• Reader comments on Cleveland City Council’s examination of tax abatement policy

    Reader comments on Cleveland City Council’s examination of tax abatement policy To the editor: (Plain Press, January 2020)  “A tax abatement is a reduction of taxes granted by a government to encourage economic development. The most common type of tax abatement is a property tax abatement granted to a business as an incentive to come…


  • CMSD CEO Eric Gordon shares data from 2018-19 school district report card Open Letter To: Friends & Supporters of CMSD

    (Plain Press, October 2019)           This morning (September 12, 2019) Ohio released the 2018‐19 school year report cards, and I am pleased to share with you that CMSD has again made progress on several key measures that CMSD educators have individually and collectively have worked on. Results include: An increase of 2.6 percentage points in K‐3…


  • Grandson of immigrant calls for acceptance of today’s immigrants

    Grandson of immigrant calls for acceptance of today’s immigrants To the editor:  (Plain Press, September 2019)       My grandfather Albert Joseph Bialek came to the United States from Poland {Galicia} in 1910.   Per the Ellis Island website, he boarded the ship Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse in Bremen, Germany {formerly Prussia}. He had just completed his service…


  • CLASH referendum “fighting for all Cleveland’s neighborhoods – to ‘get the lead out’” — it is not a distraction Open letter to the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

    CLASH referendum “fighting for all Cleveland’s neighborhoods – to ‘get the lead out’” — it is not a distraction Open letter to the Cleveland Plain Dealer: (Plain Press, July 2019) This letter is in response to the June 12 Editorial by the Editorial Board of the Plain Dealer and published by cleveland.com and the Plain…


  • TWDC responds to CMSD decision to close Tremont Montessori

    TWDC responds to CMSD decision to close Tremont Montessori An open letter to Cleveland Metropolitan School District Chief Executive Officer Eric Gordon: (Plain Press, June 2019)   The Friends of Tremont Montessori, Tremont West Development Corporation and the Tremont community have fought to save Tremont Montessori as a neighborhood asset numerous times. In 2010, Friends of Tremont…


  • A call for restoring the full funding originally promised to Comprehensive Extracurricular Activities Program

    A call for restoring the full funding originally promised to Comprehensive Extracurricular Activities Program To the editor: (Plain Press, May 2019)      This was said about holding children in cages, “There is no situation where it is ok for innocent children to be taken advantage of by anyone.” I am sure you all agree. So where…


  • Thanks for “heartful story”

    Thanks for “heartful story” To the Editor: (Plain Press, May 2019)    While visiting Metro hospital yesterday (April 2), I picked up your paper and brief through it. I truly enjoyed reading the heartful story “Near West Side’s couple’s love spans across seven decades” in memory of “Judith Ann Peterson Horvath”. Thanks for the family’s sharing…


  • Lincoln Heights Block Club responds to Tremont West Development Corporation’s actions concerning its bylaws

    Lincoln Heights Block Club responds to Tremont West Development Corporation’s actions concerning its bylaws To the Editor: (Plain Press, May 2019)    Official response regarding the Tremont West Development Corporation (TWDC) Board Action suspending recognition of and providing support to the Lincoln Heights Block Club: What is perplexing is that both the TWDC staff and Board cannot point…


  • Sheriff’s deputies commended for saving son’s life

    To the Editor: (Plain Press, March 2019)I am writing in regards to the Sheriff’s deputies, who saved my son’s life, Brian N. He overdosed in the basement of my home. The deputies recognized this, and they transported my son to the hospital before going to county jail. I feel with all the negative publicity; this…


  • Property tax discrepancy exists between assessed value and sales value

    To the editor: (Plain Press, February 2019)          How can there be such a discrepancy between what properties are assessed atand what they are actually selling for?  How do we find an equitable meansof determining value?  Further how did we get duped into the mythological mantra of “location, location, location”?  I fail to see the…