e Babcock & Wilcox engineering rm of Akron plans to invest at least $60 million in a hydrogen production plant in Massillon.
e company is leasing about three acres at the massive 465acre site, which is enough for it to build a small commercial production facility that it hopes to scale up later, said Brandy Johnson, Babcock’s chief technical o cer.
“We are working on nalizing the nancing with the hopes that all gets done soon,” Johnson said. “We have the engineering done and are ready to move forward.”
e plant will use Babcock’s BrightLoop technology, which draws on a variety of fuels, from coal and biomass to natural gas, to produce hydrogen. e system is not only e cient but has the key advantage of being able to capture nearly all of the CO2 it produces alongside the hydrogen.
Like other processes, it produces more CO2 than hydrogen, but the planet-warming CO2 is easily captured, Johnson said. Or, it can be used in other products, such as aviation fuel, she said.
Many energy processes produce far more carbon than most people think. For instance, burning six pounds of gasoline, a gallon produces 20 pounds of CO2 because of the weight of the added oxygen.
e Massillon hydrogen plant will produce between three and ve tons of hydrogen per day, Johnson said.
at’s a small plant, Johnson said. BrightLoop can be scaled up to produce 100 tons or even 200 tons of hydrogen per day, and Babcock already is building much larger facilities in other states.
See HYDROGEN on Page 22
Crain’s annual 20 In eir 20s series, honors the young leaders of Northeast Ohio who have already established themselves in their respective industries but still have a bright future ahead. From health care to real estate, government to nance, these 20 honorees have worked hard to make a name for themselves in their communities and specialties — but they’re just getting warmed up. PAGE 6
TECHNOLOGY
Los Angeles-based owner of North Point Tower is facing mounting troubles as part of a troubled of ce market.
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A federal noncompete ban could have unintended consequences for the startup ecosystem in Northeast Ohio.
PAGE 2
Noncompete ban could make waves for startups
Questions remain over its impact on the ecosystem
By Jeremy Nobile
While a federal ban on noncompete agreements — if one were put in place — could have a positive impact on the broader startup, venture and innovation ecosystem, its signi cance for these sectors in the Midwest may not be that great.
A ban may also have the potential for some unintended consequences, according to some venture experts.
In August, a federal judge blocked an e ort by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to virtually outlaw noncompetes in employment contracts.
e FTC’s motivation with this was to increase competition and the free ow of people in labor markets. As might be expected, workers largely embraced this proposal while employers pushed back.
e near-total ban on noncompetes was set to take e ect in early September. So when the ban was struck down shortly before then, employers were relieved.
“ e ruling was something that we initially expected, but as the deadline got closer and a number of courts had not issued nationwide injunctions, we feared that the rule would go into e ect, at least for some limited period of time,” said Nancy Barnes, head of the labor and employment group at ompson Hine. “ e uncertainty and the potential chaos that would result from the ban being in e ect for a short period of time and then being barred was something we dreaded.”
e FTC could appeal the ruling against it, but whether it will — there are almost certainly higher priorities, politically speaking, ahead of the coming presidential election — or whether another administration takes up this battle remains to be seen. A conservative administration almost certainly won’t care.
Nonetheless, while a ban on noncompetes has been largely framed as a bene t for the labor force, the question remains of what industry segments could stand to bene t as well.
Innovative and early-stage businesses may be one of them.
In California, where startups and tech companies are a large part of the economy, noncompetes are unenforceable. is is due in large part to the vast array of startup companies operating there. If people are inhibited from moving freely, it may hinder growth and innovation in that sector — a sector that, in the Midwest, is small but growing. is perspective is why some startup and venture organizations see a bene t to eliminating noncompetes.
“We recognize the critical role innovation plays in driving our economy forward,” said Julie Jacono, CEO of JumpStart and JumpStart Ventures. “To that end, we must remove barriers so entrepreneurs can disrupt markets and deliver globally competitive solutions.”
But in a market like Ohio, this may be less important as it relates to erasing noncompetes.
“Noncompetes, generally speaking, are not what are preventing subject-matter experts to come work for smaller companies,” said Ray Leach, president of e O.H.I.O Fund.
In the Midwest, he said, trying
to get out-of-market experts to an innovative new company is less about a noncompete restriction and more about convincing someone to take a chance on a business that has a “lower probability of being successful and viable” compared to one in the startup mecca of Silicon Valley.
Leach, a founding CEO of JumpStart who spent nearly two decades with the organization before standing up his new impact
Such are the varying perspectives on the bene ts to eliminating noncompetes and the possible bene ts to the startup world, particularly in a region like this. In general, many venture experts seem to see a mix of pros and cons.
On one hand, eliminating hurdles for experts to move through jobs may support the success of early-stage companies and innovation in general. is is why noncompetes were made unlawful in California and why many believe an outright ban of these restrictions could be bene cial elsewhere.
“There is a lot of potential value a noncompete ban could unlock in the economy by allowing freer movement of workers.”
Michael Goldberg, executive director of the Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship at Case Western Reserve University
and venture investment fund, said he never heard a startup complain that the roadblock preventing them from hiring someone to their team was a noncompete restriction.
“People might be surprised by that,” he said. “But this noncompete dimension is not really relevant to an ecosystem that is of our size and scale, at least not at this point.”
“ ere is a lot of potential value a noncompete ban could unlock in the economy by allowing freer movement of workers,” said Michael Goldberg, executive director of the Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship at Case Western Reserve University, which helps students, alumni and faculty launch and develop new ventures.
On the other hand, California is a unique animal, and no other state in the Midwest has quite the same startup ecosystem.
“Noncompetes in (California’s)
economy kills their economy,” Leach said. “But noncompetes in our economy have no or minimal e ect in the startup space.”
While Goldberg said he generally supports the idea of eliminating noncompetes someday, there are bene ts to them as well, including instances where they are part of the legal toolbox that helps a startup protect their own innovative solutions or ideas.
JumpStart echoed this perspective.
“We understand the importance of protecting intellectual property, which is essential for startups to thrive and secure investment,” Jacono said. “As this conversation evolves, it will be crucial to nd a balance supporting bold innovation and the protection of valuable business assets.”
“I see it as two sides of the same coin,” said Tom Walker, CEO of Columbus’ Rev1 Ventures.
" ere are instances where noncompetes help protect some intellectual property and times where the noncompete is “probably misplaced they’re not really worried about the right thing,” he said, adding that they sometimes are overused.
“In my career, I’ve had executives or entrepreneurs who can’t have conversations because they’re still wrapped up in a noncompete,” Walker said. “ ose are examples where it might seem like progress is being inhibited. But at the same time, you don’t know what the other side of the terms were that put the noncompete in place.”
Jill Meyer, chief operations ocer for e O.H.I.O Fund, notes that outright banning noncompetes might actually have a detrimental impact on the people who might have earned the right to be compensated as part of agreeing to one. is could be one of the unintended consequences of outlawing them.
“ ere is no one way or another that is the right answer,” Meyer said. “But from a noncompete perspective, saying you can never tie someone to a private agreement to not compete is just not a good idea. You want that gray area that gives private people the ability to negotiate whatever contract or agreement makes sense for them in that scenario.”
Cleveland’s housing market bucks national shrinkage trend
Jack Grieve
Home prices across the U.S. are getting more expensive, and Cleveland is no anomaly. But Northeast Ohio stands out in at least one sizable way: homes for sale are not shrinking.
Shrink ation is hitting housing markets nationwide. e median listing price has increased 52% since 2019. Meanwhile, properties on the market have shrunk in square footage by roughly 6%. In and around Cleveland, however, it's a di erent picture. Listing prices increased 36% over the last
ve years, but the median home hitting the market is now 6% bigger than it was in 2019. ose gures are according to an August report from USA Today Homefront, a team made up of reporters from USA Today and their service journalism partner Home Solutions. ey used data from realtor.com to analyze changes in listing prices and square footage over the last ve years in the 150 most populous U.S. metro areas. " e trend with groceries and shrink ation, where you pay the same or even more but are getting less, it's a trend that's also hitting
close to home — literally," said Dayna Drake, a researcher at USA Today Homefront, referencing the national shift. "Buyers are paying a lot more for a lot less space."
Notably, the report did not examine Cleveland-speci c listings but rather data for the metropolitan statistical area surrounding the city, which is home to roughly 2 million residents. e analysis looked at data not just for singlefamily homes but also townhouses and condos.
e report found the median size of a home in the Cleveland metro to be 1,846 square feet in
2019. Homebuyers paid about $112 per square foot then with median listing prices at $209,900. Now, the median home is 1,956 square feet. Buyers are paying $148 per square foot, and the median listing price is up to $285,000.
" ey are paying a lot more," Drake said, emphasizing that it's not an entirely rosy picture for buyers in Cleveland. " eir houses may be getting a little bit bigger, but they are paying a lot more for them."
Cleveland is one of just 18 metro areas where the median square footage increased over the ve-
year period. Other Ohio metros were among the 18, with Akron, Canton-Massillon and YoungstownWarren-Boardman all in the black. Of the other 132 metro areas that saw listings shrink, Colorado Springs, Colorado, led the pack, with listed homes now about 21% smaller than they were in 2019. "Shrink ation in homebuying is pervasive across the 150 most populous metros in the U.S., with all but 18 showing a decrease in median square footage over the last ve years," the report said. "All 150 demonstrated an increase in home prices."
The FTC headquarters in Washington, D.C. | BLOOMBERG
Woes mount for North Point Tower’s out-of-town owner
By Stan Bullard
Hertz Investment Group, the suburban Los Angeles real estate company with a huge portfolio of o ce skyscrapers across the country, is facing mounting troubles, including at North Point Tower, one of its Cleveland assets.
At the complex comprising the ve- oor North Point 1, at 901 Lakeside Ave., and the 19-story North Point II, at 1001 Lakeside, a $90 million loan matured Sept. 6, according to loan data supplier Trepp and online realty data portal CoStar Group.
Local records show it has not been re nanced, which is considered extremely di cult to do in today’s environment.
Moreover, Hertz on Sept. 1 named a chief restructuring ocer and disclosed “signi cant doubts regarding the continued existence of the company” in two lings on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE), where it has sold bonds.
e North Point mortgage in 2019 was sold in the securitized mortgage market by Citicorp and JPMorgan Chase, and it has been on a watch list since June because of the impending maturity date. It is a typical commercial loan where the borrower mostly makes interest payments, and the principal comes due at loan maturity.
at loan replaced priornancing that Hertz put in place when it purchased the two o ce buildings and parking garage from the Equity Commonwealth REIT (NYSE: EQC) of Chicago in 2016 for what CoStar calculates was $95 million.
However, the loan is current and property taxes are up to date, according to CoStar and Cuyahoga County property records.
At North Point, Hertz bene ts from strong occupancy and a strong rent roster, including the Jones Day law rm, the EY ac-
counting rm, the Mansour Gavin law rm and General Services Administration.
Even that roster might be considered at risk as Jones Day’s lease expires in 2026 and has not been renewed, according to CoStar. Jones currently rents all of North Point I, more than 340,000 square feet of o ce space.
Mike Dostal, a mortgage broker and associate at District Capital of Independence, said in a phone interview it is “highly unlikely” a bank or life insurer would have an appetite for a multimillion-dollar loan at this time, and even the mortgage securities market is lukewarm on such loans. His feeling is common among lending experts. at is all due, of course, to lender caution as the o ce market works through what its size and character will be after the rise of hybrid o ce environments and diminished appetite for o ce space by many businesses after the pandemic gave rise to the option of working from home for many.
For its part, in the update on its business led with TASE, Hertz was blunter. “Most lenders have exited the o ce product type,” Hertz wrote, and expectations for income from o ce tenants are on the slide along with o ce values.
And Hertz should know because it has had big o ce sales in other markets fail to consummate. It's also surrendering skyscrapers across the nation to the individual property’s lenders at a rapid pace and has 11 in receivership, according to CoStar.
Even so, it still has a substantial downtown skyscraper portfolio, though down from its peak of 57 properties in 2020.
Conditions for Hertz are such that it recently made mainstream national news as city o cials in Lake Charles, Louisiana, paid to have the 22-story Hertz Tower imploded.
e contemporary glass-walled
building was ravaged by Hurricane Laura in August 2020 and Hertz told city o cials insurance was inadequate to pay for repairs.
e city used funds obtained from the insurer to pay for the $7 million demolition project, according to New Orleans TV station Fox 8 WVUE, which of course broadcast the explosion that felled the tower Sept. 7.
In Cleveland, Hertz also owns Skylight O ce Tower on Huron Road, part of the former Tower City Center o ce-retail complex.
e $25 million mortgage on that 12-story building does not mature until Oct. 15, 2025.
Hertz lost operating control of the 27-story Fifth ird Center in October 2023 when a mezzanine lender foreclosed on the property through a UCC auction.
Alex Jelepis, an executive vice president-director at the NAI Pleasant Valley brokerage with deep experience working in downtown office leasing, said in a phone interview he believes North Point, Fifth Third and Skylight stand to benefit in the evolving office market.
“With the ight to quality, these are all ne o ce buildings,” Jelepis said. “ ey might need some more amenities but I don’t see these being repositioned as apartments.”
However, e Bell apartments, which recently opened in the former AT&T and onetime Ohio Bell headquarters on the opposite side of Lakeside from North Point, at one point would have never been considered for apartment conversion. And e Bell is just a decade older than the North Point properties.
CoStar was rst to report on Sept. 3 on Hertz's statement it might not survive the appointment of a chief restructuring ocer based on TASE lings.
Phone messages left at Hertz headquarters and its North Point o ce as well as an email through the Hertz website were not returned by 8 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 10.
Feds put airlines in hot seat over rewards programs
By Allyson Versprille and Mary Schlangenstein, Bloomberg
e rewards programs of the four largest U.S. air carriers — Delta Air Lines Inc., American Airlines Group Inc., United Airlines Holdings Inc. and Southwest Airlines Co. — are being probed by the US Department of Transportation, the agency announced Sept. 5.
e department has asked the airlines to submit reports on their programs within 90 days to give the government a better understanding of how consumers “are impacted by the devaluation of earned rewards, hidden or dynamic pricing, extra fees, and reduced competition and choice,” it said in a statement.
Delta reported that it made $6.8 billion in 2023 from its credit card partnership with American Express Co., a number that it expects to grow by 10% this year and to reach $10 billion over the long term. American Airlines disclosed it received $5.2 billion in cash payments in 2023 from its co-branded credit card and other partners.
and co-branded cards, which help passengers boost rewards through spending, at a joint hearing with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in May.
At the time, he raised two primary worries: that airlines were changing their programs to make it more di cult for customers to earn perks — a decision that recently back red on Delta, which was forced to rethink a 2023 overhaul following a deluge of complaints — and that the programs were potentially being operated in a way “to block the entry or growth of smaller airline competitors.”
e probe would be the rst extensive government look at the programs that have expanded to produce billions of dollars for airlines annually, in some cases adding more revenue than ight operations. While the potential consequences are unclear, federal regulators could demand changes that might disrupt these pro t centers for both carriers and credit card issuers, and remove a travel option valued by many consumers.
e loyalty programs have come under re in recent months, with the Biden administration and lawmakers from both sides of the aisle raising concerns that carriers lure customers with promises of rewards only to strip yers of those perks with little notice by making sudden changes to how points and miles accrue. ey’ve also raised concerns about whether the programs give larger airlines an unfair advantage over smaller competitors.
Delta said in a statement that “providing a meaningful rewards experience is the top priority within Delta’s SkyMiles program,” adding that it would respond to the Department of Transportation’s inquiry. It has previously cited strong growth in loyalty program memberships, co-branded credit card acquisition and increased card spending since the pandemic.
Airline loyalty programs aren’t a new concept. American was the rst major carrier to create such a program with AAdvantage in 1981, followed shortly thereafter by United and Delta. ey initially started as a way for the airlines to di erentiate themselves after the industry was deregulated in 1978 but have since become massive moneymakers.
e public got a glimpse at how lucrative these programs are when major U.S. carriers raised at least $20 billion in nancing during the COVID-19 pandemic using their loyalty programs as collateral.
As part of the probe, the carriers will have to provide detailed information on their rewards programs — which encompasses credit card, consumer incentive, loyalty and frequent ier programs — including any changes made over the last six years, complaints received from customers and the impact of mergers on the programs.
“Many Americans view their rewards points balances as part of their savings,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in the statement. “But unlike a traditional savings account, these rewards are controlled by a company that can unilaterally change their value.”
Airlines for America, a trade group that represents major US carriers, said in a statement that millions of people enjoy the perks that they get from their loyalty programs. “US carriers are transparent about these programs, and policymakers should ensure that consumers can continue to be offered these important bene ts,” the group said.
Southwest said its rewards program includes exible travel policies and “unmatched availability of reward seats.”
“Our commitment to providing customers with Rapid Rewards points that never expire, regardless of how they’re earned, has led us to have double the industry average of seats booked with points,” the Dallas-based carrier said in a statement. As with other carriers, loyalty points can be used for purchases including ights, hotels, car rentals and gift cards.
United Chief Executive O cer Scott Kirby has called its loyalty program “a huge part of what we do” and something that’s good for customers as well as the airline.
e Transportation Department has taken a hard line with airlines on practices or policies that it’s determined could be harming consumers. e new probe is the latest in a slew of government actions on that front.
Buttigieg previewed his concerns with the loyalty programs
Carriers generate revenue by selling points or miles to the companies they’ve partnered with on their co-branded credit cards, which in turn o er them as rewards to customers when they make purchases on the card. ey can also sell points or miles directly to consumers on their websites or to other businesses they’ve teamed up with, such as hotels, retailers or car rental companies.
Proponents say the programs and the co-branded credit cards, provide travelers with a range of popular bene ts, from priority boarding to airport lounge access. And according to Airlines for America nearly one out of every four U.S. households has an airline credit card.
But consumer advocacy groups and lawmakers like Senators Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, and Roger Marshall, a Republican from Kansas, have leaned on the Transportation Department to take action to prohibit potentially unfair practices. e senators raised many of the concerns that Buttigieg echoed in the May hearing in a letter sent to the department and the CFPB last year.
Transtar targets inventory as its next big investment
By Dan Shingler
Transtar, the Walton Hills automotive transmission and driveline parts supplier, is investing $10 million into new inventory.
e company is stocking up on transmission parts and components to meet rising demand that shows no signs of slowing down, said Neil Sethi, CEO of Transtar’s holding company, NexaMotion,
“We’ve made a signi cant investment, $10 million, into our inventory, to meet some demand spikes we’re seeing,” Sethi said. Since the pandemic's end, people have been driving more, putting more miles on their transmissions and other drivetrain parts that Transtar sells. Meanwhile, ination has driving up the cost of vehicles, causing people to hang on to their cars and trucks.
“ ose are the exact dynamics that are playing out,” Sethi said. “ e average car on the road now is 12 years old, and that’s increasing.”
Meanwhile, as cars seek increasing fuel e ciency, performance, reliability and other improvements, transmissions have gotten more complicated, with more parts and more gears than the four-speed transmissions of
decades past. at means Transtar has a longer list of parts it needs to have ready and more things to sell.
“ ese would mainly be for sixspeed eight-speed and 10-speed automatic transmissions,” Sethi said of his recent inventory purchases. “As these vehicles are coming o warranty, because of issues with normal wear and tear, we’re just seeing signi cant demand. We made a strategic decision to get ahead of where we think demand is headed.”
Transtar distributes products, ranging from original-equipment parts made by major automakers to some of its own branded components, through about 100 locations across the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico.
It’s committed to getting parts to its customers, which are often independent repair shops, quickly, often within hours, Sethi said. To do that, it not only needs to manage its logistics well, it has to have a product on hand. Buying extra when the company knows it will be needed just makes sense, Sethi said.
And, while it was a driving reason for the investment, stockpiling inventory also has the bene t of insulating the company from future supply-chain issues, which
have been an issue in the automotive sector in recent years.
Transtar also has been growing.
Since getting a major 2021 investment from Cleveland’s Blue Point Capital, which became NexaMotion’s controlling shareholder, the company has used its forti ed balance sheet to expand and make acquisitions.
Most recently, Transtar opened warehouses in Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania. One, in Tampa, Florida, opened May 13, and another in Fort Worth, Texas, was announced in April.
Transtar has also made several acquisitions, including Arch Auto Parts, a company with 21 distribution centers in New York City, a market where Transtar previously had only one.
e company also has expanded its product o erings. In April, it announced it will begin o ering recycled OEM engines to auto shop customers.
e company does not disclose its revenues, but in June, Sethi said it’s growing at a double-digit percentage rate and employs about 1,300 people.
Sethi said he plans to continue with his plans for expansion in the future but isn’t yet ready to give details.
Myers Industries announces new CEO, transition plan
By Dan Shingler
Akron-based Myers Industries Inc. (NYSE: MYE) has replaced its CEO, Mike McGaugh, with former vice president of integration and the company’s material-handling business, Dave Basque.
Basque will serve as interim president and CEO until a new person is hired for those roles.
An executive search rm has been hired to help nd his replacement, the company said Monday, Sept. 9, in announcing the transition.
Myers did not say whether McGaugh had resigned or been terminated. It called the move “a leadership transition to support the continued transformation of the company” in its release.
these past several years,” McGaugh stated in the company’s announcement. ‘I believe the company is well positioned for long-term success in the future. I am con dent that Dave and the Myers team will continue to drive Myers’ transformation and create shareholder value.”
In the same release, Basque said “I am very pleased to be named Interim President and CEO of Myers Industries and look forward to working closely with the Board and our senior leadership team to continue to drive the business forward.”
Board chairman F. Jack Liebau Jr. showed some support for McGaugh in the same release.
“Mike has been the driver of our transformation e orts for four and a half years as our CEO. We are a better company, with a better leadership team, than we were when Mike joined us,” Liebau stated. “He built a strong platform for our growth for which we are grateful. On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Mike for his valuable leadership and contributions to Myers.”
McGaugh led Myers through several acquisitions, including its January purchase of Texasbased Signature Systems, a company that makes composite ground-protection devices, for $350 million.
“I’d like to thank the board of directors for the opportunity to have led Myers Industries over
Basque is 67 and was named vice president in 2020, after a 35year career with Dow Chemical, where he led several acquisitionintegration teams, Myers stated in a ling with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
“Basque will be provided (a) a monthly stipend of $50,000 during the period in which he serves as Interim President and Chief Executive O cer in addition to his base salary in e ect as of September 1, 2024, and (b) a cash bonus of $500,000 upon completion of his interim role, conditioned on his continued employment until that time,” Myers also stated in the SEC ling. Myers, which makes a variety of sustainable plastic and metal products for industrial, agricultural, automotive, commercial, and consumer markets, employs about 2,400 people. It is also the largest distributor of tools, equipment and supplies for the tire, wheel, and under-vehicle service industry in the United States, according to its website.
Samsel Supply, a stalwart of the Flats, is shutting its doors
By Stan Bullard
After pondering a post-Flats future for several years, family owned Samsel Supply Co. has decided to close its landmark store and wholesale operation providing goods for sailors and builders this fall.
Mike Samsel, vice president, said the five family members who own the business decided to close because their children are pursuing other careers and none were interested in continuing the company. The store will close Oct. 4.
After shedding most of its Old River Road holdings two years ago, it looked for another location to continue the business and he said,
“We just didn’t nd the right t.” e Samsels and a handful of others preserved buildings that date from the canal period through the 1900s and compose the heart of what is now the federally registered Old River Road Historic District. e buildings clustered on Old River south of Main Avenue preserve the city’s waterfront legacy, including several buildings with ornate Victorian architecture. Meantime, buildings north of Main were remodeled as nightclubs and bars and others were demolished for the Wolstein family led Flats East Bank Neighborhood project that replaced them with apartment-retail and other buildings.
Samsel said the company had
remained pro table and neither he nor his sister, Kathy Petrik, who serves as president, have rm plans for what will come after satisfying non-retail orders by Nov. 1.
“We want to make sure we take care of our customers,” Samsel said. “ en after that, we will look at liquidating the assets and see what’s left of the inventory.”
Although its clientele was diversi ed between construction and industrial, about a third of its sales were maritime. e company sent supplies such as safety equipment and deck supplies to ships not only here but throughout the Great Lakes, timing deliveries so materials would be available when the boats arrived.
“When I joined the company
full time in 1978,” Samsel recalled, “we would sometimes make deliveries to ships from our own vessel. e docks were then in such poor shape some ships would moor near the shore to unload and reload.”
Samsel also fabricated some equipment for customers. e company has about 25 employees, some who have been with the concern for 30 to 40 years. “Some will just retire. We’ve always appreciated their hard work and will do the best we can.”
It plans to provide outplacement aid and retain employees for about 60 days.
Samsel stressed the positive as he discussed the company.
“We’ve helped people buy
homes and put kids through college and we’ve xed up a few buildings. It has been a good run,” Samsel said.
Although GBX Group of Cleveland, a specialist in historic preservation, and restaurateur-realty developer Bobby George are now majority partners in the structures, redevelopment plans so far have not proceeded. at is in part due to pandemic delays and the subsequent run-up in interest rates and building costs and erce competition for Ohio Historic Preservation Tax Credits and other aid.
“We’ve seen the Flats through its highs and lows,” Samsel said, “and I think that the future looks good.”
McGaugh
Transtar’s headquarters in Walton Hills DAN SHINGLER
Some of Cleveland’s movers and shakers are often focused on the future, a bright vision of what’s to come, while others like to stay in the present, basking in the glow of current success. Somewhere in between is Crain’s annual 20 In eir 20s series, honoring the young leaders of Northeast Ohio who have already established themselves in their respective industries but still have a bright future ahead. From health care to real estate, government to nance, these 20 honorees have worked hard to establish themselves in their communities and specialties — but they’re just getting warmed up. | Photography by Jason Miller/Pixelate
Lauretta Amanor 29
Events manager, program and HQ engagement | Cleveland Foundation
Doctor. Chef. Hairstylist.
Growing up, Lauretta Amanor wanted to try just about every career path, but her main focus was always on helping others.
It’s tting, then, that she ended up working at the rst-ever community foundation. Amanor serves as events manager, program and HQ engagement at the Cleveland Foundation, a role she’s held since July 2023.
“I told myself years back I want to be known as a humanitarian,” she said. “Being able to help with programs, seeing people like me, people who have my skin tone, impacting the community in such a great way, it just motivates me to do more.”
young age, she said. And it was a mentor, Yolanda Hamilton of YDH Consulting, who encouraged her to apply for the Cleveland Foundation’s Public Service Fellowship program in 2019.
She spent a little over a year and a half working as a special project associate for the Invest In Children: Universal Pre-K program at Cuyahoga County’s O ce of Early Childhood. Following that, she held several roles at the Northern Ohio Recovery Association.
When the opportunity at the Cleveland Foundation presented itself last year, Amanor said she was ready for a change. In her current post, she is responsible
“Being able to help with programs, seeing people like me, people who have my skin tone, impacting the community in such a great way, it just motivates me to do more.”
Born in Ghana, Amanor came to the U.S. with her brother in 2001. She grew up in South Euclid and attended Ursuline College for undergrad, earning her bachelor’s degree in public relations and marketing communications. She later received a master’s of public administration from Cleveland State University.
Amanor is a big believer in mentorship. Her parents instilled Ghanaian culture in her at a
for facilitating collaboration across departments to conceptualize, plan and coordinate events within the foundation’s headquarters and MidTown Collaboration Center.
“Lauretta’s superpower is her ability to build relationships with people from all backgrounds,” said Lillian Kuri, president and CEO of the Cleveland Foundation. “This, along with her creativity, attention to detail and commitment to the Cleveland
Foundation’s mission have established her as a go-to partner for our special events and programming.”
Kuri said Amanor has helped people across the community to feel connected and see themselves in the Cleveland Foundation’s work through her role.
Along with the support of her mentors, Amanor attributes her early career success to her humility, ability to take constructive criticism and willingness to learn.
Outside of work, Amanor is committed to uplifting others. Earlier this year, she launched Young Ghanaian Professionals, a professional network dedicated to connecting and supporting Ghanaians in Cleveland. She also runs a mentorship program called Blushing Orchids Mentoring Academy, which aims to empower and educate Black and brown girls.
“I love mentorship, and I feel like our young girls need it,” Amanor said.
What advice does Amanor give the young girls she mentors? Be unapologetically yourself. It’s important to stay true to your values and culture, she said, as they will guide you to new opportunities.
Amanor also encourages young girls to surround themselves with mentors and build a personal network they can lean on for guidance and support.
— Paige Bennett
Bakari Ballard 24
Project engineer II | Gilbane Building Co.
From atop a seven-story research building on Cedar Road he is helping to build for the Cleveland Clinic, Bakari Ballard can see the roof of his high school, Cleveland’s John Hay, where he attended the School of Architecture and Design.
As he works as a project engineer at Gilbane Building Co., he is looking back and giving back in multiple respects early in his career.
Ballard works on a Gilbane team putting a multimilliondollar pair of Innovation District structures in place. He views it as his rst project because he started working on it as caissons for their foundations went in, and he will work on it through completion. He joined Gilbane in the spring of 2022 after graduating from Kent State University with a bachelor’s degree in construction management and a minor in nance.
e job was the fruition of his going through the ACE Mentor Program at John Hay for three years and winning an ACE scholarship that put him through Kent State.
e experience of hearing people working in construction, architecture and engineering while in high school gave him a grounding in the industry that he said he might otherwise not have had. It also provided the perspective for a switch to the construction business from pursuing an architect career.
However, his deep interest in buildings was rooted in his childhood. He started out building with Legos and watching “Bob the Builder” shows. His parents would pacify him on long car trips by letting him watch YouTube time-lapse videos of construction projects on a mobile phone. He relished when he got
Brenan Betro 27
Social media manager | Cleveland Browns
ree years ago, Brenan Betro was a 24-year-old Northeast Ohio native with one of the coolest jobs in the NBA (social media coordinator) for one of the premier franchises in the league (the San Antonio Spurs), in one of the best climates (average annual snowfall: 0.4 inches).
He was the lead administrator for the Spurs’ Instagram, Twitter and Facebook accounts. He had spearheaded the campaign to land Dejounte Murray his rst NBA All-Star Game appearance. He was pro cient at all areas of the job, posting everything from game day coverage to lifestyle/ pop culture content to community outreach projects.
And then, to borrow a line from Bear Bryant, “Mama called” … er, posted.
Itching for a bigger role — either in San Antonio or elsewhere — Betro started checking out job boards, where he saw an opening for a social media manager with the Cleveland Browns.
on building sites in college internships. He interned at Gilbane and received and accepted a job o er from the company before his senior year.
“It was a blessing and a curse,” Ballard recalled. “Unlike so many of my peers without o ers, I knew where I was going and what I would be doing. e curse was that it made me impatient to nish classes and get started.”
Kyle Merrill, Gilbane Cleveland business leader and senior vice president, said there is a “humble tenacity” to Ballard.
“If he believes in your cause, he will ght for a satisfactory resolution,” Merrill said. “He does not oversell himself. He has a high aptitude and a strong desire to do more.”
Community activity is important at Gilbane, and Merrill said Ballard distinguished himself by engaging in volunteer e orts at a level more common among sta ers in their 60s. He also heads a Cleveland committee that promotes diversity and education and organized a program on the importance of Juneteenth.
For his part, Bakari is eager to learn all he can about the industry, so when he “gets some gray hairs” he may advance to a leadership position, which would entail bringing in new jobs for the rm.
e ACE scholarship, Bakari said, enabled him to be free of student debt, which has helped him buy his rst house in August in Maple Heights. He also just got engaged. He is the rst ACE alum to join its board. And volunteerism resonates with him.
“Attending school in Cleveland, I didn’t want for a coat,” Ballard said of working on a Coats for Kids drive in the city. “But I know I had classmates who did.”
— Stan Bullard
be pretty special,” he said.
e Browns agreed, hiring Betro in June 2022 to help rede ne the team’s voice and approach on all of their social media channels. He has delivered, helping Cleveland set a record for engagements in 2023 (50.7 million, a 74.3% increase year over year).
Video views were up nearly 90% year over year, and the Browns’ top six posts on Instagram were all from this past year. Overall, only three other NFL teams saw a larger increase in total engagements in 2023. e Browns’ dog logo redesign contest won a Hashtag Sports Award for Best Use of Fan-Generated Content, and the social media team’s yearlong push for Myles Garrett to get defensive player of the year consideration paid o when he won the award for the rst time in February (although Garrett probably deserves a little bit of the credit, too).
“I felt like I came into my own in San Antonio, so to take everything I learned and utilize that with my hometown team — the team I was rooting for all my childhood — I thought that would
“I’ve had good teammates in the past, but we’ve struck gold with how cohesive we are,” said Betro, who graduated from Walsh Jesuit High School before earning his bachelor’s degree in digital communication and media/ multimedia from John Carroll
University in 2019. “ at’s helped us have the success we’ve had the past couple years.” at team is also constantly looking for ways to improve, relying heavily on analytics to see which posts (and which platforms) get traction with the Browns’ rabid fan base. ose fans can occasionally get grumpy online — “You try not to take things to heart and recognize when (criticism) is benecial and constructive, and when it’s just fans venting and wanting to get their takes out,” he said — but the job’s positives easily outweigh the negatives.
“(Brenan) brings an upbeat, fun and smart approach to the position and attacks every day with a mindset focused on making the Browns one of the best professional sports teams across social media,” Andrew Gribble, the Browns’ director of digital and social media, said via email. “Most importantly, he has surrounded himself with talented content creators and empowered them, allowing for a free- owing discourse of ideas and concepts that ultimately become realities on the Browns’ social channels.”
— Joe Scalzo
Hayley Bock 29
Manager of project operations | JobsOhio
Hayley Bock is the jack-of-alltrades and the go-to person for almost everything JobsOhio.
In her six years with the state’s private, nonpro t economic development agency, she has also worn a lot of di erent hats within the growing organization.
“ ere have been lots of changes over the years at JobsOhio,” Bock said. “When they need a project manager to help with a new initiative — because I know the process and I’m also a stickler for details — I’m pulled in to see how we can work with, innovate or apply our programs.”
JobsOhio uses revenue from the state’s liquor sales — an impressively stable and reliable income source — to fund a growing number of economic programs ranging from small business loans to Cleveland’s $100 million innovation district.
As manager of project operations, Bock manages a team of project managers assigned to di erent Ohio regions.
Bock also handles training for existing and new JobsOhio sta and, as the anointed “guardian of the process,” helps outside groups and individuals understand the rigor involved in using state economic development funds.
“She’s de nitely the glue that holds a lot of the JobsOhio networks together,” said Jason Dunkle, senior managing director of products and performance for JobsOhio. “She’s a very crossfunctional individual.”
When not busy managing and training, Bock works on the JobsOhio corporate R&D centers grant program or on rolling out a new JobsOhio network partner: Lake to River Economic Development, consisting of
Mary Carter 27
Communication manager | PRE4CLE
Mary Carter knows the power — and importance — of storytelling.
Carter earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism from the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. She wanted to experience being in an agency setting so, after graduation, she pursued opportunities in sales, advertising, writing and marketing. She enjoyed those experiences, especially helping nonpro t clients. But still, she felt called to help Cleveland.
Carter found an opening at PRE4CLE, a Cleveland initiative to expand access to high-quality preschool to all children in the city of Cleveland. It was a perfect t, Carter says.
As communication manager, Carter is responsible for spreading the word about PRE4CLE, developing a recruitment plan, supporting advocacy e orts and planning events to support enrollment and engagement.
“It combines everything that I love so much: being able to tell the story of people who deserve to have their stories told — which everybody does — but people who don’t really get to have their stories told very often, and also having the ability to help the community that is around me and being able to see that change every single day,” Carter said.
“I have always felt like every human being’s story is important, and it deserves to be told and it deserves to be heard, because something in everybody’s story will speak to somebody else. I have felt that way my whole entire life. I really take seriously the role of storytelling. You have to be able to shape somebody’s story and tell it delicately.”
at’s one of the reasons why Katie Kelly, executive director of PRE4CLE, nominated Carter for the 20 In eir 20s honor.
she’s always looking for other ways to contribute her time and expertise in the community.”
Carter is an associate board member of Recovery Resources and a mentor with College Now Greater Cleveland. She has also worked with Jews of Color Cleveland, Reframe History, the Hispanic Heritage Hub and Pueblo Strategies. She coaches middle schoolers for the YMCA of Greater Cleveland’s Ridgewood YMCA Dolphins, and she also leads the swimming team’s communication and recruitment e orts.
Carter didn’t grow up with a lot of money, and she prided herself on pushing herself as hard as she could to write a different story for herself. Now, Carter feels able to pause and carefully consider her next steps.
Ashtabula, Columbiana, Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
In her collection of responsibilities, Bock deals with every part of the JobsOhio ecosystem: internal sta and regional partners, as well as business owners and leaders.
“She’s very popular on the network side, internally, and she is able to get everybody on the same page, keep the ball moving forward and is just a great person to be around,” Dunkle said.
JobsOhio operates more like an early-stage startup company, Dunkle said, and sta are busy every day, dealing with an opportunity to chase or a problem to solve.
Bock’s ability to understand, to explain di cult processes and to get people to con de in her is crucial, Dunkle added.
“She keeps everything in this chaotic environment very controlled, at least as much as it is possible,” he said.
For a non-Cleveland native — the Ohio State University graduate is originally from South Carolina — she has become part of the community. She does fundraising for the Literacy Cooperative and the Ronald McDonald House.
And with what is left of her free time, she lives her personal life much like her work life, nding new and di erent challenges like competing in a sprint triathlon, playing in an adult volleyball league, water skiing or sailing.
“I’ve done a lot of new things over the past couple of years,” Bock said. “I am always willing to raise my hand and try something new, but if I’m being honest, I’m also a little bit of a scaredy cat.”
— Kim Palmer
e education nonpro t is nearing its 10-year anniversary, and Carter is organizing a black tie gala to honor their teachers and providers, a night of glitz and glamour for those who spend most of their workdays with 3- and 4-year-olds. She’s also revamping the messaging and materials for PRE4CLE’s next decade.
“One thing I love about Mary is she really loves people and has a very people-centered approach to doing her communication work, so actually gathering stories and really putting the people that we are working with and trying to serve at the forefront of how she does her work in a really beautiful way,” Kelly said.
“In addition to her core responsibilities, I think something that is remarkable about her, too, is that
“Now that I feel like I have proven myself, I can do what feels good and less to what looks good (on a resume),” Carter said. at also means making an effort to pursue her hobbies and other passions, including traveling — something she loves but didn’t have the opportunity to do much growing up — as well as visiting all the National Parks and just being outside with her ancé and 4-year-old Australian Shepherd, Ollie.
— Nicole Stempak
Cassidy Cleland 28
Associate | Thompson Hine
Real estate attorney Cassidy Cleland was destined for law long before she’d even heard the term “dirt lawyer.”
Cleland grew up in a tiny Southeast Ohio town within a working-class family. Her dad insisted she become either a doctor or a lawyer, she said, “and I don’t like blood.”
“I was also the kid who was bouncing around and speaking her mind,” Cleland quipped, “so people would say ‘You’re going to be a lawyer,’ and I thought ‘All right.’ I realize now, of course, that was not meant to be a compliment.”
A Division I athlete, Cleland competed for four years at Ohio University as a Bobcat hammer and discus thrower and was named to the Academic All-MAC Outdoor and Indoor Track Team. She went on to the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, where she worked as a judicial extern for Ohio Supreme Court Justice Michael Donnelly and Judge John Adams of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. Both experiences, she said, steered her away from litigation.
After law school, Cleland joined ompson Hine and soon “vibed” with the style and pace of real estate transactions.
“I liked the steadiness of deal work, and I liked the quick dash to closings,” she said. “Really above anything else, you’re a project manager, which was just more my speed. … I also enjoyed the clients. ey made me want to do good work and show up every day for them.”
Cleland recently served as ompson Hine’s lead associate in a client’s $1.5 billion acquisition of 23 apartment complexes across six states. Projects like
these, she explained, “helped me grasp the reality of being a ‘dirt lawyer’ and the signi cant impact I could have on my clients’ communities, even in small ways.”
“It’s exciting to go out and show my husband the projects that I’ve been involved with,” Cleland said, adding that “doing this kind of work has actually helped orient me to Cleveland.”
Community engagement has also been part of her acclimation. Cleland participated in the Cleveland Leadership Center’s 2022 Civic Leadership Institute and is slated to begin the 2025 OnBoard Cleveland class. At
ompson Hine, she helps steer the Rising Professionals group and chairs a community service committee — roles that include marshaling support for the of-
ce’s United Way and Harvest for Hunger campaigns.
Cleland’s prized service role, however, is a personal one. After her newborn nephew su ered complications that put him in the NICU for weeks, Cleland’s sister and husband bene ted greatly from the support and services o ered to them through Ronald McDonald House. She is currently a member of the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Northeast Ohio’s Emerging Leaders board and leads a committee organizing the board’s largest fundraising event.
Christopher Sponseller, a senior managing associate with ompson Hine’s real estate practice, said he “couldn’t be happier” to work with Cleland.
“She brings passion to her work and has an unrelenting attention to detail that gives her clients and colleagues comfort in con dence,” he said.
—
Judy Stringer
CLAIRE COYNE MCCOY
Claire Coyne 27
Director | Newmark
Being a stand-out commercial real estate agent was a role Claire Coyne McCoy was born for. After all, real estate development is the family business.
Her grandfather, John Coyne, founded Park-Here Inc., which later became the Coyne-Kangesser Parking Co. and is now a division of ABM. Her father, Terry Coyne, is a longtime xture in Cleveland’s commercial real estate world and a former Crain’s 40 Under 40 honoree (as is her uncle, attorney omas Coyne.)
Patricia Colella 28
Lead innovation strategist | University Hospitals
Patricia Colella’s primary passions — for health and wellness, for tness and sports, for trying new things — come together in her role as lead innovation strategist at University Hospitals Ventures (UHV).
In the job, Colella oversees internal and external programming for UHV’s innovation and strategy initiatives; manages education initiatives; leads external partnerships for events; and oversees day-to-day programming for podcast production, social media outreach and marketing strategies.
One big recent project: SportsLand, an initiative of UHV and the UH Haslam Sports Innovation Center that’s designed to position Ohio as a leader in the intersection of sports technology and medicine. Colella helped put together a big summit at the end of July, held at Cleveland Browns Stadium, that featured panels with head team physicians, tech experts and sports business executives; conversations with leaders in human performance; and demonstrations by industry leaders.
One panel, featuring Cavaliers CEO Nic Barlage, Browns Chief Operating O cer David Jenkins and Greater Cleveland Sports
“I was doing a lot of re ecting, looking for a way to work with other people again — in a safe manner, of course — and the real in real estate gave me an option to do that,” she said.
As luck would have it, an opportunity came via her father, who was looking to ll a role at Newmark.
“I grew up in a family heavily focused on real estate,” Claire Coyne said. “We always laugh that from a very young age, I was hearing all the terms around the dinner table or while visiting my grandparents.”
A love of math (her mother is a teacher) led her to the Farmer School of Business at Miami University, focusing on supply chains, information systems and analytics. By then, she knew real estate was “the end goal” but, “I thought I actually wouldn’t join the real estate world until maybe 5 to 10 years into my career.”
Upon graduation in May 2019, she jumped into a role at KPMG and, she said, “I loved it … I loved the camaraderie.”
But, like so many people her age, Claire Coyne found herself at a pivotal early point in her career when the world came screeching to a halt because of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020. She found herself working from home and missing that opportunity to work alongside others.
“I pretty much on the spot said yes,” Claire Coyne said.
“We didn’t have a master plan. It just kind of worked out that way,” Terry Coyne said. “Her background allowed her to have a di erent perspective from me and we learn from her every day … and the clients love it.”
Though she didn’t expect to move to real estate so soon —
“I don’t know if I would have left KPMG as early as I did if not for COVID.” — there’s been no turning back since.
“I am very glad that I switched over when I did, because some may say that the market has been somewhat volatile — which they’re not necessarily wrong — but it’s been a fantastic time to learn when things are changing so fast in so many di erent departments,” she said.
And she’s had no problems keeping up, Terry Coyne said.
“She’s so very good at what she does,” he said, noting a trio of recent headquarters deals Claire Coyne worked on. “She’s further along than I was at the exact same age and she’s taking on bigger assignments and bigger roles.”
— Marcus Gilmer
Commission President David Gilbert, focused, as Colella put it, on “the need to link health care and sports in Northeast Ohio.”
It’s the type of initiative that dovetails with UHV’s mission to identify, develop and deploy “the most disruptive and creative innovations that originate from within University Hospitals and organizations all over the world.”
And it makes sense, Colella said, to leverage Northeast Ohio’s love of sports with its medical expertise “to create a powerful platform for innovation.”
Colella has long planned for a career in health care, but her current role is a departure from her original plan.
She graduated from Ohio University with a bachelor’s degree in long-term health care administration, and before joining UH in October 2018, worked in privateduty home care across Northeast Ohio. Colella said she was close with her grandparents growing up and was drawn to long-term care and home care in part because she “couldn’t stand the thought of people being alone.” Colella also earned an MBA, with a concentration in business venturing and entrepreneurship, from Ohio U, and it’s those skills she now draws on at UHV.
Colella sees the common thread in her health care career journey as “a commitment to improving health and well-being” by “combining creativity and a patient-centered approach.”
David Sylvan, chief strategy, innovation and marketing ocer at University Hospitals, and president of UHV, said Colella is “relentless in her approach” to the job.
“She’s never dissuaded,” he said. “If I cut Patricia loose on something, it’s going to get done. ... Her energy level is very high, and she leads by example.”
Among her many skills, Sylvan said, are “evangelism and storytelling. She has ownership of that aspect of conveying the type of innovation we’re working to unlock.”
In high school, Colella played softball and volleyball, and she still seeks out opportunities to play when she gets a chance. She also enjoys strength training, yoga and meditation, and she’s studying to be a certi ed trainer and a nutrition coach.
One other thing that keeps her running, literally: a new dog, a German shepherd. “I’ve wanted a dog my whole life. It’s great to be able to go outside and get active.”
— Scott Suttell
Tyler Dalton 29
Senior associate | Kaulig Companies
It’s uncommon to see someone so early in their career playing such a big role in a private equity business as Tyler Dalton.
A senior associate with the Kaulig Capital family o ce, Dalton is a jack of many trades, something that is a product of an eager willingness to tackle just about anything.
Besides sourcing and vetting potential investments, Dalton is viewed at his rm as a connector who excels at nding vendors, suppliers and sales opportunities to support portfolio companies.
A hockey player, youth coach and general Cleveland sports nut, Dalton also works on sponsorship and media opportunities for the Kaulig Cos. Championship (golf) and Kaulig Racing NASCAR team. is intersection of sports, business and investing is exactly where Dalton — whose dream job might be working in the front ofce of the Cleveland Guardians — wants to be.
“Tyler is the guy who never says no to anything, ever,” said Brooke Sirak, a vice president at Kaulig Capital, who describes Dalton as curious and a team player. “He has been able to take advantage of the workplace
environment we have and catapult himself into his role. I think the best part of what he’s been able to do here is be really thoughtful when it comes to connecting di erent aspects of the business.”
A Go-To Resource For Business Growth
can’t you be happy that you’re here, right now, doing this?”
While Dalton is motivated to help the people behind the companies at Kaulig, he also confesses a drive to be as good at his work as the professionals around him.
“I just look around now and think, how can’t you be happy that you’re here, right now, doing this?”
Besides his nancial acumen and experience in serving family o ces at Cohen & Co., Dalton’s sports background helped him land a job at Kaulig: it was through the “Hockey Players in Business” networking group that he met Kaulig Capital Managing Director Dominic Brault, which eventually led to a job.
“I think I’ve been in the right place at the right time,” Dalton humbly says.
It certainly wasn’t an easy path for Dalton, who overcame a hockeyrelated hamstring tear in college. He recalls at least one doctor telling him he’d be lucky to walk again.
“ at was clearly a turning point for me. It changes your life in many ways,” Dalton said. “I just look around now and think, how
“ ere is one of those jobs where someone gets to do all this stu , and it happens to be the one I have,” he said.
“I get to be a part of board room discussions on everything from luxury wine glasses to garage doors ... I get to meet with great people and business owners and understand how to help them grow.”
“But also, I’m surrounded by a bunch of Ferraris,” said Dalton of his Kaulig colleagues. “It’s hard not to aspire to be all these people that I’m around.”
Dalton said that he feels like he “hit the lottery” with his current job and aspires to grow further in his role.
“I’d like to stay here but also hopefully continue to climb the ranks and potentially run the family o ce one day,” he said.
— Jeremy Nobile
Daniel DiDonato 28
Principal PD project management specialist | Medtronic
Daniel DiDonato has been moving up the ladder since he started his professional career.
In his ve years at Cardinal Health, DiDonato worked his way up from a graphic designer to a supervisor of creative services. His work there was steady and comfortable, he said. But last spring, he took a leap by joining Medtronic, a medical technology company, as a principal PD project management specialist on a contract basis.
We are proud to recognize
M. Cleland and her fellow honorees in the 20 in Their 20s Class of 2024.
Cassidy guides clients through commercial real estate transactions, including leasing, nancing, and acquisitions. A passionate supporter of United Way, Harvest for Hunger, and Ronald McDonald House Charities, her dedication to her colleagues and community shines through her leadership in organizing social and service-based events for young professionals, both within the rm and beyond.
A contract role may be less certain than a full-time position, but DiDonato said he is glad to have made the jump, as he felt he was ready for the next challenge. In his new role, the Akron native works with a team of writers and designers to create technical literature for patients.
DiDonato, who graduated from the University of Akron with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and marketing management, said he never imagined he would wind up working in health care, but he’s grateful for the opportunities that led him to it. With his new position, he’s seeing a di erent side of health care.
“I’ve had the opportunity to see both sides of the picture,” DiDonato said. “I saw distribution on the Cardinal Health side, and now that I’m at Medtronic, I see the manufacturing aspect of health care.”
In his last role at Cardinal Health, DiDonato oversaw the development of creative content for at-Home Solutions, a business unit of Cardinal Health comprising two brands. He led the design of a refreshed brand identity system for at-Home Solutions’ business-to-consumer segment, Edgepark. at work earned him the inaugural Cardinal Health at-
Home Solutions Marketing Excellence Award.
“(DiDonato) is one of those people you meet in your career and immediately notice something di erent about them,” said Michelle White, vice president of marketing at Qventus. White, who initially hired DiDonato as a contractor at Cardinal Health in 2018, described him as humble, talented and strategically creative. She said he understands how to express concerns without making others defensive and brings thoughtfulness to his work.
He served a one-year term on the American Institute of Graphic Arts Cleveland’s board, where he helped craft programming and initiatives in support of the design community in Cleveland.
He was also honored as one of the 2024 Movers & Shakers by e Cleveland Professional 20/30 Club.
DiDonato credits his work ethic to his grandfather, who worked as a school counselor by day and in the Firestone tire factories by night for years. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with family — he is the middle child of ve siblings and most of his family lives locally.
DiDonato said his long-term career goals are uid and everchanging and that he prefers to keep them close to the vest. But he said he’s nowhere near where he wants to be yet, and he looks forward to seeing where the future will take him.
He advises young professionals to be patient. Success doesn’t happen overnight, he said. It’s the result of years of hard work.
“I think you’ve just got to be patient,” he said. “You’ve got to follow your gut and what that tells you.”
—
Paige Bennett
Alex Guthrie 29
Director of events | Topnotch Management
If you watch tennis and you love the fact that you can watch some of the world’s top players go at each other in Cleveland as of late, thank Alex Guthrie.
He’s not solely responsible for Tennis in the Land and other events, of course — and he’d be the last person to say he was. But he’s been a critical driver and backerof e orts to get those events here and a major force behind organizing them on the ground.
“ ere was no professional tennis in Cleveland and now there are two events here … this is the biggest women’s sports event going on in Ohio right now,” said Todd Wojtkowski, a Case Western Reserve University associate professor and head men’s tennis coach.
He was referring to the big women’s tennis event in town, Tennis in the Land, where Guthrie was working and had been busy since long before the August tournament began.
“He’s one of the three most important people behind all that,” Wojtkowski said.
Guthrie plays himself — he played in college at John Carroll University before becoming the
head coach for girls’ tennis at May eld High School from 2016 to 2019.
After that, he spent six years at May eld Sand Ridge Club where he was director of racket sports before he connected with Topnotch at a Cleveland Open tennis event.
A Perry native who now lives in Lyndhurst, Guthrie said connecting with Topnotch was a key moment in his career.
“I got to work alongside theTopnotch team for the entire week and they were trying to start their events division. It was a good t and they asked me to join them and try to build the events side of the company up,” Guthrie said.
“It was great to stay in tennis and I love being around the game.”
His rst ve years at Topnotch have been challenging, but also a lot of fun, he said.
He proved how creative and versatile he was during COVID19, which was obviously a challenging time to be planning events — unless you could eliminate the people. So he did.
“We started an exhibition series for professional tennis players in the top 300 in the worldat a
time when there were no events to play,” he recalled. “ e only people at the courts were the two players, the o cial and then someone to help with the cameras — then it was livestreamed at our website.”
at proved to be successful, he said, but nothing like the live events he’s glad to be back to managing.
“I really like the events side and that’s kind of my niche and what I’m really passionate about,” Guthrie said.
None of this comes as a surprise to Wojtkowski, who’s known Guthrie since he was a pre-teen player and introduced him to Topnotch President Sam Duvall. (Wojtkowski knows a thing or two aboutgood players, and people, by the way; he coached Case Western toa national title in 2023.)
“Sam needed someone he knew he could rely on that other people would trust and who would make sure that every detail on a pieceof paper would get done. I said: ‘Sam there’s only one person you should call, and that’s Alex,’ ” Wojtkowski said.
— Dan Shingler
Hannah Haynie 26
Manager of the NEOMED Free Clinic | Northeast Ohio Medical University
For Hannah Haynie, it’s not so much paths diverging as it is converging.
“It’s amazing how everything comes together,” she says.
Haynie went to college openminded, but thought she might want to be a physician. She earned a bachelor’s in biological sciences and a master’s in psychology with a specialization in health psychology. During that time, Haynie worked as a health and wellness community relations liaison and special project coordinator for ONE Health Ohio, a federally quali ed health center based in Youngstown. at’s how she discovered her passion for research.
Haynie is a doctoral student at Kent State University, where she is studying sociology with a specialization in medical and mental health. In addition to being a full-time student, she is the manager of the Northeast Ohio Medical University’s NEOMED Free Clinic.
As the name suggests, the clinic o ers free care to area residents who are uninsured or underinsured. e clinic had a change in leadership shortly after Haynie started working there part time in June 2023. Haynie assumed responsibility for the clinic’s current operations and student volunteers. She has both taken to — and run with — the opportunity to lead the clinic.
In just a few months, Haynie has transformed the way stu-
dents and stakeholders see the clinic, says Stacey GardnerBuckshaw, Haynie’s supervisor and associate professor and director of community engagement at NEOMED.
“Since she’s taken over, we’ve seen a lot more student engagement,” Gardner-Buckshaw said.
“We even have students who are writing grants and students who are going to community meetings to talk about the clinic and present on the clinic. We’re seeing a lot more productivity that Hannah may not be doing herself, but she’s coordinating and arranging and motivating the students to do it.”
The clinic, as a result of Haynie’s efforts, has seen a 20% increase in patient visits and has submitted six grants with potential for $200,000 in awards.
Haynie is also focused on the business aspect of sustaining a free clinic. She has completed a cost/bene t analysis and needs assessment of patients, held focus groups and conducted surveys to gure out what’s best — and next — for the clinic. She has explored di erent health care models, conducted community-engaged research, created scholarship opportunities for student volunteers and formed new community partnerships to help patients who need additional or specialty care beyond the clinic’s capabilities.
“It’s a lot of time committed to trying to get the clinic to a more
sustainable place and bene t the community as a whole, but it’s a labor of love,” Haynie said, noting the community need for the free clinic. “I’ve been very lucky to work in a capacity where I’m able to solve problems and make a di erence.”
Looking ahead, Haynie is eager to complete her doctoral coursework and gain more experience with research, publications, presentations and grant writing. Starting this semester, Haynie has another title at NEOMED: adjunct faculty.
“I’d like to contribute to medical education of future health care professionals,” she says. “I like helping, and I’m in a unique position where I get to help people in many different capacities.” at commitment to service, combined with an ability to navigate the business and academic worlds, makes Haynie stand out among her peers.
“Hannah is one to watch because she has those strong academic skills and that business savvy. You just don’t see that very often,” Gardner-Buckshaw said. “Management, organizational theory, budgeting and cost analysis are not things that would be in a program of study for a medical sociologist. Oh, and she is driven and motivated and dependable and all those other good things you look for in one of your team members.”
— Nicole Stempak
Eli Kalil 28
Facility space coordinator – health system specialist | VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System
Ashtabula County native Eli Kalil’s resume reads like someone with about 20 more years of experience under his belt.
He credits much of that to the chance a orded to him by a prestigious federal fellowship program he completed in 2022: the Presidential Management Fellows Program, in which participants with advanced degrees spend two years being trained and groomed for leadership of government agencies.
But others who know him well say that the credit belongs to Kalil himself and that includes getting into the prestigious program to begin with.
“It’s an outstanding program … and I think it was great for him to get that experience and it really gave him a taste for where he wants to be,” said Kalil’s longtime mentor and friend Kevin Malecek, economic development and international trade director for the City of Mentor.
Kalil went through the fellowship program and was a trainee at the VA after earning his master of public administration degree, with honors, from Kent State University in 2020.
Since then, he’s risen through the ranks at the local VA Healthcare System, which is the fourth largest VA Medical Center and has 18 sites, to become not only the manager of that system, but an integral policymaker and planner.
But that’s just a smidgen of all the things Kalil has done and accomplished by age 28. e list of what he’s done lls a six-page resume without u and there’s just too much to encompass here. Who in their 20s can say they’ve already been president of a Kiwanis club and a county jury commissioner? at’d be Kalil.
He’s more than just a brain, too. In high school, 6’3” Kalil was a bit of a jock, especially on the basketball court at Edgewood High School, where he scored 2,000 points in his last two years of school.
“Growing up I tried to emulate Kobe Bryant and, funny enough, Richard Hamilton with the Detroit Pistons, because he was a shooter,” Kalil said. at might be genetics, though.
Kalil still plays “old-man rec ball,” but his parents still shoot around with him, too.
“Both of my parents are still pretty athletic; my mom’s 60 and my dad’s 65 and they both play with me sometimes,” Kalil said.
An only child from a tight nuclear family — but with a ton of cousins — Kalil said being close to his parents is one of many reasons he’s glad to have been able to build a career at the VA here, even though his fellowship opened many other doors.
“I got six or seven job o ers from federal agencies around the country, but the VA really stood out to me,” Kalil said.
at’s a good thing for Northeast Ohio, too, said Malecek, who said he’s expecting to see many more future accomplishments from his young friend.
“He’s persistent, obviously, in terms of achieving professional goals,” Malecek said. “He’s always asking questions — ‘Is this a right t?’ He even had his own consulting business for the rst half of his 20s and that says a lot.”
But, for now, at least, Kalil says he’s more than happy at the VA.
“I truly believe the VA has the best mission in the federal government,” he said. “I come home every day feeling rewarded and that, whether it was minimal or whether it was huge, I made an impact on the population I’m serving.”
— Dan Shingler
Sadie Jones 27
Geographic information systems manager | Western Reserve Land Conservancy
As a softball player, Sadie Jones grew up playing on land that was turned into diamonds.
Now, she helps turn properties into gems.
Jones works as a geographic information systems (GIS) manager at the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, where she maps and analyzes geographical data to help the organization preserve natural habitats and promote sustainable land use practices.
It’s not exactly a job you dream of doing when you’re 6 — “ at’s so true,” she said, laughing — but it was recommended to her by an Ursuline College professor, who felt it was a perfect t for Jones’ talents and skills, translating her love for science, statistics and geography into something that could make a di erence.
“I love the eld that I’m in,” said Jones, who earned her biology degree at Ursuline in 2019, then earned a master’s degree in environmental studies and a graduate certi cate in GIS from Cleveland State University. “I love solving problems with GIS and I don’t see that ever changing. A goal of mine is to keep GIS in the forefront of workplaces. A lot of people are intimidated by the software because it’s so powerful and its capabilities are limitless, but I think it can be introduced to spaces that it hasn’t yet touched.”
At the Land Conservancy, Jones has worked on projects as small as creating a two-lot pocket park in a central Cleveland neighborhood, to its property inventory program, which involved the collection, analysis and representation of data from hundreds of thousands of parcels across Cleveland,
Cleveland Heights and Euclid.
“When the project was nished, we were able to analyze that data and identify trends and di erent locations across the city, where there might be room for additional code enforcement or where vacant lots were more concentrated and street tree inventories,” she said. “We were able to map that visually, so you’re not just letting them know what the data is saying but where they should take action.”
As the leader of the Land Conservancy’s GIS team, Jones’ work supports every department within the organization, Chief Development O cer Stella Paparizos Dilik said.
“Her work is crucial in informing decisions by city ocials, ultimately contributing to the development of more vibrant communities,” she said. “I’m most impressed by Sadie’s can-do attitude. She approaches her work with positivity and determination.”
In 2022, Jones was part of a team that received a “Best Practices” award from the Ohio Geographically Referenced Information Program for outstanding use of GIS in the workplace. She also serves on the Land Conservancy’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee and helps manage and mentor the group’s interns.
She coaches youth softball in her free time — both on a travel team and private lessons — and credits her sports background for helping her learn skills like time management, teamwork and diligence.
“I recognize that the work I do is not just centered around me,” she said. “It’s done with a team for a team.”
— Joe Scalzo
Franco Kraiselburd 22
CEO and co-Founder | Asclepii Inc.
Franco Kraiselburd was only 12 years old when he began experimenting with cells in a research lab at the University of São Paulo. By the age of 14, he had designed a wound-healing hydrogel that leveraged the self-renewing properties of stem cells. Then just two years ago, as a 20-year-old, third-year biomedical engineering major at Case Western Reserve University, Kraiselburd launched Asclepii with the ambitious mission of bringing regenerative medicine — starting with his stem-cellpowered wound “patch” — to the masses.
“When I lived in Brazil, I took the bus every day with a lady who had a skin wound that ended up in an amputation,” the 2024 Case graduate said. “And that happens to 7 or 8 million people around the world every year, because most people don’t have access to solutions like these.”
Cellular applications today, Kraiselburd said, are expensive and only done in hospital settings with the infrastructure and expertise to support such advances. His goal is to create a more affordable treatment that can be deployed in remote clinics or community health centers,
for example, and perhaps one day applied by the patients themselves.
“My job is to turn a $30,000 stem cell therapy into (a) $300 (treatment),” he said.
Kraiselburd was born in Boston while his father — Asclepii co-founder Santiago Kraiselburd — was nishing up his doctorate at Harvard. During his childhood, the globe-trotting family lived in Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Spain.
Cleveland appeared on Kraiselburd’s map when he learned that Case Western Reserve University was the home to Professor Arnold Caplan, a renowned pioneer in tissue engineering.
“At the time, it was during the pandemic; we were not even accepting students,” recalled Rodrigo Somoza, a research associate professor and Caplan’s successor as director of CWRU’s Skeletal Research Center. “But Franco was so proactive and so passionate about science and his research that we decided to bring him on.”
Kraiselburd credits his explorations at the Skeletal Research Center with broadening his understanding of potential stem cell applications. Time outside
Jessie Pushpak 29
the lab, however, was equally invaluable.
While at CWRU, Kraiselburd was selected for the Veale Snyder Fellows Program, an experiential learning fellowship that enabled him to meet with seasoned entrepreneurs from San Fransisco and Barcelona. He also participated in the National Science Foundation’s I-Corps program and cut his pitch-delivery teeth at CWRU’s Morgenthaler-Pavey Startup Competition, earning a second-place nish out of 45 “venture-track” presenters in 2023 and rst place among “research-track” teams in 2024.
In addition, Kraiselburd represented Asclepii when it was selected as one of 45 nalists from 670 applicants in the student category for the 15th annual SXSW Pitch competition in January.
Being a young and unproven entrepreneur is often an uphill battle, Somoza said, but one he feels Kraiselburd is well-equipped to ght.
“Professor Caplan used to say that scientists are not good CEOs, and while I think that’s true, I believe Franco can do both well. … He’s not only smart, he has a passion and a drive that is really exceptional.”
— Judy Stringer
Associate director, development research | Cleveland Clinic Foundation
After years of perfecting flips and twists as a competitive gymnast in her youth, Jessie Pushpak today focuses her bounding energy on making a positive impact.
On the clock, Pushpak helps identify funding opportunities for the Cleveland Clinic’s cutting-edge medical research, creating a revenue stream for breakthroughs in disease treatments, for example, and solutions to complex health issues. After hours, she is a rising star at the United Way of Greater Cleveland, co-leading its Emerging Leaders young professionals’ group, sitting as the youngest member of its board of directors and vetting grant applications as part of its community volunteer review committee.
The “drive to serve,” she said, is in her DNA.
campaign for UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital through her gymnastics club and, at the age of 16, became a junior ambassador for the Cleveland Clinic.
“I volunteered over 100 hours, doing things like transporting patients and tidying up in the cafeteria,” she said. “I’ve always liked the idea of philanthropy and just giving back.”
Pushpak is especially proud of her recent service record with the United Way, including as an active, seven-year member of the local Emerging Leaders arm. Since Pushpak became co-chair of Emerging Leaders in 2022, the organization has seen a marked increase in attendance, participation and event fundraising, according to Katie Martinovic, director of development communications for the United Way of Greater Cleveland.
“I’ve always liked the idea of philanthropy and just giving back.”
“My late grandpa was a judge for the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas, and my aunt —who is like my mentor in life — she was a grantmaker for the Ford Foundation in New York City,” Pushpak said.
The Brecksville native also grew up volunteering. She participated annually in a charity
“She’s excited about the work and optimistic and hopeful about the outcomes and what United Way is doing for the community,” Martinovic said. “And that gets other people excited and optimistic and hopeful about United Way and what’s possible for our region.”
In addition to the United Way, Pushpak has volunteered with
College Now Greater Cleveland, where she was recently selected as a Recruit One Campaign champion. Meanwhile, her tenure at Cleveland Clinic has included assisting with the hospital system’s nearly $2.6 billion “The Power of Every One” campaign, which concluded in 2021, and chairing her department’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council.
“And prior to Cleveland Clinic, I worked at the Duke Energy Foundation dispersing over $3 million in community grants throughout Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, and serving as the lead organizer of the volunteer events for over 5,000 employees,” Pushpak said.
Pushpak credits years of team sports for her success in collaborating with like-minded philanthropists and inspiring others to “give back.” Teamwork and cheerleading, she said, were part and parcel as a member of the powerhouse Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School gymnastics squad, where Pushpak earned her stripes as a four-year All-State gymnast and state champion.
“I’ve been an athlete longer than I haven’t,” she said, “so I think I still have a lot of that mentality of collective effort, togetherness and belonging.”
— Judy Stringer
Samia Shaheen 27
Associate | Vorys
Whether in her family, at her rm or in the community, Samia Shaheen is driven by an urge to help others and to be a positive in uence on those around her — whether or not she overtly thinks of herself that way.
A rst-generation LebaneseAmerican and the rst in her family to graduate from college, Shaheen is passionate about education and would probably be teaching in a high school if she hadn’t gravitated toward a career in law.
Today, she practices in the labor and employment group at Vorys, where she’s already made an impact working on several important cases involving local, state and federal agencies.
But beyond excelling in her eld, Shaheen strives to set an example for others who might follow a similar path as hers.
Colleagues say she brings to work a bright mind, a magnetic personality and a hunger to try new things. She is boundlessly motivated and known for showing up early, staying late, seeking out challenges and embracing opportunities to mentor others.
“I want to be somebody who
can set a path forward for others ... who are not only female but minorities or Lebanese-Americans looking to pursue law,” she said, adding that she was almost dissuaded from law because she didn’t see many people like herself in the profession.
In this sense, she’s driven to be the change she aims to see in a eld that has historically struggled with diversity. is motivation has drawn her to participate in support networks wherever possible. She’s a member of the Arab American Bar Association as well as the diversity and women’s networks at Vorys. And she has represented her rm at the Corporate Counsel Women of Color conferences.
Her myriad e orts and stand-out work ethic have impressed her senior colleagues, including one of her own mentors, Vorys partner Kari Coniglio.
“Sammy stands out because she has this maturity that was apparent from the rst day — you would not expect she is actually in her 20s,” said Coniglio. “She’s always the rst one in the o ce. She stays through the evenings. She’s at every event
and is just so involved. She has been an integral part of our o ce and helping our rm culture and morale here in Cleveland.”
While Shaheen has already garnered a reputation for putting in work, she says that keeping some balance with her personal life is critical (she’s working on getting better at that). In her spare time, she might be playing tennis, exploring the Metroparks, baking or diving into DIY projects at her home in Westlake.
Shaheen aspires to make partner one day and hone her expertise in her practice.
But, more broadly, she sees herself playing a meaningful role in the Northeast Ohio legal profession in hopes of giving back to the same community that she says has supported her growth and success so far.
Ultimately, Shaheen strives to be true to herself and to impart the same on her mentees.
“Don’t lose your authenticity and your original self because you want to excel in a particular eld. Strive for balance,” she said. “And just be a kind person.”
— Jeremy Nobile
“I want to be somebody who can set a path forward for others ... who are not only female but minorities or Lebanese-Americans looking to pursue law.”
William Skoch 25
Investment sales associate | Marcus & Millichap
Family is important to William Skoch — and it’s blended into his career as an investment sales associate with Marcus & Millichap. His uncle, Patrick Dowd of Sequoia Realty, is a commercial real estate broker in the Northeast Ohio area and, during college, Skoch was able to shadow him multiple times.
“ at really opened my eyes and the door to the commercial real estate industry, which ultimately was a really big motivating factor for getting me into this space,” Skoch said.
wanted to be in the commercial real estate business.
While in college, Skoch was student body president for a year and a resident assistant for two years. In those roles, he gained experience and insight on how to be a good leader, how to teach people and how to engage with others to make everyone learn and grow. ose were essential lessons, he says, in becoming a good leader.
One of his strongest attributes is that he is a pretty quick and good learner and, even if some-
“One of the best things about being in this industry, especially when you’re so young, is you really having nothing to lose, but you have everything to gain between knowledge and experience.”
Since Skoch went to Holy Cross College, a small private college in Notre Dame, Indiana, there wasn’t a huge variety of focused degrees, so he received a bachelor’s degree in general business/ commerce with a minor in marketing and communication. But due to the opportunities he had with shadowing, he knew he
thing is challenging, he puts “full e ort into that to improve myself and be the best I really can be.”
He started at Marcus & Millichap in December of 2021 as an agent candidate and became an associate in May 2022. Skoch specializes in brokering health care real estate along with his team and partner, Chris Mitchel.
When Grant Fitzgerald, vice president/regional manager of the Cleveland and Columbus Marcus & Millichap o ces, hired Skoch, he said Skoch seemed like someone who “didn’t just go through the motions” and was someone who was “seeking out opportunities to be involved and get things done.”
“He’s someone who has always done the work and also sought feedback,” Fitzgerald said. “So he’s typically one of the rst ones in, one of the last ones out, he’s putting in the time … but also seeking feedback to make sure that he’s actually getting better.”
While Skoch may be young for his industry, that doesn’t stop him from wanting to learn and grow. Yet, he’s learned to manage his expectations over the years because sometimes things don’t work out and, “sometimes you just have to learn that the hard way.”
“One of the best things about being in this industry, especially when you’re so young, is you really having nothing to lose, but you have everything to gain between knowledge and experience,” Skoch said. “... It’s a great place for a young person to be, especially if you’re motivated and willing to learn and willing to put in the hours.”
— Alexandra Golden
Andrew West-Barry 26
Attorney | Summit County Executive’s Of ce
Andrew West-Barry walked into the Summit County Executive’s o ce an undergraduate intern and six years, four job changes and one law degree later, he is still there.
“I started in 2018 as an intern. I didn’t know much about it before, but I really found a place for myself working in county government,” West-Barry said.
While getting a political cience-Spanish degree at the University of Akron, WestBarry had an internship in the Summit County communication’s department; from there, he was promoted to the executive assistant position for County Executive Ilene Shapiro and, two years later, became her chief of staff.
During that time, his colleagues at the county were able to convince him to get a law degree at Akron, a fouryear, night-class program that he finished six months early, so he could continue working days at the county.
“We try to create an environment of opportunity,” Shapiro said. “We are also always looking for young talent — especially those like Andrew, who gravitate to new ideas but in a thoughtful way.”
Today, he is one of six attor-
neys in the Summit County law department and is an integral part of the behind the scenes or “the sausage making,” as Shapiro refers to it, of how county government works.
It is a perfect job for someone who enjoys county council meetings and working on building ordinance changes while also supporting the massive construction of a $75 million, 125-mile resilient fiber internet ring connecting all of Summit County’s 31 municipalities.
“I often get the odds and ends in our department,”
West-Barry said. “They give me the projects that legal needs to take a look at, but that are hard to describe and that, to me, makes my job interesting.”
West-Barry is the force behind an impressive a range of initiatives, including the launch of the county’s rst LGBTQ Employee Resource Group and the work behind Summit County’s pursuit of sustainability grants.
“He is a change agent, but not just change for changes’ sake. He looks to move things forward in a positive way,”
Shapiro said. “I have found that people with a certain personality thrive with diversity
and can also see things coming together from just a kernel of an idea. And if you give them a chance to build it, that creates its own positive energy,” she added.
His day job often bleeds into his outside work commitments. After hearing about a plan to erect a statue of Sojourner Truth in Akron, WestBarry assisted the grassroots group until this spring when Akron’s Sojourner Truth Legacy Plaza and Statue, commemorating the site of her famous speech in 1851, became a reality.
The passion for community also has him serving on the boards of CANAPI, a nonprofit for the LGBTQ+ community and people living with HIV/ AIDS, and the Akron-Summit Council on Holocaust and Genocide Education. And somehow in all of that he found time to get married — adding the West to his Barry — and form an adult volleyball team.
“All I hear from Andrew is what do we need to do,” Shapiro said. “He’s thoughtful, he is interested and engaged, and he truly just wants to make a difference in whatever he touches.”
— Kim Palmer
Kyra Wells 26
Creative marketing designer | American Greetings
When re ecting on her childhood, Kyra Wells appreciates that her parents never told her she couldn’t do something — and the in uence her dad’s creativity had on her.
Now, at age 26, Wells uses that creativity in her current role as the creative marketing designer for American Greetings. She creates retail advertising campaigns for retail stores for the five core seasons — Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas, birthdays and Valentine’s Day — and for the social media accounts for American Greetings and Papyrus.
tion and easy manner that are instantly engaging. She’s also a powerful force,” Jaime Lombardo, managing partner of Act 3 Creative, said. “As her direct supervisor, I saw a person who faced every challenge with composure and zeal. At the time, I’d worked in the industry for over 30 years, and the opportunity to help guide Kyra’s professional development is one of the high points of my career.”
While there, she decided to get her bachelor’s degree in graphic design from Cleveland State University. She eventually left Act 3 Creative for her next endeavor:
“If you’ve gone to college, you learned about the tools and software, but what they don’t teach is the mindset and how to grow in con dence and really feel like you belong here.”
Despite her art background and parental influence, she hadn’t thought to pursue graphic design until, while taking classes at Cuyahoga Community College during high school, a professor suggested the idea after seeing her drawings. The next semester she took a design class, “really fell in love with it,” and pursued an associate’s degree.
“I really like the fact that design was this combination of creativity and art and just being able to use … all those fun things that I learned in the traditional eld,” Wells said. “And then I had this opportunity to apply it to something really practical for people through design … I loved having purpose to the art that I was creating in a way.”
In a full circle moment, Wells now teaches the same class at Tri-C which “sparked” her as a designer.
She also joined Act 3 Creative.
“Kyra (has) a positive disposi-
starting her own business, Seven Pillars Design Co., where she helped entrepreneurs with their creative needs.
Helping others grow and have an impact is something that Wells does in the di erent positions she holds.
“If you’ve gone to college, you learned about the tools and software, but what they don’t teach is the mindset and how to grow in con dence and really feel like you belong here,” Wells said.
As part of the Cleveland chapter of the American Institute of Graphic Arts, Wells, who is now co-president, was able to host a ve-week workshop last year called “You’re Not an Imposter,” which was about “growing creative con dence among creatives here in Cleveland.” is workshop was a standout moment for her because she was able to “really in uence the lives of others.”
— Alexandra Golden
LARGEST PHYSICIAN GROUPS IN NORTHEAST OHIO
Welty plots luxury apartments for Akron’s CitiCenter
Developer Donzell Taylor hopes second time is the charm for the historic building after 2023 attempt failed to garner tax credits
By Dan Shingler
Welty Building Co. plans to build more apartments in downtown Akron, which it says would be adjacent — and complimentary — to its nearby big Bowery District development on the city’s newly renovated Main Street.
Welty CEO Donzell Taylor said he plans to spend about $30 million to $40 million to buy the long-vacant CitiCenter office building, at 146 Hight Street, and convert it into more than 100 luxury apartments.
“We have an agreement to buy the building which needs (Akron) City Council approval.” Taylor said.
If the council gives its approval, Taylor said he plans to convert the building into a 100% residential development, with 117 units. Nearly all of them will be onebedroom apartments, which he said have proven especially popular at the Bowery and otherrecent residential developments downtown.
“We hope to be starting construction in December or January at the latest,” Taylor said. “It all depends on whether we can get through the loan process. But we’re optimistic we’ll start in either the fourth quarter of this year or the rst quarter of next year… We hope the Federal Reserve will make (interest rate) cuts here shortly, which will make nancing a little easier. Capital is still a challenge.”
e building is a big one with more than 113,000 square feet of space and a facade that dominates a signi cant section of High Street in the middle of downtown.
“It’s half a block, literally,” Taylor said. “ e CitiCenter goes halfway down the block, between Bowery and Mill Street.”
He estimates the project will take 14 months to complete. But Taylor said the building is in good condition — far better condition than the six old buildings that were used to produce e Bowery.
“This is not nearly as sick a building as the Bowery was. That one was in the ICU,” Taylor said. “There’s quite a bit of restoration needed on the outside (of CitiCenter), a lot of new windows and work to the shell outside, but the inside is in pretty good shape.”
at said, it still will take acomplete renovation, down to the studs and including new HVAC and electrical systems, and recon gured plumbing before the building will be suitable for apartments.
is is Taylor’s second bite at this particular apple, and he seems to have sunk his teeth in deeper this time. He was hoping to last year to redo the building, in partnership with Canton’s DeHo Development company, but the project failed to get tax credits in 2023.
is time, Taylor’s partnering with Welty Development President Tom Charek, but only because DeHo ’s busy with other work, not due to any falling out, Taylor stressed.
“I think it’s a good deal, and now I don’t have to split it,” Taylor said with a chuckle. “But no way is there any issue between DeHoff and Welty or DeHoff and Taylor.” is time around, Welty won more than $3 million in historic
tax credits and credits from the state’s Transformational MixedUse Development (TMUD) program, which supports work on vacant building that will have a major economic impact on the surrounding area.
Taylor said the project also qualifies for about $6 million in additional federal tax credits.
For the city of Akron, the deal is far better than what it was prepared to o er last year when the city was prepared to give the building away in order to have Welty develop it, said Deputy Director of Economic Development Sean Vollman.
Since then, however, the market has improved, and Welty has seen interest in downtown, including at the Bowery’s 92 units.
“We’re full and have a waiting
list at the Bowery,” Taylor said. e city might have also dodged a bullet in that a previous e ortby Cleveland’s Weston, to remodel the building but keep it largely as o ce space, fell through due to COVID.
“ at’s just not in demand,” Vollman said. “But apartments are doing very well downtown.”
He said he doesn’t expect Akron’s City Council will have major issues with the sale of city CitiCenter, especially considering it was on board when the building was going to be given away a year ago after owning it for years.
The city has been pleased with the impact the Bowery has had downtown, and Vollman said Mayor Shammas Malik wants to keep downtown’s momentum going.
Redoing the CitiCenter would help significantly in that regard.
“It’s been vacant for three or four, maybe ve years now,” Vollman said. “I think this will be a nice complement to the Bowery. ... ere are amenities at the Bowery people here can use, and vice versa. ... I was jokingly calling it Bowery East with (Taylor).”
Rents at the new apartments will be a bit less than they are at the Bowery, though.
Taylor said that’s because the apartments will mostly be smaller though, not because they’ll be built out to any lower standard.
“ ey’ll start at $1,100 (per month) and most of them will be between $1,000 and $1,500,” Taylor said.
Units at the Bowery start at about $1,200, but bigger units rent for about $3,000 a month, he said.
“We nd the one bedrooms get leased a lot quicker because we can keep the rents lower on those,” Taylor said.
Study nds higher overdose deaths with solo drug use
By Paige Bennett
Overdose deaths in Cuyahoga County are highest among those using drugs alone, a recent study says.
Nearly three-fourths (or 74.9%) of those who died from drug overdoses in the county between 2016 and 2020 were using alone, according to research from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and Cuyahoga County.
While emergency services responded to most incidents, more than 60% of victims were pronounced dead at the scene. Most of these cases occurred at home. e research highlights the dangers of using alone, said Daniel Flannery, the Dr. Semi J. and Ruth Begun Professor and director of the Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education at CWRU’s Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School
of Applied Social Sciences.
Researchers were surprised by the “sheer number” of individuals using alone, Flannery said. In some cases, others were present in the home, but the person using drugs was in a locked room or others weren’t aware they were using.
at means no one is around to administer naloxone, a medication that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose, or prevent asphyxiation, Flannery said.
Flannery completed the research alongside Vaishali Deo and Sarah Fulton, research associates at the Begun Center, Manreet K. Bhullar, a senior forensic epidemiologist at the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s O ce, and omas Gilson, the county’s chief medical examiner.
The researchers completed the work using data from the Cuyahoga County Medical Ex-
aminer’s Office.
Over the four-year period, Cuyahoga County saw 2,944 unintentional overdose deaths among those age 18 and older. at equates to 54 deaths per 100,000 residents. e Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2021 a national average of 32.4
overdose deaths per 100,000 population across the country. e study, published by the National Institutes of Health’s National Library of Medicine, found that most overdose deaths in the county were among non-Hispanic white males, with a substantial portion between ages 35 to 64.
Most lived in the city of Cleveland and more than half had obtained at least a high school diploma. Toxicology reports showed that synthetic opioids were present in 72.7% of deaths, with cocaine in 41.6% and heroin in 29.6%, according to the study. Almost 80% of overdose deaths involved the use of multiple substances.
Flannery said the county saw a spike in carfentanil, a synthetic opioid the U.S. Department of Justice says is 10,000 times more potent than morphine, roughly between 2017 and 2019. ose numbers have recently started to creep back up, he said. e research illustrates the importance of continuing to promote harm reduction strategies, he said, which include the distribution of naloxone and increasing the availability of fentanyl test strips. Fentanyl strips can detect the presence of fentanyl in di erent drugs.
The Akron CitiCenter is set to be turned into more than 100 apartments if the City Council approves the sale of the building. | WELTY BUILDING CO.
Naloxone, the active ingredient in Narcan, can rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. | BLOOMBERG
Metroparks hopes $15M sailing center will be next gem
By Scott Suttell
Cleveland's next big lakefront attraction is a Cleveland Metroparksled sailing center at the East 55th Street Marina.
Metroparks on ursday morning, Sept. 5, announced plans for the $15 million Patrick S. Parker Community Sailing Center, a multipurpose facility that the park system said will be "the rst of its kind along Lake Erie in Ohio."
Construction of the two-building center is expected to be completed in 2026. e project has a variety of funding partners, with leadership gifts from Parker Hanni n Corp. and Madeleine S. Parker; Pam and Don Washkewicz; and the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Supporting Foundation. Other signi cant gifts come from the Cleveland Foundation; Mike and Gina Trebilcock; e Foundry; and e Dedinsky Family Charitable Fund, as well as state and local grants.
Metroparks said the center will have "multi-purpose learning spaces, indoor and outdoor community areas, concessions and dining, a rooftop deck, overlook tower, and a boathouse that will serve as the sailing hub."
Brian M. Zimmerman, CEO of Metroparks, said in a statement that the center "will rede ne access to our lakefront and open new recreation and educational opportunities for everyone in our community." He said the project will "build on our ongoing collective e orts to serve east side communities, including the CHEERS project, Mandel Community Trail and enhancements to Gordon Park South.”
In a phone interview on Sept. 5, Zimmerman said the project ts in with various Metroparks initiatives of recent years to enhance the ability of residents to enjoy river and lakefront access. From improvements at the Huntington Reservation and Lakefront Reservation to the Wendy Park Bridge and the enhanced Coast Guard Station, he said Metroparks has prioritized investments near the water in a city that hasn't always done that.
"We cannot feel like we are an interior waterfront community," Zimmerman said.
e goal of Metroparks and its partners in the project is to establish the center as a "year-round community anchor and lakefront destination for sporting and community events, education, retail, marina operations, recreation and dining."
e center also will o er public programs "to bring the bene ts of sailing to those who have historically faced economic barriers to participate in the sport," Metroparks said.
Jenny Parmentier, CEO and board chair of Parker Hanni n, said in a statement that the center "will allow residents of our hometown to access new recreational opportunities, build skills and connect with our region’s lakefront."
e late Patrick Parker, former
chairman and CEO of Parker Hanni n, was an avid sailor and Cleveland philanthropist. His wife, Madeleine Parker, said in a statement that his "legacy of sailing, innovation and philanthropy" promoted her to give the lead project gift in his name.
“He would be happy to have his name on this sailing center," she said.
Zimmerman noted that the company itself has had a long
connection to sailing, including at the highest level of America's Cup racing.
Last December, for instance, Parker Hannifan, which makes motion and control technologies, announced it was designing and implementing advanced control systems for New York Yacht Club American Magic racing yachts and support their pursuit of the 37th America’s Cup. American Magic is currently in third place
owned with no public access."
Zimmerman said improving access to areas that the public can use is "100% a driving force" for the sailing center and other initiatives.
Jehuda Reinharz, president and CEO of the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation, said, "Together, we are breaking down physical, economic and social barriers to enhance the quality of life for our region, particularly in our neighborhoods closest to the lakefront who have been historically disconnected.”
e sailing center concept combines recreation and education.
Metroparks said the facility will host year-round sailing-related STEM programming for schools and community partnership organizations, led by e Cleveland Foundry. Such programming includes Youth Learn-to-Sail, Youth Learn-to-Race, Interscholastic Racing, Adult Basic Series, Community Dinghy Race Nights and Family Sailing Basics.
e Foundry is a natural partner for the project.
The nonprofit organization, based at 1831 Columbus Road in a building that was the site of the first Catholic Church in Cleveland (St. Mary's On-The-Flats) — among many other uses — says its mission is to "transform the lives of Cleveland’s youth through access to the sports of rowing and sailing." It has partnered with Metroparks since 2016 to help the parks system expand sailing programs.
Zimmerman said the Metroparks' partnership with the Foundry has been "a case of rising tides raising all ships." In the new center, the Foundry will o er Ohio boating safety and education classes, and water safety certi cations classes, to the community.
e Foundry's executive director, Gina Trebilcock, said in a statement that the new center will "provide our community direct lakefront access, grow our reach to schools, neighborhoods and community centers and make Cleveland a leader in the sport of sailing.”
In a phone interview on Sept. 5, she said the project partners share a succinct philosophy: "We have a Great Lake. More people should have access to it."
in the America's Cup, which has races running through October.
Backers of the sailing center see it as a major tool for advancing equity — in recreation and education opportunities — in the region.
Metroparks noted in its announcement, for instance, that "many Cleveland residents have never experienced direct waterbased recreation, as over 90% of Lake Erie’s shoreline within Cuyahoga County is privately
Trebilcock said demand for Metroparks' program o erings related to sailing "was exceeding capacity by hundreds of people," which reinforced the idea that there was a need for more programming - particularly in the youth demographic that is the Foundry's focus.
Michael Ferry, managing director of the Foundry, estimated that the organization serves 3,000 to 4,000 youth annually with its rowing and sailing programs. e goal is even larger: 10,000 annually.
Trebilcock said the Metroparks project will give more people a way to "fully access the lake" by gaining "hands-on experience, in a knowledgeable and safe environment," for sailing.
Renderings show Cleveland Metroparks’ planned sailing center | CLEVELAND METROPARKS
CSU’s ‘fabulous’ fall enrollment numbers beat projections
By Joe Scalzo
Cleveland State University’s vice president of enrollment management, Randall Deike, has worked in higher education for more than 40 years and he calls this “without a doubt” the most competitive enrollment environment he’s seen over that time.
“Any really good news in this environment is fabulous news,” Deike said at CSU’s Board of Trustees nancial a airs committee meeting on ursday, Sept. 12. “And I think we have some fabulous news.”
Cleveland State surpassed its budget projection in seven of eight enrollment categories — the outlier was international graduate students — allowing the embattled university to grow its fulltime enrollment year over year.
CSU had 14,191 students enrolled as of Monday, Sept. 9, which was 5% ahead of its 2024 target (13,552 students) and 23 more than it had in fall 2023.
While Deike noted that head count doesn’t always equate to an equal increase in revenue — and that the enrollment numbers could change a bit as the semester rolls on — it was still good news for a university looking to close a projected $40 million budget gap.
“ e headcount is really good,” Deike said. "(But) our goal is not just to survive, but to thrive. at’s our approach all the time."
CSU enrolled 1,555 new fresh-
men this fall, which was 7% above its projection (1,447) and, like the total enrollment gure, 23 more than last fall.
It also saw a nice jump in transfer students with 915, compared with 810 last year. Part of that increase stems from the closure of Notre Dame College. CSU was one of the schools with teach-out agreements with NDC and gained “about 40” transfer students from the college, Deike said.
“But even without the Notre Dame students, we had about 65 new transfer students,” Deike said. “ at’s a really high priority for us as we move forward. Transfer stu-
After break, Cleveland City Council puts public safety at top of its list
By Kim Palmer
Cleveland City Council is back from summer break and ready to get down to business.
“ ere will be more to highlight in the weeks to come,” Council President Blaine Gri n told reporters at a Monday, Sept. 9, press conference. “We will always work with our residents, our small businesses, our constituents to do the best we can for the over 370,000 residents in the city of Cleveland.”
Legislative and oversight priorities for the next four months will begin with a push for the Cleveland Division of Police to deal with what Gri n called “nuisance crimes.”
sight of the administration’s public safety strategies and will pay particular attention to nalizing a police drone program funded more than 18 months ago.
“We really want to make sure that we utilize technology that we believe will give us a heads up in dealing with crime and nuisance activity in the community,” Grifn said.
Another top priority is sta ng up the police force. Council has voted to fund a full sta of 1,350 uniformed police o cers, up from the current 1,117.
about how we budget forward, because once that one-time money leaves, we might have some tough decisions in this city,” he said.
As 2024 wraps up, the current 17-member council faces a redistricting process that needs to redraw maps with two fewer members, due to population losses. A consultant team is reviewing the process, and the public will have at least four public hearings to weigh before council votes on the new ward con guration sometime before the end of the year.
EXECUTIVE RECRUITER
With national and citywide crime rates decreasing, council wants more attention paid to “out-of-control block parties” and groups of “drifting” drivers who take over entire intersections, and to making improvements to what Gri n said is an overall lack of tra c enforcement.
“In some of these neighborhoods, council has never seen this amount of lawlessness and this amount of challenge to authority, even when police do show up to the scene," Gri n said.
Council in the next few months plans to double down on over-
Residents, businesses and visitors have to feel safe, or all the other investments and initiatives the city is planning to undertake don’t matter, Gri n said.
Council also plans to continue to work on other quality-of-life issues, which includes ensuring all of Cleveland’s ARPA dollars — particularly the ones funding recreation centers, roads and the city’s home repair program — are dispersed promptly.
As council vows to ensure all the one-time federal dollars are spent, Gri n warned it might be a tough next year or two for the health of the city’s general fund.
“One of the things that I’m really looking forward to is having a discussion with the administration
Gri n said there will be an emphasis on keeping neighborhoods condensed, intact and as equitable as possible using boundaries such as rivers, railroads and lakes to redraw maps with about 25,000 to 26,000 residents in each ward.
Councilwoman Jasmin Santana announced that for the upcoming city budget, council will do a thorough review and “go deep into department and division services before budget deliberations.”
She added that she plans to also take the budget “on the road for public input and engagement.”
Council members also plan to revisit the city’s Community Reinvestment Act agreements with local banks to ensure more lending options for small businesses and homeowners.
dents are really important to us as we think about our partnerships with community colleges and other colleges and universities.”
Also on Sept. 12, CSU reported that 61 faculty members have applied for its voluntary separation incentive payment (VSIP) program, up from 54 last month. Of those taking the buyout, 27 left in August. Another 16 have applied to leave in December and 18 in May 2025, although not all of them will necessarily leave the university, CSU Provost Nigamanth Sridhar said.
CSU also saw 22 faculty members leave the university independent of the buyout plan for "various other reasons" such as natural attrition, Sridhar said. Consequently, CSU isn’t currently planning to lay o any faculty members, he said.
"Based on the reductions in faculty sizes that have occurred as a result of VSIP and other natural attrition, we are not at this time making any recommendations to the board about involuntary separations or involuntary reductions in faculty," Sridhar said.
Here’s the breakdown of faculty departures by college, with nonVSIP departures in parentheses:
◗ Arts & Sciences: 16 (7)
◗ Business: 8 (2) ◗ Engineering: 7 (2)
Health: 14 (4)
CLASSIFIED SERVICES
DEPARTMENT CHAIR, UROLOGY
The Cleveland Clinic, a distinguished academic healthcare system, announces its search for Chair of the Department of Urology in the Integrated Surgical Institute (ISI). The department is consistently recognized as one of the premier Urology departments in the country. It is a department at the forefront of technological advances and innovation. The internationally recognized faculty have pioneered laparoscopic and robotic surgical techniques and developed innovative procedures for urologic cancers and transplantation. It is also home to the top-rated Urology residency program in the United States and trains an additional 15 fellows in subspecialty urologic procedures and 10 fellows in research.
The Department of Urology has over 75 Physicians and spans the globe including NE Ohio, Florida, London, and Abu Dhabi. The Department treats patients in all urological subspecialties at 30+ different locations within the greater Cleveland & Akron areas. In 2023, more than 229,000 office visits, 10,000 virtual visits and over 16,000 surgical cases were completed. Patients came to us from every state in the United States and more than 39 countries.
Full Job Description and Requirements available at jobs.crainscleveland.com
PEOPLE ON THE MOVE
STG Electric Services
Calfee,
Halter & Griswold LLP
Benesch
HYDROGEN
From Page 1
But neither is the Massillon plant a pilot or meant to prove out the technology. It’s bigger than such plants, and the BrightLoop technology already has been proven e ective and put to commercial use.
“We wouldn’t call it a pilot, we would call it a ‘commercial demonstration’ plant,” Johnson said. “It’s a good scale-up size for Massillon.”
How big the plant ultimately becomes will be determined largely by how much demand Babcock nds for its hydrogen.
e company is building a plant in Gilette, Wyoming, that produces 15 to 20 tons of hydrogen per day. at plant has an agreement
to sell its hydrogen to a nearby power plant, which will convert it to electricity, Johnson said. Babcock is building a plant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that will also e able to produce 15 to 20 tons of hydrogen per day, using biomass. e company has found customers and already signed them up to take that hydrogen as it's produced, Johnson said. ose bigger plants require investments of $150 million to $200 million, she said. e big, 100-ton-or-more plants the company hopes to build later will cost $600 million or more, she added. Babcock hasn’t yet sold the hydrogen it plans to produce in Massillon, but Johnson said the company is ready to expand if sales go as it hopes.
NONPROFITS
“We have an option on the land in Massillon to continue to expand. So if we nd a market, we can expand there,” she said. ose who run the park said they’re not only happy to see Babcock moving in, but they hope it might be a lure for other companies that want to be close to its facility and the hydrogen that it produces.
STG Electric is thrilled to announce the addition of Tom Farruggia to the team. Drawing from his 31 years of experience in the electrical industry, Tom will serve as project manager, estimator, and trainer. He is creating a comprehensive training program for new electricians that combines classroom learning and hands-on eld work with the goal of optimizing the education of STG’s techs. As STG continues to grow, Tom’s talents will further the company’s purpose of Building To Improve Lives.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
St. Clair Advisors, LLC
St. Clair Advisors, an independent, fee-only multi-family of ce serving the broad nancial needs of a select group of wealthy families, successful business owners and corporate executives welcomes Mark Cleary to our team. Mark brings over 7 years of experience in the wealth management industry and will be responsible for supporting the family of ce team in all aspects of wealth planning, tax compliance and estate planning. Mark earned his undergraduate degree in nance from Ohio University.
Ellen Dorsten represents companies, nancial institutions, and private equity sponsors in commercial lending transactions. An experienced corporate nance attorney, Ellen has led complex, innovative engagements across diverse sectors ranging from ntech and telecommunications to hospitality and apparel in transactions totaling over $15.0 billion. Ellen previously served as a nance attorney with an international law rm and as in-house counsel at a multinational bank and a ntech start-up.
LAW
McCarthy, Lebit, Crystal & Liffman Co., LPA
McCarthy, Lebit, Crystal & Liffman Co., LPA is pleased to announce that Robert Nupp has joined the rm’s IP and Business & Corporate groups as of counsel. Robert provides legal counsel to corporate clients, focusing on technology-related matters such as intellectual property law, AI, digital assets, & blockchain technology. His industry knowledge supports his ability to ensure that clients receive specialized advice tailored to navigating the complexities of these cuttingedge areas.
Christopher Battles has joined Benesch as an Attorney in the rm’s Litigation Practice Group. He is a dynamic and thoughtful problemsolver with over a decade of experience in complex litigation and corporate advising. Matthew Braich has joined Benesch as an Attorney in the rm’s Real Estate Practice Group. He primarily represents clients in acquisitions and dispositions of commercial properties. Matt has experience drafting a variety of real estate transaction documents, including purchase and sale agreements, easements, and leases, and reviewing all related diligence.
LEGAL
Benesch
Sean McKinley has joined Benesch as an Associate in the rm’s Labor & Employment Practice Group. Sean’s diverse experience in assisting in day-to-day workforce management, employment law counseling, workplace investigations, and employment litigation has allowed him to become an asset to the clients he serves. He has defended employers of all sizes in differing industries, in administrative proceedings, as well as in state and federal courts.
The Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges (OFIC) OFIC is thrilled to welcome Lisa Shapiro to its Board of Trustees. As Vice President and Corporate Controller at Lincoln Electric, Lisa brings a wealth of experience and expertise, bolstering OFIC’s mission to support independent higher education and student success. She will play a crucial role in connecting students from our 32 member campuses with Ohio’s leading corporations and foundations, advancing initiatives in scholarships, internships, and career opportunities. Welcome, Lisa!
PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
Centric Consulting
“ ey’re already putting $60 to $70 million into this and that’s nothing to sneeze at,” said Massillon Mayor Jamie Slutz. “We’ve already had one company talking to them about coming in and going o the grid and using their hydrogen for power.” (Fun and unrelated fact: Slutz is a detective in the rst episode of a new series on Max called "How (Not) to Get Rid of a Body," featuring a case he solved as a detective).
Massillon Economic Development Director Ted Herncane said the site was purchased about 20 hears ago, has been remediated, and houses about a dozen businesses. It's owned by private investors through Massillon Energy & Technology Park, LLC and the park still has more than half its space left, he said.
Babcock’s facility is a perfect t for an industrial park aimed at energy and technology, he said.
“ eir vision for this is that it would be a hub for innovation in energy production and other technological businesses you don’t see in many industrial parks,” Herncane said of the park’s original city planners. “So, the hydrogen plant really ts with the vision they had for the park.”
Centric Consulting proudly announces Kelsey (Chapic) Fyfe’s promotion to Partner. Since joining in 2020, Kelsey has excelled in building client relationships and delivering outstanding results across project management, data architecture, reporting, automation, and business analysis. Her leadership has been instrumental in driving team growth and improving operations for Centric’s Cleveland team. We congratulate Kelsey on this well-deserved achievement and look forward to her continued impact.
e plant itself won’t employ more than a handful of people when it’s up and operating, though many more will work on its construction, Johnson said.
But the biggest impact of this and other BrightLoop plants in terms of employment might be in downtown Akron, where Babcock has its headquarters and the engineers that design and build such projects.
“ e plant itself is not going to employ more than a few operators,” Johnson said. “But as we continue to build out BrightLoop we’re really going to see job growth in Akron for project engineering.”
Johnson said Babcock will break ground on the Massillon project this fall.
“We hope to begin producing hydrogen there in 2025,” she said.
Braich Battles
A rendering of the hydrogen production plant Babcock & Wilcox is planning to build in Massillon later this year | BABCOCK & WILCOX
