Dino Palmieri Living Social Deal

Dino Palmieri Salon, with several locations through out Cleveland, is offering a hair cut + styling for $19 or a mani/pedi for $46. The West 6th location is just a few steps from the Cleveland City Living office, and I will definitely be stopping in!
View the Dino Palmieri Living Social Deal Here.

New Year's Eve Cleveland Hot Spots

NYE is always a night to be remembered, and I know it can be hard to sort out how you want to celebrate. If you are still looking for ideas on where to ring in the New Year on Friday night, look no further. Below is a compiled list of restaurants and parties that should leave everyone content!

Dining Options:

Table 45 is offering full dinner service from 3-11pm with a personal favorite of mine, beef wellington.

Sushi Rock (both Beachwood and West 6th)is hosting a NYE Masquerade Ball that begins at 9pm. Mouth watering dinner specials, a champagne toast, plus a balloon drop seals the deal.

Fahrenheit in Tremont is featuring two Prix Fixe dinners (with to die for menus), before 7pm the cost is $65, after 7:45pm the cost is $100 per person. It does include champagne!


Drinking and Dancing:


Snow Year's Eve at Progressive Field's Snow Days. Diner, dancing, drinking, AND fireworks. All at the Terrace Club.

Tropical Cleveland- ring in the new year with some serious Latin flair at Rose Angel (5800 Detroit)

Velvet Dog is offering VIP open bar (top shelf liquor) packages for $125 *includes a full buffet provided by Sushi Rock, party hats, and a champagne toast!

Family Events:

7-9pm, Learn about mammals, take a hike, and enjoy some hot chocolate at The Metroparks North Chagrin Reservation

The Children's Museum of Cleveland is hosting a NYE party from 11-2pm on Friday that features dance parties and prize giveaways.

MOCA Cleveland

Have you seen the rendering for the NEW MOCA Cleveland building? I love it and can't wait to see it completed. It will give the area such an amazing new *modern* feel. What do you think of it?

(Image courtesy of Cleveland.com)

Cleveland- GREEN City

Cleveland.com has been reporting on some great Cleveland news all week, but especially great to me was the recap on Cleveland Farmers Markets in 2010. Living away from Cleveland for six years, in much bigger urban environments, it was sometimes hard to find great local produce (even more so on the cheap).
So I loved hearing that Cleveland is now a top contender in most farmers markets in the nation. Here is a quote from Cleveland.com :

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently updated its national list of farmers markets, Ohio ranked the seventh highest in overall number of registered markets at 213, and sixth in the top list of winter markets, with 34. It was also the ninth highest in percentage growth of markets with a 36 percent growth from 2009 to this year.

Its really great news knowing Clevelanders can eat local, fresh, and affordable all year long. On that note, its lunch time here....

Cleveland: Be a tourist in your own city

CLEVELAND -- With the kids off from school, it can be hard to keep them busy. But there is a way to keep them entertained and learn something at the same time. A local woman created walking tours of Cleveland's main attractions.

Jennifer Coleman started City Prowl Cleveland. She has gathered a wealth of information about the buildings some of us pass everyday or haven't seen in a while.

All you will need is a computer and an MP3 player to download the tours.

Jennifer gives you specific instructions on where to start the tours, and walks you through giving you the history of that specific area.

"I think if people knew more about how special some of the structures and the story of the culture of the city are, they would be ambassadors and know that Cleveland is really a special town," says Coleman.

The tours are less than 45 minutes and you can stop and start them as many times as you like.

There are 8 tours, including the Warehouse District, Public Square, Wade Park and the Fairfax neighborhood.

Click here to download the tours at City Prowl Cleveland.
(Article Courtesy of WKYC-TV)

La Strada Groupon

Today's Groupon is $40 worth of Mediterranean Fare for $20. Make sure to pick one up for a great date night on East 4th. Now that the days are getting longer again, I've been feeling the itch to go out. Enjoy!

La Strada Groupon

Flats East Bank project closes financing, to start construction

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Construction will start this week on the long-delayed Flats East Bank project, now that developers have finally locked in the money to build offices, a hotel, retail and a park at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River.

The Wolstein Group and Fairmount Properties closed on their financing Tuesday - making a $272 million development real after years of dreaming and planning. Set to open in spring 2013, the project will extend downtown Cleveland to the waterfront and include the central business district's first new multi-tenant office building in more than a decade.

The project is a rare private, urban development to move forward, in the wake of a recession and a financial crisis that roiled the real estate industry. And it is one of three potential game-changers for downtown Cleveland, where a new convention center-medical mart project is scheduled to break ground soon and a casino is in the works.

"We have major headquarters that are here in Cleveland that will remain in Cleveland as a result of this," Mayor Frank Jackson said. "I believe it will eventually attract other people to that part of the city and, in some fashion, may even move what we consider the center of town as people begin to consider the water's edge as a place where they want to live and work."

Loans and grants from the city are among 35 sources of funding for the project. To pay for the 18-story office building, a 150-room Aloft hotel, a parking garage, retail and public spaces, the developers lined up everyone from major banks to foreign investors who hope to gain U.S. residency in exchange for putting money into the Flats.

Stakeholders described the project as the most complicated financial transaction in Northeast Ohio's history.

"Every professional involved would tell you this was the most complex undertaking and closing that they've ever been part of," said Adam Fishman, a principal with Fairmount Properties.

The $272 million first phase will house accounting firm Ernst & Young, law firm Tucker Ellis & West and the CB Richard Ellis real estate brokerage -- all downtown tenants itching for a new location. The Flats East Bank also will include a riverfront boardwalk and 14 acres of parkland. The green space eventually could be the site of residential development, shops, restaurants and entertainment venues, once the economy improves and more financing becomes available.

"Today is finally the beginning of implementing my husband's vision for the Flats," said Iris Wolstein, whose husband, Bert Wolstein, hoped to turn the former nightlife mecca into a riverfront district. He died in 2004.

"While it has been a very long and treacherous road to get to today, this family collaboration will benefit our hometown and give the city a vibrant showcase for all of us and future generations of Clevelanders to enjoy," she said in a news release Tuesday afternoon.

Iris Wolstein and Scott Wolstein, her son and the executive chairman of Developers Diversified Realty Corp., unveiled their plans for the Flats East Bank in 2005. When financial markets collapsed in 2008, money for real estate disappeared and the development was put on hold. The Wolstein Group and Fairmount Properties struggled for two years, split the construction into phases and sought additional public and private funding sources to revive the project.

Wells Fargo Bank funded $53 million in bonds to support the office building. The Ohio Carpenters' Pension Fund and the Cleveland International Fund, a group of foreign investors, also stepped in on the first-mortgage bonds. FirstMerit Bank provided a loan. The federal government, the state and Cuyahoga County kicked in loans and grants.

Cleveland contributed nearly $53 million, $37.2 million of that in loans, worked with the developer on a deal to divert anticipated increases in property taxes from the project to pay for construction, and took advantage of a federal economic stimulus program to lower the cost of bonds for the project.

"These deals don't work with straight private financing anymore, particularly in cities like Cleveland or Pittsburgh where the market is not booming," said Tom Murphy, a senior resident fellow with the Urban Land Institute and a former Pittsburgh mayor. "This is an investment for the future that will create momentum in Cleveland."

(Article courtesy of Michelle Jarboe and Cleveland.com)

Dip into Downward Dog at Battery Park

As a yoga lover, I have some very exciting news to share with the Cleveland community. The Battery Park Powerhouse is transforming their second floor and it will now serve as a yoga room on Saturdays and Wednesdays. Justin Glanville, who has been practicing yoga for over ten years, and teaching yoga since 2005 will be heading the classes. He is offering a beginners Vinyassa on Saturday mornings from 9:00am to 10:15 and an intermediate Vinyassa class on Wednesday evenings from 6:30pm to 7:45. The cost per class will be $10 for a drop in with packages available at discount. Classes begin January 17th, and Justin can be reached at jgville@gmail.com if you have any questions or comments. I hope to see you all at the classes, I know I will be there on Wednesdays. Namaste!

An early E-Christmas Card from LeBron

Courtesy of SportsPickle

West Side Market Sing-out: The Recap

Happy Monday morning everyone! If you missed heading over to The Westside Market this past Saturday for the Sing-out, here is a video from The West Shore Chorale of the Sing-out performance. Enjoy!

Coffee Lovers Unite- Phoenix Coffee gives Roastery Tours

Cleveland local business, Phoenix Coffee Company, will be hosting two tours of their downtown roastery(where the coffee is made) just after the Christmas holiday. On December 28th there will be two tours available at 10:30am and 1:00pm. Stop by and find out how your favorite Cleveland coffee is made, and also walk out with a free bag of beans! More details are available at Phoenix Coffee

Cleveland: Eat and drink local this holiday season

CLEVELAND -- Its a chance to try a variety of local cuisine, and expand your pallet at over fifty different restaurants.

For its second consecutive year, Cleveland Independents is bringing back "the deck" of 52 cards. This is a chance for you to try 52 restaurants in the Cleveland-area.

Doug Katz, President of Cleveland Independents stopped by our studio to tell us more about this great holiday gift.

Each card offers $10 off of a $30 food purchase.

The cards are valid through December 30, 2011.

If you are one of the first 10 people to buy two or more decks and mention Channel 3, you'll receive a $25 gift certificate from one of the restaurants in the deck.

The goal of the Cleveland Independents is to support, protect, and nurture independent restaurants in Northeast Ohio.

For a complete listing of participating restaurants visit www.clevelandindependents.com
© 2010 WKYC-TV
(Article Courtesy of WKYC-TV)

Remembering Bob Feller

Bob Feller was not only one of the best athletes in Cleveland, he was one of the best athletes in The United States. Bob was a Clevelander through and through, always attending spring training sessions and a regular staple at Indian's home games. He set numerous records and is still considered one of the best right handed pitchers in the game. Feller is the only Cleveland Athlete to be immortalized with a statue, it stands outside of Progressive Field. Feller and his wife Anne were residents of Gates Mills,a Cleveland Eastside suburb for many years. He passed away after a battle with Leukemia, entering hospice for pneumonia earlier this week. As Clevelanders, we should all remember Bob Feller as a true American Hero. Rest in Peace.

(Photo courtesy of The Associated Press)

Sing-out!

FACT: It is a dream of mine to one day be apart of/chance upon a flash mob dance. I love watching videos of them, and would just DIE if I saw one IRL. That being said, I've gotten word that there will be a 'spontaneous' sing-out outside of The Westside Market this Saturday (12/18) at 2pm. A sing-out is kind of like a flash mob dance, right?

It should be fun, and what market shopper wouldn't want to jump in for a chorus or two of some Christmas tunes?

I'll take it, sold.

Santacon is Coming!!

The Santacon trend has made its way to Cleveland! This Saturday (12/18) at Bar Cento, West 25th Street, Kringle Kaos will break out. It starts at 7 pm and there are only a few rules for the evening as you jump bar to bar.
1. Dress like Santa.
2. Bring your Christmas cheer.
3. Remember that Santa is in charge.

Party on!

Christmas Cabaret at Nighttown

Early next week, Cleveland Heights' dining and entertainment staple, Nighttown, will be hosting their 5th annual Christmas Cabaret. From the 19th to the 21st you can purchase tickets for one of the nightly shows and sit back and listen to jazz renditions of your favorite Christmas songs.

Nighttown is located at 12387 Cedar Road.

Battery Park Wine Bar

I had a chance to peak at the BPWB when I was at The Reckoning Event on Saturday, but have yet to visit it myself. Below is a snippet of a write up from Blog-friend Alexa, at Cleveland's a Plum. Enjoy!

Last night, post errands, i ended up having a lovely impromptu evening with friends at the newly opened battery park wine bar in the detroit shoreway neighborhood.

this having been my second visit i knew what to expect in the great decor, delicious wine and wonderful and attentive service - but this time i came with an appetite and just in time for happy hour.

battery park wine bar, or BPWB as i'm beginning to call it for short, has a great happy hour for people who don't necessarily get out of work at 5pm. their happy hour goes from 3pm to 7:30pm and you can get $4 heavy poured glasses of wine, $3 beer specials and $2 off all appetizers which are more like meals in my humble opinion.

as seanski and i bellied up to the bar we had made it just in time for happy hour and we took full advantage of the $2 off appetizers by ordering a lot of food and thanks to chef dimitris ragousis and sous chef paul demelto it was a whole lot of delicious food.

the y.o.l.o. (you only live once) salad (only $4 during HH!)- greens, candied pecans, golden raisins and a grappa vinaigrette was so light and refreshing and quite honestly i've never tasted anything like it - i'm officially a grappa vinaigrette fan now.

To read the rest of the post, click here.

Its The Weekend!

Round 'em up! Lets talk about what to do around town this weekend. I am still up in the air on my plans. I do know for sure I will be spending Saturday at Battery Park's Powerhouse to support The Reckoning Place . So without further adieu I present, things happening in The Cleve:

Full Moon Rising II- Art Exhibition of Cleveland's best and brightest running all weekend at The Urban Mosaic Art House & Gallery (9800 Detroit Avenue, 3rd Floor)

Tremont Art Walk- Tonight from 6-10. Start out at Grumpy's Cafe and stomp around the neighborhood to check out the shops and all the lovely art on display.

Bodies... The Exhibition- Check out all the complexities of the body with over 200 specimens! (340 Euclid Ave.)

Browns' Sunday- Watch the Browns dominate the Bills this Sunday, anywhere on W6th.

Oh and don't forget about our post earlier this week for Last Laugh Cleveland

Lets go to a Vikings Game.

The Cleveland State Vikings are currently 11-0. So why not show them some hometown love? Here is the schedule for their next three home games. Lets get out there and show those Viking men just how serious we are about our sports. GO VIKINGS!

12/22- vs. South Florida @ 7:00
12/30- vs. Loyola University Chicago @ 7:00
1/01- vs. UIC @ 2:00

Get your laugh on.

This weekend The Brother's Lounge is combining three of my favorite things (1.laughing 2. puppies and 3.beers) I mean, I'm willing to bet these are three of everyone's favorite things so hopefully I have your attention.
This Friday (12/10) The Brother's Lounge (11607 Detroit Avenue) is hosting Last Call Cleveland, a nationally recognized comedy troupe that was voted Best Comedy Troupe by The Fox 8 Hotlist. They will give you belly aches with their talents and all proceeds benefit The Lakewood Animal Shelter. So stop in and laugh, drink, and save some puppies... its a win-win for everyone.

The Merry Freaking Christmas Ride

This Saturday, December 11th, Crank-Set Rides will be hosting the Merry Freaking Christmas Ride. So grab your bicycle, your holiday gear, and get ready to ride through the Ohio City neighborhood- its for a good cause (donation to The Domestic Violence Center required) and drink specials will be aplenty at every bar visited. Bars participating include ABC Tavern, Redstone, Tap House, and Cranky's Pub. To RSVP or find more information click here to link to the Facebook invite.

Michael Stanley Holiday Show

Cleveland born Michael Stanley will be having his annual holiday show at The House of Blues this weekend, on Saturday, December 11th. The Michael Stanley Band will go on at 8:00 and doors open at 7:00. Tickets start at $31.00. VIP tickets are available, and come with a meet-and-greet.

The Cleveland Crush

Gentlemen, this post is for all of you...one void of shopping, art, and all things Christmas... I am here to announce that Cleveland is now the proud home of the latest Lingerie Football League (LFL) team, The Cleveland Crush. The lingerie clad ladies will begin playing at The Quicken Loans Arena in the Fall of 2011.

Chairman and founder Mitchell S. Mortaza was quoted with the following statement

"We could not be more excited to be in a market like Cleveland, with its storied history in support of its pro teams, whether they won or lost. LFL Football will translate incredibly well and, based on the initial fan support, we suspect Cleveland will be a top market for the league."

Any qualified individuals, as well as prospective players, can inquire at: Talent@LFLUS.com

(Photo Courtesy Edie Perlas LFL)

NYC Is So Over, Artists Moving To Cleveland

BOOM! Here is some very exciting news that isn't sports related today (not that I'm not pumped about the Browns win) Gothamist.com reported the following last week:

One relocated artist told WKYC that in New York, "you’re losing the sense of community and working together… Cleveland is a great place for art. There’s a lot of culture and diversity here. You still get the big city feel.” It also has this charming nickname: the Mistake by the Lake.

A recent WNYC report pointed out that artists aren't just fleeing New York, but "artists fresh out of art schools around the country are choosing to live in nascent artist communities in regional cities like Detroit and Cleveland—which are dangling incentives to attract this group—and bypassing New York altogether."

What do you think about this? Do you think the Collinwood/Waterloo area is Cleveland's next up-and-coming artist community? Did you stop by Weekend on Waterloo? If so, we'd love to hear your thoughts.

Native Cleveland Opens TONIGHT

Come out and Celebrate NATIVE-Cleveland’s Official Grand Opening During the WALK ALL OVER WATERLOO HOLIDAY Event! We’re going to try to OPEN the day before Thanksgiving and be open on Black Friday and then Saturday as well, but the OFFICIAL GRAND opening is December 3, 4, 5 and we’ll have special events during the weekend.

(Courtesy of NativeCleveland.com)

Travel Channel's Adam Richman is hungry for Cleveland

Adam Richman likes Cleveland. A lot. How much does the Travel Channel's "Man vs. Food" host like Cleveland? Let's compare city citations in the index of his new book, "America the Edible: A Hungry History, From Sea to Dining Sea" (Rodale, $25.99).

Washington, D.C., and Boston each garner three references. San Francisco, by any measure a "food city" of the first order, earns a 23-page spread. Same as Brooklyn, N.Y., Richman's hometown.

Cleveland's chapter (entitled "I Still Call It The Jake") gets a full 24 pages. And in Richman's distinctive voice -- gruff rhapsodies punctuated by a fair share of F-bombs and other epithets -- it's a destination for any right-thinking foodie in search of a memorable nosh.

Richman spent the better part of a year here while a resident at the Cleveland Play House, performing in a lengthy run of Chaim Potok's "The Chosen." Then a knockabout actor (who happens to have earned his master's degree from the Yale University School of Drama), he routinely sought good food in hidden-away spots.

It's one thing to read it in print. If you nab the opportunity to meet him when he returns to town Tuesday, when he'll sign copies of his book at Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lyndhurst, get him talking about his affection.

During a recent phone conversation, Richman showed a commanding grasp of the place, beyond the usual landmarks and big-name eateries. In a rapid-fire recitation, he issued a sprawling litany of hidden gems and locals-only haunts.

"Every time I'm there, I love knowing these little teeny places: Chinatown, places on Mayfield Road, on St. Clair and Superior avenues. I love that to get to Superior Pho you have to turn off Superior, park, turn a corner and then walk through a building, past a nail place and through another restaurant to get the best bahn mi sandwich I've ever had anywhere. That's impressive."

His ardor runs deeper than Cleveland's food scene. Aside from near-paeans to foodie landmarks such as the West Side Market and Great Lakes Brewing Co., Richman offers knowing nods to such treasures as Cleveland's "Emerald Necklace" Metroparks and the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage in Beachwood.

"There is just so much to experience in The Cleve," Richman says. "The chance to shed light on the amount of heart, the sheer joy of that city, is important to me. It has such a bountiful amount of heart.

"Cleveland is like Rocky Marciano, with a crushed nose and a bloodied face, that still gets up," he says. "People in Cleveland wear their scars as a sign of honor. Why do you think Great Lakes Brewing has a beer called 'Burning River?' "

(Article courtesy of Cleveland.com)

Feds award $32 million loan for office building at Cleveland's Flats East Bank project

Another key piece of financing for the $275 million Flats East Bank Neighborhood project is falling into place.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Avon, announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to award a $32 million loan for the office tower component of the project. A news release from Sen. Brown's office said he repeatedly had urged HUD to approve the loan.

“This news will keep over a thousand good-paying jobs in Cleveland and create hundreds more construction jobs,” Sen Brown said.

The project includes a new office tower that will house the Ernst & Young accounting firm and the Tucker Ellis & West law firm, as well as a hotel, retail space and a parking garage.

(Article courtesy of CrainsCleveland.com)

Cleveland-area restaurants get top ratings in Zagat guide: Restaurant Row

Twenty Cleveland-area restaurants appear on Zagat's recently released "America's Top Restaurants 2011."

Three local landmarks earned coveted "extraordinary to perfection" top rankings: Chez Francois (29 out of a possible 30 points), Johnny's Bar (28) and Dante (27). Parallax, Lola, Crop Bistro & Bar, Downtown 140, Red the Steakhouse, Flying Fig and L'Albatros Brasserie and Bar all round out this year's Top Food rankings.

Restaurateur Zack Bruell is the only Northeast Ohio chef to land all of his independently owned restaurants among the top 20. Chinato ranks among Zagat's Other Noteworthy Places in its Cleveland section. (A fourth restaurant with which he is affiliated but doesn't operate, Table 45 at the InterContinental Hotel & Conference Center Cleveland, is not among the 20 listed by Zagat. Blue Point Grill, Fahrenheit, Fire Food & Drink, Greenhouse Tavern, Lolita, Luxe Kitchen, Momocho, Sergio's in University Circle and Three Birds are all on the Noteworthy list.

For those unfamiliar with the Zagat guide procedure, more than 150,000 diners -- not professional critics -- across the U.S. weigh in with their assessments of restaurants in 45 cities coast-to-coast. You can join in. Go to zagat.com for more information on how to participate.

(Article Courtesy of Cleveland.com)

That Poor Pig

I can't imagine a single Clevelander isnt talking or at least thinking about the return of LeBron James to The Q tomorrow. Frankly, alot of the chatter has been pretty negative. However, I am proud to say Barley House on West 6th has found away to spin the evening into celebrating TRUE Cleveland Athletes as well as rally Clevelanders for a self proclaimed 'pep rally'.

From the Cleveland.com:

That poor pig

Come next Wednesday, Dec. 1, the Barley House (1265 West Sixth St., Cleveland) will get the ball rolling by hosting a LeBron James Roast.

It runs from 9 to 11 p.m. and features comedians razzing LeBron, not to mention drink specials -- 23 cents off all night if you bring a LeBron jersey.

It also boasts a pig roast.

"We're also roasting it out front," says Corey May, of the Barley House. "We're going to brand No. 6http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=3719417955572510905&postID=3660267966094554588# on it."

Yikes.

The fun starts on a positive note, at 6:30 p.m., when Cleveland Browns Peyton Hillis and Joe Haden will chat with fans and sign autographs.

"It's a pep rally," says May. "And we're proclaiming Joe Haden the new No. 23 of Cleveland." Free. Call 216-623-1700.

I'm thinking about heading over after work to start the celebration and of course- meet Peyton. Tweet us if you would like to join in- @Clecityliving.
See you there!

Weekend on Waterloo!

Happy Hump Day! Here is another post to get you geared up for the weekend. I mentioned on Facebook and Twitter that there is A TON of stuff to do around Cleveland this weekend.

Cue to Weekend on Waterloo- The holiday arts sale will be taking place this Fri/Sat/Sun and feature amazing work all from local artists. Its a great way to explore the Cleveland art scene or pick up some gifts for the holidays.

If you are looking for more information check out http://artscollinwood.org/weekend-on-waterloo-holiday-sale/

Get into the Holiday Spirit at the 2010 Ohio City Christmas Walk and Christmas Festival on December 4

Christmas will be here sooner than we realize, and the busy elves of the Ohio City Christmas Walk Committee are hard at work putting together the second Christmas Walk. This year’s event will take place the evening of Saturday, December 4, 2010, and will showcase homes on Whitman Avenue. Tickets are on sale now online or by phone (call 216.781.3222).

The walk, which was the hottest ticket item for Christmas activities in 2009, is sure to be a hit again as Ohio City showcases another slice of this unique and most historic Cleveland neighborhood that its residents love to show off.

New this year is the Ohio City Christmas Festival sponsored by Great Lakes Brewing Company, a daytime attraction immediately preceding the Christmas Walk. Based on German Weihnachtsmärkte, or Christmas Markets, the festival takes place on December 4 from 11:30 a.m until dusk on Market Avenue in Ohio City’s Market Square District. The street will be closed to traffic and, instead, will be lined with vendors in tents selling chocolates, spices, nuts, ornaments and other Christmas items. Yesteryear Horse & Carriage will provide rides around the neighborhood, Christmas trees and greens will be sold by a local tree farm, and Santa Claus himself will be making an appearance. The Ohio City Christmas Festival is a free event and sure to become a yearly event.

(Article courtesy of Ohiocity.com)

Banyan Tree's 10th Annual HOT TODDY EVENT

Saturday, December 4th Banyan Tree will be hosting their 10th Annual Hot Toddy shopping event. The event will run from 12-9 and feature food provided by Fahrenheit as well as dessert from A Cookie & A Cupcake (yippee!) The store will have hot toddies, beer, and wine on hand to help slip you into that shopping mood. There is even a free gift with purchase from local designer Brian Andrew Jasinski of Grey Cardigan. Be sure to stop in to browse, shop, and imbibe!

Gordon Square Arts District in Cleveland wins national recognition

Gordon Square, the emerging art district in the Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood on Cleveland's West Side, has won big time kudos from the National Endowment for the Arts and the National League of Cities.

It has also pulled down $2.7 million in recent federal, state and local grants, which will be used to build or renovate community theaters that are central to its vision of using the arts to revive a city neighborhood. "Lots of good stuff is happening," said Joy Roller, the district's executive director. "To me, it's an acknowledgement that what we're doing is not only successful, but is a novel approach, a unique approach on how to revitalize an urban core."
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The NEA announced earlier this month that Gordon Square is one of 14 case studies in a new publication, "Creative Placemaking."

Co-authored by arts advocates Ann Markusen and Ann Gadwa, the document is a project of the NEA's Mayor's Institute on City Design. The mission of the agency is to educate U.S. mayors to become the "chief urban designers" of their cities.

The case studies are intended to encourage mayors to think creatively about how everything from loft housing to art galleries can build economic value and encourage investment.

The chapter in the case study on Gordon Square praises the project for helping to leverage an estimated $500 million in related investments on the West Side of Cleveland over the past eight years, much of it in housing, even though Gordon Square is only halfway through a $30 million revitalization.

The project is a collaborative venture among three non-profit organizations, the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization, Cleveland Public Theatre and Near West Theatre.

The goal of the district is to renovate two historic theaters -- Cleveland Public and the Capitol -- and to build a new home for Near West. By using the arts as an anchor for related retail, restaurant and housing development, the district is sparking new life in a 15-block corridor from W. 58th Street to West 73rd St., with Detroit Avenue as the spine.

The Capitol Theatre, located in the historic Gordon Square Arcade at W. 65th Street and Detroit Avenue, reopened in 2009 as a movie theater after a renovation. Work on Cleveland Public Theatre is ongoing. And the arts district has raised roughly half of the $6.5 million it needs to build a new Near West Theater, designed by Cleveland architect Richard Fleischman, Roller said.

"Creative Placemaking" said the district has " revitalizing the area's commercial core with arts offerings and new retail businesses while preserving and adding low-income housing units."

Echoing the praise from the NEA, the National League of Cities has invited Roller to represent Gordon Square as one of 26 programs from the across the country that will be showcased in its upcoming National Congress of Cities in Denver, starting Tuesday.

In addition to the outside attention, Gordon Square announced it has received a $1 million matching grant from the Fowler Family Foundation and a $500,000 matching grant from the Gund Foundation, both for the Near West Theatre project. Roller said her organization has another $3.5 million to raise before it can build the theater.

"With Near West, we are inching closer to realizing our dream of building a new home for that theater," Roller said.

A separate grant of $1 million in federal stimulus funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's State Energy Program will be used immediately to air condition Cleveland Public Theatre for the first time, which means it can be used year round, Roller said.

The State of Ohio has also kicked in $200,000 for asbestos removal at Cleveland Public, which will make the theater safer to use, Roller said.

The national attention focused on Gordon Square shouldn't create the impression that the project has gone unnoticed locally. In June, the district won a Cleveland Arts Prize.

The national recognition for the district offers more proof that "Cleveland should be very proud of this model we've created in the Gordon Square Arts District," Roller said. "It's good news for Cleveland."

(Article courtesy of Cleveland.com)

Jump Back Ball Happy Hour

Planning on attending PlayhouseSquare's Jump Back Ball this February? If so, head over to Bodega in Cleveland Heights this Wednesday night for the Jump Back Ball Happy Hour. You can score your tickets for the February 26th event without acquiring any handling fees. They will also have drink specials and complimentary passed apps. The event takes place this Wednesday, December 1st from 5:30 to 7:30. Enjoy!

Made in The 216

This Black Friday I had the opportunity to check out the opening of Made in The 216, a shopping event that highlights local designs and their designers. This year the event is being housed at the new Room Service boutique on West 25th. The event is taking place now through December 24th and the holiday shoppe boasts tons of jewelry, home wares, and men and women's apparel. If you are looking for the perfect gift or something new for yourself be sure to check it out.

If you need more information, or are a designer wanting to be featured in the NEXT Made in The 216 show click over to madeinthe216.com

Holiday spirit glows in Winterfest lighting ceremony on Public Square

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Nowadays it can seem hard for Northeast Ohioans to put any ho-ho-ho in the holiday season.

On the one hand, our football fortunes are wobbling on sprained ankles, and the local economy seems as bleak as the gray winter skies.
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But when the other hand is poised to unleash the magic of 4,000 strands of some half-million lights, everything can change with the flick of a switch.

Such was the case Saturday night when the holiday lights blazed on Public Square as part of the day-long Winterfest celebration downtown.

Celebrants jammed Public Square, bundled against the cold, waiting for that first moment of illuminated color.

The mood was festive, like a refrigerated carnival, as vendors worked the crowd, selling pink cotton candy, light wands and red-and-white-striped jester hats that sprouted from heads like candy-cane worms.

As Ralph Howard, 70, of Cleveland, ushered guests into the Cleveland Plus Visitor Center, he didn't seem the least bit mortified to be wearing a pink bunny suit -- a visual reference to the dreaded present given Ralphie in the movie "A Christmas Story," partly filmed in Cleveland.

After all, when you've already dressed like Clifford the Big Red Dog, a Purple Panda and the Cookie Monster for other publicity events, a "snow bunny" fits right in.

People like Ronald Barkley, 64, of Warrensville Heights, were primed to plug in the holiday spirit. "You want to get yourself started, get cranked up," said Barkley, who has visited this annual affair for most of the past 41 years with his wife, Kathy.

"I like being here with everybody, and nobody bothers you," Barkley added.

That Christmas camaraderie also was noted by Brent McNeely, 37, of Sheffield Lake, who wore a Steelers jacket to the lighting ceremony but said nobody in the heart of Browns territory had given him any grief about it.

McNeely had come to the ceremony to celebrate -- both his 17th wedding anniversary with his wife, Tina, and his return to work after being laid off for more than a year.

If there was something bigger than football rivalries going on that night, perhaps it was best illustrated when Santa took the stage just before they lit up the Square.

Waving with one hand at the bearded figure, Vasilios Capuozzo, 7, of Painesville Township asked his father, "Is that the real Santa?"

His father, Joe Capuozzo, looked down and wisely replied, "Yes." His son started waving with two hands.

The switch was flicked and the crowd suddenly came to a quiet hush in the twinkling glow of a red, green, blue, white and gold forest of lights hanging from shimmering tree branches and street lamps.

Ronald Barley's son Jason, 40, who remembered attending this event since he was a little boy, looked around Public Square and mused, "This is my home town. Where else would I be?"

Times are tough, sure. But as Barkley said, "Good news is where you find it."

And Saturday night it was right there on Public Square.

(Article courtesy of Cleveland.com)

Brain Gain: Developing best and brightest starts in college

All week, we've been telling you about companies and industries adding job opportunities. So, is the brain drain all a misconception?

If you believe the numbers, a recent census shows a brain drain. With more than 9,800 25 to 29 year olds leaving Cleveland. The numbers are higher for the 30 to 39 age group and older.

"So many of our young people, they may go to college at Cleveland State or Tri-C, Case or Lorain community college, and leave the state too often after graduation," says Sen. Sherrod Brown.

Brown is taking the fight to stop a brain drain to Washington. He is now holding forums with Ohio college and university presidents to brainstorm. And the new initiative is to connect businesses with current students.

"One of the things is internships. If a student gets a good internship at a local business or a local not for profit in euclid or westlake or Cleveland or Akron, there's a very good chance that student will keep that tie with that local organization and stay in greater Cleveland."

But is the trend reversing itself?

"What we find in the state of Ohio is about 75 percent of the graduates from Ohio colleges and universities are still here either working or taking more school about a year later. That is exactly on the national average," says Thomas Waltermire with Team NEO.

Team NEO has looked at data over the past few years and says young people are finding the opportunities they need in the jobs they want.

And if you look at Ohio for graduation to job ratio, Waltermire points to the fact that Northeast Ohio has more colleges per capita than most U-S cities.

So, there's no surprise there would be more graduates than jobs.

For young minds in Northeast Ohio, there are places to look for opportunity. Click on the video links provided to the right of this story.

John Carroll University is now accepting applications for the Woodrow Wilson Ohio Teaching Fellowship program. Information for anyone who wants to get their masters and has a math and science background is also included at the right hand side of this web page.

(Article courtesy of WKYC.com)

Snopening Day at Progressive Field

If Black Friday is a bit too hectic and well, stressful, maybe you should spend your post-Thanksgiving day off by heading to Progressive Field for the 'snopoening' of Snow Days Park. They will be turning the stadium into a winter wonderland that includes toboggan shoots, an ice skating track, and of course lots of snow (over 150 tons per day to be exact). If you are looking to stay toasty, the Home Run Porch will have plenty of fire pits. Tickets can be purchased on the Cleveland Indian's website, Indians.com. The Snow Days will run November 26th through January 2, 2011. What a great way to enjoy the ballpark this winter season. I know I will be stopping by!
(Photo courtesy of Indians.com)

Winterfest- The season may be chilly, but the ticket is HOT!

Cleveland Winterfest is here, contrary to the warm weather we've been sporting lately. Make sure you kick off the holiday season right by attending this jam packed day of activities.

The event starts bright and early at 9am and lasts until the tree lighting and firework display at 6pm. Don't think it stops there, an indoor after party will be held at The Cleveland Plus Visitor Center. There will also be ice sculpture carvings on East 4th Street throughout the evening. Last but not least, do not forget about The Winter Wine and Ale Fest from 8pm-12am at 200 Public Square, which will be a great way for the 21 and over set to warm up from a day full of outdoor fun.

Highlights of the day include the showing of the OSU vs. Michigan game (GO BUCKS!), free horse drawn carriage rides, concerts, and of course the Public Square lighting ceremony.

*According to @DowntownCle, The Downtown Cleveland Alliance's twitter account, there are only 60 tickets left for this Saturday's Cleveland Winter Wine and Ale Fest so make sure you get yours while you still can.

*For more info and to purchase tickets check out: www.downtowncleveland.com/winterfest

Volunteers labor for weeks on St. Augustine's Thanksgiving feast for thousands

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Seven days a week, Jerome White walks from his home on East 55th Street to volunteer at the St. Augustine Hunger Center in Tremont, Cleveland's West Side neighborhood. His walk takes an hour and 15 minutes -- or longer, depending on how hard it's raining or how deep the snow is.

On Thursday, he plans to leave home at 2 a.m. to help prepare eggs and sausage at an all-you-can-eat free breakfast at OLA St. Joseph Center in Tremont. Then he'll go on to St. Augustine's, where he is one of the 1,000 volunteers who prepare and transport 17,000 hot meals to serve poor and homebound people at no cost on Thanksgiving Day.

Just call White an officer in Sister Corita Ambro's Thanksgiving army.

Ambro, a 75-year-old dynamo at St. Augustine, has been supervising the free Thanksgiving feast for 30 of her 40 years at the church.

On Thursday, 300 to 500 people will dine between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. at two halls at St. Augustine Church, but thousands more across Greater Cleveland will enjoy a hot turkey dinner because of preparations that began the first week of October in the basement at St. Augustine's.

That's when the first of 1,000 turkeys went in the six ovens and eight roasters, each of which hold two or three turkeys. Since then, volunteer William "Fish" Hardy has arrived every morning at 5 to turn out 25 turkeys per day. And hunger center cook Sheryl Austin has baked from 120 to 180 pecan, apple and pumpkin pies daily, for a total of 3,000 that will be polished off Thursday.

Several volunteers come daily to debone the turkeys, filling big foil trays with meat to be frozen. "If we didn't start in October, we would never be done in time for Thanksgiving," said Ambro. She works the Thanksgiving prep in with such usual tasks as finding homeless people places to live and overseeing the three free meals St. Augustine's offers every weekday, along with two meals on Saturdays and Sundays.

The week before Thanksgiving, Tom Lisy of Bay Village and Gene Hanzely of Avon Lake, both Knights of Columbus volunteers, put on plastic gloves to pull the meat from just-cooked turkeys. The retirees have been helping prepare for Thanksgiving at St. Augustine's for most of the past decade.

"This is what Knights of Columbus do," said Hanzely, his gloves greasy. "We're supposed to help people."

That day, 21 eighth-graders from St. Ambrose School in Brunswick came to bring cans of food and assemble the cardboard boxes that will hold the foam containers for the hot meals that volunteers will assemble early on the holiday.
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"This teaches our children so much about life -- about the real world," said Sharon Yurick, a retired St. Ambrose teacher who chaperoned the group of 21 kids.

Food prepared at St. Augustine goes to hunger centers, churches and shut-ins from Lorain to East Cleveland -- much of it on Thanksgiving Day. Last week, St. Augustine's volunteer coordinator, Doris Everetts, was glued to a computer logging requests for meals and assigning volunteers. One apartment building on Cedar Avenue requested 75 meals.

On Thursday, volunteers will go to Pilgrim United Church of Christ, a distribution site near St. Augustine', to get maps and boxes of hot turkey dinners to deliver to more than 6,000 individuals who won't spend Thanksgiving with family or friends.

Everetts delegates volunteer tasks from food prep and serving to cleanup. Other volunteers will greet diners at the hunger centers and sit down to eat and talk with them. "That's important too," Everetts said.

Today, Mark "Munch" Bishop, ESPN Cleveland morning host on WKNR AM/850, will broadcast an appeal for food and cash donations throughout the day from St. Augustine as he has since the Rev. Joseph McNulty, the pastor of the church, called him for help 21 years and three radio stations ago.

The collection runs from about 6:30 a.m. until about 5 p.m. at the church, 2486 West 14th St.

"We have businessmen in suits and ties popping the trunks of their Mercedes to people who come in cars that I am amazed can make it down here," Bishop said. Last year, the Thanksgiving Eve round-up yielded about $5,000, 400 turkeys and 2,000 pounds of boxes and cans of food.

Ron Hudson of Mayfield Heights, shot when he was a Marine Corps sniper in Vietnam, will collect food brought to the church today from his wheelchair.

There are many heartfelt moments, Hudson said. "Last year, a guy gave us his last two dollars. He said, 'I'll walk the two miles to work and not take the bus.' That's what happens in Cleveland."

We are a caring city, Ambro agrees. Though she stood in a nearly empty pantry in the hunger center last week, stocked with little more than refried beans and beets, she said she had faith it would be filled after today. "The people of Cleveland are so generous."

"Sister Corita keeps my belly full," said John Jones of Cleveland's West Side, who goes to the St. Augustine hunger center to eat and to volunteer. "I do whatever they need done," said Jones. "It's been wonderful coming here."

The fact that more people throughout the area have little to spend on food hit home with Kevin Thompson. His law firm, Elk & Elk, donates 400 to 500 turkeys a year to St. Augustine. "Last year we saw families with little kids at the hunger center," said Thompson. "Being a family man, it was tough for me to see that."

But Thursday, across the city, whoever orders a meal will get one. Joe Smith, a laid-off cook and a volunteer, promises they'll even have sweet potatoes baked the old-fashioned way.

"We've got the marshmallows ready!"

(Article courtesy of Cleveland.com)

Thanksgiving Eve Celebrations

Are you planning on taking part in the bar room festivities the night before Thanksgiving? If you haven't yet been persuaded or are still unsure where to go this list below should be of some help coordinating a great night out for friends and family. Cheers!

Sachsenheim Hall (7001 Denison Ave.)Heavy Metal for The Hungry- A concert that benefits the Cleveland Food Bank.

Liquid Nightclub (1212 West 6th) Thanksgiving eve, and every Wednesday Liquid has Ladies Night with complimentary drinks + dancing all night.

Now That's Class (11213 Detroit Ave.) will be hosting a not so average bar night by putting on a burlesque show.

Roc Bar (1220 Old River Rd) will be hosting an Ugly Sweater party- so bust out your most hideous garb and grab a drink. Designated drivers get their non-alcoholic beverages for free!

The Cleveland Improv Comedy Club and Restaurant (2000 Sycamore Street) Hosts of WNCX 98.5’s “Scott and Jeff Show” will tag-team an unbelievably funny show.

Touch Supperclub ( 2710 Lorain Ave.) Party with some of Cleveland's best DJs.

The Beachland Ballroom (15711 Waterloo Rd.) will be hosting their 5th anniversary 'This Way Out' show.

Brain Gain: Which industries are growing in NE Ohio

CLEVELAND -- We are a rust belt city with the reputation of a dying economy. And, when you look at unemployment numbers and empty office buildings, its hard to imagine Cleveland is thriving. But, there's an exciting undercurrent in Northeast Ohio, one that promises a better and brighter future.

"There's just this whole idea that somehow everyone is leaving and its entirely wrong," says Thomas Waltermire with Team NEO.

The stigma of "Brain Drain" is all perspective. Waltermire has crunched the numbers and says the statistics show, Cleveland is gaining and gaining where it matters.

In numbers just released by Team NEO, they found that 80 thousand jobs were realized this year in the region, 23 thousand since July alone. And the Gross Regional Product is projected to grow 3.6 percent in 2010.

So why the stigma Cleveland's best and brightest have to go to bigger cities for better opportunities?

"We get so fixated on a few big brand names and somehow think nobody's here... But there are a lot of smaller companies that have developed and evolved and grown, and so we actually have more headquarters type functions now than we've ever had before."

Waltermire says both Akron and Cleveland are slowly attracting a different type of business - a far cry from steel and automotive.

"But what's in common is its all higher technology, its more globally competitive, and more export oriented and those are the trends going on in the economy here."

New "cleantech" energy technology is being created right here, biotech is developing and manufacturing isn't dead, in fact booming.

"The United States has never had more industrial manufacturing output than it has today."

(Article courtesy of WKYC.com)

Cleveland's Fabulous Food Show

Cleveland hosted The Fabulous Food Show a little over a week ago with celebrity chefs such as Guy Fieri and Alton Brown. Aside from cooking demonstrations, a food market, and a dessert pavilion we would love to know what our readers checked out. We know there were over 200 vendors, so lets us know what whetted your appetite. If you went to the food expo drop us a comment on what there was to see, drink, and taste!

Brain Gain: Biotech innovation saving lives and local economy

CLEVELAND -- Cleveland is already well-known for its high quality medical care. But its reputation is growing elsewhere.

Some of the nation's best and brightest are flocking to university circle to be on the cutting edge of the biotech innovation. Channel 3's Maureen Kyle continues our "Brain Gain" series with a look at how this could be the catalyst to change Cleveland forever.

"We are seen as a center for health care innovation among the leading clinicians that are here," says BioEnterprise CEO Baiju Shah.

In between doctors and patient care is the medical innovation needed to save lives. And located between the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals sits BioEnterprise, an incubator for biotech start ups.

"For every 10 ventures that is launched in the biomedical space, one of them will grow up to be the next "Steris". Two of them will be successfully acquired by a larger company and then those entrepreneurs will start their next ventures."

Shah started BioEnterprise in 2002 with 250 companies the incubator now has more than 600 and drawing in more.

"Went to the east coast, the west coast, someone convinced us to come to Cleveland, " says Jake Orville, a New York native.

Orville could have taken his company anywhere and decided Cleveland was the best location.

"Having been here now for two years, I think that's what's unique with Cleveland. You have the combination of the technology and you have the combination of the physician care and the patient care and its the two of them that really helps breed companies like mine, Cleveland Heart Lab."

Cleveland Heart Lab started with 8 employees, now has 26 and is looking to add 10 more.

"Opportunity! Opportunity knocked," says George Farr.

Farr was raised in Garfield Heights and moved to Connecticut to be a professor at Yale. He and a others moved back to work on protein advancement that will help stroke and brain trauma victims.

With their grant money they got a 16 hundred square foot lab in University Circle.

"For that same amount of money back in New Haven, we would get basically just half of one of these benches. That's it. No office space, no nothing."

It's these companies changing Cleveland's reputation worldwide and will change the way we view successful local businesses.

"They're not the TRW's. these are companies who have 10 to 50 employees that are working on very cool inventions that all of us are going to need."

(Article courtesy of WKYC.com)

Cuyahoga County commissioners clear way for medical mart and convention center

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cuyahoga County on Thursday closed a series of deals for the $465 million medical mart and convention center, clearing the way for construction of a project that backers predict will help revitalize the local economy.

Nearly five years after the tax-financed project was proposed, county commissioners approved key land purchases and a business agreement with the county's private partner, Chicago-based MMPI.

Their vote came at their second to last meeting. In January, a new charter government will replace the three commissioners and inherit the downtown Cleveland project. The mart will showcase medical products and technology in a four-story building attached to an underground convention center near the lakefront.

Here are details of agreements approved Thursday:

•Commissioners imposed a hike of 1 percentage point in the hotel bed tax to help pay for operations, which are expected to run $6 million a year. The measure will generate $2.4 million a year for operations.

• Positively Cleveland, the city tourism bureau, agreed to contribute about $16 million over 17 years for operational costs. Positively Cleveland's contribution will come from bed tax revenue, which accounts for most of its operating money.

• MMPI secured cost guarantees from design-builder Turner Construction Co. Under the agreement, Turner must complete design and construction for no more than $348 million. The deal calls for a 32-month construction schedule to be completed 2013.

• The county bought five properties, including $20 million for the existing city-owned convention center, and several parcels on St. Clair Avenue.

• A lease and operations agreement calls MMPI to build on the county-owned property. The county will pay MMPI $40 million a year, and MMPI will pay the county $36 million a year to pay its debt. The agreement allows under some circumstances for the county to use space in city-owned Public Auditorium, and for the city to use convention center space.

Workers will begin this month removing asbestos from several buildings in preparation for demolition. "Starting in the fall (2011), you'll see steel coming up," said Jeff Appelbaum, the county's point man on the project. Earlier this week, Appelbaum briefed all 11 members of incoming County Council, and urged them to form a subcommittee devoted to the medical mart and convention center. "Regardless of whether you have to make decisions, you are going to get calls," he said. "You're going to want to stay informed."

MMPI spokesman Dave Johnson said 41 companies have signed letters of intent to occupy medical mart showrooms, but he declined to name the potential tenants. 'The convention center has 16 signed letters of intent for trade shows and conferences, he said.

The deals approved Thursday mark the end of a process that been controversial at times, particularly when commissioners raised the sales tax a quarter cent without a public vote in 2007 to finance the project.

"We're delighted we've reached this moment," said Commissioner Tim Hagan. "It's important to the long-term vitality of the region."
(Article courtesy of Cleveland.com and The Cleveland Plain Dealer)

First Residents Move in to the University Lofts

The first residents moved into the University Lofts Condos earlier this month and the snowball effect has begun! The apartments are rapidly coming alive with new residents and condo traffic is following suit. With only seven condos currently available, space is limited for those looking to enjoy downtown Cleveland living with access to the health line. The existing residents of the building are enjoying the access to public transportation and said that have a home near the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals was very important to them.

For more information on purchasing a condo at the University Lofts visit UniversityLoftsCleveland.com, contact Scott Phillips Jr. at Scott.Phillips@kw.com or 216-373-6959.