Is Cleveland Ready To Party?

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Human Genome Sciences, an emerging tech company that develops gene-based drugs to cure cancer, had a problem: “Our research can be abstract and hard to read,” says founder and CEO William Haseltine, “so we use art to defuse the fear that our work may engender.” Check their beautiful annual report here, featuring the Cell Paintings Series of artist Ross Bleckner, oil paintings based on electron microscope images of cells with titles like Mysticism for Beginners and Dream and Do illustrating exciting annual report chapters such as “Our Product Pipeline” and “Our Business Strategy.” Another thing art and technology have in common (at least in Cleveland) is that the two communities are getting together for a big art/tech/dance party this Thursday (see below). 
See HGS’s art/tech annual report

are being profiled by the PD lately. Read the great features on people like Madison Village impresario and Capsule owner Chris Andrews, urban arts pioneer Joan Perch, (Cleveland’s only?) radio & TV arts reporter Dee Perry (“There are so many ways for seeing what’s going on around you or in you, and the arts are a great conduit for that”), ecoWarrior David Beach (“That’s the trick for Cleveland. How can we get better without getting bigger?”), and downtown developers Ari & Rick Maron (responsible for the East Fourth street renaissance with Pickwick & Frolic and the upcoming House of Blues). And reply to this e-mail to nominate your favorite Cool Clevelander, then watch this space for even more. 

OK, it’s been about a year now, so how is the Campbell administration (featuring Chief Development Officer and former tech entrepreneur Tim Mueller) doing vis-à-vis their progress on technology? Inside Business tech columnist and funny guy Dan Hanson rates the Mayor on these areas: Communication (he gives them an A), Appointing of a CIO/CTO (Dr. Melodie Mayberry-Stewart being brand new, earns an Incomplete), Establishing of a Tech Czar (Incomplete, although Mueller himself gets an A), and Application of Tech to Clevelanders (B). Next he thinks Cleveland-area tech firms should get every opportunity to compete. Watch this space for more on that bit. The article’s not online, but check the 12/02 issue. 
Inside Business

Sorry, we’re not one of them, according to the New York Times: “American cities used to become rich and important by attracting high-energy, low-skilled workers from abroad or from farm states. Now they do the same thing by luring brainy young people away from less livable American cities. Austin, San Francisco and Seattle are sparkling with newly arrived smarties who recently fled Cleveland, Harrisburg and St. Louis.” 
See the complete NY Times article here.

recently shot in Cleveland premiered here this week, Miracle Dogs, and Antwone Fisher(“It’s a Cleveland work of art by a Clevelander,” says Cleveland Film Commission’s Chris Carmody), and the interesting change is that people are starting to understand that this type of thing is good for the local economy and for our image both in and out of Cleve. 

Artist Marina Marquez-Zenkov invites Clevelanders to send your poems, essays, photos and designs to her at marquezenkov@hotmail.com, identifying where you think crosswalks should be built. All submissions become part of a performance where she chalks in the new walkways. 

The boards of CWRU & University Hospitals have signed a 50-year partnership agreement creating the Case Research Institute (CRI) which will allow them to do joint strategic planning to develop one of the top medical academic centers in the world. Watch for the hiring of 70 new faculty who will be jointly funded and managed, and a new dean of the School of Medicine to be announced within 2 weeks. Now that the quibbling is over, maybe this will stanch the departure of key researchers who were unnerved by the uncertainty, and should help attract bright minds to Cleveland. It’s about time. 
See details here

RTA is looking for 20 concerned citizens to serve on its Citizens Advisory board, putting in 4-6 hours and one meeting per month, helping to decide on programs, fares and projects. You even get free R/T fare. Contact 566-5220.
Sign yourself up here

(speaking of the genome sciences) or it will leave Cleveland in three months. Who can steal them away? Minneapolis, Phoenix or Durham, NC. See article in Crain’s here. One reader writes: “We asked ourselves what could we do to be proactive around Athersys. Some members of this discussion shared what goes on in other cities and we created a hybrid of those ideas. So here it is: Somewhere around the beginning of the second week in January, we organize a rally in the Athersys parking lot around 11:15 am (making sure CEO Gil Van Bokkelen is in town that day). We get as many people to show up as possible and WE CHEER THEM ON! We make sure they know that many Clevelanders appreciate and want them to stay put. If you remember when the Rock hall committee came to Cleveland, Clevelanders lined the street carrying signs and showed the committee how much we believed that Cleveland was the only place for the hall.” One good sign: Recently Athersys jointly applied (with Cleveland Clinic) for $28 million in state money to start an adult stem cell research center. And let’s hope they get the money. 
See story here

to Near West Theatre for winning the first ever Governors Award for the Arts in Community Development and Participation. Their innovative, intensive process of working with neighborhood teens includes esteem building, theatre training, a focus on social justice, open casting, and linkages to social services. Oh, and they put on killer shows that are actually relevant to what kids and audiences are going through in their lives. Now, with this massive statewide honor, they are the up-and-coming hot arts group in town (after only 25 years!).
See story here

is almost sold out. Already over 280 of you have registered for Cleveland’s first high-tech hoedown pairing the arts and technology communities. Join other Cool Cleveland readers as AIP and 18 other arts and tech groups unite and invite their members and friends to this holiday after-work party with DJ Thomas Anonymous, open bar, performance by Cleveland’s SAFMOD, a VJ blasting music videos on two 10’X16′ video screens, and an open projector for local digital artists to showcase their stuff. People have been asking: do I dress to dance, to network or to meet someone interesting? Yes. Thu 12/19 4-9PM New Center for Arts and Technology 5000 Prospect 881-7710 Register now before you’re left out in the old.
Register here

Live from the Beachland Ballroom and broadcast live on WCPN 90.3 FM to exchange ideas about how to make Northeast Ohio’s ethnic diversity work for us, instead of dividing us. Stop in, tune in or log on (to www.wcpn.org) for this live, two-hour gathering, featuring “the views of historians, social service experts, economic analysts, government officials, poets, musicians and, most importantly, ordinary citizens,” in this installment of the ideastream series Accents, a community discussion about ways to harness that historic diversity to the area’s advantage. Wed 12/18 7-9PM Beachland Ballroom, 15711 Waterloo 383-1124 
Beachland Ballroom

We’re finished making a worldpeacemusic CD and dipped over 400 jumbo pretzels in chocolate (so we have a lot of friends). But I realize some people will wait until the last minute. A great option is to give a membership to one of the area’s arts and cultural organizations. See story here. There’s discounts (Cleve Museum of Art’s buy-2-get-1-free), you might get a tax deduction, and they’re priced right. Check the list, and don’t forget others, such as MoCA, SPACES, The Zoo, Cleve Film Society, CPT, and others, who also offer gifts & gift certificates.

is a cool place for last-minute shopping and they have extended holiday hours. Already a lunch favorite of the downtown and near west side in-crowd because of the tasty Tea House Noodles, the luscious stuffed cabbage at Evelyn’s Hungarian Café, raw sushi, and Cleveland’s only authentic French crepes (served by returned Clevelander artist Denajua, who has spent the past seven years making a good living performing art pieces on the sidewalks of Paris), now the cognoscenti are realizing this is also a good spot for handmade candles, sunglasses, handbags, jewelry & chocolate, natural & gourmet entrees, salsas, chutney, and even an espresso bar. What’s nice is that this small business incubator, owned by Ohio City Near West Development Corp and rented out to small businesses, is more focused on celebrating Cleveland’s middle European multi-cultural offerings rather than attempting to emulate Beachwood Place or La Place’s imported chain-store drudgery. Across from the West Side Market 771-2697 
Market 25

is another cool place to find items from around the world that help build sustainable economies by marketing artisan crafts from 30 countries. These are Mennonites on a mission: “Ten Thousand Villages provides vital, fair income to Third World people by marketing their handicrafts and telling their stories in North America,” and their operating principles speak of building sustainable operations, choosing works that reinforce rich cultural traditions, and the use of volunteers in their 100 US stores. 19321 Detroit, Rocky River 440-333-7709 
Ten Thousand Villages

A Holiday Store is open only until 12/22 featuring art, crafts, books and music by Heights artists, sponsored by the Heights Arts Collective, 2171 Lee Road

Directed by Joyce Casey and featuring Dorothy Silver and Bernadette Clemens and named Dublin Theatre Festival’s Best New Irish Play, this tragic love story is told in the Irish folklore tradition and lyrically recalls the passionate love of a mother and father through the eyes of their daughter. Thru 12/21, 1846 Coventry 932-3396 
Dobama

Based on writer David Sedaris’ experiences as an out-of-work slacker who became a Macy’s elf, only to encounter a series of lecherous and drunken Santas. Beck conveniently allows you to get in the mood with cocktail service, and by the end of the night we were right back in the holiday spirit. Thru 12/22, 17801 Detroit 521-2540
Beck Center

to stop the war on Iraq. You might want to bring along these slogans (and a warm coat): No War for Oil, Not in Our Name, and Money for Jobs, Health Care & Education, Not for War. Sat 12/21 noon Public Square SW quadrant, followed by a march to and “possible encirclement of” the Federal Building. Related item: Attention theatre artists, writers, musicians, dancers, students/supporters of the arts, and all other interested parties to discuss what the performing arts community can do to join the voices of dissent which seem to be growing louder day by day. Wed 12/18 7PM Dobama, 1846 Coventry. Contact Sarah Morton 795-1197. Artists are coming together to brainstorm ways to use their talents and resources to raise awareness, incite action, and promote peace. 
Check here for comic relief

The definition of community art, since anyone can get up on CPT’s stage (and usually does). Where else can you catch belly dancers, a juggling unicycle troupe, avant-classical harpist Jocelyn Chang, Free Times writer and national poetry slammer Daniel Gray-Kontar and Thomas Anonymous in the pit band. Fri 12/20 & Sat 12/21 8PM. And don’t miss the opportunity to take the grandparents to Hedwig and the Angry Inch over in the awesome Gordon Square theatre next door, thru 1/4. 6415 Detroit 631-2727 www.cptonline.org 
Cleveland Public Theatre

is one of the remaining living legends of blues, and one of Cleveland’s cultural gems. Sat 12/21 9PM Beachland Ballroom, 15711 Waterloo 383-1124
Beachland Ballroom

Wed 12/18 7PM Holiday Songs by Hank Mallory & Foster Brown with mandolin, fiddle, concertina, banjo & kazoo at CanalWay Center, in the Ohio & Erie Canal Reservation off E. 49th St, between Grant Avenue and Canal Road in Cuyahoga Heights; Sat 12/21 1-4PM Parents Time Out means drop your child with a pillow & outdoor clothes for a G-rated movie, popcorn, craft & a hike, while you chill out or clean the house, at North Chagrin Nature Center, Sunset Lane entrance off Rt. 91, Mayfield Village, 440-473-3370; Sun 12/22 6:30PM Crown Point Ecology Center Winter Solstice Celebration. A potluck meal next to a warm fire to celebrate the official beginning of Winter. Dress for the weather, an outdoor excursion is planned, and bring a dish to share. Call 330-668-8992 for advanced registration 
Cleveland Metroparks

hosted by Cleveland Clicks @ Penton 12/11 You never thought infrastructure could be so interesting, but this exciting panel of CWRU CIO Lev Gonick, Cleveland Schools CIO Peter Robinson, Nortech’s Stacy Condon and Eaton CIO Don Bullock gave a lucid and stimulating overview of the strategies for turning the 5000 miles of overbuilt dark fiber (the kind that’s not connected) around Cleveland into a vehicle for wiring together the University, the city, the school system and the region (known as the OneCleveland project). The 4 strategies: Smart Kids (education via univ & Cleve Schools), Healthy City (UH & CC, focusing on transactions & monitoring for prevention), Smart Gov’t (Campbell is on board), and Smart Culture (to leverage the region’s assets & strengths). Why? McKinsey and others have identified our 3 big needs: IT Talent, Business Formation, & Digital Infrastructure. Interestingly, for all the big players pushing this, the greatest benefits may be reaped by mid- and small-sized companies who don’t have existing infrastructure, and who could benefit from being connected to markets around the region & world. Note: Cleve Public Schools now send home Sony PlayStations so parents can “play” educational games with their kids—many parents need to be taught at the same time as their children. Apparently, Cisco CEO John Chambers, in his stump speech these days, is referencing this type of unprecedented cooperation between universities, businesses and the government in, of all places, Cleveland. If all goes as planned, Cleve would be the first metro area in the country to leverage a very-high-bandwidth network to provide broadband to 90% of the region.

Dude, Orwell was wrong. The CCTV systems do work over here. They’re of enough quality to allow capture of images of purpetrators in action. It’s been proven time and again. Those of us with nothing to hide are not bothered by them. 

You know I love your newsletter. There were several inaccuracies in the PD article that should not be perpetuated. I thought the message was great, but the budgets and where they come from are inaccurate. In fact, most of the money does not come from the State and that is part of the problem in trying to fix or change the system. The funders are mostly members and or people who pay for services from these organizations. As long as they are raising their operating dollars from individuals and organizations, then the market is efficient. Public money has all but dried up for them. Please consider not perpetuating this inaccuracy as it takes the power out of the hands of the individuals and organizations and puts it with the State – where few feel that they can affect change. The best way for people to get involved here is use their membership, sponsorship, and event dollars wisely. NorTech takes NO public money, (it is) entirely funded by the private and foundation sectors. Growth takes no public money, they are funded by their members. EDI probably has 1/3 or less of their budget from the state, the majority of their money is raised in sponsorships. CAMP sells their services. When they have had public money, it has been to deliver a specific service to a specific population. All of this information is public. Cleveland Tomorrow is entirely funded by it’s members – the 50+ largest companies in the region. Becky (Gaylord) tried to get at that level of detail and didn’t find the answer that everyone assumes.

The (Clash) song is titled “Train in Vain” rather than “Stand by Me,” and of course Dee Dee Ramone is even more recently departed than Joey — a damn shame that both of da bruddas have left us. But these are mere quibbles.

I have the following comment about developing Cleveland’s lakefront: If that damn lake is so important to us, we’d be busting out the seams of what little access we’ve already got. We’d be paying to park at Edgewater. Private developers would be lined up at City Hall. Gordon Park would be overrun. I don’t see that happening. This isn’t really a lake-oriented town, is it? I love Chicago and Milwaukee’s lakefronts, but we’d be better off using The Public’s money to make life a little better, every day, for a lot of people all over town. Starting with something simple like you pointed out, better information at bus stops. One slice of salami at a time, every day, and pretty soon you got a tasty hoagie.

i’ve already nominated myself for ‘who’s cool’- so i’m going to sound off re: the old/new guard thing. i’ve been following the discussions fairly closely, been attending some of the charrettes, roundtables, networking, etc.and we’re (collectively) admitting that status quo ain’t working anymore, and we can choose a different future is good, very good. but i look at all the “change agents” leading the whatever, and i only see new, slightly younger middle-age-white-guys-in-a-suit replacing the older m.a.w.g.i.s’s; and they all seem to be spinning some variation of the same old big-infrastructure, mega-building project, controlled environment with franchise retailers “solution”. another navy pier, another times square, another disneyworld. what clevo most needs, before we build some other version of gateway, rock hall, beachwood place, etc. doesn’t come from money and “business leaders”. energy, buzz, interaction, inclusion, tension, creativity, self-expression, openness, diversity, progressiveness, innovation, unexpected and unpredictable- these are the attributes of exciting and dynamic places, and no truely hot city was planned and strategized to be so: they emerged as expressions of the vitality, creativity and ideas of its residents. and almost in every case, from seattle in the 1990’s to paris in the 1890’s, it is the individual artists, writers, inventors, engineers, scientists, creatives et.al. doing their thing and being embraced (usually after initially being scorned) that gives a place its juice. money helps, but its most helpful as patronage, and not buses to nowhere, or entertainment palaces admidst out of business performance groups. density also helps. enable creation, enable interaction, make a place at the table for as many people as you can find, add seats as necessary, do the simple things first, don’t burn out on talking, talking, talking. try stuff, be interested, think different. enough, i got some stuff to go make.

Thanks once again for a great newsletter. I now pose that you have two articles that are of the utmost importance and urgency: 1.Greater Louisville article 2.The lack of true leadership/change at our supposed leader organizations (Cleveland Tom., Growth, Convention Visitors, etc.) The latter is probably the most probable to change and even that doesn’t have a good chance. The leaders of these organizations tend to be spineless or self involved (I’m not sure which). I say that because why else would these organizations not be “fleet of foot” with new ideas and change opportunities. When it is so clear that there are fantastic ideas that could truly move this region, yet these same organizations look to ideas as threats unless they were created internally. WHY?WHY?WHY? Is it time that the residents demand collaboration between these organizations or demand the resignations of their leaders? We simply cannot be beaten into submission. It is going to take new ideas in economic development for our region to annouce itself to the world. We definitly have the ability to launch cutting edge initiatives. But our red tape, old-thought leadership, lack of collaboration and adversity of “risk-taking” characteristics that will defeat us if we don’t stand up and demand change!

Cleveland’s biggest problem — Amazingly inept planning. We’ve needed a real convention center for YEARS!…where were these same people when we built a stadium (which at best is used 20 times a year)…for $320M! How about mixed use!…can you say, Toronto! Other — I believe that ‘Cleveland is what it is’…which isn’t so bad. It’ll never be warm here in the Winter, have ocean breezes in the Summer, or have a palm tree-lined promenade. Use what we have…capitalize on it, grow it, promote it and keep throwing the consistent message of what we are out against the big wall…something is bound to stick. I’m so tired of hearing people say ‘it’s cold and miserable here, with nothing to do’…yeah?…well it’s even colder and more miserable in Toronto…but people go there in droves. Hmmmm, so much for the crappy weather angle! Keep it coming Tom…I think you’re on to something

I have to respond to the comment that Cleveland’s worst problem is downtown parking. That kind of thinking is killing our city. If we can’t walk for several blocks or take public transportation, there is no chance for street life or any kind of lively urban environment to exist. We end up with a dead downtown, bleak neighborhoods, and suburban strip shopping and malls surrounded by parking lots — where the parking is free but the walks are as long or longer than any downtown.
We need to wake up to what our complaining about parking is doing to our city and our environment.

I love the tone and style of this letter. It’s sarcastic, yet true, and very concise. Keep up the great work! +++ You truly shoot from the hip. You make me laugh, frown, and cringe all in one email. +++ I love the commentary! Have you considered a T.V. or radio show? I am sure the dialog would be great! +++ We’re getting girlfriends together to see Second City’s production next Wednesday, then AIP’s holiday party on Thursday. We are the girls who go out, thanks in part to you and Cool Cleveland! +++ And a comment on the TRW gift….I agree with the Cleveland Public Schools idea! Too bad you weren’t on that Board! +++ What a great list you’re putting out. I don’t know about many of these things, except for reading them on your list. +++ hey cool cleveland is really getting popular you know….I’ve had at least three people ask me if I’d seen Mulready’s great email newsletter… so..congratulations!!!….. +++ Please add my name to your distribution list. I don’t want to miss out on things happening in our clouded over fair city. +++ What a cool service. thanks for including me.

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–Thomas Mulready