Plain Press

  • How greedy can Sherwin Williams be? Wealthy company looks for handout to stay in Cleveland

    How greedy can Sherwin Williams be? Wealthy company looks for handout to stay in Cleveland by Roldo Bartimole You may have heard or read that the paint company Sherwin Williams is looking for a new home. They have been in Cleveland for 150 years or so years. The years don’t make a difference to the…

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  • Neighbors and homeless advocates defend Denison Avenue United Church of Christ’s offering of hospitality to the homeless

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Saturday, January 18, 2020; Women’s March Cleveland 2020 Rally, Cleveland City Hall, E. 6th and Lakeside: Rosie Palfy and her boxer Blue protest Ward 11 Cleveland City Council Representative Dona Brady’s opposition to the use of Denison United Church of Christ as a Metanoia Project night time refuge from the cold…

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  • End Poverty Now Coalition raises concerns about Cleveland Public Power’s business practices and shutoffs

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Friday, January 17, 2020; End Poverty Now Press Conference to present demands to Cleveland Public Power, 3500 Lorain Avenue: Adam Jefferson, who lives in an all-electric subsidized apartment, had his electricity shut off by Cleveland Public Power because he was unable to pay the full bill. Jefferson says on cold nights…

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  • Speakers at Women’s March Cleveland 2020 address social justice and women’s rights

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Saturday, January 18, 2020; Women’s March Cleveland 2020 Rally, Cleveland City Hall, E. 6th and Lakeside: A 17-year-old Cleveland Heights High School student inspires the crowd singing Alicia Keys’ song “Girl on Fire”. PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Saturday, January 18, 2020; Women’s March Cleveland 2020, Cleveland City Hall, E. 6th and…

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  • Listening Sessions: Residents express concerns about Tax Abatement Policy

    Listening Sessions: Residents express concerns about Tax Abatement Policy by Bruce Checefsky       (Plain Press, January 2020)    Residential property tax abatement is an economic development policy that many people in Cleveland find confusing. Who benefits the most from tax abatement? Why raise residential property taxes 200% to 300% in some cases to compensate for an…

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  • Working group and public meetings to review current tax abatement policy and incentives for developers

    Working group and public meetings to review current tax abatement policy and incentives for developers by Bruce Checefsky (Plain Press, December 2019)           Councilman Kerry McCormack believes Cleveland’s tax abatement policy and incentives for developers need reform, so he organized a working group to review the existing program and recommend changes. While committed to keeping the…

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  • Ward 3 Democratic Club holds November meeting at Tremont Pointe

    Ward 3 Democratic Club holds November meeting at Tremont Pointe by Bruce Checefsky (Plain Press, December 2019)           Joseph Rider, Ward 3 Democratic Club President, was at the Cleveland Democratic Club meeting held at Tremont Pointe on November 19, 2019. Patrick Mahoney, Chairperson of Prescient I, was there. Political candidates Joy Kennedy for Domestic Relations Court…

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  • Lively School Board meeting addresses school building plan and other matters

    Lively School Board meeting addresses school building plan and other matters by Chuck Hoven (Plain Press, December 2019) The November 19th Meeting of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) Board of Education held at East Tech High School included a protest by CMSD security personnel, testimonies about schools slated for closing or getting a reprieve…

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  • What impact will Opportunity Zone investments have in the Tremont neighborhood?

    What impact will Opportunity Zone investments have in the Tremont neighborhood? by Bruce Checefsky (Plain Press, November 2019)        The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, with the goal of creating long-term investments in regions of low-income rural and urban communities nationwide, established Opportunity Zones. The Opportunity Zone tax break allows investors to defer…

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  • Residents express concern over impact of development on their neighborhoods and the city

    Residents express concern over impact of development on their neighborhoods and the city by Chuck Hoven (Plain Press, November 2019)        At two recent community meetings, discussion addressed the lack of affordable housing and the prospects of current residents being able to afford to remain in their neighborhoods as property values and rents continue to…

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