Plain Press

  • Metro West’s new executive director issues State of the Community Address

    (Plain Press, October 2023) Emily Lee, the new Executive Director of Metro West Community Development Organization issued a State of the Community Address on the Metro West website at www.metrowestcle.org. The Metro West Community Development Organization serves the Stockyard, Clark-Fulton, and Brooklyn Centre neighborhoods.    Lee, who began serving as executive director of Metro West…

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  • Panel reviews results of the 2023 Cleveland Property Survey

    by Bruce Checefsky      PHOTO BY BRUCE CHECEFSKY Tuesday, June 27, 2023; Forum to discuss results of the 2023 Cleveland Property Survey, Cleveland State University Levin College of Public Affairs and Education: Ward 13 Cleveland City Council Representative Chris Harsh participates in the discussion about the condition of housing in Cleveland. Councilwomen Rebecca Maurer, Ward…

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  • Challenges with housing voucher programs examined

    by Bruce Checefsky      The Section 8 housing program, or Housing Choice Voucher program, established in 1974 during the Nixon-Ford Administration, gives people with low-income the financial resources to acquire housing from the private sector. The voucher program, first authorized by the Housing and Urban-Rural Recovery Act of 1983, is one of the largest components…

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  • Ohio Fair Lending and Vital Communities Conference examines housing issues in Cuyahoga County

    by Bruce Checefsky      Frank Ford, Senior Policy Advisor, Fair Housing Center for Rights and Advisor with Vacant and Abandoned Property Action Council (VAPAC), presented the preliminary findings of a mortgage lending analysis in Cuyahoga County during the 33rd Annual Ohio Fair Lending and Vital Communities Conference. In a six-year review of home purchases and…

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  • Landlord comments on Mayor Bibb’s statement at press conference

    To the Editor:    I would like to comment on your article in the November newspaper pertaining to Mayor Justin Bibb’s press conference.    Mayor Bibb stated that he would like to have an ordinance to hold out of state investors accountable for tenants being able to contact them for issues with repairs and keeping…

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  • Reader offers critique of Section 8 program

    To the editor:      My unit has minor issues that need repairs. The repairs have NOT been done since the last TWO inspections! I have let Section 8 know several times. I have showed the property manager 12 times since he got this house in January. I let him in my unit. I have given…

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  • Inside the Bricks: My Changing Neighborhood Gordon Square

    by Bruce Checefsky      (Plain Press, December 2022) In the second season of Inside the Bricks: My Changing Neighborhood, reporter and podcast host Justin Glanville talked to his neighbors in the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood about gentrification and the socially and economically diverse changes that come with it. With an influx of new housing construction to…

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  • Housing experts work to address Cleveland’s housing issues

    Kevin J. Nowak, Executive Director of CHN Housing Network, was one of the panelists at a Brown Bag Forum held at Cleveland State University’s College of Urban Affairs on September 27th titled “How should American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds address housing issues in Cleveland.” The forum was sponsored by the Ohio Fair Lending Coalition…

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  • New owner of the Variety Theater shares her vision for its future

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Saturday, September 10, 2022; Variety Theater, W. 118th & Lorain Avenue: Westown Executive Director Rose Zitello says the Variety Theater has new ownership. The new owner, Kelly Flamos, former co-owner of Mahall’s in Lakewood, is working on the restoration of the entire building with hopes of opening the theater as a…

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  • Tremont residents should examine how to maintain a diverse neighborhood

    Tremont residents should examine how to maintain a diverse neighborhood by Chuck Hoven (Plain Press, October 2022)  Tremont residents should be encouraged to participate in Ideastream’s Justin Glanville My Changing Neighborhood discussions where there is an examination of how to maintain a diverse neighborhood when gentrification is occurring.    The Tremont neighborhood could use some…

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