Again, remaining on the subject of urban developments but turning away from Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, I'm looking north and west to the best location of the nation, Cleveland, Ohio. Over a week ago, they just opened their new Convention Center, which basically is rebuilt below the surface with an open park for its green roof. I was in Cleveland last year and saw the project first hand while it was still under construction. I could not get a good look at the project underway because it was almost completely closed off with jersey walls. I did see renderings of the project, and it did look intriguing. If memory serves me correctly, I believe the city is going to apply for LEED certification since this building will almost be entirely underground with a park space on top of it.
In addition to the convention center, a large hotel is also in the works. The mayor and Cuyahoga County chief executive are securing money to fund this project. One interesting thing that comes to mind is that construction costs are apparently lower in Cleveland than they are in Pittsburgh. The folks in Pittsburgh are still trying to encourage the development of a large hotel adjacent to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, but the costs apparently are much higher that the $350 million price tag for the Cleveland hotel. Also, the Cleveland hotel will contain up to 200 more rooms at least.
A third development of interest is right along the Lakefront in the vicinity of Cleveland Browns Stadium. I saw this development on airliners.net while discussing Cleveland-Hopkins International airline service. This development consists of a series of multi-story high-density mixed use buildings, primarily office and residential. I look forward to seeing more of this project, and I think it will become a large asset for the city of Cleveland.
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