Nov. 26, 2006 - A Majority Who Live Here Must Be Right:

Puritas Longmead Is a Great Place to Live and Work

Cleveland's West Side is home to the Longmead Puritas Neighborhood, also known as Bellaire Puritas. It makes up almost a quarter of Cleveland's economic base. It has an exciting future ahead of it for several reasons: it's close proximity to NASA and Hopkins International Airport; it's already existing rail and commuter rail lines; and it's fabulous newly constructed and 'to be constructed' public schools. And the neighborhood's vibrant shopping areas enhance it's live ability even more.

First a Bit of History: The area started out as a 'railroad town' so to speak, but became a hub of industry. Most of the areas housing development occurred after World War Two, so unlike some of the other West Side neighborhoods, the general housing stock is a tad newer. Northeast Ohio is known for it's inventors and entrepreneurs: in 1898 John E. Gooding is credited with bringing the first horse drawn and then steam powered carousels to Ohio. They were featured in Puritas Springs Park which in 1898 was THE place to go! We aren't talking small here, this amusement park featured: a roller rink, fast rides like the Cyclone Roller Coaster, a dance hall and ball fields! It was on a trolley line so many Northeast Ohioans who had newly discovered the term leisure time (due to the Industrial Revolution) enjoyed their families at Puritas Springs Park.

Three aspects of this community make it a fantastic place to live. 1) Affordable housing; 2) Industry; 3) Schools

The housing stock runs the gamut in market value. You can get a classic home, maybe a Cleveland bungalow with a spacious front porch and old world features like leaded glass china cabinets in the dining room with a window seat between; there is an abundance of these beautiful homes. You can also get new construction. Puritas Park town homes is a fabulous development with multi-level living areas, vaulted ceilings, and a close proximity to the Airport; in fact I have sold to flight attendants who find them a great place to live and less than a fifteen minute commute to work! There is also an oasis of bungalows built in 2000 called Julia Court, with tax abatement exceeding 8 years left on the community. It is on an idyllic section of W. 145th street that dead ends and abuts a meadowland/marshland that is not only never to be built on, but has recently been found to be on a migratory bird path for some distinctive and apparently rare birds!

I had the delightful opportunity to talk with two creative and interesting members of the Bellaire Puritas Development Corporation (BPDC): Bryan  Gillooly, Executive Director, and Rachel Napolitano, Community Organizer. Their enthusiasm about the neighborhood was contagious, and I wanted to share some of our conversation with you. Bryan and Rachel are the ones who filled me in on the migratory bird information. (Look for more on that in future posts.)

BPDC does a lot of work to assist the neighborhood. They run a computer learning center for residents to improve job skills; they work with WIRENET to operate and fund a training program for future machinists (more on that later too).They help residents with loans in order to make home repairs. Not just keeping up but enhancing the neighborhood is their goal, and believe me they are enthusiastic about it.

What had them smiling and proud when I was talking with them revolves around neighborhood schools. Riverside Elementary School has already reopened and it is a fabulous structure. Now in the works? Three completely new elementary schools: Artemus Ward (I am featuring their latest 'school report card' published by the State of Ohio and made available to the public), R.G. Jones, and Garfield. I was excited to see the architectural renderings and believe me they are fabulous. I particularly loved Garfield's plans with an almost Jetson like design. The goal is to allow students from all grades up to High School to learn in one building, with separate entrances for different grade levels. We will be planning some public open houses to talk about these schools, if you have not already attended the School Boards meetings. You are going to be very impressed and probably wanting to get on the bandwagon and move to the neighborhood. John Marshall High School is also up for renovations. We know the grand old Art Deco building has an elegant beauty. By the time all of this is completed, four public schools in the neighborhood will be new or updated!

The BPDC has also built and rehabbed neighborhood homes. Their Longmead Townhomes (complete with their own day care center) are selling out fast, all have a 15 year tax abatement with very pretty and efficient floor plans and all the modern amenities.

Two more reasons to live here (if you need more after all this!): The Thriving Commercial Districts and The Parks.

The Bellaire Puritas Neighborhood allows you to live where you shop, work and play! The area parks and walking trails are beautiful. Crossburn Park has been recently revamped with a cool playground area. There is also McGowan Park, Halloran Park (with it's ice rink) and Gunning Recreation Center (with a fabulous pool). And of course this neighborhood is extremely close to the Rocky River Metroparks which is breathtakingly beautiful in itself.

Most area residents shop for all their grocery, pharmacy and specialty needs right in the neighborhood. We even have neighborhood hardware store there, Torch Hardware, where you can find everything you need, including the knowledge of how to do something with what you buy! It is a treasured neighborhood resource. Complete with it's own live in cat! The entire Lorain Avenue Corridor is a unique shopping experience where you can find antiques, a diverse array of food markets and restaurants (everything from Middle Eastern, Latino, Vietnamese, German to fast food), a shoe repair shop (how many of them are around anymore) and everything in between.

You can purchase a home in this neighborhood for well under $100,000, or you can spend more. There are two zip codes representing Bellaire Puritas: 44111 and 44135. Using statistics provided to me through our Northern Ohio Multiple Listing Service (their Third Quarter of 2006 Report): the average sale price on both zipcodes together is about $94,000. I took a photo of a home on Julia Court (pretty bungalow pictured above). These homes are listed on the market in the $200,000 range. The styles and price point choices are yours. Either way, this is a great place to live, work and shop.

As a Realtor® I love to sell this neighborhood, because it represents the diversity, history and livability of what I think cities and neighborhoods are all about.

Nov. 26, 2006 - Support Your Local Shopping Districts, Wherever You Live!

If You Don't Shop Locally You Could Be Cutting Off Your Nose To Spite Your Face

Are we all guilty of not supporting our community stores? I know many of us who are active in the blogging world frequently comment on how we like the sense of community we all have here; it's important to us. Now most of us on Realtown Blogs  are involved in the Real Estate profession in one way or another (I am a Realtor®), so we also hear clients talk about their sense of community and we help them find communities in which to live. My take on it is that a Sense of Place, a Sense of Community is important to us, no matter what our jobs, be we Firemen, Lawyers, Teachers, or Shopkeepers! That last category is near and dear to my heart.

What got me going on this topic was my recent order of a blogging book. First instinct was to go to a famous on line bookstore and yes it's a fabulous site. And yes, I am out of books to read, and I get cranky when that happens, so I really don't want to wait too long to get this book - which I could have in several days if I get it from this famous on line bookstore. But then I thought about it again. Supporting my community (which I consider to be all of Northeast Ohio) is important, so why not buy it locally? I went to such a place, had a great conversation with the bookstore owner, who is ordering it for me and I should have it Wednesday or Thursday. Not too shabby. If I am really in book withdrawal between now and then I can go to the library!

Now maybe you are all rolling your eyes. Is she nuts? Well yes, but not about this. In order for our communities to thrive and keep making us feel like we belong somewhere, our shopkeepers need to stay in business! Let me throw out this theory: that without vibrant shopping areas communities die. Without vibrant shopping areas, no one wants to live there, the schools suffer, jobs suffer, the housing stock suffers. And yes I know, none of us has as much free time as we would like. I guess I'm not asking that we do ALL of our shopping in the neighborhoods, but I am saying, please think about it!

We have tons of cool places to shop here in Cleveland: The Lorain Station Historic District, is a long, long stretch of shops covering every kind of item imaginable. Ten Thousand Villages is run by volunteers and has several Cleveland locations. When you purchase gifts from them (and you Realtors® this is a fabulous place for closing gifts as well), you are supporting Fair Trade small business and craftspeople from all over the world. As well as your community!

As for that book I ordered, one of my favorite bookstores doesn't even have a website: Appletree Books in Cleveland Heights. But I have linked here some reviews that show you why people love it so much. Now if you DON'T live in Ohio, you might be tempted to not look at this link. I'm asking you to do it even if you live in New York or Idaho -- The sentiments expressed in these reviews, dollars to doughnuts, reflect how people in YOUR state feel about their independently owned bookstores too. I would venture to say that bookstores help me feel more lilke I have a wonderful Sense of Place than just about any other kind of store.

We all love our Internet (and thank you Al Gore for inventing it), our blogging, our websites. And yes, it is possible to develop, through a blogging community, a Sense of Community that we all would never want to live without. I'm just asking that you pause and think about how valuable your community is to you. And whenever possible, please support the shopkeepers within that community wherever you live, so your own hometown shopping districts can continue to thrive and prosper.

My name is Carole Cohen and I approve this message :-)

Nov. 5, 2006 - Tremont Art Walk: Another Reason to Believe In Cleveland

Tremont Artwalk: Nov. 10th 5 to 8 PM

The painting on the left (gorgeous colors, yes?) was done by Aaron Koonce whose works are exhibted at the Brandt Gallery in Tremont....just one of the 'stops' on the Tremont Art Walk. Are you familiar with the Art Walk? It's a great way to spend an evening, and it happens every second Friday of the month. The next one is this Friday. I wanted to take some time to familiarize you with it if you haven't taken advantage of this cool event.  There is a regular list of Tremont 'places' featuring art. And they are not just galleries. For example, Lucky's Cafe is on the Walk. Lucky's has to have some of the best pastries ever made (thanks to Heather who makes them!).  There is Southside Gallery on W. 11th, Brandt Gallery on Kenilworth &  Doubting Thomas on Jefferson, just to name a few who also have websites to browse beforehand.

They haven't updated their site yet for the November Walk but you can go to the official Art Walk site and get a map for the participating 'stops' on the Walk.  Well, that is, all but the latest additon!  Bergen Village is the new Town Home community at Tremont Ridge (W. 5th and Literary) and we have become a part of the community already (I say 'we' because I am one of the listing agents involved with Bergen Village). This week will be our first chance to participate in the Walk. Our featured artist has a fabulous sense of color: Bernadette Glorioso. Many of you may be familiar with her work already, but please put Bergen Village on your map (even if the official one isn't updated yet lol).  Bernadette's work will be there from 5 to 8 PM Friday along with Pete Mandrake from our office, and I will be there on Saturday from 1 to 4 PM - in case you can't make it on Friday. 

Tremont is truly a great destination at any time, but in the Fall, when all the leaves are naturally painted and glorious, it's an extra special time to take advantage of Tremont's Art Walk.  Galleries, Food, Libations, Scenic Walks, what more could you ask for?  It is truly another reason why so many of us Believe In Cleveland. Hope to see you there!