Plain Press

  • HUD cuts will make it harder for City’s CDCs to stay open

    by Bruce Checefsky      Cleveland City Council introduced measures to overhaul funding for Community Development Corporations (CDCs) in January of this year. Ordinance No. 113-2025 would change how neighborhood development corporations get money by creating a Neighborhood Development Sub-fund. The program will provide grants to expand economic opportunities for low- to moderate-income residents.      In Cleveland,…

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  • Variety Theater again up for sale (photo)

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Saturday, January 18, 2025; Variety Theater complex at W. 119th and Lorain Avenue: A January 13th article in Crain’s Cleveland Business by Dan Shingler titled “Cleveland’s historic Variety Theatre again up for sale” indicates the property is listed for sale. Owner Kelly Flamos purchased the property in 2022 and shared her…

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  • Eastman Library reopens

    (Plain Press December 2023) PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Saturday, October 28,2023; Grand Opening Ceremony for the Eastman Campus of the Cleveland Public Library, 11602 Lorain Avenue: Quinn Jenkins, age 22 months, holds on to her newly acquired book while her twin Riley holds on to their mother, Tonya Jenkins. To their right, D’Santaneyce Pulliam selects…

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  • Digital Connected Learning and Retail Community Center opens on Lorain Avenue

    PHOTO BY MIKE PANDUREVIC June 29, 2023; Grand opening and ribbon cutting for the Digital Connected Learning and Retail Community Center, 9926-9928 Lorain Avenue: (L-R): Westown Community Development Corporation Director Rose Zitiello, Founder and Executive Director of Ashbury Senior Computer Community Center (ASC3) Wanda Davis, Ohio Director of PC’s For People Bevin Bowersmith, and Ward…

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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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  • Ray Petro, owner of Ray’s Indoor Bike Park, hosts “The Great Reveal”

    PHOTO BY CHUCK HOVEN Friday, September 9, 2022; The Big Reveal, Ray’s Indoor Bike Park, 9801 Walford: Artist Eileen Dorsey joined with Ray Petro, owner of Ray’s Indoor Bike Park, to design a mural for the entrance to the bike park. A scene of an outdoor mountain bike path now greets guests to Ray’s Indoor…

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  • Reader thanks staff of Neighborhood Family Practice

    Reader thanks staff of Neighborhood Family Practice To the editor: Dear Dr. Melanie Golembiewsky, (Plain Press, October 2022)  Thank you, Dr. Melanie Golembiewski for the professionalism in which you work. You listen to your clients. You always put their need first, to ensure they live another day healthy and vibrant. LETTER    I’m grateful to…

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  • School Board renames two area schools

    Plain Press, August 2022        At its June 28th meeting, the Cleveland Municipal School District Board of Education voted to change the names of two schools in the Plain Press service area. Thomas Jefferson International Newcomers Academy will be renamed Natividad Pagan International Newcomers Academy. Louis Agassiz School will be renamed Mary Church Terrell School. The…

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  • Eastman Branch of Cleveland Public Library closes for renovations

    Eastman Branch of Cleveland Public Library closes for renovations (Plain Press, January 2022) The Eastman Branch of the Cleveland Public Library, located at 11602 Lorain Avenue, has closed for renovations. Branch Manager Jamie Lauver says, “We are scheduled to reopen in January 2023.”

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  • Back to the grind: Scoot! Craft Cold Brew brings energy to Berea Road

    Back to the grind: Scoot! Craft Cold Brew brings energy to Berea Road by Ilona Westfall (Plain Press, August 2021)                       It’s not the first place you’d expect to find an incredible cup of coffee but tucked among the chain link fences and brick industrial buildings of Berea Road, Scoot! Craft Cold Brew seems right at home.      The off-the-beaten-path location…

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