News Archive

Fred Kent, President of the Project for Public Spaces, posed a provocative question to the audience at the Eighth Annual International Public Markets Conference last month.

“Could place-making be one of the transformative ideas of the 21st century?” he asked.

Think about it. Americans hunger for an alternative to the soulless pseudo-cities that sprawl throughout the ‘burbs. One reason why young people, families and empty nesters are moving back to urban communities is they offer a sense of place.

Yet speaking before an audience of 250-plus market leaders at the conference in Cleveland, Kent took the idea one step further. Public markets are the granddaddies of all place-makers, he said, bringing people together like big, irresistible magnets. So what if we used our public markets to build and enhance great places in cities?

On any given school day, you may see Saint Ignatius High School students in collared shirts and ties walking to the West Side Catholic Center to sort donations, heading into Urban Community School to tutor children, or investing in the literacy skills of students at The Bridge Avenue School. You may also see young men from Ignatius serving as voluntary pallbearers for a deceased member of the community who may not otherwise have them.

Outside of school time, you can also find Ignatius students mentoring youth at ten after-school programs supported by Ignatius. On Sunday nights, as they have without fail for the past 10 years, three Ignatius vans leave the campus stocked with food for and anticipated conversations with the homeless of Cleveland. Students can be found shoveling walks in the winter, and helping neighbors move donated furniture – sometimes into a new home for someone previously homeless.

The first time we saw our home-to-be, my wife Lynn Phares said, “This place would be perfect for house concerts.” This came out of the blue, but it made sense. We are both passionate about music, especially Americana and roots music. While living in Silver Spring, MD, we had been to a house concert and loved it. There is an immediacy that comes from being in a small, informal setting and listening to a live performer without the distractions and noise of a bar or nightclub. It’s like going to a tiny, friendly concert hall. Plus, you get a chance to talk to the artist and other people who enjoy the same kind of music. It’s a great way to experience music.

On Friday, June 15th, Cliff’s Natural Resources hosted a day of service called Cliff’s Cares Day to help clean and spruce up Ohio City.  Hubbed at Fairview Park between West 32nd and West 38th Street, nearly 120 Cliff’s employees volunteered at six service locations set up throughout the neighborhood.  The projects included removing barbed wire from and painting the Kentucky Gardens fence, weeding and mulching the Fairview Park rain garden, sprucing up the Fairview Park baseball diamond, building and planting flowers in new planters at Fulton Foods and Vantage Place, and painting a house on West 50th Street.

Jim Bartolomucci, Vice President and Chief Risk Officer stated, “Cliffs' employees are committed to fostering community service projects across the Greater Cleveland area. We are delighted to collaborate with Ohio City Incorporated and help preserve a thriving community.”