleveland Bikes, which worked with the Jackson administration to develop the project, says that long-term goals include establishing relationships with hotels and promoting bike tours, to tap into the expanding bicycle tourism market.
"These are the things that open up when you have these sorts of facilities," he says. He also hopes that the project will raise awareness of biking among residents, and galvanize the bike community to rally for more bike-friendly infrastructure. A similar station in Chicago has been so popular, Cronin says, that plans for a second are under way.
The Downtown Cleveland Alliance will administer the site, and recently posted the job of operations manager. Cleveland Public Art is overseeing the design of the façade.
Source: Cleveland Bikes
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
What can we do with what we already have? That simple question drives two movements that are rapidly gaining momentum and reshaping Cleveland: urban farming and deconstruction -- because, for better or worse, land and condemned buildings are plentiful. In the same glass-half-full spirit, some local artists are turning to items that would otherwise have ended up in landfills to change perceptions about "trash," and perhaps spawn a new industry.
As the playful name hints, Pop-Up Gift Shop will open only briefly, from November 18 through December 19, at 2242 Euclid Ave., in Trinity Commons. The store will feature "handmade, reasonably priced, whimsical, interesting gifts crafted with an emphasis on reuse from local artists" -- like jewelry made from copper wire and liquor bottles, oil paintings on old Styrofoam, nightlights with shades made from artificial sweetener packets, and windchimes and ornaments from old bicycle parts, to name just a few.
The idea came when reuse artists Nicole McGee and Trish Supples met Dean Tracy Lind of Trinity Cathedral at the Sustainability Summit. McGee and Supples were looking for ways to promote "upcycling" -- McGee, for example, crafts colorful, decorative flowers out of old floor tiles -- and Lind had a storefront in need of an entrepreneur. Pop-Up was born.
"We were able to find a ton of artists" to participate, says Supples. And not all have tried this before. "Some established artists are taking this as a challenge to try reuse or upcycling."
On her web site, PlentyUnderfoot.com, McGee explains: "My creations are an extension of my view of the world -- that beauty and potential lie dormant all around us. Finding beauty underfoot is only one part of the process. Looking comes first. The waste stream of consumer culture is full of creative potential. Throw away less and create more!"
Source: Trish Supples
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
As the playful name hints, Pop-Up Gift Shop will open only briefly, from November 18 through December 19, at 2242 Euclid Ave., in Trinity Commons. The store will feature "handmade, reasonably priced, whimsical, interesting gifts crafted with an emphasis on reuse from local artists" -- like jewelry made from copper wire and liquor bottles, oil paintings on old Styrofoam, nightlights with shades made from artificial sweetener packets, and windchimes and ornaments from old bicycle parts, to name just a few.
The idea came when reuse artists Nicole McGee and Trish Supples met Dean Tracy Lind of Trinity Cathedral at the Sustainability Summit. McGee and Supples were looking for ways to promote "upcycling" -- McGee, for example, crafts colorful, decorative flowers out of old floor tiles -- and Lind had a storefront in need of an entrepreneur. Pop-Up was born.
"We were able to find a ton of artists" to participate, says Supples. And not all have tried this before. "Some established artists are taking this as a challenge to try reuse or upcycling."
On her web site, PlentyUnderfoot.com, McGee explains: "My creations are an extension of my view of the world -- that beauty and potential lie dormant all around us. Finding beauty underfoot is only one part of the process. Looking comes first. The waste stream of consumer culture is full of creative potential. Throw away less and create more!"
Source: Trish Supples
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
It's taken several months, but Vicky Poole says she's finally getting a
handle on what will grow well in a mall. Herbs, for one thing.
Poole is co-owner of Gardens Under Glass, the innovative urban hydroponic farm, market and experiment under the magnificent glass ceilings of Galleria at Erieview on East 9th Street. The growing began last winter. Poole recently added the Re-Source Center, selling related products from local vendors, some of whom, like A Piece of Cleveland, specialize in the reuse of old materials. The Re-Source Center itself "reuses" a space once occupied by a greeting card and candy store that vacated the Galleria long ago.
But farming remains Poole's focus. "I work on this around the clock," she says, with no hint of complaint. "It's quite a chore to keep track of the bugs and the growing conditions and all the things that go along with growing food."
The effort is worth it, she says, if it helps to promote local farming, nutrition and sustainable practices.
She's exploring the possibility of shifting to a non-profit model, which would suit her long-term vision of building comprehensive farming and sustainability education center around the crops. "The space is very conducive to demonstrations and instructions," she says.
But for now she needs to rely on good old-fashioned sales, and that's where the herbs come in. She's hoping to develop a steady customer base for the basil, tarragon and many others already available, as well as the oils and vinegars featuring her dried pepper seeds that are planned. Lots of people admire, Poole says; not many buy. She's hoping that changes as awareness of the benefits of locally grown produce, and her unique business, spreads.
"There's not one person who comes into this building who doesn't look around and say, 'My God, what a beautiful space,'" Poole says. But too often they focus more on what it once was, a vibrant retail mall, than on what it's becoming and could be. "Let's see what we can turn it into," she adds, "before the demise of another downtown building."
Source: Gardens Under Glass
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Poole is co-owner of Gardens Under Glass, the innovative urban hydroponic farm, market and experiment under the magnificent glass ceilings of Galleria at Erieview on East 9th Street. The growing began last winter. Poole recently added the Re-Source Center, selling related products from local vendors, some of whom, like A Piece of Cleveland, specialize in the reuse of old materials. The Re-Source Center itself "reuses" a space once occupied by a greeting card and candy store that vacated the Galleria long ago.
But farming remains Poole's focus. "I work on this around the clock," she says, with no hint of complaint. "It's quite a chore to keep track of the bugs and the growing conditions and all the things that go along with growing food."
The effort is worth it, she says, if it helps to promote local farming, nutrition and sustainable practices.
She's exploring the possibility of shifting to a non-profit model, which would suit her long-term vision of building comprehensive farming and sustainability education center around the crops. "The space is very conducive to demonstrations and instructions," she says.
But for now she needs to rely on good old-fashioned sales, and that's where the herbs come in. She's hoping to develop a steady customer base for the basil, tarragon and many others already available, as well as the oils and vinegars featuring her dried pepper seeds that are planned. Lots of people admire, Poole says; not many buy. She's hoping that changes as awareness of the benefits of locally grown produce, and her unique business, spreads.
"There's not one person who comes into this building who doesn't look around and say, 'My God, what a beautiful space,'" Poole says. But too often they focus more on what it once was, a vibrant retail mall, than on what it's becoming and could be. "Let's see what we can turn it into," she adds, "before the demise of another downtown building."
Source: Gardens Under Glass
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
The recession would seem to provide businesses with a ready and compelling excuse not to consider investing in something like solar power. But Cleveland-based Kalman & Pabst Photo Group looked at it another way: There are substantial federal and state tax incentives available for investing in the green technology, and they probably won't last forever.
K&P, a commercial photo studio whose clients include Progressive and Arhaus, recently hired Bold Alternatives, of Orange, to install 130-plus solar panels atop its building on Perkins near East 40th. The bill came to just over $200,000, says K&P co-owner Bob Pabst, but a 50-percent rebate from the state and 30-percent federal tax credit brought K&P's out-of-pocket cost down to about $40,000.
"There's a lot of people that can't do this," Pabst says, referring to the still-significant cost and the recession. "But we could." He and his partner, Jan Kalman, are committed to employing as many sustainable methods as possible. The 30.8 kW installation will cover 20-25 percent of the photo studio's monthly electricity use, on average.
Other companies that K&P talked to promised less than half as much, Pabst says. Bold Alternatives, however, offered new technology: microinverters. In a typical solar array, all the panels connect to one central inverter, which converts the energy from DC to AC. But the system Bold built for K&P has a microconverter for each panel, a setup that maximizes efficiency by switching on if even a sliver of the panel is illuminated.
Kimberly Dyer of Bold Alternatives says that the manufacturer, Enphase Energy of California, informed her that the K&P job is the largest such installation in Ohio.
Source: Kalman & Pabst Photo Group
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
K&P, a commercial photo studio whose clients include Progressive and Arhaus, recently hired Bold Alternatives, of Orange, to install 130-plus solar panels atop its building on Perkins near East 40th. The bill came to just over $200,000, says K&P co-owner Bob Pabst, but a 50-percent rebate from the state and 30-percent federal tax credit brought K&P's out-of-pocket cost down to about $40,000.
"There's a lot of people that can't do this," Pabst says, referring to the still-significant cost and the recession. "But we could." He and his partner, Jan Kalman, are committed to employing as many sustainable methods as possible. The 30.8 kW installation will cover 20-25 percent of the photo studio's monthly electricity use, on average.
Other companies that K&P talked to promised less than half as much, Pabst says. Bold Alternatives, however, offered new technology: microinverters. In a typical solar array, all the panels connect to one central inverter, which converts the energy from DC to AC. But the system Bold built for K&P has a microconverter for each panel, a setup that maximizes efficiency by switching on if even a sliver of the panel is illuminated.
Kimberly Dyer of Bold Alternatives says that the manufacturer, Enphase Energy of California, informed her that the K&P job is the largest such installation in Ohio.
Source: Kalman & Pabst Photo Group
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
In a spirit reminiscent of progressive outposts like Seattle, Cleveland is becoming a national leader in deconstruction, a movement that treats vacant homes across the region not as an eyesore but a post-natural resource.
slashfood says our urban farms take root
Slashfood, a popular online magazine devoted to food and drink, recently touted Cleveland's efforts to combat health, economic and foreclosure problems by launching multiple urban farming projects.
Citing the just-announced $1.1 million pilot program to fund the Cleveland Urban Agriculture Incubator Project, the writer notes that "Cleveland is planting seeds to counter the serious problems of obesity, food deserts and urban blight."
Supported by the USDA, the City of Cleveland, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Ohio State University Extension Service, the new six-acre plot in the Kinsman neighborhood will be tended to by 20 local residents.
The farm will be two short miles from chef Doug Katz' Fire Food and Drink, the story points out. "I absolutely would love to use what they grow, and will promote that it's grown here in the City of Cleveland, right in our backyard," says Katz of the program.
Read all the juicy details here.
Citing the just-announced $1.1 million pilot program to fund the Cleveland Urban Agriculture Incubator Project, the writer notes that "Cleveland is planting seeds to counter the serious problems of obesity, food deserts and urban blight."
Supported by the USDA, the City of Cleveland, the Ohio Department of Agriculture and the Ohio State University Extension Service, the new six-acre plot in the Kinsman neighborhood will be tended to by 20 local residents.
The farm will be two short miles from chef Doug Katz' Fire Food and Drink, the story points out. "I absolutely would love to use what they grow, and will promote that it's grown here in the City of Cleveland, right in our backyard," says Katz of the program.
Read all the juicy details here.
It's not a sports championship, but in some ways it's just as big. Last
week a consortium of some of the wealthiest banks and foundations in
the world announced that Cleveland would receive major support for
innovative developments that will create hundreds of new jobs where
they're needed most.
The Integration Initiative, by the New York-based Living Cities philanthropic collaborative, will pump almost $15 million in grants, loans and targeted investments into Cleveland. One of five cities chosen, Cleveland impressed the evaluators with plans to leverage the buying power of institutions in and around University Circle -- which spend some $3 billion annually on goods and services -- into new businesses and jobs. And not just any businesses, but innovative, green operations that provide their workers with more than just paychecks.
Some of the funding will be used to start or relocate businesses in the growing Heath-Tech Corridor between University Circle and Cleveland State. Other funds will expand the Evergreen Cooperatives network of employee-owned businesses, all of which meet the institutions' procurement needs in new ways, and satisfy Living Cities' demand for "game-changing" new strategies.
Evergreen Cooperative Laundry, for example, uses far less water than competitors, allowing the institutions to reduce their carbon footprints. The laundry currently employs 28, and will expand to 50. Ohio Solar Cooperative employs 25 -- already exceeding expectations -- and will hire another 50 over the next three years. The Green City Growers hydroponic greenhouse will employ 45 when it opens on East 55th Street later this year.
All Evergreen businesses allow workers to build equity in the company and share in profits. "An 8-, 9- 10-dollar-an-hour job is not really enough to change someone's life," says Lillian Kuri of the Cleveland Foundation, which coordinated the applications to Living Cities. "The ability for wealth creation is absolutely essential to changing neighborhoods."
Five more co-ops are in the pipeline, Kuri says. Two will launch "soon," the other three over the next one to two years.
Many of the foundations that make up Living Cities will be familiar to NPR listeners: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, to name a few. Member banks include Bank of America, Deutche Bank and J.P. Morgan Chase. Cleveland Foundation is an affiliate member.
Source: Cleveland Foundation
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
The Integration Initiative, by the New York-based Living Cities philanthropic collaborative, will pump almost $15 million in grants, loans and targeted investments into Cleveland. One of five cities chosen, Cleveland impressed the evaluators with plans to leverage the buying power of institutions in and around University Circle -- which spend some $3 billion annually on goods and services -- into new businesses and jobs. And not just any businesses, but innovative, green operations that provide their workers with more than just paychecks.
Some of the funding will be used to start or relocate businesses in the growing Heath-Tech Corridor between University Circle and Cleveland State. Other funds will expand the Evergreen Cooperatives network of employee-owned businesses, all of which meet the institutions' procurement needs in new ways, and satisfy Living Cities' demand for "game-changing" new strategies.
Evergreen Cooperative Laundry, for example, uses far less water than competitors, allowing the institutions to reduce their carbon footprints. The laundry currently employs 28, and will expand to 50. Ohio Solar Cooperative employs 25 -- already exceeding expectations -- and will hire another 50 over the next three years. The Green City Growers hydroponic greenhouse will employ 45 when it opens on East 55th Street later this year.
All Evergreen businesses allow workers to build equity in the company and share in profits. "An 8-, 9- 10-dollar-an-hour job is not really enough to change someone's life," says Lillian Kuri of the Cleveland Foundation, which coordinated the applications to Living Cities. "The ability for wealth creation is absolutely essential to changing neighborhoods."
Five more co-ops are in the pipeline, Kuri says. Two will launch "soon," the other three over the next one to two years.
Many of the foundations that make up Living Cities will be familiar to NPR listeners: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The Annie E. Casey Foundation, to name a few. Member banks include Bank of America, Deutche Bank and J.P. Morgan Chase. Cleveland Foundation is an affiliate member.
Source: Cleveland Foundation
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
When it comes to real estate, Howard Grandon believes in second chances. That's why he's transforming a former illicit nightclub in Detroit Shoreway into market-rate apartments and storefronts, which he hopes will continue to breathe new life into an old neighborhood.
How is it possible that hip Tremont has gone all this time without a
vintage shop? Whatever the explanation, the oversight has been remedied
with the opening of Deering Vintage at 2678 W. 14th St. (formerly Kelly Randall Gallery).
"It just seems like an exciting place to be right now," says owner Cynthia Deering, who owned Suite Lorain, at West 69th and Lorain, for 20 years before selling in March. Development in Detroit Shoreway to the north had resulted in Lorain becoming a little too rough for Deering's comfort.
Open just a few weeks, Deering says she already has repeat customers, especially among young neighborhood residents who appreciate having a green shopping option nearby.
"Business has never been better in my industry," due largely to the recession, Deering notes. "People really want to save money."
Deering Vintage carries men's and women's clothes and accessories, and some home items and furniture.
Source: Cythia Deering
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
"It just seems like an exciting place to be right now," says owner Cynthia Deering, who owned Suite Lorain, at West 69th and Lorain, for 20 years before selling in March. Development in Detroit Shoreway to the north had resulted in Lorain becoming a little too rough for Deering's comfort.
Open just a few weeks, Deering says she already has repeat customers, especially among young neighborhood residents who appreciate having a green shopping option nearby.
"Business has never been better in my industry," due largely to the recession, Deering notes. "People really want to save money."
Deering Vintage carries men's and women's clothes and accessories, and some home items and furniture.
Source: Cythia Deering
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Some things do get better with age. GrafTech International has been a part of Cleveland's manufacturing scene for 130 years. The producer of advanced carbon and graphite materials has stayed current with the times and technology to stay viable and profitable.
GrafTech, which among other things produces a micro-thin, flexible graphite used to dissipate heat on everything from laptops to flat-screen TVs, saw its nets sales increase 55 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2010. GrafTech's net income more than doubled to $40 million, and its gross profit increased from $28 million in third quarter 2009 to $75 million a year later.
With these numbers, it is no wonder that GrafTech is adding to its workforce. The company hired 60 people over the summer, and will likely add up to 40 more. The average annual salary for new hires is $80,000. The new jobs are located at GrafTech's Parma headquarters and laboratories and its Lakewood factory.
Craig Shular, chairman and CEO of GrafTech, says that the company's continuous improvement efforts have kept it on the cutting edge while focusing on changing customer needs. GrafTech, for example, has embraced Lean Manufacturing in recent years. "Lean is very much a part of our corporate culture, the culture we are trying to build," he says.
SOURCE: GrafTech
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
GrafTech, which among other things produces a micro-thin, flexible graphite used to dissipate heat on everything from laptops to flat-screen TVs, saw its nets sales increase 55 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2010. GrafTech's net income more than doubled to $40 million, and its gross profit increased from $28 million in third quarter 2009 to $75 million a year later.
With these numbers, it is no wonder that GrafTech is adding to its workforce. The company hired 60 people over the summer, and will likely add up to 40 more. The average annual salary for new hires is $80,000. The new jobs are located at GrafTech's Parma headquarters and laboratories and its Lakewood factory.
Craig Shular, chairman and CEO of GrafTech, says that the company's continuous improvement efforts have kept it on the cutting edge while focusing on changing customer needs. GrafTech, for example, has embraced Lean Manufacturing in recent years. "Lean is very much a part of our corporate culture, the culture we are trying to build," he says.
SOURCE: GrafTech
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
Bike-riding in the Cleveland area is up 50 percent since 2006, according to a recent survey by the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA).
Cleveland Heights is hoping to push the figure even higher in next
year's survey with the addition of "sharrows" on city roads.
"Sharrow" is short for "share-the-road arrows," which are painted onto road surfaces. "You use them when you don't have enough room for a bike lane," explains Richard Wong, the city's director of planning and development. Sharrows are intended to remind bicyclists where they should ride -- with the flow of vehicular traffic, not against -- and to encourage drivers to share the road.
"They'll help reduce tension between bicyclists and motorists," says Nick Matthew of the Cleveland Heights Bicycle Coalition, which gathered more than 500 signatures on a petition urging the city to become one of the first in Northeast Ohio to adopt sharrows. Cleveland was the first, on Franklin Avenue.
Last week, just two months after the petition was presented to the city, sharrows were painted last week on Euclid Heights Boulevard, between Taylor and Coventry. (West of Coventry, where on-street parking is legal some hours, the city will install yellow "Share the Road" signs.) By next year, Wong says, the city plans to paint sharrows on Coventry, Lee and Fairmount.
Cleveland Heights ranks in the top 10 percent nationally for bicycle commuting by residents, according to data from the 2000 Census.
Source: Cleveland Heights Bicycle Coalition
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
"Sharrow" is short for "share-the-road arrows," which are painted onto road surfaces. "You use them when you don't have enough room for a bike lane," explains Richard Wong, the city's director of planning and development. Sharrows are intended to remind bicyclists where they should ride -- with the flow of vehicular traffic, not against -- and to encourage drivers to share the road.
"They'll help reduce tension between bicyclists and motorists," says Nick Matthew of the Cleveland Heights Bicycle Coalition, which gathered more than 500 signatures on a petition urging the city to become one of the first in Northeast Ohio to adopt sharrows. Cleveland was the first, on Franklin Avenue.
Last week, just two months after the petition was presented to the city, sharrows were painted last week on Euclid Heights Boulevard, between Taylor and Coventry. (West of Coventry, where on-street parking is legal some hours, the city will install yellow "Share the Road" signs.) By next year, Wong says, the city plans to paint sharrows on Coventry, Lee and Fairmount.
Cleveland Heights ranks in the top 10 percent nationally for bicycle commuting by residents, according to data from the 2000 Census.
Source: Cleveland Heights Bicycle Coalition
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Thomas Paine would be proud. At a time when it seems like every new idea is first floated online, Plain Dealer architecture critic Steven Litt has chosen good old-fashioned paper as the primary vehicle for his impassioned paean to beautiful surroundings, Designing a Better Cleveland.
"To the extent that Cleveland fails to make the most of public and private investments in buildings, highways, bridges, streets, parks and waterfronts, it will waste opportunities, fail to compete effectively with its peers and damage its economy," Litt writes in the introduction. "Everyone, in other words, has a stake in good design."
Litt calls the slim, gorgeously designed booklet "a mini-primer on the ways in which citizens, developers, planners and designers can raise standards of civic design in Cleveland." But it's clearly also meant to inspire.
"Economists may disagree over whether excellent architecture and urban amenities such as streetscapes, bike trails and waterfront parks are a cause or consequence of economic vitality," he writes. "Regardless, it never makes sense to spend a dollar on mediocrity when the same dollar can buy excellence. The reality is that great design demands greater effort -- on the part of clients, designers, government agencies and citizens. Cleveland continues to be plagued by a chronic sense of low self-esteem and by the notion that trying to improve the city through better design isn't worth the effort.
"THIS VOLUME REJECTS THAT VIEW."
The book grew out of Spectrum: the Lockwood Thompson Dialogues at the Cleveland Public Library, and was facilitated by Cleveland Public Art.
Since the book's inroduction in the PD, Cleveland Public Art has received nearly 200 calls requesting copies, according to executive director Gregory Peckham. "That seems like a good benchmark when it comes to the interest of the public about the subject of civic design," Peckham notes.
Designing a Better Cleveland is also available online as a PDF.
Source: Plain Dealer
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
"To the extent that Cleveland fails to make the most of public and private investments in buildings, highways, bridges, streets, parks and waterfronts, it will waste opportunities, fail to compete effectively with its peers and damage its economy," Litt writes in the introduction. "Everyone, in other words, has a stake in good design."
Litt calls the slim, gorgeously designed booklet "a mini-primer on the ways in which citizens, developers, planners and designers can raise standards of civic design in Cleveland." But it's clearly also meant to inspire.
"Economists may disagree over whether excellent architecture and urban amenities such as streetscapes, bike trails and waterfront parks are a cause or consequence of economic vitality," he writes. "Regardless, it never makes sense to spend a dollar on mediocrity when the same dollar can buy excellence. The reality is that great design demands greater effort -- on the part of clients, designers, government agencies and citizens. Cleveland continues to be plagued by a chronic sense of low self-esteem and by the notion that trying to improve the city through better design isn't worth the effort.
"THIS VOLUME REJECTS THAT VIEW."
The book grew out of Spectrum: the Lockwood Thompson Dialogues at the Cleveland Public Library, and was facilitated by Cleveland Public Art.
Since the book's inroduction in the PD, Cleveland Public Art has received nearly 200 calls requesting copies, according to executive director Gregory Peckham. "That seems like a good benchmark when it comes to the interest of the public about the subject of civic design," Peckham notes.
Designing a Better Cleveland is also available online as a PDF.
Source: Plain Dealer
Writer: Frank W. Lewis
Studying "the ways businesses incorporate sustainable practices into
product design and manufacturing, supply-chain relationships, marketing,
customer relationships and operational efficiencies" is how
Baldwin-Wallace professor David Krueger defines the new MBA in
Sustainability program at Baldwin-Wallace (B-W).
The two-year sustainability program is the first of its kind in Ohio. B-W was also the first higher-education institution in the state to offer an undergraduate major in sustainability, which began in 2008.
Krueger, professor of business and director of the Institute for Sustainable Business Practice, says that the MBA in Sustainability program is designed so that students learn by doing and by observing how sustainable practices are applied in the workplace.
For its part, B-W has been putting sustainable practices to work on campus for the past few years. These have included installing geothermal heating and cooling systems in buildings, instituting an industrial-scale waste composting program and campus-wide recycling and constructing a wind turbine.
B-W's Institute for Sustainable Business Practice, which serves as a resource to businesses, recently received $100,000 from the Cleveland Foundation for its Sustainability Plan Clinic.
SOURCE: Baldwin-Wallace
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
The two-year sustainability program is the first of its kind in Ohio. B-W was also the first higher-education institution in the state to offer an undergraduate major in sustainability, which began in 2008.
Krueger, professor of business and director of the Institute for Sustainable Business Practice, says that the MBA in Sustainability program is designed so that students learn by doing and by observing how sustainable practices are applied in the workplace.
For its part, B-W has been putting sustainable practices to work on campus for the past few years. These have included installing geothermal heating and cooling systems in buildings, instituting an industrial-scale waste composting program and campus-wide recycling and constructing a wind turbine.
B-W's Institute for Sustainable Business Practice, which serves as a resource to businesses, recently received $100,000 from the Cleveland Foundation for its Sustainability Plan Clinic.
SOURCE: Baldwin-Wallace
WRITER: Diane DiPiero
trio of cleveland eateries win sante awards
Santé, the Magazine for Restaurant Professionals recently announced its winners of the 2010 Santé Restaurant Awards. Currently in their 13th year, the Santé Awards were created to recognize excellence in restaurant food, wine, spirits, and service hospitality.
Claiming three of the 88 awards were Cleveland restaurants Parallax and Table 45, which won in the "Innovative" category, and Moxie, which took honors in the "Sustainable" category.
"At Table 45, we take the newest and most unique flavors from around the globe and combine them in entirely different ways to produce dishes that are unlike anything else our guests have ever tasted," said owner Zack Bruell. "Every time we create a new menu, it is an experience in culinary innovation. We are delighted to have Santé recognize our efforts."
Cleveland diners looking try these award-winning restaurants, as well as 87 other members of the Cleveland Independents restaurant group, are in luck. This year's Cleveland Restaurant Week runs from November 1 through 14, with participating eateries offering special three-course prix fixe meals for just $30.
See the complete list Sante' award winners here, and participating Restaurant Week eateries here.
Claiming three of the 88 awards were Cleveland restaurants Parallax and Table 45, which won in the "Innovative" category, and Moxie, which took honors in the "Sustainable" category.
"At Table 45, we take the newest and most unique flavors from around the globe and combine them in entirely different ways to produce dishes that are unlike anything else our guests have ever tasted," said owner Zack Bruell. "Every time we create a new menu, it is an experience in culinary innovation. We are delighted to have Santé recognize our efforts."
Cleveland diners looking try these award-winning restaurants, as well as 87 other members of the Cleveland Independents restaurant group, are in luck. This year's Cleveland Restaurant Week runs from November 1 through 14, with participating eateries offering special three-course prix fixe meals for just $30.
See the complete list Sante' award winners here, and participating Restaurant Week eateries here.