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This blog has moved

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 20:42:00 +0000

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testing, again

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 20:28:00 +0000

this is just a test, ignore this test

test

James Howard Kunstler @ Cleveland Public Library March 14th

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 14:10:00 +0000

James Howard Kunstler

Writers & Readers Series

Cleveland Public Library (Louis Stokes Wing)

325 Superior Ave. N.E.

Cleveland, Ohio 44114

Sunday, March 14th, 2010

2pm

An author, journalist, and urban planning expert, James Howard Kunstler is one of the foremost social critics of our time. The Geography of Nowhere (1993) and Home from Nowhere (1996) established him as a fierce critic of suburban sprawl and the high cost of our automobile-dependant culture.

His bestselling book, The Long Emergency: Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the 21st Century (2005) addressed the ongoing global oil crisis by exploring the sweeping economic, political and societal changes that will result from the inevitable end of access to cheap fossil fuels. He expanded on his previous criticisms and detailed the impact the crisis will have on the way we live, work, farm and build.

The 2008 publication of his 10th novel, World Made by Hand, placed those ideas and his critique in a provocative fictional setting. Given the wild fluctuations in prices and concerns over the world’s oil supply, World Made by Hand is both timely and portentous. Through the eyes of the citizens and mayor of Union Grove, Kunstler imagines what will happen in Small Town USA when the oil wells dry up, the climate changes, and the economic system collapses. While it is “grim with portent,” the San Francisco Chronicle said, World Made by Hand “is an impassioned and invigorating tale whose ultimate message is one of hope, not despair.”

Kunstler’s earlier novels include Maggie Darling (2004), Thunder Island(1989), The Halloween Ball (1987), An Embarrassment of Riches (1985), andThe Life of Byron Janes (1983).

A former staff writer for Rolling Stone, he continues to be a prolific journalist and essayist whose writings have appeared in The Atlantic Monthly, Orion Magazine, The New York Times Sunday Magazine and on Slate.com.

A native New Yorker, he resides in Saratoga Springs.

Towpath Trail Open House - March 9th

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:24:00 +0000

Towpath Trail Open House

Tuesday, March 9th, 4:30-7:30pm

St. Joseph / OLA Center

2346 West 14th Street in Tremont

Please join the Towpath Trail Partnership Committee and Michael Baker Engineering, consultants for Phase 3 design and engineering for our second public Towpath Trail Open House. They will share a preferred Towpath Trail route alternative, provide land use scenarios for the accompanying greenway and introduce interpretive themes and settings.

Come. Let them know what you think. Give them your questions and concerns. Tell them what you favor.

Please RSVP to Amilyn at acadergree@mbakercorp.com.

Ohio Canal Website

GreenCityBlueLake Website

Tremont West Website

While we are away

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:12:00 +0000

TOIstudio bloggerness is currently undergoing a transitional system change. Google (who we all love here and promise our undying affection) is removing FTP ability meaning that this blog will soon have to be hosted on Google's webbernet sites unless a different interface system is used.

We are currently trying to work out the bugs in the various systems to make a final decision and hope to be back up shortly.

We know everyone has been extremely concerned. Please take this absence as no indication of any opinion that Cleveland has already destroyed our hope, soul, good nature, willingness to expect change, love, affection, joy, ability to dream or mental stability. The sun is out, the weather is getting nicer and once this dang chest cold goes away I expect to once again be a bouncing example of overabundant exuberance.

In the meanwhile TOIstudio headquarters is full of interweb code and related hijinks in an effort to bring you, our valued reader(s?) the best quality architecture thought and opinion directly South of Lake Erie and North of 480.

We appreciate your understanding.

Brite Winter Festival

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 15:43:00 +0000

Brite Winter Festival
Saturday, February 27th, 2010

Food and Beverages

Italian goodness and adult sodas, courtesy of Louie at Sainato’s Restaurant

Soup, sweets, and soothing hot drinks, courtesy of our sponsor Gypsy Bean Coffee and Baking

Music

a DJ will set the mood

The Hot Rails : “the penultimate 70s hard rock band”

Uncanny Xe La : Soul/Jazz/Dub Quintet

This Moment in Black History : “Once you label me, you negate me”

Art

Austin Kotting – Kent State University – subjective cartography, aka “You Are Here.”

Gauri Torgalkar and David Jurca – Pop Up City – PopUp-BlowUp Chill Domes. Your one and only chance to listen to music or play ice bocce ball in a room made out of sheet plastic and duct tape.

Other artist info under Art Tag at top of page

Activities

Bonfires: chill out and stay warm

Cornhole: not just for tailgating and picnics anymore. Organized by Cleveland Plays.

Giant “skeeball”: Chuck E Cheese for big kids. We hope we can pull this one off.

Ice bocce ball = water + spherical molds + freeze + Italian tradition

Chalkboard graffiti: self-expression strongly encouraged

Bridge War reenactment: East Side vs. West Side, courtesy of Mother Nature, snowballs, and wacky Cleveland history

Afterparty: Mulberry’s Bar. Activities, karoke, drinks, and extended fun.

For more detail, click on “Schedule” tab.

Ohio's 3C plan, lack of bold vision posistions plan for eventual failure

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 13:24:00 +0000

I love trains. I am a complete sucker for convenient rail travel. When ever anyone asks I feel the urge to gush forward on the amazing journey I had from Akron to Milwaukee back in 2001/2002. The seat was wide and reclined so nicely that catching a train at some ungodly and chilly morning hour didn't bother me so much. I was on a mission, to see the land that Pabst created, it was a holy crusade of sorts and I wasn't going to let something as trivial as a logical or convenient timetable get in my way. Of course my ever trusty VW Polo (called a Fox in these here states) was in a constant state of disrepair as undergraduate school meant funds were allocated towards, lets say social gathering research, rather then personal transportation.

With eager ears I awaited the news of Ohio's 3C corridor "high speed" rail plan. Who wouldn't? I am extremely excited about taking the train to OSU or Cincy to catch some of the amazing architecture lectures available for public attendance at those fine institutions. It isn't that I don't enjoy driving, I just don't like the vast majority of other people on the road. Going slow in the high speed lane, not using blinkers, not letting anyone merge so a complete and utter clusterf@*k occurs slowing EVERYONE down, etc. I would rather sit comfortably in my oversized reclining chair, listening to something drone on the headset and watch the Midwest do what it does best, roll gently by a window. Heck, I could even read a book or trade magazine, perhaps do some writing. At the very least I could be mildly productive which for the 3 hour trip is roughly 1/6 of my waking time that day (one way).

Of course that only makes sense if I can get back at a reasonable hour. The timetables so far suggested infer that if I were to catch a lecture at Knowlton School of Architecture at OSU, which are mostly in the early evening (say 6pm for this example), I would have to catch the 6am train. 3 hours of travel mean I arrive in Columbus fresh and ready to learn by 9am which is perfect if I had a morning meeting, which I probably wouldn't. That would leave roughly 9 hours to explore Columbus, without a car, which would probably be interesting once (not to be cruel but I honestly would spend most of the time fretting about getting to the lecture on time). Somewhere in there I would have to spend more money to get to the lecture. Fine. So say the lecture is amazing and ends at 8pm with a rather invigorating Q&A session. I grab a couple of drinks to digest and start thinking about how to get home.

I have to then wait in Columbus for 19 more hours as the return train to Cleveland doesn't depart until 3pm.

There is the flaw in the plan. The limited schedule makes me question who the target demographic for the system is. I have no problem if my plan is to catch an exhibit at museum or even perhaps a late morning to early afternoon meeting (although giving up my whole day for a single meeting due to train schedule is asking a bit much, it better be an amazing meeting, with doughnuts and really good coffee and boxed lunch) but there is very limited availability to say catch a college football game at OSU (I hear they have a team) or a concert or do any of the other tens of things that tourists want to do. I would argue that the train line is more work/commuter oriented but if that were the case a line from Cleveland to Akron would a tad more sense, running from 7 am and again at 7 pm.

Or course this proposed schedule is just the beginning, proposed schedule, all aspects subject to change, nothing in stone, we don't even know what trains will run on the tracks but I want the system to succeed dammit. I want to be able to take a train to Philly and Toronto and New York. I don't want to depend on my car more than I have to (I still don't even like owning one actually but working in Cleveland, especially when one has to visit job sites makes that extremely difficult). I want to not even have to plan that far in advance. I would love to just realize that it is Saturday morning, grab the MarJ and hop a line to, I don't know, Chicago, for the day. Have our fun and catch a train back, sleeping on the return trip so we can reasonably enjoy the rest of the weekend. I don't even mind if the commute is slightly more time consuming than driving (thinking of the time saved trying to find parking, also being able to converse with someone without having to half wonder if the Chucklehead in the Explorer is meaning to be in your lane or the lane next to you as he wanders about in a self absorbed stupor).

It all seems so very sensible if done correctly. Or half correctly. The one thing we cannot have at this juncture is the possibility of implementing a system that could for all wants and purposes alter our society's way of moving about, paid for with our taxes, designed for users that really don't exist. We need a more cohesive schedule to allow movement back and forth for tourists, sports fans, urban explorers and business people in a timely and realistic manner. If it means that more trains have to added and costs per ride have to increase slightly then be it. I would rather the system be a more expensive realistic option then one that I can't possibly use.

And yes this is all about me. I want this project to succeed more than anything in the region right now. I think this could make Cleveland a much more fantastic city then developing the waterfront or putting in a med mart or redesigning public square or even connecting the East and West side with bike access to a major bridge project (although, that one should be a gimme), as it would connect this city to the rest of the nation in a cheap and effective manner. I cannot, however, understand the logic behind the current planning/schedule and that annoys the heck out of me.

resources:
WCPN 2010.02.02 Sound of Ideas
Access for All music video

Transmaterial 3: Blaine Brownell

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 10:58:00 +0000

Transmaterial 3: edited by Blaine Brownell

Now in its third edition the physical manifestation of the popular Transmaterial webblog has recently been released by the publisher and is now available at your book outlet of choice. Mine arrived from Amazon Monday (to my surprise, I pre-ordered and completely lost track of time).

For those of you not familiar with Mr. Brownell or Transmaterial the work aggregated and researched by Mr. Brownell typically is in response to the desire of the materiality of design, either through expressive/communicative, performance or efficiency characteristics studied through the Transstudio research and design group. Mr. Brownell current teaches at the University of Minnesota and is an avid research/writer and lecturer.

A guide such as Transmaterial fulfills two of the most necessary components of creating a built environment, the proffering of materials to fulfill required tasks (not easily obtainable by "standard" materials) and by constantly demonstrating the continuous research and development of new materials from which to design, build and aspire. Granted many of the materials illustrated in the Transmaterial books are not necessarily affordable (see cheap when compared to existing materials) however they are not meant as simple replacement for existing systems but marked improvements in performance, environmental consideration (footprint) and customability/usability. I was extremely pleased to discover just how many of the materials in the book were being developed by companies in the United States (easing access) and have already begun book marking pages for my wish list to someday see available in Cleveland (or where ever I end up doing whatever I am doing).

In more than one way the book is fabulous design porn. Materials are organized by material makeup (concrete, wood, metal, etc.), complete with thumbnail images, brief descriptions of material contents, applications, types/sizes, environmental concerns/benefits, testing/examination certificates, product limitation and the ever important manufacturing contact to find if the product is indeed available in your project's area.

At the very least it is fantastic to see what new materials are being made available for use and may even help in one's own development of project design through materiality, which makes the book well worth the purchase price in itself.

Transmaterial also offers a weekly email subscription of new materials. Granted the materials you receive are typically also showcased in the following book release, however the book contains over 200 products which is more than you would have access to via email along, you also get a rather nice bit of reading material that you can mark up and book mark for future reference.

Tonight's Lecture, Elena Manferdini, is Postponed - Kent State CAED

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:06:00 +0000

Tonight's Lecture, Elena Manferdini, is Postponed.

Due to weather, Elena Manferdini's flight has been cancelled. This lecture will be rescheduled in the future. Please check our webpage & events section of the E-News for updates on this event. Thanks.

Kent State CAED link

Pecha Kucha Cleveland Vol. VI

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:56:00 +0000

PechaKucha Night Cleveland Vol. VI

Friday, Feb. 12th, 2010

House of Blues, Cambridge Room

308 Euclid Avenue

216-523-2583

Hope everyone is off to a great 2010!

Next Friday, February 12th, is the 1st PechaKucha of the new year, and we hope everyone will be able to make it out to see/hear the work and thoughts of some insanely creative people! Please forward this email to anyone you think would be interested! Event is free and open to all! Forgot to plan that Special Valentine’s Day dinner? Bring that special someone to PechaKucha on Friday to show them how much you love them. We’ll be giving away VERY romantic Valentine’s Day Cards! (hard to convey sarcasm, but these cards really are awesome..thanks Candra!)
See you Friday!

Cheers,
Mike Christoff & Raseem Parker

Feel free to check us out on Twitter, Facebook, and of course most importantly - pass along this email to ANYONE and EVERYONE you think would enjoy!:)
Photographs from previous Volumes of PechaKucha Night Cleveland can be seen @: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pkncleveland/ and on our Facebook Group Page.

Event webpage: www.pecha-kucha.org/night/cleveland/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PechaKuchaClev
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=55172018029&ref=ts

Roadtrip (15)! Kent State University Lecture Series (Spring 2010)

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:44:00 +0000

Kent State University has just posted their 2010 Spring Lecture Series (and the first one is coming right on up!)

Elena Manferdini
Design Is One
February 09, 2010 7:30 pm
Michael Schwartz Auditorium

Mark Foster Gage
Computation, Aesthetics & the Contemporary Baroque
February 23, 2010 7:00 pm
Cartwright Auditorium

Hansey Barraza
Studio Luz
March 10, 2010 7:00 pm
Cartwright Auditorium

Stephen Cassell
Architecture Research Office: Recent & Future Work
March 17, 2010 7:00 pm
Cartwright Auditorium

Andrea Ponsi
Florence: A Map of Perceptions
March 25, 2010 7:30 pm
Michael Schwartz Auditorium

All lectures are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. Visitor Parking for Cartwright Auditorium can be accessed off Terrace Drive. Visitor Parking for the Michael Schwartz Auditorium can be accessed off East Summit Street. For more information, please contact the College of Architecture & Environmental Design at 330 672 2917.

Cleveland Planning Commission Meeting - bike on a muthaf-ing bridge!

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:53:00 +0000

I never did see Snakes on a Plane, however if you have any interest in advocating for a cycling/pedestrian path on the innerbelt bridge because you are one of the people who live near and go to downtown Cleveland you may want to stop in at this Friday's Cleveland Planning Commission Meeting and show your support or voice your concern. Friday, February 5th.

Cleveland Planning Commission Meeting
601 Lakeside Avenue East Cleveland, OH 44114-1078
9am - 11.30am

Cleveland City Planning Commission meeting February 5th, 2010 9am Cleveland City Hall - Room 514 Agenda:An Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT)representative will be present to address questions or concerns regarding the multi-purpose trail as a design alternative on the Innerbelt bridge.

The representative's presence is a direct result of discussions between advocates and Commision members during the Jan 22 meeting.

Agenda online: http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/designreview/schedule.shtml

your bike/innerbelt bridge news source: green city blue lake

Asterios Polyp: David Mazzucchelli

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:40:00 +0000

Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli

A "paper" architect (one who wins recognition for proposals/competitions but not built work) suffers from being overly academic, fatalistically literal in his search for recognizing (what he sees) as design purity and insufferable in having the last word (typically critical) has his past life destroyed by fate, realizes what happiness he sacrificed to further his own self-satisfied identity and finally admits his ability to be incorrect in an attempt to regain his humanity.

What more could I say? It is sort of a fable for today's over critical designer. What is lost when snarky commentary replaces helpful critique? How much is sacrificed when one exists in a world where only your own view is valid? How can beauty be judged?

Like most graphic novels there is so much more than the story telling, there is the graphical work consisting of elegantly simple drawings depicting stylistic changes to accentuate how our memories of events are a retelling of stories colored by our own emotion. The layers of stories, current lines interjected with memories as the main character, Asterios, struggles to comes to terms with how his life has resulted in its current state, allows one to trace the slow development of his emerging humanity as he crawls forth from a defensive shell of hyper-evaluation used to ascertain his own superiority (and of course how he got there in the first place).

Of course it isn't just Asterios whom makes the story fascinating, there is a whole realm of characters, at times caricatures of society, exploring the confounding interactions between these disparate groups and deftly illustrating that life, like architecture, is most interesting where dissimilarities occur.

It was a quick read and actually quite good that would make a fantastic gift for anyone slowing slipping into the world of becoming a self-contained and annoying self referential bastard. I admit, I recognized bits of myself in there.

Discourse

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 10:34:00 +0000

Discourse is one of those things older people and professors talk about when they wax poetic about how good ideas are the result of collaboration, civil discussion and a willingness to expand beyond your own preconceptions to willingly accept another's beliefs even if you cannot fully support them.

It also makes conversation interesting.

Cleveland Design Competition Reception

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:01:00 +0000

Cleveland Design Competition Reception
Friday, January 29th, 2010
Colonial Marketplace, 530 Euclid Ave. Cleveland, Ohio
enter from Euclid side
6pm - 9pm

Reception Page:
6:00pm Light hors d'oeuvres (catered by The Greenhouse Tavern) and Project 2009: Lakefront Station Design Ideas Exhibit
7:00pm Welcome
7:10pm Introduction by Councilman Joe Cimperman, City of Cleveland
7:25pm Announcement of the Awards by Kathryn Lincoln, Chair of the Board of Directors, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
9:00pm Awards Reception Conclusion

This reception is open to the public.

If you have any questions about the reception, please do not hesitate to email us at reception@clevelandcompetition.com.

Roadtrip (14)! - University of Buffalo - Spring 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:32:00 +0000

University of Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning posted their spring 2010 lecture series. 3 hours from Cleveland makes it an easy drive to see a city that is so remarkably similar to Cleveland (albeit their downtown seems a little more lively) and catching a decent lecture just adds a bonus.

Spring 2010

Lectures

All Lectures begin at 5:30 pm in Crosby 301 unless otherwise noted.

01.20.10 Gallery Talk
The Richmond Olympic Oval exhibit is now on display in the Hayes Hall Lobby Gallery. A talk will be given on the design process of this ice skating facility for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

01.26.10 Dr. Donald Shoup, Clarkson Chair in Planning
Dr. Donald Shoup, Professor of Urban Planning at the University of California, Los Angeles, will talk on "The High Cost of Free Parking," the same title as his influential book which is leading a growing number of cities to charge fair market prices for curb parking, dedicate the resulting revenue to finance public services in the metered districts, and reduce or remove off-street parking requirements. This lecture will take place at 5:30 p.m. in thet Hohn Lecture Hall at the Research Studies Center, Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo.

01.27.10 Dr. Donald Shoup, Clarkson Chair in Planning

Dr. Donald Shoup, Professor of Urban Planning at the University of California, Los Angeles, has extensively studied parking as a key link between transportation and land use, with important consequences for cities, the economy, and the environment.

02.01.10 Fast + Epp

Duane Palibroda, an associate and general manager at Fast + Epp Structural Engineers in Vancouver, British Columbia, has worked on both commercial and residential projects in Canada, the US, and around the world. Sponsored by the Canadian Consulate General of Buffalo and the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers, the lecture will focus on "Hybrid Structures."

03.17.10 Richard Meier

Richard Meier, managing partner of Richard Meier & Partners Architects, is well known and respected aroud the world and has received numerous awards for his architecture and designs of buildings such as The Getty Center in Los Angeles, the Frankfurt Museum for Decorative Arts in Germany, and the Canal Plus Television Headquarters in Paris. The lecture will take place at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery.

03.25.10 Edward Steinfeld

Ed Steinfeld is a professor in architecture inUB's School of Architecture and Planning, the director of the IDEA Center, and the recipient of the Presidential Award for Faculty Excellence at UB.

04.07.10 Yves-Alain Bois, Clarkson Chair in Architecture

Yves-Alain Bois is a professor in the School of Historical Studies at the Insitute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ. A collection of his essays, Painting as Model, was published by MIT Press.

More lectures forthcoming...please check back for updates.

View selected lectures

Exhibitions

01.11 - 02.06 Richmond Olympic Oval
Hayes Lobby
02.19 - 05.30 Kuitca Exhibit
Albright-Knox Art Gallery
03.28 - 04.17 Freshman Studio
Anderson Gallery

Lectures and exhibitions supported by: Albright-Knox Art Gallery, Alumni and Friends; Buffalo/WNY AIA; Canadian Council of Forest Ministers; Canadian High Commission; Cannon Design; Clarkson Chair endowment; Hyatt's All Things Creative; Rigidized Metals Corporation;UB AIAS/GSA; UB College of Arts and Sciences; UB School of Architecture and Planning Dean’s Office. AIA continuing education credits available.

Roadtrip (13)! - University of Waterloo (Spring 2010)

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 11:07:00 +0000

University of Waterloo's School of Architecture has posted their Spring 2010 Lecture Series. Remember to bring the proper papers if making the journey from the States (or be willing to find a place to cross at the hundreds of miles of unprotected border that separate our two countries. What? I admit I find the necessity of a passport or special card to travel from Canada to the USA sort of silly. I mean, first off Canada seems pretty dang neighborly and almost an extension (albeit a polite one) of the USA. Sort of like the 51st state. Or we in the States are more like the rude 11th province of Canada, however you want to look at it. Secondly, the important thing is that there are quite a few really good architecture and design schools right across the border that deserve some exploration (without ridiculous hassle). They may be a country away but that isn't logistically far at all (especially from right here in Cleveland).

Roadtrip (12)! - Univ. of Michigan (Spring 2010)

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:43:00 +0000

The University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture has posted their Spring 2010 Lecture/Symposium Series and has quite a few decent events and speakers coming up, enough to warrant yet another trip to Ann Arbor. I haven't found the lecture series poster yet (which for some reason is a big part of the lecture series to me, perhaps I just like marketing, etc.) but as soon as I do find it I will post it for your very own enjoyment.

Lecture Series

Lectures are at 6:30 PM in the A+A Lecture Hall, unless otherwise noted, Room 2104 at the Art and Architecture Building. Events are free and open to the public.

Taubman College Lectures

January 12^th

Gerald Frug
Harvard Law School Louis D. Brandeis Professor of Law
"Designing Government"

January 21^st
7:00 PM
University of Michigan Museum of Art

Asylum-Inside the Closed World of State Mental Hospitals: Christopher Payne, photographer
Co-sponsored by the University of Michigan Museum of Art, the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, the Department of English Language and Literature, the Center for the History of Medicine, the Victor Vaughan Society, the Institute for the Humanities, and the Rackham Interdisciplinary Workshops

January 22^nd

Amale Andraos and Dan Wood
WORK Architecture Company principals
Wallenberg Studio Lecture Series: I

January 26^th

Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi
Founding partners Weiss/Manfredi
"Sequence/Section"
Wallenberg Studio Lecture Series: II

February 4^th
Michigan Theater
5:10 PM

Bjarke Ingels
Bjarke Ingles Group (BIG)
"Yes Is More"
Part of the Penny W. Stamps Distinguished Visitor Series

February 12^th

Mark Dorrian
University of Edinburgh Reader in Architecture, Director of the Master of Architecture Programme
"Clouds of Architecture"

February 18^th

Michael Kyong-il Kim

February 19^th

Keller Easterling
Yale University School of Architecture Associate Professor of Architecture
Wallenberg Studio Lecture Series: III
"Some True Stories"

February 23^rd

Curtis Moody
Moody/Nolan Ltd., Inc., President and CEO
"Challenges of an Architectural Firm"
Co-sponsored by UM National Organization of Minority Architecture Students (NOMAS)

March 9^th

Jefferson Han
Perceptive Pixel, Founder and Chief Scientist

March 11^th
Michigan Theater
5:10 PM

Dayna Baumeister
Biomimicry Institute Co-Founder
"Biomimicry"
Part of the Penny W. Stamps Distinguished Visitor Series

A+A Building
6:30 PM

Sonit Bafna
Assistant Professor, College of Architecture, Georgia Institute of Technology

March 16^th

John Ochsendorf
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Structural Engineer
"Form & Forces"

April 1^st

Zeynep Çelik Alexander
Lecturer, Mellon Post Doctoral Fellow
Department of Art History and Archaeology, Columbia University, NY

April 16^th

Alejandro Aravena
Elemental S.A. Executive Director
The Raoul Wallenberg Lecture

Symposiums

January 19^th
7:00 PM

Urban and Regional Planning Martin Luther King Day Symposium
"Immigration: A Catalyst for Change in American Cities"
Presenters include: Ismael Ahmed, Michigan Department of Human Services Director; Francisco Lara-Valencia, Arizona State University Assistant Professor and Southwest Borderland Scholar; Hussein Samatar, African Development Center of Minnesota Executive Director

January 30^th
1:00 – 4:00 PM
University of Michigan Museum of Art

"Contemporary Strategies in Documentary Photography" Symposium, Part 1, with Alec Sloth
Co-sponsored with U-M Museum of Art, Office of the Vice President for Research, Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, School of Art & Design, Institute for the Humanities, International Institute, Rackham, Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies, Institute for Research on Women & Gender, History, English, American Culture

February 6^th
1:00 – 5:30 PM
University of Michigan Museum of Art

"Contemporary Strategies in Documentary Photography" Symposium, Part 2, with Allan Sekula and Sally Stein
Co-sponsored with U-M Museum of Art, Office of the Vice President for Research, Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, School of Art & Design, Institute for the Humanities, International Institute, Rackham, Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies, Institute for Research on Women & Gender, History, English, American Culture

March 19^th & 20^th
Rackham Auditorium

Future of Urbanism Conference

Event Supporters

Guido A. Binda Lecture and Exhibition Fund, John Dinkeloo Memorial Lecture Fund, Raoul Wallenberg Lecture Fund, Frances and Gilbert P. Schafer Visiting Professionals Fund, J. Robert Swanson Fund, Taubman College Enrichment Fund, Taubman College Lecture Fund

Architecture for Humanity responds to Haiti quake

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 19:48:00 +0000

Massive Quake Causes Widespread Destruction

On January 12th around 4.50pm local time a powerful 7.0 earthquake hit the impoverished nation of Haiti.This was followed more than 30 strong aftershocks. There has been widespread major damage and a loss of life estimated to be in the tens of thousands.

We had been set to send a design team to Haiti this month to partner with local NGO Yele Haiti but have put this on hold until we can get a full assessment of the situation. We've connected with both Yele and our close friends at AIDG (Appropriate Infrastructure Development Group). We have made a full commitment to support both their efforts in the long term rebuilding of affected areas.

We have launched an appeal for supplying construction and design professionals and supporting earthquake resistant housing and community structures..

If you care about building back better, donate today.

Cheers,
Cameron Sinclair
Executive Director, Architecture for Humanity
848 Folsom Street, Suite 201, San Francisco, CA 94107-1173
W: 415 963 3511 | M: 646 765 0906 | cameron@architectureforhumanity.org

Donate Now to Support Rebuilding >

Updates: All updates will be via this link.

Twitter: I've been doing updates at www.twitter.com/casinclair - If you cannot contribute and want to support our appeal, please link to our site with your social network accounts and/or blogs.

Volunteering: In a few months we will organize a volunteer build for Yele but for now we request that you do not 'go to Haiti' unless you are a member of emergency services. We will be doing transitional and long term reconstruction, much like our work after Hurricane Katrina.

Chapters: The San Juan Chapter will be the chapter lead and we will coordinate efforts with them.

Donate by mail:
Architecture for Humanity
848 Folsom Street, Suite 201
San Francisco, CA 94107

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Recent Haiti Trip Report
Read the Huffington Post piece written about our trip in August 2009

NB. We will not be doing emergency services. Our role is to help house those in the long term and to rebuild safer and stronger buildings.

cameron@architectureforhumanity.org • Architecture for Humanity

Roadtrip (11)! - Carnegie Mellon (Spring 2010)

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 11:08:00 +0000

The Carnegie Mellon School of Architecture has posted their Spring 2010 Lecture Series. More Roadtrip fun for those with the gas money!

Carnegie Mellon School of Architecture Lecture Series, Spring 2010:

All lectures take place at the Carnegie Museum of Art Theater, 4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh and are free and open to the public. The Spring 2010 lecture series is cosponsored by the Heinz Architectural Center at Carnegie Museum of Art.

CECIL BALMOND Ove Arup, London
3:30 PM Saturday 06 February 2010
reception at Forum Gallery exhibition following lecture

LARS SPUYBROEK NOX, Rotterdam
‘The Radical Picturesque'
6:30 PM Monday 08 February 2010
cosponsored by Epic Metals

PABLO GARCIA POINT/ CMU
‘Supravision'
6:30 PM Monday 15 February 2010
Lucian and Rita Caste Chair in Architecture and Urban Design

LA DALLMAN Grace La and James Dallman, Milwaukee
‘Post Industrial Narratives'
6:30 PM Monday 22 February 2010
exhibition opening following lecture

BEN ARANDA Aranda\Lasch, New York
‘Recent Work'
6:30 PM Monday 29 March 2010
William Finglass Lecture

ANDREW FREEAR Rural Studio, Auburn University
‘Education of a Citizen Architect'
6:30 PM Monday 05 April 2010
Hans Vetter Memorial Lecture

THOM MAYNE Morphosis, Los Angeles
‘W.I.P. #176 Work in Progress'
6:30 PMMonday 19 April 2010
Henry Hornbostel Lecture

Please also note:
wats:ON? Festival
17- 20 March 2010

including installation of solid light film by Anthony McCall,
screening of select films by Ernie Gehr,
Machinema film festival, Arcade Night and more....
The Wats:On? festival is sponsored by the Jill Watson Family Foundation;
Location of events TBA.

postcard

poster

Celebrating what we do, it shouldn't be that hard, really.

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 10:42:00 +0000

While perusing one of the online blogs I frequent daily (A daily dose of architecture) I realized that as the author (John Hill) is currently putting together a book on new architecture in New York he had stumbled across an occurrence that made me pause for a variety of reasons. While compiling a list of projects Mr. Hill had asked for his reader's to help out and suggest a few projects. The interesting part wasn't that quite a few projects unknown to Hill were suggested by his readers instead what was interesting was that it was incredibly exciting to see a wide variety of newer projects, ones that may not have gotten much press. To be fair quite a few smaller projects allow designers to take some chances with form or material or program layout, etc. and don't get the exposure or recognition they really deserve.

And here is where I wonder about local application.

Now, by no means do I profess to know everything about what is going on in Cleveland when it comes to architecture. In all honestly I wax and wane between paying attention and wanting to ignore the whole situation. I wouldn't at all mind though knowing exactly what was built or renovated in the last year just to see if anything interesting had indeed occurred.

I don't think I would be the only person interested in the information. I would even suggest that if a list was provided or created that there would be enough archi-nerds to take photos and post them online and maybe even offer us some critical non-snarky commentary, which, in my opinion, would be rather amazing.

So, what would be the best way to go about this? One option is asking the City of Cleveland Building Department for a list of projects that filed for Occupancy Permit and then sort out the smaller residential projects, etc. to get the list down to an interesting and manageable sort.

The other option would be to ask all the firms in Cleveland to help list all their recent projects. This is a little unfair because the projects would undoubtedly undergo some sort of scrutiny to make sure they reflected a specific image for the firm instead of seeing and learning about all the projects that make up the fabric of the city.

Of course perhaps this is already being done and I am completely unaware of it. If that is the case I hope some nice person will inform me. I have seen older blogs that had started and then stopped for various reasons but nothing recent.

Celebrating local architecture should be paramount to informing the public about what hiring an architect adds to a project (in quality, not cost) and can be best done by showing the wide variety of projects (types, styles, etc.) that are being done locally. Attempting to intelligently converse about these projects may not only inspire practicing architects but perhaps those looking towards a new career path. Perhaps discussions of this sort could even help further the disparate but all slightly connected branches of design and create a cognitive culture within the city. I know this is all waxing poetic but lets be honest, the city would be more creative seeming and interesting if this were to take shape, or form, or exist. There are so many interesting ways of solving problems (something designers are specifically trained for in various ways) that existing in an insular self-referential fashion does nothing for one's own experience or knowledge let along for creating the best product/project solution possible.

Sigh, dare to dream, eh?

Roadtrip (10)! - the Ohio State University

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 10:32:00 +0000

Ohio State University's Austin E. Knowlton School of Architecture has posted their Winter/Spring 2010 Lecture series. What better way to spend a dark evening then inside some lecture hall learning about ideas and what not? Seriously, going to lectures has to be infinitely more interesting than catching up on repeats of Cougar Town.

KSA Lecture Series: Winter + Spring 2010
Economy

All lectures are free and open to the public.
Unless noted, all lectures will be held at the Knowlton Hall Auditorium (KN 250) at 5:30 PM.

Design Ecologies Book Launch Event: Wednesday, January 6
Special Event
Speakers: Lisa Tilder, Beth Blostein, Jane Amidon, Scott Colman, Stephen Turk
Geoffrey Thun: Wednesday, January 13
Associate Professor, University of Michigan
Heather Roberge: Wednesday, January 20
Murmur
Charisma Acey: Wednesday, January 27
Assistant Professor of City and Regional Planning, KSA
Nina Rapport: Wednesday, February 3
Yale University
(co-sponsored with the Engineering Education Innovation Center and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science)
Jesse Reiser: Wednesday, February 10
Reiser + Umemoto, 2009-2010 Herbert Baumer Distinguished Visiting Professor Lecture
Michael Speaks: Wednesday, February 24
Dean, University of Kentucky, College of Design
Beatriz Colomina: Wednesday, March 31
Princeton University
(co-sponsored with the Film Studies Program)
Julia Christensen: Wednesday, April 7
Assistant Professor, Oberlin College
Chris Reed: Wednesday, April 14
StoSS, 2009-2010 Herb and Dee Dee Glimcher Distinguished Visiting Professorship Lecture
Chris Lukinbeal: Wednesday, April 21
Arizona State University
(co-sponsored with the Film Studies Program)
Sarah Cowles: Wednesday, April 28
Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture, KSA
Ronald Coan: Wednesday, May 19
Council for Community Economic Research
Brian Holland: Wednesday, May 26
2009-2010 LeFevre Fellow, KSA

About the KSA Lecture Series

As part of the Knowlton School's commitment to bringing the highest level of design thinking to its students and the community at large, the KSA lecture series invites prominent researchers and practitioners of architecture, landscape architecture, and city planning to present their work in a variety of areas. These lectures offer technical, cultural and theoretical understanding of the contemporary built environment and represent the contemporary and future state of the art in design thinking.

Saving Ohio's Public Transit

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:22:00 +0000

Today's e-newsletter from the GCRTA asks me to click a link so that I can inform my legislative representatives that I think more money should be supporting public transportation. Which I do. I believe that wholeheartedly. I believe it with a deep seated burning passion that easy and logical public transit is paramount to livable communities. When I say "livable communities" I don't just mean those places you just feel safe and warm all alone in your house watching (ironically?) episodes of House ignoring your family and neighbors before you go off to work and have your electronic twitter relationships with people you will never see (but will know intimate details of). I mean livable as in you can be alive there and people would know because other people are being alive there. They are interacting and seeing each other and perhaps even conversing and god forbid touching (not in a perverse manner, just in the lend a hand, hold a door, shake hello sort of manner, geeze). There is a humanity to a "livable" community because your life means something to other "real" people and this knitting of existence gives some sense of purpose. Your couch will not win the eternal battle with gravity and fly off into space without your butt holding it firmly down. I swear, you have nothing to worry about. Also, contrary to popular belief, television actors have no idea when you are not watching them during their antics. They cannot see or hear you. Even at a movie theater (I don't understand the clapping thing).

However apparently all this costs a ton of money. All the making people live by each other and want to talk to each other and see each other and accept the fact that although some of the people may look and act just like the people you may see on the television or interweb they may not be as funny without the team of mac/hack writers at their disposal and the cold harsh reality of paying attention and being polite may be a burden to bear but there it is.

At some reasonable point I think the logic behind the argument of how tough sprawl is upon infrastructure (including transit and what not) is going to become more of a reality to those who depend upon it the least. Those of us who find public transportation an option because we own a car or bike or have legs that work pretty reliably will eventually notice that it won't be an option because it will be completely gone. Our city won't have been able to take the strain as it spreads out and spreads thin. Will gas be (I actually hope that soon it will be) $10 a gallon by then? What will our human reaction be? Hide in a cave and pray to Dr. House for sweet merciful death or will we try again to concentrate into a dense area to interact and shop and play?

Why is a state so unwilling to fund public transit so full of people willing to invest millions and millions and more millions and then a few extra millions and how about a secret few billions of dollars to expand highway infrastructure (making it easier for people to spread further and increase the burden upon our infrastructure which is GOING TO KEEP COSTING US MORE)? Is this a quick fix to a problem I don't understand? Are the sprawling suburbs of the state so damn enticing that our suburban tax base is going to grow enough to offset the constantly starved and ill treated urban cores? Seriously? I would like to know what the heck people in NOACA are thinking promoting interchanges in Avon and the like. How about trying to imagine what it will take to keep the ridiculously vital parts of the region (such as Cleveland) not just shuffling along on Life Support but actually work to inject some sort of this LIFE everyone keeps talking about.

I want to live.

So when you are writing your emails or snailmail or texting or twittering your state reps and the like about how you wouldn't at all mind being able to take the bus or train to work instead of having to find a new job or just move out of state ask why it is so very hard to inject a little humanity into planning/money allocation process as well. I mean, this is all being done for us people, isn't it? Isn't it?

CMA expansion clarified

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 10:47:00 +0000

First off I appreciate the comments. I wish I got less comments from the guy named Anonymous but I can't pick and choose who comments here. Actually I can, I have that control.

I am posting this as a full post because I didn't type anything up tonight and part of my new resolutions is to write more on this thing again and also because my response was so long that by the end putting it in the little comment box was driving me batty.

This isn't me yelling at the person who asked the understandable and defendable question:

If Breuer refused to acknowledge the 1916 buliding, why should Viñoly have acknowledged Breuer more than he has?

...this is just my knee jerk, its been a long day and my proofreading skills are at the nocturnal low responsiveness level. I am quite nice in person, I swear it so take any strange aside commentary just as you would an uncle at Thanksgiving who has had a little too much everything interrupting his primary story to tell you about the time his day sailor tipped over in the bay and he lost the pocket knife your aunt gave him when they first met but he was too ashamed to tell her so he saved all his money and bought a new one on his own, pretending its the same one ever since. It's all meant to be a cute allusion. There, just like that.

Anon,

One architect "refused" to acknowledge an existing building during their phase of an addition (if I can utilize your interpretation of Breuer's addition, 60ish years after the original which drastically altered the layout and facing of the museum). The third architect to the mix (Vinoly's office) gave a "tip of the hat" to the addition but failed at all to react sensibly enough to distinguish and or assimilate; the addition is too similar to stand on its own and too dissimilar to be a strong interpretation. Similar to when a really poor addition is done to a public school or when an institution has run out of funds during an expansion and substitutes cheaper, off color materials (can't afford to match the brick) and the whole concoction feels slightly off putting. Sure everyone says that it's all become a cacophony of material and joyous expression but what it ends up feeling like is an unplanned tumor, not strong enough to have an ego of its very own but still slightly sapping the life out of the main body. Jagged boxy edges of the perfect square modern box sitting on a curved retreating wall isn't interplay or even intercourse but indecision as how to react to an urban pedestrian problem. Creating a “slice” or “valley” in order to separate two forms would go over better if the two had some sort of dialogue stronger then just a seemingly coincidental geographic location. Just because you sit next to a pretty girl on the bus doesn't mean she is going to have dinner with you, you need to start a conversation.

It's the whole "finish your business or get off the pot" concept, either make a statement or agree with the person before you, don't mumble your business and hope that no one takes offense.

Cultural institutions are some of the last bastions (or were at least when this was all being planned) of physical built expression. Not everyone likes the ROM but you sure as hell want to react to it and from an urban/placemaking/experience level that is pretty dang interesting. It could all be dismissed as trend/eyecandy but a cultural institution exists quite a bit on making the bold statement of “this is what I am, this is what I do, this is where I am, come and visit, explore, support”.

The shame is that it isn't even that I don't like it. I just can't be bothered to care. That is the real crime. At least make me care, not just yawn and go “I remember when Breuer was reacting to the faux-classicism that Cleveland embraced so wholeheartedly back when it was a booming city with eyes wide open towards the brightest future, where it would last the ages so our buildings, our built representations of how we wanted people to see ourselves, would echo the sentiment of what our interpretations of timeless, classical beauty are. Lo, we are timeless, we are Cleveland! (Spartacus theme) So the idea of creating the insular solid, heavy box seem thin and light, stone alternating as it turns the corner to reveal that it is but a thin veneer, impossibly compressive cantilevers over entry ways, the faux is the celebration. We can recreate the exuberance of the past by celebrating that we acknowledge the lies. Our stone buildings are built by machines, fastened by technology, harnessed by knowledge instead of might.” Breuer knew what he was building onto and used the contemporary style to comment upon it.

If anything I wish Vinoly would have reacted half as cleverly as Breuer did. Then I could have cared or at least not dismiss it.

Of course, who the heck am I? Maybe there are some clever twists in there. Perhaps the poorly met joint work, the sad panel system is meant to convey something. Maybe the way some of the stripes align and others don't quite make it, but aren't off enough to create a sense of deliberance, as if the building is already is a state of slumping decay, like a ruin left to the elements, stripped of frescoes and sculpture and icon by conquering armies and we are to stumble upon it and make it our own secret treasure. Perhaps it is Vinoly's own commentary upon Breuer stating “No Marcel, you have it all wrong, the responsible reaction is that we can build something quite solid and dense and we don't have to comment upon it because we are to be completely apolitical as architects seeking patrons.”

Maybe. I sure as hell hope not, it seems such an easy way out.

2009 TOIstudio Year in Review

noreply@blogger.com (Dru McKeown) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 10:53:00 +0000

So this is the third year I have tried to complete some sort of milestone to track the potential progress the city has to offer. In doing so I checked back with my 2008 Year in Review looking for some sort of benchmark to hit. My, the bar was set so low.

The economy may have stifled the Flats East Banks project but the city has stepped in offering money for a truncated phased development in hopes of revitalizing some drastically underused portions of the city. No news? Some news.

The Euclid Corridor is starting to spark interest and has definitely improved conditions along Euclid albeit not noticeably as for commuting by public transit. Perhaps a transit corridor should time the traffic signals for the public transit...no? At some point telling auto commuters to "deal with it" may be required but I think that will take the importing of manufacturing materials, mostly giant steel balls.

CIA still hasn't seemed to move much on the exterior changes for the maligned MVRDV now Burt Hill expansion project which I don't mind not seeing going up. It's similar to waiting to hear the bad news you know is coming, you can put it off hoping that everyone will forget about it and the problem will go away on its own. Hey, its the Cleveland Way.

CMA phase one expansion is completed to fanfare. I haven't figured out why yet. I don't have a problem with meandering art museums, I think you are supposed to get lost in the art. As for white rooms, congratulations, you built some white rooms to show art. I suppose they don't have to be inspiring or interesting but it probably wouldn't have hurt. The half hearted attempt to communicate with Breuer's addition seemed to be done without either understanding Breuer's commentary on materiality or just not caring, which, if that was the case, then the addition should have been a complete departure not a bastardized caricature. Regardless the detailing is pretty miserable which is sad to see for the home of a cultural institution you hope to last longer than 15 years.

Uptowne what?

Ameritrust Tower is still vacant after the economy forces K&D development to abandon plans for it. 668 is going strong though. Yay.

The HoJo got all torn down! It took forever but it was finally accomplished. Now people with have to find another vacant building to watch the airshow from the roof of. Good luck with that!

Detroit Shoreway got all prettified with a rehabbed Capital Theater as an anchor. The neighborhood seems to be doing well which is pretty nice to see. It is also a nice place to visit. The street was improved for vehicular traffic and parking, the sidewalks got cleaned up, park benches, better lighting, trees, buried power/comm lines, it's all pretty dang snazzy. Feels completely different, in a good way.

Waterloo Entertainment District also got some minor street scape improvements, mostly noticeably a green space where the strangest parking/street occurrence was placed. It cleaned up the street and started to create a identifiable gateway for the area which is running on the sweat and dreams of some of the hardest working people I know. When asked what I love most about Cleveland I have to admit those folks are some of the first that come to mind.

ODOT refuses to admit that people can move by any mode other than vehicular and seem to want to slug it out over the long debacle Innerbelt Bridge project. At some point one has to honestly wonder if Cleveland would be better off if we just let it fall into the river.

That would probably reinforce the need of the 490 Innovation Corridor which is under re-advisement. I'm not sure what that means anymore to be honest. I think it means that I will be writing about how nothing has changed with it by next year too.

Speaking of reoccurring themes the Medical Mart project is still being discussed. Any day now some news will break. Any day. See you in 2011!

Remember the aquarium we have been hearing about for the past 30 years? Guess what, we may get two! Maybe. Two different groups are trying to be the first to put a Cleveland Aquarium back on the map. The Jacobs group is looking towards the Powerhouse Building and the non-profit Cleveland Aquarium Inc. who is raising funds and looking for a site.

And if that isn't enough water related news for you, the Port Authority was moving to East 55th, but after Adam Wasserman left that plan is also undergoing scrutiny. What does that mean for the new Lakefront Plan that just received approval from the Planning Commission? Not much it seems, that is still a go. So where will the Port move to?

Not to Whiskey Island, at least if they do then the newly released land acquired by Parkworks for the bike-n-hike (part of the Cleveland Towpath Trail) trail will lead to a very unappealing terminus. Unless you are a huge fan of container shipping, then the bike ride would be amazing for you! And although the Old Coast Guard station is sitting vacant and exposed it still stands stalwart to the elements, a beacon of hope looking for someone to love it.

Perhaps in response to the Cleveland Planning's new paradigm shift of planning for people (seriously that statement was made at the landbank lecture at CSU's Maxine Goodman, check the video when it becomes available, I have been waiting for over a month!) Public Square is getting a second look. PPS already calls it one of the 10 worst public spaces in the world, apparently we are looking to shed the infamy and called in Field Operations (NYC High Line Project) to work with the CUDC in rethinking what would make Public Square better/nicer for, well, people. This should be really interesting to see develop, for those interested in design and the jerks who just like to make snide comments. Everyone can be a winner with this one.

Also, Ohio legalizes casino gambling with Cleveland slated as one of the four "lucky" city's to receive it's own casino, supposedly slated to go behind Tower City (they can probably reuse the Med Mart Plans). Will this improve things for Cleveland (or Cleveland architecture)? I'm not going to bet on it.

Speaking of snide comments, Sustainable Cleveland 2019 had their first meeting. A whole lot of people got together, ate bagels, drank coffee, made puppets and posters and decided to work towards making Cleveland more Sustainable. I don't know if the definition of sustainable was ever proffered but I think enough people know what they think it means to move forward with it. I didn't make the snide comment I was going to. It wasn't about the summit though. I'm going to be nicer in the new year.

Scout's honor.

Here's to 2010. Let's hope it is a ton better than 2009 was. That year sucked.

(ps. yay Browns for ending better then expected)