The Observation Deck

John:

Yesterday I had dinner with my son. He told me about two couples moving to Lakewood from Tremont, renting not buying, because the women were not feeling safe.

It's all about hand selling the city through our social networks, especially for the young and the restless.

You are correct about the flux and life stages. The geezers will move on. The young bloods will step in. Sometimes the generations will join on a platform such as the one you have so generously allowed us to construct -- The Lakewood Observer Food Security Network - with the Covered Bridge Farm - at bella duby.

Kim Paras is working on enlistment for the micro-brew program.

Holly Whitson will write the story.

Each cultural platform and empowerment project that we undertake together in Lakewood successfully will defy the low expectations of cowards and squares blinded by corporate consumption models who can't get a clue about the social capital accruing to engaged neighbors in the 21st Century community of Lakewood.

Kenneth Warren

Charyn Varkonyi wrote:

The overriding theme? The city has no vision. There is no concrete plan anyone can point to that tells them WHAT Lakewood is going to do, HOW it is going to do it, or WHEN it will be done.

Charyn, For five months last year I heard that same thing, when I was out campaigning. Your group talked about the planters, I kept hearing about the skate park and other items.

In my time going door to door, there really wasn't an age group that lead that mantra it was a pretty good mix of young and old who said that when the timing was right they would leave.

It will be a conversation that we will be hearing for a long time or until the perception of "we are going no where" changes.
Maybe the City elections in 2007 will be the beginning?!

Is it not a unversal constant that no matter where you go, many of the people there are frustrated and aching to leave?

Let's see, down the street from me, the lady is moving west. Her kids are grown up, and I think she inherited a bunch, or came into some money, as she just bought a new car, and just bought a house she describes as 3 of these with some space between me and the neighbor.

BUT...in the 4 houses sold in the last year, I've talked to 3 of the "new people". All 3 of the guys are blue collar workers, 2 of the wives work, and 1 stays home with her 4 kids. All moved into Lkwd from Cleveland. All were looking to get their kids in our schools, and "have it better here". All are in the age range of 30 - 40. I see the moms more than the dads, as all the dads seem to work longer hours than the customary 8 or 9 or so. They all seem very friendly.

So, in the last year, 4 houses sold, 4 couples left, but 4 came in. Even steven it seems to me.


A note about posting anything negative on this board. I think some negatives need to be faced and worked on getting fixed, rather than just not said. I've had my share of whacks for posting negatives, if you search my postings.
But then again, that's just me. *getting ready to duck a whack now *

Mark

There is nothing wrong posting a negative here, but could we be a little factual when posting a negative or a positive? Got back and revue the subjects and the talk. There is a bunch of negative stuff. Robbery, rapes, beatings, rewards, theft. But they are all based in fact with purpose.

Mark in my life I know a million that find it far easier to bitch than to try to fix the problem.


.

In the suburbs most of the negatives happen before ninth grade. On the school bus you will hear about beatings, robberies, ghetto-style stompings, rapes, drug deals, extreme promiscuity, doping, binge drinking, huffing, etc, and perhaps witness a few.

The same stuff goes on in the suburbs as people move away from the city for. Adults just don't have to deal with seeing it. Those big houses and yards are good for more than employing landscapers.

Tim raises the vague sense that holds the city hostage to the negative perception: "we are going no where."

So the questions that arise which should be put to each person are:

1) "What does going somewhere mean?"

2) "Is such going actually feasible?"

3) "Who/What is fueling the going?"

4) "Who is driving the city that is going?"

5) "Is "going" a passive momentum created by others or one self-created in action with others? What others?"

6) "Is going somewhere going upscale, rising in the class pecking order of west shore communities, shaking off the blue collar blues?" As one deceased library trustee would sometimes say as something that did not impress him: "We're not going to Rocky River it, Ken."

7) "On a scale of one to ten how do you rate what's "going" on - say from flower baskets and skateparks to school construction (fill in the blanks) -in terms of its relevance to you?"

8) "Why do such going-ons antagonize or harmonize with you and your values?"

9) "How does Lakewood's situation as a starter home community, with a thick patch of rentals always churning create a sense of going and coming that creates the anomie that Tim generally describes?"

10) "Does the anomie Tim describe as communication on the campaign trail classify as a resource for political capital built on the assumption the politician is one to fuel the going?"

Speaking personally, I am not so sure that an election and a changing of the guard will fuel each person's sense that Lakewood is going some place, the same place that so many in this diverse city could not possibly crave together

Cravings for a sense of going are likely to diverge, depending on the anthropological, class, economic, political psychological, and social factors that inform the human condition in Lakewood.

Where do our cravings converge?

Why are the basics of going nowhere in a place good enough for now, along the lines of Ms. Roberts descriptions of Lakewood, not enough?

Not enough going for whom?

As the carping over the skateboard park, a fabulous and defining ammenity in my book, but one that does nothing but antagonize some people, seems to prove.

Kenneth Warren

I enjoyed reading this thread--a lot of good comments by Ken W and others.

I just want to add my two cents. No matter what is right or wrong with Lakewood, there will always be people who want to move to Westlake, if they can afford to. Then, there will always be people who want to move up from Westlake, maybe to Gates Mills or Hunting Valley (for sake of discussion, forget the fact that people don't like to cross the Cuyahoga River). It is very common in human nature to never be completely satisfied with what you have, especially when you can afford more. There are always anecdotes, like Ross Perot with his $9 haircuts, but I don't know many wealthy executives of local companies who drive a Chevy Cavalier to work.

People also move, due to lifestyle changes, which are not Lakewood's fault. You may have a married couple in their 50s whose kids are now all out of the house. Maybe they are now living in half of a 3-story 4 bedroom side by side double on Clifton, and the gout in the husband's foot is getting worse. Maybe they would rather have a nice ground level single floor home with two bedrooms, which can't really be found in Lakewood but can be found on Columbia in Westlake, for example.

Doug

Doug:

Thank you for the encouraging words. You are correct about the broad change of lifestyle issue as a part of the churn. Sometimes people want to experience life in another place and habitat. Yet there is a stickiness to the Lakewood experience, sticky for all the churn and for all that changes that usually have people saying that their Lakewood years were the best years of their lives. Maybe that is because we are generally young while we live in the Wood, and raising children with others, connected with others.

We moved here 22 years ago with two small kids from the east coast, to a house on Belle to this very day as my wife reminded me today. We thought we had entered heaven, much like the Moroccan/Berber chef who just bought a condo having moved from NYC to Lakewood.

We moved here to raise our two kids in a built enviroment with decent public schools, seeing the insanity of overscheduled east coast strive drive competition.

I travel east several times a year and see the escalation of insanity that comes from the mania that competition for cash flow drives. Lakewood is still in the sweet spot. It seems a fine place for children and families willing to make creative adjustments and network compromises that come from the productive engagement with mixed social classes. I still see integral possibilities in the social formations advanced through the public schools with an increasingly diverse mix of students. The public schools actually impress me as working effectively to create values and norms in a way that is satisfying to our deepest aspirations for American public institutions.

By the way, I love our Chevy Cavalier. I drive ours with pride, when my wife will let me, as does Dan Slife and Molly Paras, Lakewood's best and brightest. It's a terrific anti-brand car for those who could care less about the sign play of consumer status symbols, was a great value for less than 10K three years ago with rebates, gets decent millage, parts are cheap and available. I know someone that got 260K miles on one before trading it in. I see many on Lakewood streets.

Kenneth Warren

Short anecdote and then I need to sleep.

I spent many years on the road as a musician playing upscale hotels and good jazz rooms, as well as show rooms from Vegas to NY and every major city in the U.S., just about, and more small towns than I can ever remember. I had the sweetest deal in several cities to live, but when it came time to finally settle down and drop anchor...it was here. Not because of family, since I could visit anytime I wanted, but because everything I wanted in a place to live, or just about, was right in the borders of Lkwd. A few things are missing now, but for the most part, I still prefer to be here over everywhere I lived on the road. Even in my dreams, I'm still hoping to get into something strong enough to not only give our little one a good future, but while many dream of a big house in Malibu or the Hamptons, I would rather have one in the Lagoons. That's MY dream. Yes the winter "hawk" blows cold, but that's ok with me too.
Even for dream material, we have that here too, at least for me.
I'd like to get me and my family back on our feet after we were wiped out, and have a new car sometime, rather than the one we had to settle for after our leases were up on "cool cars". (Seems like a 100 yrs ago) . Where would I buy it? Here. Barry and/or Spitzer have what I want, or at least I can dream and hope.

So, whats it all mean to one guy in Lakewood?
I've seen probably more cities and towns in the U.S., in 1 and 2 week shots, and in some cities, in months and years, than most people . I've dined all over the country and shopped all over too. The bottom line is, after all those years of traveling and seeing every area of the U.S except Hawaii, I still like it here best.

My 2nd and 3rd best are in Ohio too. I love Columbus and Dayton too.
4th Indianapolis, 5th Vegas.

btw, 102 FM is playing old classic hits 'till Monday morning or maybe longer. For us Jazz lovers, the Wave 107 FM is about it.

DougHuntingdon wrote:I enjoyed reading this thread--a lot of good comments by Ken W and others.

I just want to add my two cents. No matter what is right or wrong with Lakewood, there will always be people who want to move to Westlake, if they can afford to. Then, there will always be people who want to move up from Westlake, maybe to Gates Mills or Hunting Valley...
Doug

Doug

Of course this is correct, and it is the heart of the churn that is Lakewood.

A popular misconception is I am nuts on Lakewood. I love Lakewood, it is my home, it is where I have chosen to make my stand. I have not always lived here. Spent some time in Chicago, Cincinnati, Euclid and shorter times in other places but I have always been sucked back in by Lakewood's stickiness. But my reasons do not work for everyone, I have lifelong friends here, family nearby, and a couple businesses based here. Joan for an example might not, her base like that could be Pittsburgh for an example. I am not so blind as to not know this.

Also my wife and I often used to take drives into the country looking for that gentleman farm with 10 acres, a pond, a stream and a more relaxed way of life. I know of others with similar dreams. Just because we realize the error of our thought process, does not mean it would not be the correct thought process for others. Lakewood cannot be everything to everyone, and it should never try.

All I ask is that Lakewood is represented fairly and honestly in the discussion. That if a group of six is listened too and overheard and tough love is handed out to Lakewood that a little tough love gets handed out to those people as well. A perfect example is crime stats. While looking at the perfect farm in Medina, we found out that the hospital was about 20 minutes away, an interesting fact for a 50 year-old fat man, who hurts himself often while working on his cars. That lead to the fascinating fact that you are 10 times more likely to be involved in a violent crime in the country than the city. It becomes a 100 more times likely if you rule out crimes of passion or friendship, and just go by random acts of violence. in other words violence you could not have avoided ala "In Cold Blood." So while the six that night might have worried about the baggy pants kids, statistics would show they had very little to fear from them while they were in Lakewood.

I have a couple friends that left Lakewood for the promised land of Bay, Westlake, and Medina. While their lives did not become hell, it did changed drastically, and they come back to the wood often. What they miss is the very things others use for excuses to leave. Walking to the bars and food, neighbors close enough to talk to and watch out for each other, the diversity, the funky little shops, the convenience, the lake, the metro parks, etc. This is why when I hear of people leaving, I ask them to reflect on these things before running to the hills.

All I ask is that Lakewood is given a fair shake. I need no lies, no cover-ups, no as Mark wrongly mentioned "No Bad News." I just want it to be correct and fair news.

Let's examine how bad our low self esteem really is. Last weekend I posted REAL FACTS ABOUT REAL EVENTS in Crocker Park. These were facts, not what if, not I heard, not I overheard, facts about crime in a "city in the field" with a point being they had no police, just guards. I was soundly chastised(rightly so) and told to get out and enjoy Lakewood on a beautiful day by two LO members. A week later, one, on an equally beautiful day, started this thread, and another thought the conversation was useful. So it was evil to talk bad TRUTH of the mall city, but fine to talk untrue negative rumor about the city we live in?! Let's just be fair.

My problem, with my neighbor's low self esteem is that it festers like a cancer and duplicates and like the old game telephone gets worse and worse with each repeat of the mis-truth. A month ago a young man was found beat on Franklin. As I walked the neighborhood delivering papers and talking with residents the rumor mill was in full swing until two weeks later it was, "A black shirt gang, had beat him and tried to kill him. To make sure his friends learned to keep quiet, they cut his lips off and carved notes in the guy's body. He is near death with his organs shutting down in the hospital. "The truth, he probably got in a fight with some drunks at a party that followed him and beat him up." One is the kind of trouble that drives people out and makes people not buy in Lakewood. The other is kids being kids. Again, random violence as opposed to violence from friends and family. One is bad, the other terrifying.

It is far too easy to say Birdtown is bad, Burger King is bad, Kaufman Park is bad, Lake and Cove is bad, Sloan 100' from Clifton Park is bad. It is much harder to do the due diligence and see for yourself. It is even harder to see a problem or a kid or a business and take the steps to correct it.

This is why it is so important in my small mind to define the Lakewood Brand. Even if it changes month to month, there are things that do not change, and should be highlighted and marketed. It must not be a "singles ad" where we state "City 29 years old, handsome, good dancer, wealthy, loves to sit in front of fire for good conversation and foot massages" It has to be honest. Rita Ryland had her choice of 4 cities to live. Her husband had businesses in all of them. she came to Lakewood, and fell in love with it, for some of the very reasons the six at the table wanted to move. What also caught her eye was an energized, active community that reached out, and was not afraid.

This past week we have discussed both the Beck, and these six wanting to leave. My opinion is tell them the truth, the pluses, and let them decide. But if they are leaving, please hurry along. Do not spend 5 years at the table talking about how much they hate Lakewood, and yearn for Bay Village. Go live your dream in the promise land, and let us find someone that wants to live here, and more importantly take an active role living here.

Last month I was invited to speak the Realtor's Conference about the Lakewood Observer. I chose not to. instead I made a plea for the realtors to bring Lakewood young professionals that wanted a urban style life in an area with lakes, rivers, golfing, food, and near everything. To find me middle age residents that can work from anywhere because of the net, that want to take an active roll in this city, and help to make it better. To find me couples and singles near retirement age that want to stay active, and not walk away from life and the tapestry only a "real" city offers.

Last week I walked out of Kiwanis and found some of my Kiwanis brothers speaking of the very same things the table of six were. It seemed their biggest problem was youth walking down the middle of the street. I told them about myself as a teen would often walk down the street, and if a car came along I would lean over to tie my shoe, just to bring the stress level up in the driver in such a hurry. Two of them agreed they also did that or similar things. then I pointed out that right now they were walking down the middle of "Lakewood's street" and frustrating just as many people. Everyone has a right to seek their happiness, no one has a right to cause unhappiness.

If you are 40-60 your idea of safe good living is based on a false premise that has been carried from family to family like a flu virus. Safe is privacy, no interaction, no contact with others that might bring crime. This is a misconcpetion that has been proven false again and again, but the truth has a hard time getting past the misconcpetion. A safe street is a busy street. A safe neighborhood is a busy neighborhood, with porches, and people coming and going all day and all night. A safe neughborhood and city is a city where neighbors talk, and take an active role in day to day living.

As I close off this book of thought I remember a great story told to me by Paul Tepley. It seems that he had a neighbor that explained to him that Lakewood is going to hell, turning into a ghetto. It was not the Lakewood he grew up in and was getting unsafe. The changes that were going on were not good and he hated living there and wanted out to Westlake or Bay, or anywhere. I asked "Did he leave and get out?" Paul answered with a smile, "Yes he died 40 years ago."

Lakewood cannot be everything to everyone, and to try will merely homogenize Lakewood into something that is nothing to everyone. But if you do not like it, get off your ass and get active, move, or at least get out of the way of others trying to make it better. No one should be unhappy in life.

But for god's sake could we base these discussions on truth not fiction?

Now get out and enjoy another beautiful Sunday in Lakewood.

peace

*whacked*

In response to the comment about complaing vs. doing.

It's half of a good argument. I think we can get bogged down in negativity and complaining (and not just about Lakewood, we all know people who were just born to bellyache)

And I also believe we have an obligation to pitch in and be active role-players in our various communities, whether it be through our churches, schools, favorite charities, etc.

By the same token, I don't have a degree in urban studies, I have no contacts at high levels of business or industry, I don't have hundreds of thousands to invest.

And I neither won an election nor am picking up a check from the city to 'solve" these problems.

At some point, leaders have to lead. Grassroots and community activist organizations are fine and can be effective, but there are things which can only be done by people with the expertise, contacts, and capital.

Right now, I see the current city government taking credit for the schools, the Y, and the library, which they had virtually nothing to do with. In fact, one could argue that the best thing Mayors Cain and George and city council did for the schools was not getting involved in any size, shape, or form.

They will also crow about the "building boom" in Lakewood which, in addition to the aforementioned public projects, basically creates housing units 95% of residents will never have a prayer of affording.

So if you're that proverbial $40,0000 a year median income earner, what has your city government brought you in the last 2-4-8 years? Are you at all better off now than you were in 2003? Or 1999? Are your streets safer or better maintained? Do you have a better chance at finding a job wthin your borders? Do you have a better hope of your taxes stabilizng? Are your schools scoring higher on the tests (I defend the schools every chance I get, but I am not ignorant of the fact that those results DO influence property values and desirablity)?

I think that's what Mr. Carroll was hearing as he goes door to door. I think that's what Charyn overheard.

I believe that, as the LO has proven, there is a cadre of residents (can't say how big) who are eager to get behind plans to move the city forward.
But, from city hall's perspective, where is the plan?

Like it or not, that's a big part of what they're there for. The police and fire departments can run themselves day to day. Leadership is made up of many elements, and vision is among the most important.

I do get the point Ms. Roberts makes that those on the dime need to deliver on vision, plan, and execution.

The average Joe/Joan is caught in a squeeze. The only things “goingâ€Â

Joan

As always right on every point, but let me clarify.

I am not asking anyone to do one thing they have no knowledge of, have no time to do, or do what they do not believe in. But everyday I see heros of this city.Dennis Novak, Sam Phillips and the Walking Man Bognar all pick up trash as they walk. Jay Foran and Mary Anne Crampton started LakewoodAlive, Ken Warren helps with food shares, and everything else. Last week members of the Family Room and some Observers helped finding air conditioners for a woman who was ill. Yesterday I had the pleasure of walking the great witch of Lakewood Berry Haas to the pet store then Phoenix after I saw her having some problems. This is what makes Lakewood or any town strong.

I used to bitch all the time, then I found out with a little multi-tasking, some friends, and a little imagination, it is easier, and more rewarding to try to make a positive impact. Many of the things I see the city needing are things city hall should no be doing. Garden Spots are perfect example. the secret is to energize and empower and let citizens take part and pride in the city. We have many similar groups to this meeting on our VMR and more asking every week.

I have often said to elected officials and others "Safe and Clean is all I need. Then help energize the residents to create the fun and enjoyability."

Joan, this might be a slight difference in our thinking. Instead of thinking how I can change the city. I think how can we make a, winning formula for over 100 years and a design others are trying to copy, work for another 100.

Three of the most exciting plans I have seen about this city have all come from people that are as well versed as you in urban development and dynamics. They merely used common sense and experience.

FWIW


.