Crain's Cleveland Business

SPORTS BUSINESS: Mentor company helps bring NFL Draft jerseys to stage. PAGE 14

MANUFACTURING

Chemical distributors respond to supply chain challenges. PAGE 3

CRAINSCLEVELAND.COM I MAY 2, 2022

CSU enters a new chapter

Laura Bloomberg named president, Nigamanth Sridhar is interim provost

Laura Bloomberg | CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY

The announcement last Tuesday morning, April 26, from the Cleveland State University board of trustees was both sudden and blunt: Harlan Sands, after just four years

Apartments planned for historic building United Church of Christ’s HQ under contract

BY MICHELLE JARBOE

Another office-to-housing conversion is on the drawing board in downtown Cleveland’s Gateway District, where the United Church of Christ is preparing to exit its longtime home.

The K&D Group, a busy apartment owner and developer, has a deal to buy the historic building at 700 Prospect Ave. Doug Price, the Willoughby-based company’s CEO, confirmed that the property is under contract. The sale is scheduled to close at the end of May. Price wouldn’t say what he’s paying

for the real estate, which hit the market in July at an asking price of $7 million. The Cuyahoga County Fiscal Office values the property at $4.5 million.

K&D plans to transform the nine-story building into about 130 apartments, with retail on the first floor. Most of the units will be modest one-bedrooms, of about 550 square feet.

“It lays out really well for these more affordable apartments,” said Price, adding that tenants will have the option to park at K&D’s garage across the street, adjacent to the company’s Residences at 668 complex.

See APARTMENTS on Page 15

Cleveland’s remote tax fiscal fallout not so dire

BY KIM PALMER

The sky is not falling yet — at least in terms of the number of 2021 tax refunds filed by employees who opted to work remotely outside the city of Cleveland.

With nearly 224,000 out of 288,000 employees commuting from outside of the city of Cleveland, tax revenue totals face the possibility of a steep decline if a majority of those workers

at the helm, was out as president.

Officials wrote that it was a mutually agreed-upon decision between Sands and the board. There were differences, they said, “regarding how the university should be led in the future.”

“The board recognizes that CSU has made significant advances during Sands’ tenure and is on solid footing,’’ board chair David Reynolds wrote in the statement. “Over time, however, it has become clear that this simply is not a good match for either party go-

ing forward. We thank President Sands for his contributions to CSU during his tenure and wish him well.”

Management styles, though, don’t tend to change overnight. Sands’ See CSU on Page 16

GUS CHAN PHOTOS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

BY AMY MORONA

FUTURE

OF THE OFFICE

go or remain remote, according to the study involving nearly a dozen urban and suburban Ohio cities.

City leaders were pleasantly surprised, however, when this year’s tax deadline rolled around: Instead of 77% of Cleveland’s commuter workforce requesting rebates, there were less than 1,000 filings.

“Cleveland has something in the See REMOTE TAX on Page 17

NEWSPAPER

VOL. 43, NO. 17 l COPYRIGHT 2022 CRAIN COMMUNICATIONS INC. l ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Employers return-to-office policies are anything but consistent. PAGE 8

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AKRON

Apartments slated for the former WhiteSpace building

BY DAN SHINGLER

Green Harvest Capital has struck a deal to purchase the former home of the WhiteSpace Creative advertising and marketing agency and plans to spend more than $10 million developing 50 market-rate apartments in the building.

It will be the first mixed-use development for Green Harvest, a real estate investment and development firm in Bath that has previously focused exclusively on apartments.

“We won the bid. We’re purchasing it and looking to close the last week of May,” said Green Harvest principal Bhavin Patel. “We’ve spoken to the city and made our intentions known, and the city is very happy this is going on.”

Green Harvest has agreed to purchase the property for $1 million out of the bankruptcy of White Hot Properties, a real estate company that was formed by WhiteSpace Creative founder Keeven White and renovated the building for use by WhiteSpace before the agency shut down at the end of 2019.

It’s a unique building on a unique site, say Patel, his fellow principal at Green Harvest, Michael Smith, and the firm’s executive vice president for finance and development, George Moy. As for the site, at 243 Furnace St., it’s only a short walk from the north side of downtown Akron, but you wouldn’t suspect that if you were transported there and didn’t have your bearings. Lined mostly with wooded hillsides, that section of Furnace Street looks more like a country road than the inner-city street that it is.

Green Harvest hopes it will appeal to tenants who want to be close enough to downtown to easily access all of the city center’s amenities, but don’t necessarily want to live amidst all of the associated activity.

It’s about half a mile from the site to downtown’s Northside District, not to mention Luigi’s Restaurant pizza. But while traffic on Furnace Street is light, there are no sidewalks or bike lanes to facilitate pedestrian traffic along the route. Patel said Green Harvest has asked the city to extend sidewalks along Furnace Street to make the trip more walkable and bikable.

That might happen, or the city might look at alternatives — but it wants to support the development, said Akron director of planning and urban development Jason Segedy.

“We’re excited about it,” Segedy said. “It’s great to see an older building being reused and it helps get more people into the core of the city, and we like that, too.”

Segedy said he’s not surprised someone stepped up to redevelop the building.

“You get a couple of things not every building offers,” Segedy said.

“You get a historic building that’s still in the core of the city, but it sits there by itself in a pretty natural setting.”

The development also fits with the city’s strategy of rebuilding its population — and work on its residential portion would be eligible for the city’s 15-year tax abatement for housing construction and redevelopment, Segedy said.

As for extending a sidewalk to the building, and perhaps beyond, that might take some time, but there

The former WhiteSpace building, on Furnace Street just north of downtown Akron, includes a red brick portion that was used as office space and a concrete section that developers plan to turn into 50 apartments. | DAN SHINGLER/CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

The interior of the former home of WhiteSpace Creative includes office space that was well done and in great shape, say the building’s buyers at Green Harvest Capital. | CONTRIBUTED

neighborhood and for their project to get it connected to Northside. But sometimes these projects take some time. We could look, in the interim, at maybe getting something like a multi“IT’S GREAT TO SEE AN OLDER path there that BUILDING BEING REUSED AND IT HELPS use would serve pedestrians, too. … I think GET MORE PEOPLE INTO THE CORE OF there could be a couTHE CITY, AND WE LIKE THAT, TOO.” ple of different options to getting it — Jason Segedy, Akron director of planning and urban development more connected to the area along Howdo it yet, but we did have that conver- ard Street.”

As for the building, about half of it sation,” Segedy said of a possible sidewalk. “I think it’s good for the is red brick and was redeveloped for might be some other things the city can do to connect the site with downtown for cyclists and pedestrians.

“There aren’t any active plans to

WhiteSpace. Green Harvest plans to reuse it as leased office space and might even put its own offices there.

That portion of the roughly 70,000 square-foot building is beautiful and was obviously a labor of love for the former agency and its owner, Patel said.

“In real estate, it’s really easy to tell if a building got love or was just put together, and this one is just so well done,” Patel said. “It’s in great shape … and it’s a really cool space.”

In addition to office space that was redone for WhiteSpace, that half of the building includes meeting rooms and a cafe space.

Where the building will require work is in the other half, a six-story concrete structure that was once used as a grain-storage facility, Patel said. It does have windows and also an elevator, though.

Green Harvest hasn’t developed plans for the redevelopment of that space into apartments yet, but it has hired Lakewood architect Paul Beegan to help with that, Patel said.

“We’re also interviewing a few local construction companies to get an idea of cost and completion,” he said.

Patel said he and his partners expect the redevelopment to cost more than $10 million and hope to have the building finished sometime in 2023.

The building attracted a lot of interest when it went up for sale, said Nichole Booker, senior adviser at SVN | Summit Commercial Real Estate Advisors in Fairlawn.

“We had several development groups deeply engaged in the site for their potential projects, as well as a couple local owner-users that expressed interest or submitted offers,” Booker said. “There was some competition between a few groups, but GHC (Green Harvest) showed up to win. … This site provides an opportunity to introduce a unique product to the market. It’s close enough to downtown to still feel downtown-ish with easy access to downtown amenities, the Towpath and parks, and Northside District, but also has a sense of privacy, green space and easy, dedicated on-site parking.”

Dan Shingler: dshingler@crain.com, (216) 771-5290, @DanShingler

2 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | MAY 2, 2022

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MANUFACTURING

Chemical distributors respond to supply chain challenges Industry builds up inventory, changes transportation paths

BY RACHEL ABBEY MCCAFFERTY

The chemical distribution industry is a global one. And it serves a variety of markets, from food and beverage to paint and coatings to pharmaceutical.

“It’s everything,” said Eric Byer, president and CEO of the National Association of Chemical Distributors.

And, like many industries, chemical distributors have been facing steep challenges in the supply chain, from product delays to increased costs.

The industry has a sizable impact on the state. According to a fact sheet from the association, Ohio has 178 distribution facilities with a direct economic impact of about $1.32 billion.

One local member of the Arlington, Virginia-based association is Dar-Tech Inc. in Maple Heights. DarTech, which has about 18 employees, primarily serves the paint and coatings, adhesives and sealants, and plastics and elastomers markets.

The supply chain is in better shape than it was a year ago, said Brett Walburn, president of the specialty chemical distributor. At that time, lead times were extended, but it was also a challenge to just get products on containers, he said. And once products actually shipped, getting them out of ports and on trucks was another issue. There just weren’t enough drivers, and those drivers were being more selective about the routes they took, Walburn said.

And all that’s led to much higher delivery costs. Walburn said that 18 months ago, one of his particular shipments from China might have cost $6,000. Today, it’s more than $30,000. Communicating with customers in this environment, as prices get passed along, has become ever

more important.

Blaine Davidson, vice president of sales at Chemical Solvents Inc. in Cleveland, another association member, noted delays and higher costs as a challenge, too.

About 25% of the company’s incoming pounds come from outside of North America, he said in an email, and costs and time to delivery have both increased on that side.

Domestically, he said, chemical manufacturers are primarily located in the southwest United States. Three years ago, Chemical Solvents could order the chemicals and have them on-site within two or three days. Today, he said, it can take more than three weeks. And the delays are attributed to a host of reasons, from COVID to hurricanes to labor shortages. The impact this has on the company’s procurement and inventory planning team is “tremendous,” he said in the email.

Planning ahead is also costly, as the company has invested millions in storage tanks and stainless steel totes to hold more inventory. Just-intime inventory is “a thing of the past,” he said in the email.

Buying ahead of expected shortages and holding inventory has been important, said Terri Shimensky, Chemical Solvents’ vice president of procurement. But that’s a gamble, too, as it could be a challenge if a company is holding a lot of inventory and prices start going down.

Walburn of Dar-Tech doesn’t see any changes in the strong demand for at least the next six months or so.

But the company is still watching for the “tipping point” where cost starts to hinder demand, he said.

“We’ve never seen it this way,” Walburn said. “You do get kind of scared. ... You hope what happens when there starts to become a softening, it’s a gradual thing, and it’s not like somebody just shut the spigot off, and then all of sudden, everyone’s sitting with massive amounts of inventory that they’ve been trying to build up to make sure that they can supply the customers’ demand

from that standpoint. We keep a very close eye on it.”

One of the changes Dar-Tech made when ports started backing up was making use of the nearby Cleveland port, which it had never done in the past. It’s smaller and a little costlier, he said, but more efficient. And assurance of supply “is more important right now than price,” Walburn said.

Shimensky said Chemical Solvents has switched some of its shipping from trucks to rail. Rail car availability has been higher than truck availability, creating some stability even if the trip isn’t a quick one. Shimensky and Davidson also both spoke to the importance of relationships the company has developed worldwide over the years.

The “dynamics and volatility” in the supply chain have created the need for additional oversight to maintain expected service levels, Mike Brennan, director of supply chain and logistics North America for Barentz, said in an email.

Barentz, a life science ingredients distributor and another National Association of Chemical Distributors member, serves industries ranging from pharmaceuticals to cosmetics to animal nutrition. The Netherlands-based company has more than 1,750 employees globally, with its North American headquarters in Avon.

Anton Dolenc, vice president operations North America for Barentz, in an email said the company has invested specifically in its logistics and supply chain. The company has strengthened its issue communication and resolution processes, invested in more lab, analytical and formulary resources, and partnered with “best-in-class” logistics providers, he said. And Brennan joined the company last year “to focus on areas where we can enhance our capabilities from a cost and service perspective,” Dolenc said.

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Rachel Abbey McCafferty: (216) 7715379, rmccafferty@crain.com

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The nonprofit wants employers to consider the region’s international community when looking to fill talent gaps

BY KIM PALMER

Global Cleveland is working to dispel the myth that hiring international talent is too much of a hassle and not worth the effort.

“People see an international student’s resume or a foreign-born person’s resume and immediately jump to the conclusion that this is going to be more complicated than it’s worth,” said Joe Cimperman, president of the nonprofit organization.

Cimperman and experts in recruiting and hiring international workers plan to fight back against those perceptions at the Global Employer Summit, a one-day event on Tuesday, May 17, aimed at educating the business community about the options and benefits of hiring foreign-born workers.

The end goal is to create a welcoming ecosystem that increases levels of employment for immigrants and refugees, and retains more foreign college graduates. In turn, that will help address the region’s workforce shortages, Cimperman said.

Immigration is one way to bolster an aging and retiring workforce, a growing problem for the region as population numbers continue to decrease. Immigrants, Cimperman noted, also tend to skew younger than the overall population, and, in the case of many refugees being resettled here, they come already educated and skilled.

Northeast Ohio has recently seen a higher percentage of refugee migration as a result of the 74,000 Afghans who have come to live in the United States after the end of U.S. military operations there in 2021.

This region, which was set to receive about 440 people from Afghanistan, has now welcomed as many as 2,000, Cimperman said.

As President Joe Biden’s administration pushes an accelerated process set to bring upwards of 100,000 Ukrainians with American-based family to the country, Northeast Ohio — which has tens of thousands of residents claiming Ukrainian roots — stands to disproportionately benefit from an influx of displaced professionals and skilled workers.

The recent stream of skilled refugees, Cimperman said, could be a good fit for small and midsize businesses that need to fill gaps created by the loss of employees from, among other things, a wave of baby boomer retirements.

“It’s the middle markets that are hurting the most in the workforce space,” Cimperman said. But, he said, those smaller businesses also that tend to be “uncomfortable” with the idea changing their recruiting and hiring processes.

“We want to push these companies to try something new. So many of these companies are so desperate for skilled workers they are trying to recruit through job fairs and $1,000 bonuses,” Cimperman said.

“It’s not as easy as say hiring your next-door neighbor’s kid, but

there’s a reason to take a chance and look at international talent, because it brings you a lot of other benefits.”

For companies without in-house immigration counsel and visa application programs, David Fleschler, vice provost for international affairs at Case Western Reserve University and Global Cleveland board chair, recommends two programs that allow international students to work on their existing educational visas.

The Curricular Practical Training (CPT) program serves as an inter-

“IT’S THE MIDDLE MARKETS THAT ARE HURTING THE MOST IN THE WORKFORCE SPACE.” — Joe Cimperman, president of Global Cleveland

national internship program where students can work while studying at any U.S. university or college. The Optional Practical Training (OPT) program allows international students who have graduated from a U.S. college or university to remain in the country and work for one year or up to three years in a STEM-related field.

Any business can take advantage of these programs, Fleschler said.

CWRU alone has on average about 2,000 international students, who make up about 20% of undergrads and 24% of graduate students at the

Bo ta he he he Cimperman

Fleschler

school.

The OPT and CPT programs allow students to get work experience while providing a path to remaining in the United States. If they choose to go back to their home country, they take with them business connections in the area that potentially increase global opportunities for area companies.

“They work for two or three years, then go back to their home country with a network of industry people here, which means they are much more likely to work with somebody from Cleveland or Northeast Ohio, because those are the people they know,” Fleschler said.

Building a reputation as a welcoming place for international workers could be beneficial for both those coming here and the region’s business community, Fleschler said.

“This could help drive us to once again become a community of destination for international people,” he said.

Kim Palmer: kpalmer@crain.com, (216) 771-5384, @kimfouroffive

The OPT and CPT programs allow students to get work experience while providing a path to remaining in the United States.

4 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | MAY 2, 2022

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HEALTH CARE

UH doc’s ureteral stent secures FDA clearance

BY LYDIA COUTRÉ

After years of hearing from patients how bothersome — and sometimes painful — ureteral stents are, Dr. Lee Ponsky, chair of the Department of Urology at University Hospitals, experienced the discomfort himself. Twice.

These stents help ease the flow of urine along the ureter, which connects the kidney to the bladder. They help prevent kidney damage caused by kidney stones, strictures or swelling of the ureter. While some patients don’t have any pain, Ponsky said upwards of 60% to 80% of patients with these ureteral stents currently available will have problems or complaints, including urine reflux, flank pain and bladder spasms. These can lead to additional medical attention and sometimes the need for replacements.

About a decade ago, he began redesigning the stent, creating what he’s dubbed the Relief Stent, which in March secured its 510k clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and allowed it to be marketed in the United States for patients suffering from kidney stones and other issues causing difficulty draining the kidney.

“I always had an interest in ways that we can improve some of the discomfort that a patient has, but there’s nothing more of a motivator than being a patient yourself,” said Ponsky, also a master clinician in urologic oncology, and the Leo & Charlotte Goldberg chair in Advanced Surgical Therapies at UH. The Relief Stent’s design offers the potential to reduce some of the side effects associated with existing ureteral stents, according to UH. It allows the ureteral orifice to close naturally to reduce reflux and also avoids irritating the floor of the bladder, which causes pain and bladder spasms, Ponsky said.

To help advance the device, Ponsky founded the Ureteral Stent Co. as a subsidiary of Cleveland-based Walden Medical Companies.

Walden Medical seeded Ureteral Stent with $200,000 in founding shares that then converted into a series A financing that ultimately raised a total of $2 million in March 2020, said Mike Bunker, president of both Walden Medical and Ureteral Stent. Right now, they’ve not decided to raise a full series B, but to provide resources through 2023, they raised $1.5 million internally

through a convertible note round from existing investors, Bunker said.

UH Ventures, the commercialization arm of University Hospitals, invested in the company and helped Ponsky also obtain funding from Ohio Third Frontier’s Technology Validation and Start Fund, which aims to accelerate the translation of technologies through Ohio startup companies. ProMedica Innovations — the innovation arm of ProMedica — invested in Ureteral Stent Company, as well, after consulting urologists in the health system and hearing existing ureteral stents were a pain point for patients, said Zach Philipp, investment associate for ProMedica Innovations.

“The feedback was resounding that this is something that would be an improvement compared to what’s currently on the market,” he said. “And so not only were we able to validate it with shared due diligence with UH, when we went through this process, but we also validated it internally and that’s really what got our attention.”

UH Ventures has had co-hospital system investors on most of its deals since it launched in 2017, said Neil Wyant, vice president of investments and

commercialization at UH Ventures.

An early-stage company getting multiple hospital systems using and investing in its product helps it gain credibility much faster, Wyant said.

Dr. Kyle Scarberry, a reconstructive urologist at UH, is the principal investigator of an ongoing Relief Stent study looking at safety that aims to enroll 30 patients.

Bunker said down the road, the Relief Stent “really belongs in the hands of a urology company that has a full suite of products,” such as devices to retrieve kidney stones or ultrasound machines to break them up. He said the team plans to consult notable stone management physicians to demonstrate they have the right product design.

“The first thing out of the gate is really, let’s get some real-world feedback on the product before we say that it’s ready for, you know, a huge commercial launch and investment that that would entail,” Bunker said.

Bunker said he and Ponsky last met with some of these experts in 2019 at the American Urological Association meeting and essentially used the insights they gained there to create a blueprint for their work in the past cou-

Ponsky

Phillip

ple of years to take the product through this latest milestone. They’ve designed and are currently vetting a study to prove the Relief Stent is “superior in patient comfort, health care economics and lowering reflux.”

“The design is fairly obvious, but we’ve not proven that,” Bunker said.

“We only can prove that we can drain urine from the kidney to the bladder.”

Though they haven’t proven those claims, it’s an option for a post-market study in order to sell the benefits of the stent, Bunker said. Other decisions ahead include remaining independent, partnering with another entity or even having an option to acquire the company.

“There’s lots of variables that could come in here,” he said, “and we’ll know a lot more in the next few months.”

Lydia Coutré: lcoutre@crain.com, (216) 771-5479, @LydiaCoutre

REAL ESTATE

New headquarters, warehouse planned for engine parts maker

BY STAN BULLARD

Interstate-McBee, a global provider of engine and fuel injection parts for diesel trucks and locomotives, is starting to have the parts assembled for a move of its own to Oakwood Village from 5300 Lakeside Ave., an industrial area just east of downtown Cleveland.

Construction of a 210,000-squarefoot warehouse and headquarters complex is beginning on a 32-acre site at 7400 Oakleaf Road, according to a notice filed April 1 with the Cuyahoga County Fiscal Office.

Signed by Brad Buescher, treasurer and chief operating officer of Interstate-McBee, the document stated that Premier Development Partners of Cleveland will build the structure for Interstate-McBee. That same day, a $19 million mortgage from KeyBank for the project was recorded with the county.

Interstate-McBee is a legacy but low-profile private company launched in 1947 on Carnegie Avenue near East 70th Street. It relocated to the industrial Goodrich-Gannett area on Lakeside in 1986, according to its website.

Launched as diesel engines replaced gasoline ones in heavy-duty trucks, the company originally served as a rebuilder of diesel fuel injectors. It grew though acquisitions to serve multiple diesel engine makers and to begin providing original equipment for engines in the truck and railroad engine markets, as well as parts for natural gas providers. It also serves as a distributor.

The project has been in the works for some time. Legislation providing an income tax incentive and a property tax abatement were adopted by Oakwood Village Council in 2021. At that time, the company said it would move

to the new property about 150 employees from Cleveland with a payroll of about $6 million annually.

Interstate-McBee said in a footnote to its incentive application that it expected to add another 30 full-time employees after it moves to Oakwood.

After the new structure is finished, the company said it would exit part of a multitenant building at 5300 Lakeside Ave. that it leases for its headquarters and warehouse space. Two manufacturing sites, also in the Lakeside area, and more than 100 full-time employees, will not make the move to the new property, according to an incentive application filed with the village.

The site of Interstate-McBee’s location was purchased March 29, 2021, for $2.6 million, according to county land records. The purchase was made by Oakwood Center LLC, which was incorporated in 2019, according to online Ohio Secretary of State records.

Oakwood Center’s most recent agent, according to state records, is Trent Rundell, whose LinkedIn profile says he is controller at Interstate-McBee. Buescher, Interstate-McBee treasurer and COO, declined comment on the company’s Oakwood plans. Oakwood Village Mayor Gary Gottschalk said the company would provide a visible addition to Oakwood’s highway location, but declined to discuss plans in detail.

Premier Development in an April 6 e-newsletter acknowledged it is constructing a property for Interstate-McBee. Spencer Pisczak, president of Premier Development, declined to comment on the project without getting approval from the company.

Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter MAY 2, 2022 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 5

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PERSONAL VIEW

Pandemic economy is writing a new labor market playbook

RICH WILLIAMS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

BY CONOR SEN/BLOOMBERG OPINION

EDITORIAL

Incoming O

hio unquestionably could use an economic kick-start.

Would elimination of the state’s personal income tax do the trick?

Some Republicans, led by state Sen. Stephen Huffman of Tipp City, think so. Last week, they introduced Senate Bill 327, legislation that would phase out Ohio’s income tax by 2032.

It would be an aggressive, but hardly unprecedented, move. Nine states — Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming — already have done it. Personal income taxes generate about $8.3 billion per year in Ohio, or about 28% of total tax collections. Only the state sales and use tax, at $10.9 billion, is a bigger contributor to the Ohio government’s bottom line.

As Huffman and seven Republican co-sponsors of SB 327 see it, the economic growth created by the tax cuts would pay for the revenue losses they incur. “I believe that the hole will be filled with economic development,” Huffman told Ohio Capital Journal, adding that he wouldn’t seek to increase taxes or fees in other areas.

That’s a common Republican refrain. While we’re open to considering an income tax phase-out, it’s important that legislators approach it with clear eyes and realistic expectations.

Of this we are certain: eliminating the income tax would allow wealthier citizens to pay less in taxes. At present, people who make less than about $22,000 don’t pay state income taxes. The rate escalates to top out at 4.8% for people who make about $217,000 or more. Much less certain, and verging on wishful thinking, is the assertion that economic growth alone would fill an $8.3 billion annual budget hole.

It’s a virtual certainty that eliminating state income taxes would require spending curbs and/or the closing of existing tax loopholes. Both, depending on the details, could be positive developments. The key would be to avoid reducing important public safety-net services, and to refrain from imposing higher taxes or fees — on sales, cigarettes, gas or alcohol, for instance — that disproportionately affect people who are less able to pay.

It also would help to build in safeguards to pause or slow the pace of eliminating the income tax if something happens that leads to a fiscal calamity — another pandemic, let’s say.

While the nine states without state income taxes on balance seem to do as well or better than Ohio economically, that doesn’t necessarily mean such a strategy would work here.

One instructive example comes in Kansas, where deep income tax cuts enacted in 2012 and 2013 for many business owners and other high-income residents “failed to achieve their goal of boosting business formation and job creation, and lawmakers substantially repealed the tax cuts” in 2018, according to an analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Ohio might not be Kansas — but it isn’t Florida or Texas, either. Be wary of budget implications in search of a growth jolt that might not happen.

Finally, time to vote T

he failures of the Ohio Redistricting Commission are well-documented and egregious.

The state Supreme Court has rejected four sets of legislative maps, and on April 15 it demanded the commission reconvene to submit a new plan by May 6. The commission’s five Republicans — they outnumber the two Democrats — have yet to do that, though last Thursday, April 28, they opened the door to a meeting on May 4. (Talk about cutting things close.)

This stall comes against the backdrop of a federal court ruling that would force Ohio to use a previously rejected state legislative map unless a new plan is approved before May 28.

It’s confusing. Irritating, too. And not yet done.

Please don’t let this obscure the fact that as voters, you have important work to do this week. Key races are on the primary ballot this Tuesday, May 3. The headliners involve Republicans and Democrats picking their nominees for this fall’s gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races. For Democrats, there’s also a big congressional rematch of U.S. Rep. Shontel Brown and challenger Nina Turner. State House and Senate races have to wait, though, until the legislative map dispute is resolved.

It’s easy to be cynical about politics. But it’s better to make your voice heard, take part in the process by voting, and try to help make things better.

Executive Editor: Elizabeth McIntyre (emcintyre@crain.com) Managing Editor: Scott Suttell (ssuttell@crain.com) Contact Crain’s: 216-522-1383 Read Crain’s online: crainscleveland.com

The economic rebounds following both the 2001 and 2008 recessions came to be known as jobless recoveries. Demand was slow to recover, so employers held back on hiring — which for companies, at least, turned out to be the right decision.

The recovery from the pandemic recession has been very different and is carrying new lessons. Employers have struggled to fill jobs to meet sharp increases in demand, with operations suffering in many cases. In a call with investors last month to discuss quarterly results, railroad company CSX Corp. said its experience over the past two years has changed its thinking on staffing strategy in a slowdown.

Given the trajectory in the labor market since the latter part of 2020 — an unemployment rate that has fallen to 3.6%, 11 million job openings in the economy compared with 7 million prior to the pandemic, and supply-chain bottlenecks that stem in part from labor shortages — there are bound to be a lot of other companies doing some rethinking of their own. And the decisions they make will be important for the labor market in the next economic downturn.

“We’re going to manage this employee pipeline differently than we have in the past,” said CSX CEO Jim Foote, responding to an analyst question about how much volume was left on the table because of staffing shortages. He vowed, “We’re going to make sure that this doesn’t happen to us again.”

After the 2001 and 2008 recessions, companies learned how to fire millions of employees and maintain operations at lower levels of demand. So as the pandemic took hold in the U.S. in March 2020 and economic activity plunged, that was the playbook many went to again. But this time demand bounced back quickly, in part due to fiscal relief from the federal government.

Companies that for years had complained about labor shortages and warned about inadequate talent pipelines in their industries suddenly found those concerns magnified to the point where they were having a material impact on their operations.

When the next downturn arrives, companies’ pandemic experience doesn’t mean they will or should avoid layoffs in order to cope, but their approach will be more strategic. When cutting staff, they will likely view lower-paid jobs that require less experience — warehouse workers, retail cashiers and fast food employees — as more dispensable because it’s easier to rehire and train those workers than engineers or airline pilots.

With a goal of retaining critical staff for an eventual recovery, companies might shift more employees to part time or offer furloughs with benefits rather than conduct sweeping layoffs.

To the extent companies are now worrying about the prospect of a recession, the high rate at which workers have been quitting their jobs will allow attrition to occur more quickly than in the past — hiring freezes combined with a high quits rate should be enough to reduce staffing levels pretty fast.

For investors and economic analysts, this shift will lead to some different trends in the data. First, we should expect fewer layoffs and a slower rise in unemployment in the next cycle.

And that would probably mean a shallower downturn than we would otherwise expect. It’s tough to get a severe recession if millions of people aren’t losing their jobs.

If companies choose to keep more people on the payroll than they have in past downturns, that might be reflected in tighter profit margins than we’ve seen in past recessions. But the payoff will come during the ensuing recovery, when companies will be in a better position to take advantage of rising demand.

CSX may be one of the first companies to talk openly about how the pandemic has changed its thinking on staffing, but it won’t be the last. Just as companies have learned that having access to semiconductors and ocean freight isn’t a given, they will have new appreciation for employees in critical positions. That’s good news for those workers, and it means we can expect companies to manage their supply chains better in the next downturn.

Write us: Crain’s welcomes responses from readers. Letters should be as brief as possible and may be edited. Send letters to Crain’s Cleveland Business, 700 West St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113, or by emailing ClevEdit@crain.com. Please include your complete name and city from which you are writing, and a telephone number for fact-checking purposes.

Sound off: Send a Personal View for the opinion page to emcintyre@crain.com. Please include a telephone number for verification purposes.

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OPINION Akron | 330.535.2661 Independence | 216.831.3310 Medina | 330.239.0176

We Moved

PERSONAL VIEW

The NAI Pleasant Valley Cleveland Office has moved.

Please visit us at our new location:

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6060 Rockside Woods Blvd.

Suite 402 Independence, Ohio 44131

From manufacturing hub to AI powerhouse, Cleveland is on the rise

BY JORDAN CRENSHAW

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is no longer reserved for science fiction. It’s all around us, rapidly transforming the way Clevelanders live and work.

From the Cleveland Clinic to the Cavaliers, businesses across the city are leveraging AI to provide better products and enhanced services. The result? A city that was once best known as a Midwest manufacturing hub is now emerging as a case study on how artificial intelligence can transform industries and, ultimately, entire communities.

That’s why the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s AI Commission headed to Cleveland last week to hear firsthand how businesses are using AI, how it’s positively impacting society, and what the government’s role should be to ensure we realize the many benefits of this nascent technology while mitigating its risks.

We chose Cleveland because it is a city on the rise — leading the way in deploying AI to address some of our toughest challenges, including improving health services and outcomes, promoting public health and safety, and expanding financial inclusion. Cleveland is also well poised to tackle the workforce challenges that will inevitably accompany this digital transformation.

Improving health services and outcomes AI is already revolutionizing the health care industry in Cleveland, and we are only beginning to scratch the surface of its vast potential. By automating tasks and analyzing trends in patient data, AI is helping doctors and nurses deliver better health care faster, and at a lower cost.

For example, neurologists and brain surgeons from the Cleveland Clinic’s Epilepsy Center are using AI and advanced medical imaging techniques to help locate the source of a patient’s seizures. Once the source is pinpointed, surgeons have a better chance of removing the tissue associated with seizures, which is helping many patients live seizure-free for years.

AI also is improving health care by fostering preventative medicine and new drug discovery. Two examples include IBM’s Watson’s ability to identify treatments for cancer patients, and Google Cloud’s Healthcare app that makes it easier for health organizations to collect, store and access data.

And we’ve only just begun. Recently, the Cleveland Clinic and IBM partnered to establish a new research center that will use AI to further understand viruses and pathogens. Such a powerful partnership has the potential to help us avoid another global pandemic.

Promoting public health and safety There are few things Clevelanders love more than sports, so the city was hit especially hard when forced to

Crenshaw is vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Technology Engagement Center.

shutter sporting venues during the pandemic. However, AI played a key role in bringing fans back safely.

To assist in a safe and secure reopening of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the Cavaliers partnered with a software company to leverage the power of AI. The team deployed Armored Things’ crowd intelligence solutions to manage fan density at key entry and gathering points, enabling smarter decisions related to staffing, security and sanitation.

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Expanding financial inclusion

Millions of Americans lack access to financial products and services — they are unable to build credit, receive funds, deposit money or buy insurance. In fact, 42 million Americans are financially vulnerable, meaning they struggle with all or nearly all of their financial responsibilities.

But there’s hope. AI-based solutions could be a game-changer for expanding financial access to the most vulnerable segments of the population in Cleveland, throughout Ohio and across the country.

For example, many credit models in use today rely on traditional sources of data, including a borrower’s application and credit bureau information. These traditional datasets are limited and often fail to capture the full potential of an applicant, thereby unnecessarily excluding qualified individuals. By incorporating additional datasets, powered by artificial intelligence, such as deposit transactions, and utilities or rent payment information, creditors can better identify qualified candidates and foster greater financial inclusion.

DEADLINE: June 27 | CONTACT: conner.howard@crain.com

Future of work For two centuries, technological innovations have been disrupting the ways in which we work — eliminating some jobs while creating new opportunities. AI is no exception and will continue to change the workforce landscape.

So how do we ensure the workforce is prepared for the jobs of tomorrow? This is one of the key challenges that the Chamber’s AI Commission is exploring as it tours the country hearing directly from business leaders, researchers, public servants and members of the public.

If deployed fairly with the right balance of reasonable regulations, AI has the potential to generate greater economic security for workers, higher productivity for companies and broader opportunity for all members of society. To realize this vast potential, it’ll take businesses, governments and cities like Cleveland all working together.

MAY 2, 2022 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 7

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QUALITY OVER QUANTITY The office market is trending toward smaller, high-quality spaces as COVID challenges remain.

FUTURE OF THE OFFICE

PAGE 12

Adcom occupies two floors at the Western Reserve Building in Cleveland’s Warehouse District. The marketing communications firm moved during the pandemic. CEO Joe Kubic, right, expects employees to work from the office at least three days a week.

GUS CHAN PHOTOS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

BACK IN BUSINESS

Return-to-office policies are anything but consistent across Northeast Ohio

`BY MICHELLE JARBOE At Adcom’s offices in the Ware-

house District, the beer fridge is fully stocked. The photo studio morphs into a yoga room on Thursday afternoons.

And on a recent evening, employees gathered for a standup comedy show in an airy space overlooking the Flats.

Sofia Dyakiv, 23, joined the marketing communications firm seven months ago. Since then, she’s gladly commuted from her home in Strongsville to downtown Cleveland.

“I was remote, and I hated it,” Dyakiv said of her previous work life. “Because I was like, I’m looking at this wall, I have no one to bounce ideas off of, or with. I just want to see people.”

At Adcom, fully remote work isn’t an option. CEO Joe Kubic expects employees to show up at the office at least three days a week — and daily during their first six months on the job.

Kubic acknowledges that Adcom has parted ways with some staffers and job applicants because of that return-to-office stance. But he’s firm in his belief that in-person interactions, in dynamic spaces, foster creativity.

“I didn’t want to keep chasing people’s personal interests and dilute what I thought was best for the organization,” Kubic said of setting a policy last summer, as COVID-19 cases dipped.

Two years after the pandemic spurred stay-at-home orders, more Northeast Ohio workers are trickling back to offices. The future of the white-collar workplace looks in-

creasingly hybrid — but that approach varies widely by employer.

'An inflection point' Progressive Corp., based in Mayfield, rolled out the welcome mat for employees in late March, regardless of their vaccination status. But that return is voluntary for the vast majority of the insurer’s 50,000 workers, including roughly 12,000 in Northeast Ohio.

At Thrive Peer Recovery Services in Solon, the message is “work appropriately” — come in when it makes sense; stay home if it doesn’t.

The business, which offers men-

tal-health and substance-abuse support, has 150 employees.

“It’s the first time in a professional environment that I’ve never been scared to say, ‘Oh, I have to pick my kids up from school early,’” said Tarah King, a public relations professional and mother of three who joined Thrive last year and now works from the office twice a week.

Large downtown employers are particularly reluctant to issue mandates or urge workers to adjust their routines. The Sherwin-Williams Co., which is building a new headquarters tower just off Public Square, See POLICIES on Page 10

8 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | MAY 2, 2022

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FOCUS | FUTURE OF THE OFFICE

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POLICIES

From Page 8

declined to discuss its return-to-office philosophy. At KeyBank, executives and commercial bankers have assigned offices, but many employees are mobile or remote, untethered to a desk.

Medical Mutual of Ohio, with about 2,900 employees, will maintain a hybrid schedule for most of its workforce through 2022, a spokeswoman said. And Rocket Mortgage, a Detroit-based company with a substantial presence downtown, is treating offices as spaces for teamwork, connectivity, career development and building relationships, Mike Malloy, the lender’s top human resources professional, or chief amazement officer, wrote in an email.

Across the nation, average office occupancy was 40.5% in late April, according to Kastle, a security company that tracks access-card swipes at buildings. In downtown Cleveland, half of the pre-pandemic workforce is present on weekdays, based on phone-tracking data and badgeswipe records analyzed by the Downtown Cleveland Alliance.

“I think we’re at an inflection point right now,” said Michael Deemer, president and CEO of the nonprofit group, which is focused on reinvigorating the central business district.

The future of the office is the biggest issue downtowns face, Deemer said. As employers set policies — or, in some cases, vacillate for fear of losing the battle for talent — there are huge implications for the real estate market, for small businesses that depend on foot traffic and for local governments that rely on income taxes.

“It’s a really interesting time,” mused Baiju Shah, president and CEO of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the regional chamber of commerce. “Because I don’t think there’s any resolution yet.”

Adcom’s offices include social gathering spaces like the Stir, top, with a fully stocked bar. Above, employees have a team meeting.

The company requires employees to work from the office most days. | GUS CHAN PHOTOS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

'Part of our permanent philosophy' The Cleveland Clinic, the region’s largest employer, classified more than 8,000 workers as remote or hybrid last year. That’s 11% of the health care system’s global workforce.

Two-thirds of those employees never have to come into an office.

The rest are part of teams that are expected to spend two or three days each week in administrative buildings.

The move was a strategic shift for the Clinic, which also is exploring ways to offer more flexibility to the balance of its 72,500 employees — most of whom work in on-site, clinical roles.

“For us, it’s about leading with

trust and trusting our caregivers to do the right thing,” said Kelly Hancock, the Clinic’s head of human resources, or chief caregiver officer.

Remote and hybrid options are giving the Clinic an edge in hiring, at a time when many Northeast Ohio employers are struggling to fill hightech jobs. But change isn’t simple.

Leaders had to invest in technology.

They had to work with managers to set clearer goals. And they're still sorting through the layout and function of office spaces.

“People know how to be productive from home,” said Ashley Rader, who became the Clinic’s first director of remote workforce in February 2021. “When we’re asking them to come into the office, there has to be something purposeful.”

University Hospitals is taking a similar approach, allowing back-office teams to work with their managers to set schedules. About 4,000 of the health care system’s 32,000 workers are considered hybrid, said Tom Snowberger, UH’s chief administrative officer.

“It is now part of our permanent philosophy,” he said. “And it’s probably something that we wouldn’t have done, in the absence of the pandemic.”

Now office workers are cleaning out their desks, to prepare for a reconfiguration. Anyone who wants a dedicated workspace must be in the office at least four days a week. The remaining employees will participate in a hoteling arrangement, where they’ll reserve desks by the day.

University Hospitals plans to consolidate administrative operations this year in Shaker Heights, at its 215,000-square-foot management services center on Warrensville Center Road.

A customer service center in Highland Hills will become a temporary training hub, as UH implements a new electronic medical records system. Then that 127,000-square-foot building will be listed for sale.

The Clinic also is trimming its administrative footprint, offering space for lease and sublease in Beachwood, Independence and Solon. In December, the Clinic sold a pair of buildings on West Creek Road in Independence for $3.3 million, property records show.

That office downsizing extends to the hospital’s main campus, where the DD Building on Cedar Avenue is being marketed for sale — even as the Clinic is making significant investments in clinical and research space.

The health care systems are, perhaps, indicators of what’s to come.

“Even though we’re two years into this, I think a lot of companies feel like they’re nine months into this,” said Julie Lamb, a principal at Cleveland-based Allegro Real Estate Brokers & Advisors. “They want to ride it out a little bit.”

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'Flexibility is a benefit' With a lease expiration approaching at the Tower at Erieview, Walter Haverfield is looking for a new home — and grappling with the same questions as many other employers: What is the competition doing? How much flexibility is enough? And how do you create an office that makes people want to stay?

The law firm, with 141 employees in downtown Cleveland, has been tinkering with a hybrid schedule. Now legal assistants can work remotely once a week. Paralegals have two outof-office days. Young attorneys and

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FOCUS | FUTURE OF THE OFFICE

A rendering shows the planned Roundstone Insurance office building in Lakewood, on the former Lakewood Hospital site. | DIMIT ARCHITECTS

“I’M NOT A FAN OF 100% REMOTE. I JUST THINK CULTURALLY, FROM A COLLABORATION, FROM A PROBLEM-SOLVING POINT OF VIEW ... 100% REMOTE HAS SOME CRACKS IN IT.” — Mike Schroeder, Roundstone Insurance CEO

managers need to be in the office at least three days each week, for the sake of learning and mentoring.

“I’m under no impression that this isn’t going to change, probably seven times, before we move,” said Kevin Murphy, the firm’s administrative partner.

Walter Haverfield could winnow its space by as much as 25% in a new location by cutting back on dedicated offices, reducing file storage and eliminating old-school features like a law library. The firm, which plans to stay downtown, still needs to survey its staff. But Murphy expects requests for proximity to transit, workout facilities and restaurants.

Amenities, inside and just beyond the office, are essential, Murphy said, "so you're as comfortable as you can be, not being in your basement in your pajamas."

In Lakewood, Roundstone Insurance is planning a headquarters move, to a new building that will anchor the broader redevelopment of the former Lakewood Hospital site.

The company, which has outgrown its current home, had to split its staff into two groups that alternate weeks in the office.

CEO Mike Schroeder believes that Roundstone will always offer a hy-

brid option, to give employees a break from the daily rush. Still, Schroeder is skeptical about the efficacy of remote work, particularly for new hires or young professionals just starting their careers.

“I'm not a fan of 100% remote," he said. "I just think culturally, from a collaboration, from a problem-solving point of view ... 100% remote has some cracks in it."

Some local employers are hedging a bit, committing to a remote future while preserving a corporate address.

Vox Mobile, based in Independence, does not expect its employees to come back to the office. But the company, which manages mobile-device programs for businesses and has 150 employees in the United States and Canada, is maintaining a physical workplace — in a space that keeps getting smaller.

Most days, 10 to 20 people make their way into the Independence office, said Zach Fleitman, Vox's chief financial officer. “I think flexibility is a benefit," he said. "And it's a benefit that a lot of people are realizing they don't want to be without."

In North Canton, Delta Media Group recently moved to a renovated, 10,000-square-foot space, a building that doesn’t have enough

parking for CEO Mike Minard's 70 employees — let alone his anticipated growth.

More than 90% of Delta’s staff had no interest in returning to the office, he said. Yet the same share of them still wanted a dedicated space, as a place to meet and a refuge for the few employees who refuse to work at home.

Delta, a technology firm that serves the residential real estate industry, is interviewing people who are leaving less accommodating employers. The company just hired a writer in Philadelphia. A few existing employees have moved out of the region, or out of the state, without leaving their jobs.

Committing to remote work requires better organization, more attuned management and heightened attention to culture, Minard said. It’s tough, but crucial, to ensure that workers feel a sense of belonging.

So far, though, that extra effort is paying off.

“I will never go back. Never,” Minard said. “The irony was, if you would have asked me five years ago, I would have said, ‘I’ll never do it.’”

Michelle Jarboe: michelle.jarboe@ crain.com, (216) 771-5437, @mjarboe

I mentor Y.O.U. youth “because I enjoy helping young people prepare for their future. I enjoy being able to work with and inspire youth to explore new opportunities and industries. I work with Y.O.U because I want my business as a safe place for young people to learn new skills and provide a solid foundation for their career paths.”

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A rendering shows the planned Sherwin-Williams Co. office tower in downtown Cleveland, near Public Square. The global coatings company moved forward on the 1 million-square-foot project last year, despite broad uncertainty about the future of the office. | THE SHERWIN-WILLIAMS CO.

“PEOPLE KNOW HOW TO BE PRODUCTIVE FROM HOME. WHEN WE’RE ASKING THEM TO COME INTO THE OFFICE, THERE HAS TO BE SOMETHING PURPOSEFUL.” — Ashley Rader, Cleveland Clinic’s director of remote workforce

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The Cleveland Clinic put most of its Independence business operations center space up for sublease in 2021. The health care giant is winnowing its administrative footprint, now that more than 8,000 employees have been reclassified as remote or hybrid workers. | CBRE GROUP INC.

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FOCUS | FUTURE OF THE OFFICE

Tenants eye smaller, high-quality spaces

Challenges remain for office market as pandemic wanes

BY STAN BULLARD

Rico Pietro, a principal at Cushman & Wakefield Cresco realty brokerage in Independence, said he spends each day pondering conditions in the Cleveland and Akron office market as he calls on building owners and businesses that are clients or prospective clients.

“Then I walk into an office building,” Pietro said, “and it feels like no one is there. The market is active again. But the future is daunting. I feel things are not as good as they appear.”

More of the same, although at a faster pace, looks to be the Pietro bottom line for the Cleveland and Akron office market as the COVID-19 crisis wanes.

Long-term trends shaping the office market, such as lower demand, a shift to quality and more expensive offices (but with less space) will gain force. If you’re hoping the pandemic paves the way for resurgence of the private office of old, that’s considered unlikely.

In a market that favors tenants, some downtown Cleveland office users are moving from older buildings to higher-profile properties, such as 200 Public Square. | MICHELLE JARBOE/CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

Cleveland-area office vacancy rate 25% 24% 23%

A tenant’s market Andrew Batson, director of research at JLL Inc.’s Cleveland office, said, “Most of the negative prognostications for the office market have proven to be false.”

By the numbers, office conditions generally are starting to improve, though for multiple reasons.

In the region as a whole, JLL reports total vacancy — a statistic that includes both empty offices and offices that are available such as through a sublease — fell to 20.5% as of March 30 from 21.8% at the end of 2021.

As of the end of the first quarter, both JLL and Newmark’s Cleveland office reports say the market had absorbed more space than it emptied. That was a switch from five quarters of rising vacancies in Northeast Ohio as the COVID-19 crisis gripped the nation.

While tenants committing to offices played a part, both firms say the positive movement was primarily due to big shifts in how several skyscrapers are used. That’s because one big office building, 45 Erieview, and part of another, the Tower at Erieview, were moved out of the office inventory due to plans to commit them to, respectively,

22% Batson

Davison

apartments than originally planned.

In the first quarter, the market absorbed more than 137,000 square feet of office space, significantly more than the 89,000 square feet in the fourth quarter of last year, as the market tiptoed back to positive territory.

However, in what may well be the verdict on the immediate impact on the office market from the pandemic, the market gave back 735,681 square feet in 2021. That means the pandemic’s impact so far is less than the worst rate of the last 20 years, the 776,412 square feet of space emptied in 2009 during the recession following the global financial crisis.

The volume of empty office space offered for sublease fell to 616,503 square feet in the first quarter from 634,434 square feet at the end of last year.

However, the gains in the market are hard-fought.

“It has become a tenant’s market,” said Dyann Davison, a senior vice president in office leasing at Hanna CommerCleveland of“THE MARKET IS ACTIVE AGAIN. BUT THE cial’s fice. Much of the FUTURE IS DAUNTING. I FEEL THINGS renewed activity this year has been ARE NOT AS GOOD AS THEY APPEAR.” due to tenants tak— Rico Pietro, a principal at Cushman & ing advantage of Wakefield Cresco realty brokerage their clout to get better terms.

And the concessions that are beapartments and apartments and hotel space. And more office space ing given are changing quickly. JLL at 55 Public Square was shifted to said concessions, such as periods

21% 20% 19% 18% 17% 2000

2005

2010

2015

2020

Available sublease office space (in square feet) 900K 800K 700K 600K 500K 400K 300K 200K 100K 2000

2005

2010

SOURCE: JLL RESEARCH & STRATEGY

with free rent or other incentives such as more money for outfitting space, were stable in the most recent quarter while they were rising at the end of 2021. Asking rents tell the tale. Sublease asking rents have dropped to $16.04 per square foot as of March 31 from $16.18 at the end of 2021.

“Everyone is desperate” to boost occupancies, Pietro said of many building owners. That said, stated asking rents have firmed up and reached $20.35 per square foot at the end of the first quarter from $20.19 per square foot at the end of

2015

2020

CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS GRAPHIC

the last year. However, asking rates are just that — the point where negotiations start rather than end.

Older buildings, new troubles Mac Biggar, president of Hanna Commercial, said there are two camps at work in the office market.

On the one hand, there are companies that know how they want their offices to operate in the future and will go for longer-term deals.

“They know if they want to go to permanent hybrid offices (which mix

in office and work-from-home requirements) and their businesses will survive,” Biggar said. “There is another group that will do short-term leases or sublease space while they make up their mind and want something to go to. Most everyone is looking to reduce how much space they have.”

For years, newer, better-designed and -located offices have continued to gain occupancy while woes worsen for buildings more than 30 years old.

“Consistently across all U.S. markets, mainly as companies try to figure out how to attract their employees back to the office, we are seeing more companies leaning toward Class A (prime) properties and mixed-use environments,” said Michael Cantor, managing director of Allegro Real Estate Brokers & Advisors of Cleveland.

While that bodes well for the top of the market, it’s likely to aggravate conditions among older buildings, particularly downtown.

Another sign of increasing stability is found in tenants committing to space for more time.

“At the beginning of the pandemic, there was a pretty big pull-back on lease terms and commitments.

Now we’re back to what we were seeing in 2019,” said J.R. Fairman, a JLL senior vice president, as businesses reevaluate how they work and how much time they want staffers to be in the office. He said he’s seen tenants ranging in size from 2,500 to 160,000 square feet align their offices to in-office work weeks of less than five days.

Russell Rogers, a senior vice president at the Cleveland office of Colliers, said he has been pleased with the volume of leasing action so far this year among downtown Cleveland’s trophy buildings such as Key Tower and 200 Public Square. He said the market is more active than it has been since 2019.

However, Pietro predicts that, “unless something happens that I’m missing, it’s Armageddon for class B office space downtown, and it’s not just in Cleveland.”

Multiple experts say that it’s good that downtown Cleveland has had so much experience converting old buildings to new apartments, particularly when real estate developers can use historic tax credits to help raise capital for renovations.

Meantime, another factor is surfacing that may roil the office market.

“The cost of building materials and getting them in is just astronomical,” Davison said, so outfitting new offices will be significantly more expensive. That promises to boost the push for smaller offices as a way to control rent costs that was gaining in popularity before the pandemic.

Gino Faciana, co-CEO of corporate services provider Pleasant Valley Corp. of Medina, said at the beginning of the pandemic many thought the private offices of the 1980s might return.

“I don’t think that’s obtainable,” he said, given climbing cost concerns.

Michelle Jarboe contributed to this report.

Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter

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Flexibility, resilience will define the future of work From shifting workplace norms to growing demand for wellness-oriented benefit programs, the work/life landscape is taking on a new shape.

By CONNER HOWARD

Crain’s Content Studio - Cleveland

T

he professional landscape is completely unrecognizable when compared to what it was even a few short years ago, and the remote work revolution brought on by COVID-19 is only the tip of the iceberg.

Deep-rooted attitudes about work ethic, traditional business hours and what employers and employees should expect from each other are beginning to be challenged and reexamined.

Business leaders are wising up to the idea that meeting the unique wellness needs of each employee has a direct and beneficial impact on their engagement in the workplace.

Luckily for companies struggling to adapt to this new landscape, wellness experts are leveraging their expertise toward the challenge of building healthier workplaces and setting employees up for long-term success. One such expert is Jackie McNamara, director of wellness strategies, WellnessIQ, a full-service wellness consultant agency based in Independence.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, most C-suite executives and benefits administrators saw wellness programs as perks they were expected to offer but may not have personally invest in them or properly incentivize employees to take part.

McNamara believes that perception is changing in the wake of the recent public health crisis.

“Employees are getting more burned out,” McNamara said. “Clearly, everybody shared an extreme amount of stress and that looked differently for everybody. It really forced employers to invest in well-being.”

Beyond biometrics Traditionally, wellness programs tied to insurance benefits have taken the form of monitoring physical health indicators such as heart rate, blood pressure and the number of steps taken in a day. The pandemic exposed the need for employers to take emotional health into greater account, according to McNamara.

“I think, traditionally, employers looked at physical wellness to start,” she said. “Nutrition, movement, sleep, tracking steps, biometric screenings – but they hadn’t quite yet gotten to making a business case for emotional health. And with the pandemic, everybody wanted emotional health.”

Several studies indicate that employees who feel supported not only in terms of physical health but in mental well-being tend to experience greater job satisfaction and exhibit greater productivity.

In addition to this new focus on mental health, the pandemic also highlighted the case for greater flexibility in professional settings.

“Things like flexible work hours and changing your view on back-to-back meetings; those things really came to fruition in the pandemic and they’re living on now,” McNamara said. “The job market has never been more competitive – if you don’t have these things, most people are saying ‘forget it.’”

Some companies find it difficult to shift their remote work policies across to accommodate all employees, but consultants like WellnessIQ can assist with the transition.

room” to rest in, McNamara said open, ongoing communication is the key to identifying each individual’s needs and meeting them where they are. One way of doing this is to establish “wellness committees” to faithfully represent the needs of each sector of your business.

“Resiliency is not denying stress, or denying human emotions, it is learning how to appropriately respond to those. It’s not the action that’s going to change, it’s how we perceive that action. All that means is training our brains differently.”

“When you have somebody representing the voice of each department, then you really get that day-to-day perspective,” McNamara said. “If you don’t have that wellness committee, you have one person or one team making decisions for everyone.”

Another influential movement in the workplace landscape that McNamara emphasizes is the concept of resiliency.

By prioritizing their mental wellness and adjusting their professional life to better suit their needs, employees can build a vital life skill.

“Resiliency is not denying stress, or denying human emotions, it is learning how to appropriately respond to those. It’s not the action that’s going to change, it’s how we perceive that action. All that means is training our brains differently,” McNamara said. “We’ve trained our brains for so long to work longer hours and work harder and we take pride in having two phones and always having our computer open.

Jackie McNamara

Director of wellness strategies at WellnessIQ

“The idea behind brain training — which is neuroplasticity, the ability of your brain to change — is unteaching that,” she added. “It’s teaching your brain when to say no, how to set healthy boundaries, how to have difficult conversations and why wellness matters for a healthy brain. Resiliency really is just (incorporating) all of those things and over time, you learn how to better respond in the moment when something stressful happens.”

Even though COVID-19 gave this cultural shift a push in the right direction, McNamara believes

this change has been a long time in the making. Now that the tide has turned, employers who want a happy, productive staff will need to rethink the traditional methods of management and trust employees to do what’s best for themselves.

“I think COVID has forced the hand of the entire culture to do what we’ve been wanting to do for a long time,” McNamara said. “Empowered employees, when they get that flexibility, true colors show. You see who the good workers are, who the ones who take advantage are. I see this as us getting to a more efficient workforce.”

Staying flexible to stay competitive The transformation of the modern workplace has had a significant impact on the field of talent acquisition and retention.

Companies are finding it more difficult to attract quality hires without offering flexibility in terms of remote work options and fluid scheduling.

McNamara said she sees policies that allow employees to set their own hours catching on, adding that striking a balance between flexibility and a lack of boundaries is one of the defining challenges of the modern era.

“I think it’s different for every individual person, so coaching around what’s available and what that person can work around is a really important distinguishing factor,” McNamara said.

“You have to support the individual employee. Some companies may ask you to track your hours, while some may just look at productivity and if you’re getting your work done.

Ultimately, there needs to be some way to measure success, but I do think that the key to wellness in all of that is for the individual employee to understand what keeps them healthy and happy.”

Empowering individuals Whether your employees need flexible schedules or a dedicated “mindfulness This advertising-supported section/feature is produced by Crain’s Content Studio-Cleveland, the marketing storytelling arm of Crain’s Cleveland Business. The Crain’s Cleveland Business newsroom is not involved in creating Crain’s Content Studio content.

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FOCUS | FUTURE OF THE OFFICE

Bosses don’t follow their own advice in returning to office

BY BLOOMBERG

Bosses are hellbent on getting their staff back into the office. It’s just that the rules don’t necessarily apply to them.

While 35% of non-executive employees are in the office five days a week, just 19% of executives can say the same, according to a survey by Future Forum, a research consortium backed by messaging channel Slack. Of the share of employees who are making the commute, more than half say they’d like at least some flexibility, and non-executives broadly report having a much worse work-life balance than their bosses.

Furthermore, the disparity is growing.

In the fourth quarter of 2021, non-executives were about 1.3 times as likely as their bosses to be fully in office. Now it’s nearly twice as likely, and the share of non-executives who are in five days a week is the highest since the survey began in June 2020, according to the more than 10,000

white-collar workers polled in the U.S., Australia, France, Germany, Japan and the U.K. Future Forum’s definition of “executives” includes those with a title of president or partner or anything in the C-suite.

The gap points to a double standard in return-to-office messaging — executives from Bank of America Corp. to Alphabet Inc.’s Google are prodding their workers to return in part to boost in-person collaboration, but bosses themselves are somewhat exempt. Companies are also trying to justify long-term office leases or state-of-the-art headquarters like Apple Park in Cupertino, California.

Employees aren’t having it. According to the survey, workers who are unsatisfied with their flexibility are now three times as likely to say they will “definitely” look for a new job in the coming year. It also showed a feeling of work-life balance fell twice as much for full-time office workers compared to those with location flexibility.

Executives from Bank of America Corp. to Alphabet Inc.’s Google are prodding their workers to return in part to boost in-person collaboration, but bosses themselves are somewhat exempt. | PETAR SANTINI/BLOOMBERG

“Top down mandates just generally don’t work,” said Brian Elliott, executive leader of Future Forum.

In addition to improving workers’ mental health, offering more options can move the needle on diversity, equity and inclusion, too. Some 82% of Asian/Asian American and 79% of Black respondents would

prefer a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement, compared to 77% of white respondents. Women and working mothers expressed a desire for location flexibility more than ever as childcare costs continue to rise.

As the debate on return-to-office policies evolves, Future Forum rec-

ommends schedule and location flexibility in order to retain top talent, even if it means breaking cultural traditions and developing new workflows.

“People being in the office gives you the illusion of control, but it’s just an illusion,” Elliot said. “It doesn’t mean they are being productive.”

SPORTS BUSINESS

Mentor company helps bring NFL Draft jerseys to stage

BY JOE SCALZO

If you had gone backstage before the 2021 NFL Draft in Cleveland, you would have seen the letters of Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s last name already cut out in white letters, ready to be transferred onto a teal Jacksonville Jaguars jersey by a team of four Stahls’ Transfer Express employees.

Of course, you also would have seen Lawrence’s name in every other NFL team’s font and color, ready to be transferred to every other NFL team’s jersey on the microscopic chance that, say, the Kansas City Chiefs traded Patrick Mahomes to the Jaguars in exchange for the No. 1 overall pick.

“No matter what team he (Lawrence) would have been drafted by, we were ready,” said Jason Ziga, the senior vice president and general manager of Stahls’ Transfer Express in Mentor.

What’s more, you would have seen the same setup for BYU quarterback Zach Wilson (who ended up going No. 2 to the Jets) and Alabama quarterback Mac Jones (who went No. 15 to the Patriots) and every other firstround pick whose new No. 1 jersey needed to be ready for its 15 seconds of fame on the ESPN, ABC and NFL Network broadcasts.

Because on a night filled with uncertainty, one thing was certain: the best two-minute drill in the NFL was happening behind the scenes by a Northeast Ohio team.

Here’s how it worked. Once a team made its selection, the Transfer Express team had two minutes to apply

The NFL Las Vegas store has a permanent location in The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace offering customized jerseys and other NFL licensed clothing using Stahls’ materials and equipment. | STAHLS’

the player’s name to the jersey. An NFL representative would then grab the jersey and hand it to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell onstage.

(Alas, Lawrence stayed home for the 2021 draft, so Goodell held up that jersey by himself.)

“There’s definitely pressure, but it’s a very well-oiled machine,” said Ziga, who said his team shred all the names once the first round was over.

“We do a really good job preparing, so that everyone knows their position

and what they need to do. Even though it’s a tight two-minute window, it’s not insanity or crazy back there.”

Detroit-based Stahls’ has served as a licensee and a supplier of the NFL for more than a decade. Transfer Express supplies the custom screen-printed transfers used to customize jerseys. Unlike last April, this year’s draft didn’t include any Transfer Express employees. But Stahls’ was onsite at this year’s draft, which

took place from April 28-30 in Las Vegas.

Not only did Stahls’ print the jerseys for the newly selected players, it also offered fans the opportunity to customize their own jerseys or shirts at the NFL Store inside The Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace using the same technology made in Mentor.

Stahls’ also does a lot of business with online retail giant Fanatics and on the NFL’s online shop thanks to its 10-year partnership with Legends

Global Merchandise.

Ziga, who graduated from St. Edward High School and Cleveland State, came to Stahls’ in 2013 after spending several years as an insurance adjuster for companies like Progressive and Farmer’s. He started as a sales manager and needed just six years to move up to his current position, where he leads a team of 350 people and oversees everything related to screen print transfers and digital screen print transfers within Stahls’.

“One of the things about insurance is, you’re not allowed to think outside the lines,” he said. “At a company like Transfer Express, and Stahls’ in general, you can have a lot of creativity. It’s OK to color outside the lines. It’s a family-owned company, so it’s a lot easier to innovate and try different things.

There’s a lot more ability to act.”

Of course, just because Stahls’ is a family-owned company doesn’t mean it’s a small company. It touts itself as the world leader in heat print technology, serving as a licensee and supplier to the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA, as well as many well-known retail brands.

It doesn’t just serve the big leagues, though. It serves little leagues and rec leagues, too.

“Our core business is the typical mom-and-pop shop that services the local community for things like high school sports and family reunions,” Ziga said. “And the same technology that’s used behind the scenes for the draft is used by those shops.”

Joe Scalzo: joe.scalzo@crain.com, (216) 771-5256, @JoeScalzo01

14 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | MAY 2, 2022

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APARTMENTS

From Page 1

A United Church of Christ spokeswoman verified that a sale is pending.

The church expects to open its new offices at the AECOM Centre building, on East Ninth Street, in June.

Richard Sheehan of the Newmark real estate brokerage declined to comment. He and colleague Terry Coyne are handling the sale.

Church leaders announced their moving plans in September, after years of deliberations. The institution, with more than 773,000 members across the country, expects to save hundreds of thousands of dollars annually by shrinking its office footprint to 30,000 square feet. In addition to its headquarters, the church is relocating its archives, two affiliated agencies and four related ministries.

“I am confident that the space that is being prepared for the national setting of the United Church of Christ is right-sized, and inclusive of technology,” said Traci Blackmon, the associate general minister, in a project update posted on the church’s website last week. “It will enable us to be the church that is needed in our postCOVID reality. And it will aid us in continuing to imagine the church we are always becoming.”

The church is selling 700 Prospect after a 32-year run, which spanned renovations, the construction of a hotel next door and the 2019 sale of that property, now a Hotel Indigo.

The office building, with an ornate terra cotta entrance, was constructed by the Cuyahoga Telephone Co. It

The United Church of Christ put its longtime home, at 700 Prospect Ave. in downtown Cleveland, up for sale last year. The K&D Group has a deal to buy the building and a plan to transform it into apartments. | NEWMARK

dates to 1900. Once called the Electric Building, it sits in a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

K&D plans to seek federal and state preservation tax credits for the project, which won’t start before late 2023.

The state credits, awarded twice a year, are competitive. Property owners often apply multiple times before winning.

And K&D is focused on its makeover of 55 Public Square, a downtown office tower undergoing a partial residential conversion. That project is scheduled to wrap up by June of 2023, Price said. Leasing just started, and the first apartments will open in September.

“This is a couple years down the road,” he said of 700 Prospect. “We’ve got to apply for the credits, and with

construction costs what they are now and the lack of vendors and every other problem out there, we’re probably going to sit on the building.”

But Price is bullish on the apartment market. K&D’s portfolio, spread across downtown and the suburbs, is 98% full. With interest rates rising, putting homeownership beyond more renters’ reach, he only expects demand to grow.

“We’ve never been this occupied,” he said. “We literally don’t have units to rent.”

Originally, K&D planned to tackle the Artcraft Building, in the Superior Arts District east of downtown, after 55 Public Square. But the developer walked away from that deal in December, after striking out twice in the contest for state historic tax credits.

Now Cleveland-based GBX Group, which owns the Artcraft Building, is talking to another prospective co-developer about filling the onetime garment factory with housing. The 260,000-square-foot building now largely serves as artists’ studios.

K&D’s proposal called for 159 large apartments, of 1,300 to 1,500 square feet. Price was unsure, though, whether those units would command high enough rents to make the deal work.

“After being in that area for a while and talking to other owners in the area, we just did not feel that it was going to support the product we were going to build,” he said.

Antonin Robert, GBX’s president of community development, would not identify the company’s new potential partner. But he expressed confidence in the upward trajectory of the district, where Brecksville-based CrossCountry Mortgage is set to move into a renovated headquarters complex in August or September.

“All market data that we have points to residential use being an attractive use in that area,” Robert said. “Those conversations are actively going on right now.”

Michelle Jarboe: michelle.jarboe@ crain.com, (216) 771-5437, @mjarboe

NOMINATIONS NOW OPEN

This is a special editorial feature within Crain’s Aug. 29 print issue and online that will recognize immigrant business professionals and civic leaders who have impacted Northeast Ohio in major ways.

NOMINATION

DEADLINE:

MAY 23

Honorees of this Notable recognition will be invited to an exclusive, private event hosted by Crain’s.

crainscleveland.com/nominations

MAY 2, 2022 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 15

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CSU

RE

From Page 1

From

contract was just renewed last spring under former board chair David Gunning. Despite the seemingly abrupt delivery about Sands’ exit, university officials maintain to Crain’s Cleveland Business that Sands wasn’t fired and no specific event motivated the decision.

He’s slated to receive a two-year payout of his annual base salary of $464,100 as part of his separation agreement. He’ll get that in one lump sum payment of about $928,000 this spring. His contract also gave him the option to become a tenured professor at the university’s Cleveland-Marshall College of Law for 75% of his last base salary. Officials said he’s indicated he plans to teach this fall.

The announcement also contained more news about Sands’ successor, naming provost and senior vice president for academic affairs Laura Bloomberg as president. No interim tag, no lengthy search process.

CSU’s board believes Bloomberg is the best person to usher in the university’s next chapter — one that’s beginning just a few weeks before graduation.

“We are very pleased that in Dr. Bloomberg we have an energetic, dynamic and highly qualified academic leader already within our ranks who is exceedingly prepared to lead this university as it emerges from a very challenging period,” board chair Reynolds added in the statement.

The institution’s second female president will earn the same base salary as Sands. Other terms of her contract weren’t yet available. She plans

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New president. New interim provost. With just a few weeks left in the semester, CSU finds itself turning a new page. | CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY

University, worked with Bloomberg when he was Minnesota’s president.

He called Bloomberg a “very effective” academic leader, one who is able to create a strategic vision.

“WHAT WE REALLY HAVE TO FOCUS “She’s just terrifON IS TRANSPARENCY, OPEN ic,” he said.

Kaler has only COMMUNICATION, AND A WILLINGNESS held the role since TO KEEP AT IT,” last year. But with Sands’ departure, — Laura Bloomberg, CSU’s new president he’ll soon become to move into the university’s presiden- the veteran leader among those at the tial residence later this year with her city’s three biggest higher education institutions after Cuyahoga Commuhusband.

Bloomberg arrived in Cleveland nity College president Alex Johnson last September from the University of retires in June.

Minnesota. She spent more than two Tri-C and Cleveland State each decades at the institution, including faced enrollment declines amplified serving as dean of the Humphrey during the COVID-19 pandemic.

School of Public Affairs since 2017.

Bumping up total enrollment to Eric Kaler, now the president at 20,000 students by 2025 is one of the Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve facets of “CSU 2.0.” It’s an aggressive

blueprint for change ushered in under Sands’ administration. Other stated goals include boosting financial standing and becoming a leading public research university.

A day after taking on the new role, Bloomberg addressed the faculty senate and mentioned she read the document multiple times before applying for the provost position. In an interview with Crain’s, she said she feels aligned with the university’s trustees on the priorities outlined in CSU 2.0.

There are no plans to abandon it.

“The goals do not change,” she said.

“I believe we are on track with the timelines. And some of these timelines, you realize, are multi-year, so it doesn’t mean we’re going to get them all done at once, but it never did mean that.”

One of the plan’s action items includes realigning the university’s colleges. In a January 2022 letter to Sands

and then-provost Bloomberg, the faculty senate expressed frustration at the process of implementing those mergers. Faculty also detailed what they deemed as the biggest problems at the time. The list included concerns over shared governance, CSU’s pandemic response and fair compensation.

“The number one thing (for students) is the faculty and the relationships we build with them, the knowledge they impart,” Darlene Moorman, a CSU graduate student, told Crain’s.

“So the basic thing, the least Cleveland State can do, is compensate them fairly.”

Turnover issues have plagued the university over the past few years, too.

It might be a little simplistic, Bloomberg said, but she believes kindness and respect can go a long way when working together.

“What we really have to focus on is

gaming opportunities, pending appropriate licensing and regulatory approvals. The Browns still are working on plans for the stadium lounge, and the details will be finalized in the coming months. The lounge will allow fans age 21 and up to watch and bet on games from across the league. The Browns also announced that sideline reporter Nathan Zegura will move upstairs into the press box this fall, replacing Doug Dieken as the analyst on the team’s radio broadcasts alongside longtime play-by-play man Jim Donovan. Former NFL safety Je’Rod Cherry will replace Zegura as the sideline reporter.

CertainTeed makes building products, including ceilings and wall panels, used in projects like Fribley Hall at Case Western Reserve University.| CERTAINTEED; MARK BEALER; STUDIO 66 LLC

Cher

HIGHER CEILING: CertainTeed, a maker of roofing, ceilings and other building products, plans to move its local operations from Lakewood to Strongsville. On Monday, April 25, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 1.398%, 7-year job-creation tax credit to support the com-

pany’s growth. CertainTeed expects to add 38 jobs and $2.6 million in annual payroll as a result of the move. The state incentive is worth an estimated $225,000, though the ultimate value will be determined by the company’s performance.

CertainTeed, based in Malvern,

Pennsylvania, is a subsidiary of Saint-Gobain, a major French manufacturer of construction materials.

In 2019, CertainTeed set up shop in Lakewood by buying the wood-ceilings business of Norton Industries.

pled stud Uni Sch the com Berg grad

transparency, open communication, and a willingness to keep at it,” Bloomberg said. “Without commenting on where we’ve been, because I don’t want to suggest that’s not happened, but that is my priority.”

Bloomberg’s first goal this week, she said, was identifying her replacement “who would be ready on day one to do the work.” Nigamanth Sridhar will return to the university to serve in an interim capacity. The president said she hasn’t yet thought about the timeline regarding a search for a permanent provost.

Right now, Bloomberg said she’s focused on celebrating the end of another pandemic-tinged academic year as it winds down. She’ll lead her first commencement ceremonies as president on May 14.

Amy Morona: amy.morona@crain. com, (216) 771-5229, @AmyMorona

Rem

T of that rari emp whe to s the city O cen are be law, sale por In

THE WEEK CLEVELAND STATE IN TRANSITION: It was a week of change at Cleveland State University. Laura Bloomberg became CSU’s new president after officials abruptly announced the exit of now-former president Harlan Sands on Tuesday, April 26. CSU then named Nigamanth Sridhar as the university’s provost, the position previously occupied by Bloomberg, on an interim basis. See article on Page One. GREEN SHOOTS: Twenty-six Northeast Ohio applicants won state grants to clean up or study contaminated properties, ranging from former manufacturing complexes in Cleveland to an abandoned auto salvage yard in Barberton. Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted announced more than $60 million in grants on Tuesday, April 26, in the first batch of awards through Ohio’s new brownfield remediation program. The money will flow to 78 projects in 35 counties,

with most of the cash going toward costly clean-up efforts. The program, created last year as part of the state’s biennial budget, has a total price tag of $350 million. So there’s plenty of money left to award. The Ohio Department of Development still is vetting many first-round funding requests and working with applicants to resolve any issues. The initial application deadline was Jan. 31. The state received 204 requests totaling $262 million. Since the program is undersubscribed, it’s possible that every round-one deal eventually will receive a grant.

BUSY BROWNS: The Cleveland Browns chose Bally’s Interactive as their official sports betting partner.

The announcement came roughly seven months before legal sports gambling arrives in Ohio. The longterm partnership will include a branded lounge at FirstEnergy Stadium, a mobile Bally Bet Sportsbook app in Ohio and free-to-play

HELPING HAND: A $5.5 million

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REMOTE TAX

From Page 1

order of 3,400 tax refund requests in queue for 2021, and according to our count, only about a quarter of them were work-from-home related,” said Ahmed Abonamah, Cleveland’s chief financial officer and department of finance director.

The number of refunds is significant in light of a state bill that as of June allows employees to file a tax refund for income earned while working from home during 2021 if the municipality, or principal place of work, is different from where the company withheld that tax.

“City wage tax withholding revenue came in a bit higher than many city leaders expected this year,” Abonamah said, though he cautioned that may be due to employers not accurately withholding tax for all remote employees. “That said, tax revenue for 2021 does not suggest ‘the sky is falling.’”

Those preliminary tax numbers are just part of the story and are significantly less dire than predicted in a recent study commissioned by the Ohio Mayors Alliance on the impacts of work from home on municipal income taxes.

That study, conducted by Florida-based consulting firm PFM, reports that based on 2019 data, Cleveland’s income tax revenue is responsible for 64.8%, or $441.8 million, of the city’s general fund, which pays for municipal services including police, fire and the overall city administration.

Remote impact The expiration at the end of 2021 of pandemic-related legislation that allowed employers to temporarily withhold taxes based on the employer’s location rather than where the employee worked will, to some degree, negatively impact the general fund of almost every city in the state, Abonamah said.

On top of that, of the high percentage of commuters, nearly 37% are in occupations that can likely be done remotely, such as in IT, law, architecture, engineering, sales and administrative support,according to the study.

In evaluating those likely work-

If 70% of Cleveland commuters work from home three days a week while 30% commute into the city all five days, the city would experience a $28.4 million decline in revenue. | MICHELLE JARBOE/CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

from-home jobs, the average salaries for those occupations outpaced other average salaries, paying on average $91,433 compared with $54,620 for a Cleveland-based job, according to 2020 Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

The study also calculated, without accounting for specific job types or income levels, a 6%-17% range for potential tax revenue loss based on three hybrid in-person and remote work scenarios.

If during 2022, 90% of the Cleveland commuters work from home for four days a week while 10% stay home only one day a week, the city would see a $78.8 million decline in tax revenue.

Similarly, the city would take a $44.7 million hit if 80% of employees worked three days remotely and 20% stay home only one day a week.

On the low end, if 70% of Cleveland commuters work from home three days a week while 30% commute into the city all five days, the city would experience a $28.4 million decline in revenue.

Cleveland would see deficits only second to Columbus, which with only 59% of a commuter workforce, would lose anywhere from 4% to 12% of tax revenue, representing $40.2 million on the low end of losses to $110.3 million on the high, according to the study.

The estimate from the mayors alliance study is somewhat of a “worst case scenario,” Abonamah said, because remote and hybrid work patterns still are in flux and are hard to track.

“Our task is to not necessarily overreact based on what’s in here, because we are still in real time actually seeing what’s going on,” he said. “But if you remove 6% from our general fund, that’s a real problem. There is not a single city that could blithely brush off a 6% immediate decline in revenue.”

Remote tax refunds highlight what Keary McCarthy, Ohio Mayors Alliance executive director, said is a decades-long defunding of municipalities across the state, something the bipartisan coalition of the mayors of the state’s largest

Cheryl McRae-Bergeron

An artist’s rendering of the Center for Performance at the Hall of Fame Village in Canton. | HALL OF FAME VILLAGE

pledge from an alumna is set to help students at Case Western Reserve University’s Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing for decades into the future. The estate commitment comes from Cheryl E. McRaeBergeron, an Air Force veteran who graduated with her registered nurse

anesthetist certification from CWRU in 1975. The scholarship fund will be in her name. CWRU said it will go toward supporting “at least one full-tuition scholarship annually to a student pursuing a doctor of nursing practice in the school’s three-year nurse anesthe-

sia program.” That will allow them to sit for the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, or CRNA, examination. Half-scholarships will be offered if any funds remain.

SOMETHING VENTURED: Akron’s going to be the home of what is po-

urban and suburban communities hopes to combat.

“There have been a series of policy changes at the state level, changes in the various tax reimbursement policies, that have increased the reliance on the municipal income tax, and that has really heightened the potential impact of remote working,” McCarthy said.

Although it is still too early to tell how remote work is going to affect each municipality’s bottom line, employers McCarthy talks with know that many workers want the remote flexibility — and that means tax withholding issues will need to be continually monitored and policy adjusted accordingly.

Looking at the long-term Policy changes, including legislative ones, are “all on the table,” McCarthy said, as the group looks to long-term fixes that include the possibility of treating remote work as a benefit, as New York state does, so taxes are not subject to a worker’s location.

“We don’t have a clear enough grasp of the data right now to go to the legislature and say, ‘Look, here is the problem, and here’s how we want to fix it,’” McCarthy said, adding that the remote tax issue is part of a total rethinking of how Ohio funds local government.

“We need to look for ways to shore up the fiscal condition of our cities, which are really the drivers of regional growth and the drivers of our statewide economic success,” he said.

Cleveland’s finance department is planning a more in-depth analysis and projection of potential future losses using actual 2021 tax filings, updated U.S. Census data and after engaging with Cleveland-based employers, Abonamah said.

“We’re going to have to work collaboratively with employers, with the nonprofit organizations to really assess and address these issues,” he said.

Kim Palmer: kpalmer@crain.com, (216) 771-5384, @kimfouroffive

tentially a $40 million investment fund that seeks to be the financial equivalent of Interstate 80, by connecting investors and companies seeking capital in New York, Silicon Valley and all points in between.

That includes Akron, of course, which is where the new Interstate Fusion Ventures fund, announced Thursday, April 28, was conceived and will be based. It’s the brainchild of Akron venture capitalist Bill Manby and follows the Akron Fusion Ventures fund that Manby founded in 2018. “The second fund will continue its emphasis on Northeast Ohio, but with a greater inclusion of companies in Silicon Valley and New York,” Manby said. “We have built great partnerships with VCs on the coasts. … These relationships have led to access for our investors in deals that would otherwise not be available to them and differentiates us from most other Midwest VCs.” That first fund fell short of its initial goal of raising $20 million, but Man-

by said it successfully deployed the $6 million it did raise, investing in 21 companies.

IT TAKES A VILLAGE: The Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Co. said it has secured two additional sources of funding to be used in the construction of the Hall of Fame Village in Canton. The company recently closed a $4 million loan with Midwest Lender Fund LLC — an entity owned by Village director and shareholder Stuart Lichter — for use on the Center for Performance, a 100,000-square-foot dome featuring exhibition halls and athletic performance space. Also, the city of Canton, in coordination with the Canton Regional Energy Special Improvement District, approved legislation enabling the Village to move forward with $3.2 million in Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing in conjunction with various energy-efficient improvements at the Center for Performance.

MAY 2, 2022 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 17

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Advertising Section To place your listing, visit www.crainscleveland.com/people-on-the-move or, for more information, contact Debora Stein at 917.226.5470 / dstein@crain.com

BANKING

EDUCATION

LAW

LAW

REAL ESTATE

Fifth Third Private Bank

Northeast Ohio Medical University

Benesch Law

Cavitch, Familo & Durkin Co., L.P.A.

Anchor Cleveland

Fifth Third Private Bank has named Michael A. Niederst, CPA, CFP as Vice President, Senior Wealth Strategist. He is responsible for providing consulting and advisory services to clients through customized wealth plans. Michael has more than 23 years of banking experience in financial planning roles. He received a bachelor’s degree in economics from Allegheny College and a master’s degree in business administration from Cleveland State University. He also holds a master’s degree in financial services and financial planning from The American College of Financial Services.

NEOMED announces the appointment of Doreen K. Riley as vice president for advancement & president of NEOMED Foundation, effective June 20, 2022. Riley has nearly 35 years of philanthropy and senior-level experience. A collaborative thinker and relationship-builder with a broad perspective, she will provide strategic advice and guidance to the University, Foundation and community to ensure all fundraising activities and initiatives are implemented in collaboration with partners and stakeholders.

CONSTRUCTION

Tober Building Company Joseph Schlegel and Marcus Henry joined Tober Building Co. in 2022 and serve as Director of Field Operations and Project Manager, respectively. Schlegel Joseph has vast experience in coordinating and managing large-scale commercial and government projects. He merges fair leadership, communications, innovation, technical expertise, and craftsmanship throughout a project lifecycle. Marcus has over 10 years of experience in general contracting, design build, and construction Henry management. His performance has produced profitable projects, completed on, or ahead of schedule, and to the complete satisfaction of his clients.

Joseph and Marcus place emphasis on quality, integrity, exceeding expectations, lasting relationships, client satisfaction and profitability.

Kevin Burns has joined Benesch as Of Counsel in the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice Group. He has more than 15 years of Burns experience as an employee benefits attorney, counseling clients on all aspects of employee benefits plans including advising on ACA, HIPAA, and COBRA compliance; designing and implementing qualified retirement plans, and health and welfare benefit plans.

Esposito Wendy Esposito has joined Benesch as Of Counsel in the firm’s Intellectual Property Practice Group. Wendy has nearly 15 years of legal experience, most recently with a Fortune 500 company where she counseled leadership on legal, commercial, and operational opportunities and risks associated with global IT transactions and business-critical outsourced managed services.

ENGINEERING / CONSULTING

Cavitch, Familo & Durkin Co., L.P.A. is proud to announce Nolan James has been elected to shareholder at the firm. Nolan practices in the areas of general corporate law, real estate law, mergers and acquisitions, capital and finance, and estate planning. Nolan’s combination of legal and business experience helps him develop innovative solutions for complex legal issues. Nolan earned his J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from the University of Akron School of Law and College of Business Administration.

Anchor Cleveland welcomes Allison Giomuso, Vice President, and Jimmy DiFonzo, Sales Associate, to their Giomuso team. Allison brings many years of experience representing both tenants and landlords. Her goal is to provide the utmost value to her clients through calculated strategies and unwavering commitment. Before joining Anchor Cleveland, Allison was DiFonzo an Associate Vice President for Matthews Retail Leasing. In addition, Jimmy brings a financial background to Anchor Cleveland, giving him a unique combination of market knowledge, financial expertise, and commitment to service.

Before joining Anchor Cleveland, Jimmy was an Associate at Matthews Real Estate Investment Services and a credit and risk analyst at Nestle.

LAW LAW

USA Firmware USA Firmware is pleased to announce the hiring of Bill Merkel to the position of Vice President Business Development. Bill will build relationships for the company that leverage USA Firmware’s expertise in firmware and embedded systems to turn smart ideas into smart, connected devices. He brings 35 years of experience in product development, industrial automation, semiconductors, and electric vehicle charging innovation to the role. Bill’s expertise will guide growth and technology development.

Gallagher Sharp LLP Gallagher Sharp is pleased to announce the addition of Associate Anthony R. Santiago, Esq. As a member of the firm’s General Litigation and Transportation practice groups, Anthony defends insurance carriers and their insureds in personal injury, property damage, and wrongful death claims. He also represents members of the trucking industry in claims arising from commercial transportation accidents.

Anthony received his law degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law.

Cavitch, Familo & Durkin Co., L.P.A.

STAFFING & SERVICES

Cavitch, Familo & Durkin Co., L.P.A. is proud to announce Yao Liu has been elected to shareholder at the firm. Yao is a member of the Corporate Practice and China Practice group, concentrating on corporate law, mergers and acquisitions and cross-border transactions. Grown up in China and trained in Chinese and U.S. law schools, Yao utilizes his knowledge of both legal systems, customs, languages and cultures to strengthen business relationships and resolve business disputes for clients globally.

Anderson|Biro Anderson|Biro, LLC, an executive recruiting firm specializing in the real estate settlement space, has named Kent Bondi as an equity partner. Bondi, a Cleveland native, joined Anderson|Biro in 2011. He has been integral to the firm’s success because of his hard work, precision and an outgoing personality that connects with recruits and clients alike. The company, founded by Ryan Anderson and Eric Biro, also operates Anderson|Biro Staffing, which works with employers and job seekers across Ohio.

NEW GIG?

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