The idea behind Urban Infant came to Eric Eichhorn when his sister Kelly Friedl had her first child. "All of the baby gear had ducks, bunnies or bears on it," he recalls. "I wanted to get beyond pink and blue to something that had solid, hip colors and was edgy."

Eichhorn and Friedl, who lived in Chicago, dreamed of products that would be geared towards parents "making the conscious decision to raise kids in an urban environment," Eichhorn explains. Friedl's expertise in graphic design combined with Eichhorn's business background led to the formation, in 2001, of Urban Infant.

Today, the Urban Infant has taken on a life of its own and sales are growing. In January, the partners leased a workshop in the 78th Street Studios, a complex of creative-minded businesses in the Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood. "We used to work out of our homes and closets, but then we went to an L.A. trade show, got a rep and began to expand," explains Eichhorn, who moved to Cleveland in 2004.

The Urban Infant's biggest seller is the Tot Cot, an all-in-one pillow, blanket and bed sheet that makes naptime simple for toddlers attending daycare or preschool. The Tot Cot's bedding is made of recycled PET plastic bottles. "It's cool to give someone something that has a previous life," says Eichhorn, who has made sustainability a core aspect of the business.

The Urban Infant also recently created a line of washable bibs made from recycled plastic bags. The bibs, each of which is unique and handmade, feature slogans such as "Thank You" and "American Greetings" (where Eichhorn now works as a business consultant). Priced at $18, the bibs are available at boutiques and museum stores across the country, as well as online.

The bibs are created by fusing together layers of plastic bags using a heat press. Eichhorn regularly scours the recycling bin at Dave's Supermarket in Ohio City for bags, ignoring strange looks from passers-by. He has also enlisted his friends in foreign countries to help collect bags, especially unusual ones.

Although Eichhorn and Friedl have yet to quit their day jobs, Urban Infant has gained a following. In January, the company's products were featured in Parenting magazine and on the Today Show.

Eichhorn and his wife recently celebrated the birth of their daughter Essa. Despite not getting enough sleep, Eichhorn is already working on several new product lines. And now that he has a child of his own, he's even more dialed in to the needs of urban parents.


Source: Eric Eichhorn
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The Neighborhood Connections program provides small financial gifts to community organizations focused on enhancing neighborhoods and engaging residents. Recipients must connect residents in meaningful ways through grass roots projects. Though the grants are small -- from $500 to $5,000 -- they can make a huge difference in the destiny of a neighborhood and its citizens.

These days, it seems that everyone is singing Pittsburgh's praises. Our Rust Belt neighbor to the east recently scored a Google corporate office. And last year, perennial Cleveland-basher Forbes Magazine named Pittsburgh the country's most livable city. Ouch. Clearly Pittsburgh is doing something right. Simply put: That city is light years ahead of Cleveland when it comes to bike-friendliness -- and bike-friendly cities are more attractive to young professionals, the creative-class folks who hold the keys to economic prosperity.
 

Homeowners were taking out equity loans with alarming abandon just a few years ago, yet now many are reluctant to invest money in their homes. "With housing values falling, demand for home repair loans has also fallen," says Larry Slenczka, Vice President of Community Development for Dollar Bank.

Yet Dollar Bank continues to finance home rehabs through a partnership with Cleveland Action to Support Housing (CASH), a nonprofit whose mission is to revitalize Cleveland neighborhoods through home repair lending.

"CASH has been successful in identifying projects driven by investors," says Slenczka. "Their transactions tend to be very solid loans that have a very low default rate." CASH offers investors and owner-occupants a reduced interest rate. Currently, that interest rate is 2.6%.

Even as the average homeowner sits on the sidelines, some rehabbers are jumping in and finding deals. And the glut of vacant properties in Cleveland has presented an opportunity for savvy investors; while foreclosure rates nationwide reached their lowest level in four years last month, Cleveland still has a backlog of empty homes.

Yet while it seems anyone with a credit card can snap up a cheap foreclosure -- plumbing optional, of course -- that's just the beginning of the process. Getting a loan is no simple feat. Struggling with unsold inventories, many banks are cautious about lending to investors, while others aren't lending at all.

That's where CASH comes in. The nonprofit's partnerships with Dollar Bank and other lenders help owners get financing. In addition to offering a reduced rate, CASH helps owners to pick a contractor, develop a list of repairs, and inspect the work.

"Everybody wins," says Slenczka. "The neighborhood benefits from reinvestment, the benefits from private investment, and the bank benefits from a healthy market return."


Source: Larry Slenczka
Writer: Lee Chilcote

As the saying goes, "you've got to spend money to make money." With a new $35 million award in tax credits from the U.S. Department of Treasury, Cleveland Development Advisors (CDA) plans to spur economic development in the city by financing projects that lead to more business opportunities.

CDA, an affiliate of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, was one of six entities in Ohio to be awarded this latest round of federal tax credits. CDA plans to use the award to focus on economic development in the areas of technology, business and industrial expansion and retail, residential and hospitality projects.

In a statement released by CDA, Mayor Frank Jackson called the federal tax credits another sign that Cleveland's economy is growing. "Tax credit financing, afforded by the allocation, together with local bank commitments and city investments, will make high-profile job-producing developments feasible in our neighborhoods and downtown," Mayor Jackson said.

Past awards from the Treasury Department resulted in the financing of 20 projects that, according to CDA, generated 2,800 jobs, 390,000 square feet of office space, and 450,000 square feet of industrial space in Cleveland. The East 4th Street neighborhood, Capitol Theatre in the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood, Arbor Park Plaza in the Central Neighborhood and the UpTown project in University Circle all have benefited from CDA's investment in federal tax credits.


SOURCE: CDA
WRITER: Diane DiPiero

The Capitol Theatre, a three-screen movie theater at Detroit and W. 65^th Street that opened in late 2009, has met its projections by attracting 45,000 patrons in its first year.

The pioneering venue is the only indie movie theater on Cleveland's west side. The Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization (DCSDO), the nonprofit developer, secured financing and broke ground on the project just a few months before the collapse of the financial markets in 2008. The theater, which contains a beautifully restored main room and two smaller rooms, is a centerpiece of the burgeoning Gordon Square Arts District.

To ensure continued viability, the Capitol must grow its audience by 10 percent per year for the next five years, says Jenny Spencer, Project Manager with DSCDO. "Right now, we're building an audience," says Spencer. "We're doing about as well as we'd expected, but we need to keep growing."

Spencer cited the strong attendance during recent screenings of Black Swan and True Grit as indication that the Capitol's audience will continue to grow.

Since the Capitol opened, it has broken the corporate mold by offering special events, resident discounts, partnerships with local restaurants and other creative strategies to entice moviegoers. Currently, it is offering a promotion for Lakewood residents, who can see a movie for $6 through the end of March. The Capitol is run by Cleveland Cinemas, which manages eight theaters, including the Cedar Lee.

The Capitol Theatre's growing audience will also help to attract more independent films, Spencer said. When the Capitol Theatre project was first launched, the venue was billed as the "Cedar Lee of the West Side" by promoters. However, the theater had difficulty attracting the indie hit "Waiting for Superman" because attendance wasn't high enough. Thus, the theater has been forced to screen a mix of independent and larger Hollywood films, and Spencer says that will likely continue.

Although movie theaters across the country continue to face competition from Netflix and other online services, Spencer says that special events such as "Sunday Classic Movies" and partnerships with restaurants are attracting patrons seeking a unique movie-going experience. And while Crocker Park has 16 screens, she adds, the Capitol is still the only West Side venue where you can order a beer.


Source: Jenny Spencer
Writer: Lee Chilcote

To paraphrase Jerry Seinfeld: "Taco Tuesdays -- what's up with that?" Seems that all across this great city, barflies are bellying up to the counter for bottomless plates of dirt-cheap tacos. While the origins of this fad are fuzzy, the rationale behind the trend is simple enough: offer deeply discounted tacos to hungry diners in hopes of upping business on a traditionally slow weeknight. Some fans hit up new spots weekly, while others fashion a taco-themed pub crawl. Soft or crunchy, beef or pork, gourmet or fast-food… Here are some fan faves.

Since 2001, Cleveland Public Theatre has been fostering original works by independent Northeast Ohio artists through its residency program. Titled Big [BOX], the program provides budding talent access to resources such as stage management, production staff, box office, and marketing and advertising support. For one week, artists are "given the keys to the theater" to polish their productions, culminating in a full-weekend run.

Through its residency program, Big [BOX], Cleveland Public Theatre fosters original works by independent Northeast Ohio artists. Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski sat in on the rehearsals of two past and one upcoming production -- "Fast Forward-Rewind-Stop," "Cowboy Poet" and "Through Her Eyes" -- and prepared this engrossing pictorial feature. Please turn off cell phones before taking your seat.

For years, the trend in Ohio City was for young couples to buy homes, live there a few years, and then flee to the suburbs when they had kids. Thanks to a close-knit group of pioneering parents, that story may soon have a different ending. With hopes for a new public charter school becoming a reality, many young parents see a future that doesn't include a home in suburbia.

When it opens next week, XYZ Tavern will fill what Detroit Shoreway residents say is a need for good, casual and affordable fare. And that's just what they'll get, promises owner Randy Kelley, who along with partners Linda Syrek and Alan Glazen will dish out scratch-made comfort food in a modern tavern setting. For nearly five months, Fresh Water photographer Bob Perkoski documented the progression that transformed Perry's Family Restaurant, a long-shuttered greasy spoon, into XYZ Tavern.

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.

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.

Mike Graley, a wine buyer for Heinen's for 20 years, is applying his expertise to a new venture, Battery Park Wine Bar, a.k.a. YOLO Wine Bar in Battery Park. YOLO stands for "You Only Live Once," which Graley says is the theme of his unpretentious, contemporary joint, in the former Eveready plant in Detroit Shoreway's Battery Park neighborhood.

This "not-so-typical wine bar," as Graley describes it, will carry well over 100 varieties, all sold at just $12 above retail -- unlike the more typical double retail. The same price structure will be used in the adjacent retail shop. Graley is talking to some Ohio wineries about carrying their labels.

The menu will feature "medium plates" of beef and lamb sliders, truffle mac and cheese, pork and veal meatballs, Ohio City Pasta and a variety of fries, plus cheese, meat and olive boards and salads.

The wine bar will be the first business to open in the Powerhouse, as the old Eveready plant is now known. The Powerhouse is in the heart of the Battery Park residential community, developed by Vintage Development Group. "It shows that redevelopment of the lakefront is a huge asset," says Jeff Ramsey, executive director of the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organzation. The Waterfront District Plan will greatly increase pedestrian and bicycle access to the lake by 2014.

YOLO Wine Bar is scheduled to open November 15. For updates send an e-mail to info@batteryparkwinebar.com.



Source: Mike Graley
Writer: Frank W. Lewis

The Civic Commons is a modern-day marriage of online technology, citizen journalism, and civic collaboration. The mission? To inform, engage and lead local residents to action on any number of weighty topics. Our guides: Dan Moulthrop and Noelle Celeste.

City governments often get a bad rap. Cleveland's government is especially vulnerable to dismissal, what with that lingering "mistake on the lake" thing. But some informed government watchers — at Harvard, no less — like what they see, at least in terms of the city's willingness to cooperate with communities in building a better future.

The Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, recently recognized the Strategic Investment Initiative (SSI) — a partnership between the non-profit Neighborhood Progress Inc. and the City of Cleveland — as a "Bright Idea." The newly created Bright Ideas program "is designed to recognize and share creative government initiatives around the country with interested public sector, nonprofit, and academic communities."

"My understanding is that this [honor] is fairly unusual," says Walter Wright, Neighborhood Progress's senior program officer. SSI involves the city, but grew out of Neighborhood Progress's work with community development corporations. Today it includes the CDCs in Buckeye, Detroit Shoreway, Ohio City, Slavic Village and five other communities. Neighborhood Progress describes SSI as "a market-driven approach that incorporates a deeper investment in neighborhood planning, a concentration of resources on larger-scale project investments and the introduction of more comprehensive strategies to improving quality of life through green spaces, public art, and neighborhood stabilization strategies."

The Bright Idea designation is "basically an honorific," Wright says. But he welcomes the opportunity to discuss the SSI model with like-minded folks from around the country who will learn of it thanks to the nod from Harvard.



Source: Neighborhood Progress Inc.
Writer: Frank W. Lewis

Someday the Medical Mart may make Cleveland an essential destination for healthcare professions. But the city has already achieved such status among those who study blight, which is why Cleveland is hosting the third national Reclaiming Vacant Properties Conference, which continues through Friday at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel on Public Square.

"This is by far the biggest," says Jennifer Leonard of the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Community Progress, which organized the conference with Cleveland's own Neighborhood Progress, Inc. "Today, there are more places that are being challenged by vacant properties."

Cleveland, of course, would be at or near the top of any such list. But that's not the only reason CCP selected the city for this gathering, which occurs every 18 months. Cleveland also boasts an impressive array of dedicated advocates and innovative approaches to the problem, such as the Cuyahoga Land Bank and Judge Raymond Pianka's Housing Court.

Various parts of the city will serve as backdrops for discussions. "Mobile Workshops" will take participants to Euclid Avenue, as an example of using transit to spur development; a vineyard in Hough and other sites that have been reclaimed for farming or greenspace; Slavic Village, where the foreclosure crisis is combated with a "resident-driven approach to finding a new identity," and the hip and booming Detroit Shoreway community.

"It's actually kind of hard," notes Leonard, "to make sure the conference isn't too focused on Cleveland."

The conference is sold out, but more information is available at the web site.



Source: Center for Community Progress
Writer: Frank W. Lewis