Young urbanist leaders who were in Cleveland this week for Next City's annual Vanguard conference were asked a provocative question about this city's future. With new development activity happening in neighborhoods across a city that still is devastatingly poor, how can we do a better job of ensuring that these projects will benefit our poorest residents?

"I'm a little concerned that as we build projects, we're creating a city for yuppies and a city for everyone else," commented Ari Maron of MRN Ltd. in a presentation to 40 leaders from across the U.S. and Canada engaged in fields such as urban planning, entrepreneurship and sustainability. "How many cupcake and yogurt shops can a city sustain?"

Heads nodded and attendees laughed as Maron admitted the challenge was as much to himself as others, since MRN owns three of the city's most prominent new developments, E. Fourth Street in downtown Cleveland, Uptown in University Circle and property along W. 25th in Ohio City.

Several attendees noted that they were surprised by how few of the city's larger developments have translated into prosperity for surrounding neighborhoods. Sitting in the newly-built Museum of Contemporary Art at University Circle, leaders asked how that area's success could benefit its low-income neighbors.

Maron cited the Greater University Circle Initiative and local hiring and procuring efforts by University Hospitals and others. MRN has committed to hiring local residents for its projects, and the company now employs 285 city residents.

"When people from the neighborhood work here, they take ownership of the project because it's their neighborhood," he said, citing DoubleTree Hotel as one example of a University Circle project that employees many local residents.

An attendee from Chicago noted that Cleveland appears to be behind in adding bike-friendly infrastructure. He cited the recent addition of separated bicycle lanes to Surmac Avenue in Chicago as a game-changing project for his city. "Cleveland needs to do one really good pilot project," said the attendee.

Next City is a national nonprofit media organization that organizes the Vanguard conference to highlight best urban practices and develop young urban leaders. Updates from the conference are being posted on Next City's daily blog.


Source: Next City, Ari Maron
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Northeast Ohio cyclists better gear up, because two local chapters of the United Way are counting on them to take in the local scenery for a good cause.

United Way of Greater Cleveland and United Way of Summit County are partnering to host the third annual RideUNITED bicycle tour June 23. The charities are expecting about 700 cyclists to travel either the Towpath Trail or city streets for this one-day, Cleveland-to-Akron-and-back event.

A variety of route distances have been implemented to accommodate all cyclists, with options ranging from a 12-mile jaunt for novices up to a 100-mile century ride for experts, says Michelle Carver, special events manager for the Cleveland chapter of United Way. All routes are round-trip except the 40-mile ride, which ends at the University of Akron.

The tour is expected to raise up to $80,000 to advance United Way programming in the areas of education, income and health. Last year, more than 500 cyclists participated in RideUNITED, raising more than $54,000.

This year's ride will take participants on a bike-friendly course past such Cleveland landmarks as the Rock Hall and the newly renamed FirstEnergy Stadium. Towpath riders, meanwhile, will get to enjoy the bucolic splendor of Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

Those who don't want to ride can still volunteer at rest stops along the way, notes Carver. Snacks, first aid and bike maintenance/repair will be provided to cyclists at Steelyard Commons, Thornburg Station, Boston Store and the Indian Mound/Botzum Trailhead.

"The idea was to bring the region together," Carver says of the bike tour. "We're inviting everyone to participate."

 
SOURCE: Michelle Carver
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

Mansfield Frazier, the entrepreneurial mastermind behind the improbable Chateau Hough vineyard at E. 66th and Hough, says he will break ground on the world's first biocellar this year. He's raised more than half of the $100,000 needed to complete the experimental, innovative project.

"This is about growing crops in the wintertime," says Frazier. The biocellar, which has been described as a passive solar greenhouse, will consist of a glass structure built on top of the basement of a demolished  home. "We plan to grow mushrooms because they're $12 a pound, an acre yield higher than anything else. This is about renewing neighborhoods, reusing buildings and creating wealth in the inner city."

"The biocellar is based on two concepts," Frazier explains of the glass-topped structure developed by permaculture designer Jean Loria. "One is a root cellar, which has been around thousands of years, and the other is a greenhouse. It's basically taking a greenhouse structure and putting it on top of a root cellar."

Frazier says that he hopes to break ground in July so that the biocellar will be completed by fall. The two- to three-month build-out will be handled by Don Lasker of ALL Construction, and Frazier will also employ a lot of neighborhood residents and guys from a local halfway house. The biocellar was designed by Arkinetics.

Funding sources include local councilpeople, stormwater management funding from the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District and a local angel investor.

"We're budgeting $100,000 for the first one, but hopefully the cost will go down once we know what we're doing," says Frazier. "We know the science is there."


Source: Mansfield Frazier
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The brave escape of three women held captive in a Cleveland home has garnered a philanthropic response from local political and business entities.

The Cleveland Courage Fund was established by Cleveland City Council members Brian Cummins, Matt Zone and Dona Brady to benefit kidnap victims Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry and Berry's daughter. The funds were set up at the Cleveland Foundation and Key Bank two days after the release of the survivors, and have raised $650,000 to date. The total includes a $50,000 gift from the Cleveland Foundation and a $10,000 donation from Key Bank.

Money can be donated through the foundation's website or at KeyBank branches throughout Northeast Ohio, says Tom Stevens, the bank's vice chair and chief administrative officer. Prospective donors also can mail funds to the Cleveland Courage Fund care of the Cleveland Foundation, 1422 Euclid Ave., Suite 1300, Cleveland, Ohio, 44115.

KeyBank is providing pro bono financial council to the affected women and their families."We hope that through the generosity of the public, we can help these women get the resources they need," Stevens says. "We are delighted to serve as advisors to help ensure that Gina, Michelle and Amanda are able to use the money for their well-being."

Since its inception, the fund has received contributions from all 50 states as well as overseas. Groups including Jones Day, which is providing free legal council to the women, and The Centers for Families and Children are working to get every penny of the donated dollars into the right hands.

"People have been very generous with their contributions," says Stevens.

 
SOURCE: Tom Stevens
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

The Brain Gain Cleveland Project (BGCP) has teamed up with the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association to stage a lunchtime pep rally for the city they love.

The rally will be hosted by the legal organization and serve as its annual meeting, just with a far more diverse crowd than usual, says Debra Mayers Hollander, deputy director of scouting for BGCP.

Hollander is expecting 1,000 guests to make it to the floor of Quicken Loans Arena for the June 28 event. Among the more famous participants scheduled to appear are Cavs owner Dan Gilbert and Senator Sherrod Brown. BGCP members the Cleveland Orchestra and Positively Cleveland will be among the institutions on hand. The event also will include live music, videos about Cleveland, and food from local eateries.

Rally attendees can fill out a registration form online or purchase tickets by calling the bar association at 216-696-3525. Those who miss the daytime event can make up for it that night with a BGCP music and networking get-together at The Tavern Company in Cleveland Heights.

"It's going to feel inspirational," Hollander says. "Everybody coming together in the heart of downtown Cleveland to support one another."

BGCP is a nonprofit advocacy group founded by bar association members to grow the city through the creativity and energy of its citizens. The grassroots effort is led by Jon Leiken, a Jones Day partner and bar association president-elect. BGCP's website launched in 2012 and has attracted about 350 “scouts," a term referring to its members.  

"We hope [the rally] encourages people to join us and become a scout," says Hollander.

 
SOURCE: Debra Mayers Hollander
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

San Francisco and Austin offer residential curbside composting, but such forward-thinking green ideas have yet to become a reality in Cleveland. A recently-awarded grant from Enterprise Community Partners, however, will help the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization think through how to develop a community composting facility for restaurants in the Cleveland EcoVillage.

Although citywide composting may not be in the cards right now, the pilot project could demonstrate ways to scale up composting in a range of city neighborhoods.

A similar $40,000 grant was also awarded to Burton Bell Carr Inc. to develop a safer streetscape plan for the Kinsman EcoDistrict. Forty percent of area residents do not have a car, and a recent multi-car accident here injured five people. BBC will develop a plan to improve the ability to safely bike and walk on Kinsman.

"Cleveland was the only city in the nation that got two projects funded through this program, which is pretty exciting," says Michelle Mulcahy with Enterprise Community Partners. "These projects are neighborhood-scale sustainability approaches that support the area's ongoing community development work."

Once the plans are finalized, these projects also could become national test cases for how to green cities, furthering Cleveland's reputation as a leader in this area.

Enterprise also recently issued a Request for Proposals to provide funding for a neighborhood-based climate action plan that would become part of a citywide plan.


Source: Michelle Mulcahy, Mark McDermott
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Near West Theatre's new home will be nothing if not active when it opens next year. It will be filled with youth and adults rehearsing for its signature brand of community theatre -- large ensemble productions that bring the arts to youth and city residents.

And when its shows are running, it will draw up to 275 patrons per show into a new, state-of-the-art theatre that caps off a string of investments in the Gordon Square Arts District.

The building not only will be active -- it will be "passive" when it comes to energy consumption. It will boast a super-insulated, passive design common in Europe but still relatively new in the U.S. The 24,000-square-foot ultra-energy-efficient theatre will be the first of its kind in the U.S., featuring super-thick walls, an energy-efficient heat recovery ventilation system, and a 75,000-watt array of solar panels.

"It will be unlike other buildings in the neighborhood," says Hans Holznagel of the new Near West Theatre, which will be located at W. 67th and Detroit in the Gordon Square Arts District. "We hope people will see the sign and say, 'Wow, that metal building looks pretty cool. What's going on in there?'"

Philanthropists Chuck and Char Fowler earmarked a special gift for the building's passive design, which is expected to save more than 35 percent in energy costs, or about $1.2 million over 50 years. That kind of savings appeals to long-term users.

"In a typical commercial building, 30 to 35 percent of the heat going into the building is just to offset air leakage," says Adam Cohen, a Virginia-based architect and passive house consultant who worked on the project. "There's more interest in passive design now, especially from end users who are going to own the buildings."

The project was far from simple. Most passive commercial buildings have fairly static loads, unlike a theatre whose use varies widely. On any given day there could be people working in offices or large casts rehearsing. Cohen helped NWT to develop a high-efficiency mechanical system that can handle such fluctuation.

Holznagel says the theatre will finally realize its dream of moving into a new home (with air conditioning, he says with glee) that offers the right amount of rehearsal, dressing room and backstage space, not to mention modern administrative offices.

"We'll feel very much at home in this energy-efficient building," he says.


Source: Hans Holznagel, Adam Cohen
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, a nationally-recognized research organization, service provider and policy advocate that works with older adults and caregivers, is set to open a new 6,000-square-foot administrative headquarters and training center.

"What's new about the facility is that we intend to broaden the scope of our training to a couple of new audiences," says CEO Richard Browdie of the building at Fairhill Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. "There are many professions that interface with older people and their families on a routine basis but may or may not have any training available to them."

The building also provides Benjamin Rose with the first permanent home for its training programs. Traditionally, such programs had been conducted at off-site locations. Browdie finds it poetic that the organization is building its home in the Shaker-Buckeye neighborhood of Cleveland where they've been for many years.

"The board just really came back to the conclusion that, no matter what they did, they wanted to remain here in the city," he says. "We have replications of our evidence-based practices all over the country, but our home is in Cleveland."

The building cost about $7.5 million and the project cost $11.4 million. Funds came from the sale of another facility to Kindred Hospital, New Markets Tax Credits and other sources. Browdie says the facility will also be available for rent for retreats and other events hosted by nonprofits organizations with compatible missions. The hilltop location offers sweeping views of downtown Cleveland.

Benjamin Rose will celebrate with a free afternoon celebration on Sunday, May 19th from 2-4 p.m. The new BRIA training center is located at 11890 Fairhill.


Source: Richard Browdie
Writer: Lee Chilcote

When every sector of a populace thrives, so does the community as a whole. The local chapter of a national philanthropic organization plans to shine a light on this and other issues during a series of programs in 2013.

Philanthropic support of black male achievement will be the subject of the Foundation Center's first Rising Tide program on May 22, says director Cindy Bailie. Nearly every major indicator of economic, social and physical well-being shows that black men and boys in the U.S. do not have access to the structural foundation and opportunities needed to succeed. However, a flood of philanthropic support and social innovation is addressing these challenges head on.

"There's work happening locally aimed at black men of all ages," says Bailie. "This is our chance to change the situation."

The program will consist of three speakers and a panel discussion. The center has also launched a website to spotlight the topic. Connecting people to those working on the problem is only part of the plan.

"We want people to leave inspired," says Bailie. "This is a call to action."

The New York-headquartered Foundation Center is a source of information on U.S. grantmakers. Locally, the organization acts as a library/learning center for those seeking knowledge about the nonprofit sector.

The black achievement program is the first of a planned series of quarterly events "showcasing new ways of solving old problems," says Bailie. Future events could touch on such topics as the impact of arts and culture on the community.

"These [programs] aren't just conversation-starters," Bailie says. "What will you do to keep the conversation going?"

 
SOURCE: Cindy Bailie
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

When Geoff Thorpe founded NDI Medical in 2002 with his neurostimulation device for bladder control, he saw a market with a lot of potential. The company sold its MEDSTIM device to Medtronic in 2008, kept the NDI name and branched into developing and commercializing new neurostimulation device companies.
 
The move has proved successful. NDI has launched two companies and has grown to 32 employees, 21 of whom work in NDI’s Cleveland headquarters. The company also has offices in North Carolina and Minnesota. Most recently, NDI Medical named Marilyn Eisele as president of the company. She has been with NDI about a year, previously serving as vice president of finance and CFO.
 
“What attracted me to the company was the innovation coming out of the collective enterprise,” Eisele says. “We took a step back after we sold the company in 2008 and decided to reinvent and continue the business as a development company where we develop new therapies.”
 
Since selling the company and regrouping as a developer of new technologies, NDI Medical has raised $17 million in private equity and another $9 million in grants and loans. In 2010, the company launched Checkpoint Surgical, which makes a device that allows surgeons to locate nerves and muscles before making an incision, and SPR Therapeutics, which develops nerve stimulation devices for pain management. Sales have doubled each year since Checkpoint was launched.
 
“In some ways we are a development company, and in some ways we’re an incubator company,” says Eisele. “We’re able to develop medical devices so each portfolio company doesn’t need its own team of engineers. It’s a very cost-effective way to use research.”
 
NDI Medical is in the process of launching a third company in the next few months.

 
Source: Marilyn Eisele
Writer: Karin Connelly

Cuyahoga County residents needing food assistance now have some healthy alternatives thanks to a new program developed by the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Food Policy Coalition.

Twenty farmers markets and two farm stands throughout the county are partaking in the “Double Value Produce Perks” initiative, which offers incentive dollars to customers utilizing the Ohio Direction Card. Produce Perks are tokens given to customers at participating farmers markets who use the card to purchase food. Customers swipe their cards at a central terminal, with the market providing tokens for the transaction in addition to Produce Perks that can be spent on fruits and vegetables. The incentive is a dollar-for-dollar match to every dollar spent (up to $10) using an Ohio Direction Card at the market.

The project addresses healthy food gaps in the region, says Erika Meschkat, program coordinator for community development at Ohio State University Extension-Cuyahoga County, one of the entities making up the local food policy coalition. In creating the program, the coalition has partnered with several Greater Cleveland philanthropies as well as Wholesome Wave, a national nonprofit focusing on food access in underserved communities.

"Some people don't feel comfortable using their Ohio Direction Card at a farmers market, or there's a perceived cost barrier," says Meschkat. "The program incentivizes them to have a good experience."

The impact of Produce Perks has grown since its inception in 2010. Last year, 16 farmers markets contributed to over $27,000 in Ohio Direction Card sales with over $18,000 in incentives redeemed to buy fresh fruits and vegetables.

"We want 2013 to be even bigger," Meschkat says.

 
SOURCE: Erika Meschkat
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

Every tragedy carries its own story, believes Diane Snyder-Cowan, director of the Hospice of the Western Reserve’s Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Bereavement Center. If that's the case, children in particular may need help in translating those stories into something they can understand.

Thanks to funding the hospice recently received for its school crisis response programs, deciphering scary or sad incidents will continue to be a part of its mission. Earlier this month, the hospice was gifted grants from The Ridgecliff Foundation ($25,000) and The Pentair Foundation ($5,000). The money will assist staff development that engenders the nonprofit's relationship with area schools when death-related crises occur. Both foundations have provided the program annual support since 2007.

"Our grief counselors help meet the unique circumstances" of tragedy, says Snyder-Cowan. Counselors provide on-site support for such incidents as suicides, shootings, accidental deaths, unexpected sudden deaths, and anticipated deaths due to serious illness. Each response is carefully planned in coordination with the school's staff.

The resource is particularly needed in light of recent tragedies in Boston and Newtown, notes the program director. The funding will allow employment of a liaison to assist schools in their crisis planning. It will also pay for "crisis kits" filled with books, arts and crafts, and other materials to help children and teens develop a normalized view of the grieving process.

Snyder-Cowan views the program as an extra layer of encouragement to go along with in-school grief counselors.

"Everyone should have this kind of support," she says. "We're grateful to our foundations for supporting this mission."
 

SOURCE: Diane Snyder Cowan
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

Has Silicon Valley jumped the shark? Ask many keen observers of technology hubs from coast to coast and they'll tell you that 2013 is prime time for startups to bloom in unexpected cities like Detroit and Cleveland. Dubbed the "Rise of the Rest," the burgeoning trend documents the blossoming of entrepreneurialism in unexpected places.

Providence House wants to take some of the strain off local hospitals dealing with non-medical family issues. The solution, believe crisis nursery officials, is a forthcoming facility that will care for children whose households are dealing with emergencies that doctors cannot touch.

It's true that Elisabeth's House -- The Prentiss Wellness Nursery will take in kids with minor medical needs, notes executive Providence House director Natalie Leek-Nelson. But those children might come from such chaotic home situations that even their manageable conditions could blow up into something worse.

"These kids don't have the medical care at home to sustain them, and insurance won't pay for their hospital stays," says Leek-Nelson. A typical wellness nursery client would be a child with diabetes who is not getting the proper insulin treatments living with a drug-addicted or homeless parent.

The model also will offer family support and crisis intervention services for children with family stability concerns. In practice, the operation will allow hospitals to focus on the most serious cases, as children who could otherwise be discharged can now leave the hospitals and be cared for at the wellness nursery. Elisabeth's House is expected to serve newborns to children up to the age of 10.

The Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Foundation gave $1 million to Providence House to create the wellness nursery and aid the agency's ongoing campus expansion. The nursery, scheduled to open in September, will be located across the street from the newly expanded "Leo's House" on the Providence House campus at W. 32nd Street.  

 
SOURCE: Natalie Leek-Nelson
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

A nonprofit seeking to create environmentally sound, high-performance building districts in Cleveland recently got a hand with its city-greening mission.

The Cleveland 2030 District, a group that would like downtown edifices to consume less energy and water and produce less greenhouse gases, received a $175,000 grant from The Kresge Foundation, funding that will go in part to the salary of the organization's first executive director as well as additional staff support.

The new executive director is Jon Reidy, who has been with the group of architects and engineers since 2011. The bulk of the grant will allow the group to intensify efforts put forth by the national Architecture 2030 project, which aims to reduce climate-changing emissions from the global building sector.

"We're creating a demand downtown for energy efficient projects in the interest of business development," says Reidy, a 15-year veteran of the architecture industry.

The Cleveland group is an offshoot of Mayor Frank Jackson’s Sustainability 2019 project, an effort to transform the city’s economy by "building a green city on a blue lake."

Cleveland 2030 works with owners, managers and developers within the downtown district to expand the number of buildings participating in the project. Five property owners controlling approximately 3.5 million square feet of Cleveland's brick and mortar are signed up so far.

Reidy hopes more area building owners share the project's vision of a future Cleveland where energy efficiency and a cleaner environment are the norm.

"Sustainability can be the foundation for rebuilding our economy," he says.
 
SOURCE: Jon Reidy
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth

Researchers at CWRU have developed a material that can morph from stiff to soft, making its gradient properties potentially useful in medical implants. The research was conducted by professors Stuart Rowan, Justin Fox and Jeffrey Capadona of the macromolecular science and engineering, chemistry and biomedical engineering departments, and Paul Marasco of the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
 
The inspiration for the new material came from studying the properties of squid beaks. “Squid beaks are a stiff material, but they have to attach to very soft tissue,” explains Rowan. “They don’t have any bones per se. Imagine a piece of steel attached to a piece of plastic and you started bending or putting stressors on it. Things would start to tear, and that’s obviously not very good for the squid.”
 
Capadona, Marasco and Rowan came up with the idea after reading a research paper published in 2008 at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Rowan and his team looked at how the squid’s beak transitions from hard to soft material. “How the squid solves the problem is with a gradient design that goes from hard to soft when wet,” explains Rowan. “We created a material with a similar kind of structure. We tried to mimic the architecture and properties.”
 
The nanocomposite material the researchers developed changes properties when wet -- going from a rigid material to a soft material. It potentially will prove useful in medical devices such as diabetic glucose sensors, prosthetic limbs and central vein ports. The researchers are now working with the Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs to develop uses for the material.
 
The research was recently published in the Journal of the American Chemistry Society.
 
Rowan and Capadona previously had studied the properties of the sea cucumber, developing a self-healing polymer that is useful in coating. Rowan enjoys taking his cues from natural phenomena.
 
“As a materials person, I can learn a lot from seeing how nature has evolved to tackle the challenges that we see in our world, too,” Rowan says. “Nature makes a wonderful variety of very cool materials. The key is in understanding how nature does that.”

 
Source: Stuart Rowan
Writer: Karin Connelly