How One Family Revived a Downtown

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Here is an article that will be shared this Friday on the Weekly Link Round Up, but I thought it was so interesting that it deserved it’s own blog post. The National Journal posted this article titled, “How One Family Made Cleveland (Yes, Cleveland) Cool.” There are many similarities between Cleveland and Newburgh in their quests to revitalization. Both are old manufacturing cities on waterfronts that have experienced economic crises and riots. Both were named All-American Cities. Both have seen a large drop in population. Many people who grew up in Cleveland leave for larger cities and rarely come back home. Some how though, downtown Cleveland has been making a comeback over the past decade largely in part of the efforts of one family. Today the East Fourth neighborhood is an entertainment district and is home to one of America’s voted 10 best restaurants, the Greenhouse Tavern. The neighborhood is a walkable mixed-use area and residential occupancy rates are over 95 percent. Pretty amazing for a neighborhood that used to be a haven for drug dealers and prostitutes!

The article is an excellent read and I encourage you to read the entire thing.

How One Family Made Cleveland (Yes, Cleveland) Cool National Journal
Published August 1, 2013

Photo: Courtesy of Downtown Cleveland Alliance

One Comment

  • Thanks for posting this, Cher–an interesting read. But extremely ingenuous , I thought. A re-written PR release, perhaps? To ascribe Cleveland’s growth to this mega commercial complex is mis-leading to say the least. Cleveland’s revival is much more extensive than this. As for comparisons between Newburgh (pop.: 40,000) and Cleveland (pop: 400,000), they are apples and oranges. To wit:
    Cleveland has strong attractions, many reasons to visit/live in the City: The Cleveland Clinic, considered one of the finest health institutions in the country; The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: The Cleveland Art Museum; The West Side Market, an extraordinary indoor conglomerate of food shops; affluent and thriving suburbs with new restaurants and amenities; and, most of all, an energetic and supportive city government with a terrific mayor. One has only to visit the City of Cleveland website to get some idea of the scope of what city government can do to support and expand itself. The mayor is, as one might suspect, an elected official, who keeps getting re-elected. (btw, on the city website, all the council members are not only identified , but listed with their bios and phone numbers). Years ago I asked Maurice Hinchey what the problem was with Newburgh and he had an immediate answer: A elected mayor with no power and an appointed city manager with all the power. But until those roles are rectified, it’s up to the New Newburghers to forge ahead with their own agenda; in my six years here I have seen Sisyphean accomplishments from my fellow citizens with little or no help from the City–an inspiration to the rest of us who believe in both Newburgh’s Now and its Future.