Crain's Cleveland Business

MIXED REALITY ART New partnerships make the Revealing Krishna exhibit at the Cleveland Museum of Art possible. PAGE 2

NOTABLE: These marketing executives excelled during difficult economic times. PAGE 10

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OPEN FOR OPPORTUNITY

Corridor attracts first wave of development

BY MICHELLE JARBOE

A half-dozen projects are set to rise along the Opportunity Corridor next year, stretching from East 55th Street to the rim of University Circle.

The 3-mile boulevard, which links Interstate 490 to Cleveland’s second-largest jobs hub, opened in

November. It cuts through urban prairie and passes industrial relics, factories abandoned as employers and blue-collar workers trickled away over a half-century of decline.

While the Ohio Department of Transportation orchestrated the $257 million infrastructure project — the product of decades of discus-

sion and six years of construction — the city and local nonprofits quietly amassed adjacent land. Now developers are eying some of those sites, and private property, for warehouses, business parks and apartment buildings.

“I think this is really an untold story. In many respects, people

don’t really know that this work is happening,” said William Willis, the economic development manager for Burten, Bell, Carr Development Inc., a nonprofit group that serves a large expanse of the East Side.

See CORRIDOR on Page 20

Orlando Baking Co., with 336 employees, is taking advantage of the visibility created by the new Opportunity Corridor road to advertise open jobs.

` A cold-storage building planned along the Corridor will be a novel facility where food manufacturers can rent space by the pallet. PAGE 21

Closing the digital divide will take more than technology

BY RACHEL ABBEY MCCAFFERTY

The pandemic brought a lot of awareness to the digital divide, the inequities between those who have access to the internet and the technology to use it and those who do not.

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When schools and workplaces closed to stem the spread of COVID-19, communities came together to provide that access, but it was often in temporary ways.

Hotspots can only go so far. As the world opens back up, the challenge

THE

going forward will be finding ways to permanently offer that digital access to people, overcoming economic challenges and offering training and other support.

Angela Siefer, founder and executive director of the Columbus-based

LAND SCAPE

National Digital Inclusion Alliance, doesn’t have to tell people there’s a digital divide very much anymore, or explain it in too much depth.

Awareness of the issue has greatly See DIVIDE on Page 18

A CRAIN’S CLEVELAND PODCAST

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NONPROFIT

“Journey to Phnom Da” features immersive panoramic footage and soundscape captured via boat and drone as it takes visitors through the canals of southern Cambodia. | THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART

CMA exhibit ‘Revealing Krishna’ is ‘a Cleveland story’

BY LYDIA COUTRÉ

An augmented-reality tour at the Cleveland Museum of Art literally and virtually walks visitors through the timeline of the Cleveland Krishna, using series of holographic projections to guide them through rooms and tell the history of the 1,500-year-old stone sculpture from Cambodia.

The tour’s final room, empty in reality, is transformed with Microsoft HoloLens 2 headsets into the cave temple on Phnom Da where the Cleveland Krishna appears to have stood. Visitors can walk around a holographic artist’s re-creation of the sculpture before handing back the headsets and seeing the newly restored Cleveland Krishna in the more customary art museum setting.

The experience is just one immersive part of “Revealing Krishna: Journey to Cambodia’s Sacred Mountain,” a current exhibit at the museum that uses mixed-reality and unveils its newly restored artwork, Krishna Lifting Mount Govardha.

Behind what the institution calls a “groundbreaking exhibition” are a series of partnerships that made it possible, including a memorandum of understanding that CMA entered into with the National Museum of Cambodia (NMC) in 2015 and, importantly, a network of collaborations with different entities of Case Western Reserve University.

“This partnership between the Cleveland Museum of Art and Case Western Reserve University basically sharing a campus is kind of unique anywhere, to have an art museum the caliber of CMA and a university the status of Case,” said Sonya Rhie Mace, George P. Bickford Curator of Indian and Southeast Asian Art. “There’s so many ways that the museum and university can work together, because we’re in such close proximity and working at such a high level that it’s an incredibly fortunate situation.”

Several years ago, when Mace was on a research trip in Cambodia, a conservator at the National Museum of Cambodia in Phnom Penh shared some doubts about whether fragments of a Krishna sculpture at the

Digital rendering of “The Story of the Cleveland Krishna.” The mixed-reality tour culminates with a life-size holographic representation of the original cave temple on Phnom Da, where visitors are invited to walk around an artist’s re-creation of the sculpture as it might have stood. | THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART. MIXED-REALITY DEVELOPMENT PARTNER: THE INTERACTIVE COMMONS AT CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY

museum really fit together.

The two museums began reassessing the fragmented pieces of Krishna sculptures they each had. Sears think[box], an open-access innovation center and makerspace at CWRU, aided with a 3D scan and digital models that ultimately revealed mismatched sections and launched a project to correctly restore the Cleveland Krishna. The newly restored Krishna sculptures, both from Cleveland and Phnom Penh, are featured in the current CMA exhibit, which runs through Jan. 30.

That scan launched a partnership between CMA and think[box] that continues to this day. Recently, the center got a new handheld scanner and has been testing it with the conservation team at CMA, who are often more willing to put in the time to learn the equipment — to the benefit of everyone who uses think[box], said Ainsley Buckner, director of prototyping, art and community engagement at think[box].

“We’re testing some of its abilities on the things they want to scan, because it helps us understand where

the limitations are on the machine and what is it good at,” Buckner said.

“Having real, tangible projects — especially when equipment is new — and having partners like the CMA really helps us understand and then use that to help other people and other researchers who come asking to use the scanner for similar processes.”

Having the resources of not only CMA and CWRU but Cleveland’s other cultural and medical institutions “brings about kind of unexpected outcomes,” said Buckner, whose background includes a fine arts degree. “I don’t think anyone would have thought they would be using VR in a museum exhibit. And I think that CMA also does a really good job of not letting it get in the way of the art, but it’s like an added way of understanding the conservation process of the sculpture, which you don’t often get to see the conservators’ side of it.”

Using the technology in a way that was additive and accurate and that didn’t overshadow or overwhelm the art was critical to the team at CMA. By experiencing the augmented-reality

story of the sculpture, understanding its size and how its fragmented parts fit together, visitors have context for when they view the piece itself, said Jane Alexander, chief digital information officer.

“Especially the average person who would be like, why is it broken? Why is there just a knee hanging?” she said.

“Now you are ready to look at it and you have been given the tool sets now to look closer, dive deeper and really appreciate it.”

Microsoft, CMA’s official technology partner for the exhibit, agreed to sponsor the project and initially said they would find a development team — Microsoft’s normal process.

But Alexander wanted to work with the team at CWRU’s Interactive Commons and its faculty director, CWRU professor Mark Griswold. Interactive Commons had created a mixed-reality gallery with HoloLens in support of CMA’s Open Access initiative in 2019 “I really felt strongly after meeting Mark and working with him on the Open Access project, that why would we not take advantage of an institution next door that the museum al-

ready works with in many ways?” Alexander said.

Microsoft agreed after seeing the work the partners have done in the past.

“It’s a Cleveland story,” she said.

“There is innovation and things going on here, and my goal is bringing the world in to what we’re doing in this town.”

An upcoming class at CWRU inspired by the exhibit is one very direct example of connecting Cleveland to the world. Michael Goldberg, associate professor in CWRU’s Weatherhead School of Management, and Dean Stephen Paterson of the National University of Management International College in Cambodia, are recruiting a cohort of Cambodian students to enroll alongside CWRU students in Goldberg’s Beyond Silicon Valley class on Coursera, a massive open online course provider.

Goldberg, who runs the Veale Institute for Entrepreneurship at CWRU, launched Beyond Silicon Valley in 2014 and has since attracted more than 175,000 students from 190 countries. Students in the spring 2022 course, inspired by “Revealing Krishna,” will work on two live business model projects: One is focused on creative ways to use mixed-reality and technology to lift tourism in Cambodia, and the other will center on creating a model for a fine art packing business for the art museum in Cambodia to potentially build as a separate or internal line of business.

He sees a lot of dots to connect that will be beneficial for his students and that could potentially “make a contribution, in some albeit small way, to what’s happening in Cambodia,” Goldberg said.

After the past few years of partnerships have opened channels of good communication and collaboration, “we can only grow from here,” Buckner of think[box] said. “I think having the resources that we do right here in Cleveland is really unique, and the fact that everyone’s so open and willing to collaborate, I think it makes kind of endless possibilities.”

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

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Barberton Community Foundation steps into economic development

BY LYDIA COUTRÉ

The Barberton Community Foundation this year finished paying for its very first commitment: building a high school.

For the foundation’s entire 25-year history, annual debt payments on Barberton High School made up the bulk of its investment in the community.

The fulfilled promise frees up substantial funds for the foundation to grow its giving in current areas and also step into a new economic development role in the community.

Though economic development has always been part of the mission of the foundation, it had been done “kind of on the periphery,” said Suzanne Allen, executive director of the Barberton Community Foundation.

“It’s always been a part of our focus.

We just haven’t been able to put a lot of money behind it until now.”

In 2021, the final debt payment was about $2.1 million, while the foundation’s grants budget was $250,000. Its scholarship budget was $163,000.

The organization won’t immediately funnel a couple million dollars to scholarships and grants overnight.

They will make the shift “methodically and strategically,” Allen said.

For 2022, the scholarship budget will increase by 23% to $200,000 and the grants budget will increase by 40% to $350,000.

The new economic development

From left: Josh Gordon, Barberton Community Foundation board chair; Anita Downie, OAPSE; Danny Viningre, AFSCME chapter chair; Jeff Ramnytz, superintendent of Barberton City Schools; Krista McCoy, BEA union president; Suzanne Allen, Barberton Community Foundation executive director. At the Nov. 4 Virtual Annual Dinner, Allen and Gordon presented Barberton City Schools with the final check for $2.1 million for the construction of Barberton High School. | CONTRIBUTED

budget, to be finalized early next year, will be a little more than $350,000.

The remaining difference between these budgets and what would have otherwise gone to the school debt payments will be invested, Allen said.

To help guide funding for the next few years, the foundation is partnering with Summa Health – Barberton Campus, the Barberton City School District and the city of Barberton to conduct a needs assessment.

The foundation was established in 1996 with $86 million in funds and securities from the sale of Barberton Cit-

izens Hospital, which residents supported establishing as a permanent endowment. The Foundation Board voted to fund the $32 million new high school with a grant, contingent upon Barberton citizens’ ultimate approval of a $32 million bond issue.

Through the agreement, and the foundation’s payments since, the foundation saved Barberton taxpayers $58 million in real estate taxes.

Tom Harnden was on the foundation board when it formed and then served as executive director from 2001 to 2008. He said this is a “new chapter”

for the foundation and is excited about its direction.

“I like the fact that they’re going to take their time, they’re going to look at what the needs of the community are and then move forward,” he said.

Of the new economic development budget next year, Allen the foundation plans to set aside some funds to provide resources to Bounce Innovation Hub in Akron for residents to participate in programming, said Ted Herncane, who joined the foundation this year in the new role as director of economic development. He is also exploring providing Herncane funds to help offset relocation costs for companies looking to move into or expand in Barberton.

The foundation has asked Heritage Ohio — an organization that specializes in downtown redevelopment, particularly in small communities — to assess what Barberton can do to attract businesses and become more of a destination, Allen said.

Herncane, who will manage that assessment process, said the foundation has set aside dollars in the 2022 budget to provide rehabilitation funds to help property owners get some of the downtown vacant properties up to code and up to rental

readiness quickly.

“Barberton downtown is not unlike many other downtowns in Northeast Ohio where you have small mom and pop type of stores and you have some landlords,” Herncane said. “And where we feel we can really move the needle downtown is to provide some assistance to rehab some of these vacant properties and get them rent ready soon. And what gets those things to the finish line is oftentimes just an influx of funds.”

Barberton Mayor William B. Judge said the city’s challenges in economic development and income tax have been compounded in the last few years, with the pandemic and before that, one of its largest employers left the city.

“I think in this day and age, the more help you can have when it comes to economic development, the better,” he said. “And in a small community like this, having the foundation and the city working hand-in-hand with the same goals and sharing resources and adding to those resources only helps enable us to create more opportunity for economic development.”

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

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Ohio looks to save $44 million over a decade with Innovate the Code

BY KIM PALMER

It took less than a minute, Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said, for Deloitte’s RegExplorer — an artificial intelligence application designed to analyze troves of data and create a contextualized search to help streamline the regulatory reform process — to search out redundant code and outdated regulations in the multitude of red leather-bound books that contain the Ohio Revised Code.

“We licensed an AI tool that went through the code in seconds to identify opportunities for the agencies to modernize,” Husted said at a news conference on Tuesday, Dec. 14, announcing the state’s Innovate the Code initiative.

Husted’s objective is to whittle down that tower of text, replete with what he insists are outdated terms and unnecessary regulations, using the latest AI technology The project came about as the culmination of two programs Husted leads: the Common Sense Initiative (CSI) created during the administration of former Gov. John Kasich, and InnovateOhio, created under Gov. Mike DeWine, which employs technology to improve government services, share data and modernize the state. CSI has partnered with InnovateOhio to use the RegExplorer app with state agencies to identify areas in rules and statutes that were redundant or required outdated methods of communicating or unnecessary in-person interactions.

Since its launch in 2011, CSI’s rule review process has identified more than 7,500 state regulations as potential obstacles to Ohio’s small businesses. Most of those regulations have been amended or rescinded through the time-consuming process of individual state agencies reviewing mountains of regulatory code.

Lt. Gov. Jon Husted speaks next to stacks of books containing the Ohio Revised Code during a press conference for the Innovate the Code initiative. | LT. GOV. OFFICE

using the application to flag part of the revised code that is then reviewed by staff and experts who verify the needed changes. The first round of modifications alone is predicted to save state employees about 58,000 hours of labor in the future.

A simple change by the Ohio Department of Taxation allowing the agency to communicate with taxpayers electronically instead of sending thousands of pieces of certified mail will save an estimated $3.4 million a year. The cost of the RegExplorer license is $500,000 — a deal compared with the predicted savings, Husted said.

“Outdated laws and regulations are costly and slow down business, stall innovation and job creation,” he said.

By removing the outdated commu“WE WANTED TO EVOLVE THAT requirePROCESS AND PLAY OFFENSE INSTEAD nication ments and unnecOF JUST REVIEWING WHAT WAS GOING essary barriers, conservative estiTO BECOME NEW REGULATIONS.” mates predict that the state will save a — Lt. Gov. Jon Husted total of $44 million “We wanted to evolve that pro- over the next 10 years.

Husted envisions a wholesale cess and play offense instead of just reviewing what was going to be- reduction of many in-person recome new regulations,” Husted said quirements, such as driver’s liin an interview with Crain’s. “We cense suspension hearings. Cutthought, ‘Let’s go back and look at ting those hearings is one more all the things that have become step in Husted’s mission, along regulations and see how we can with online appointments requests and driver license reprint improve upon that.’”

One example: The new Deloitte options instituted over the last few AI tool found about 50 instances years, to make progress in elimiwhere state agencies are required nating the need for Ohioans to to send correspondence or notice stand in line at the Bureau of Movia mail that Husted said can be tor Vehicles.

“We wanted to make Ohio the transitioned to less expensive, less time-consuming electronic com- most innovative, entrepreneurial state in the Midwest,” Husted said. munication.

There were nearly 40 instances “But the other part is to use technolthat, Husted said, involve unnec- ogy to improve the way we serve essary in-person interaction with Ohioans, who are our customers.”

Ironically, cleaning up Ohio’s angovernment that can be handled remotely, and there were more tiquated regulation requires the crethan 20 instances that call for the ation of new legislation.

Husted hopes that two bills — removal of archaic terms, including “telefax, telegram, fax and vid- one in the House and a corresponding one in the Senate — dealing with eocassette.”

The first step of the process was the first 12 provisions of what he

said soon will number more than 100 possible amendments to legislation will be introduced by mid-January 2022.

The bills’ sponsors, Republican Rep. Thomas Hall of Middletown and Maineville’s Sen. Steve Wilson, joined Husted during the Dec. 14 news conference to show their support.

Wilson is on a crusade to modernize state processes and has sponsored bills dealing with e-notarization, the state’s use of blockchain technology and broadband expansion.

“This is a cycle of creative destruction that always must occur in an economy,” Wilson said. “The states that get it right are going to be the ones that prosper, the ones that will be seen as a place where people want to go.”

Ohio’s state agencies are required by law to review regulations every five years to eliminate overlap and waste. But as Vipin Chaudhary, the Kevin J. Kranzusch Professor and chair of the Department of Computer and Data Sciences at Case Western Reserve University, points out, employing the Deloitte AI technology shows the state is opening to modernization.

“I think it’s very positive. It’s not just not an exercise to show we are being innovative. These are tools that exist and to not utilize them could even be considered regressive,” Chaudhary said.

As one of the lead investigators at the AI Institute for Intelligent Cyberinfrastructure with Computational Learning in the Environment — a U.S. National Science Foundation-funded, multistate university research collaborative — Chaudhary works on expanding the use of AI and enabling it for various applications.

“It’s a non-trivial problem to gather all that data in a way that you can actually do something with the knowledge and get something from it,” he said.

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

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REAL ESTATE

Developer plans office-to-apartment project near CSU

BY STAN BULLARD

Partners in Innovation Landing, which will add about 50 units of housing near Cleveland State University in two buildings at 18351849 Prospect Ave. East, started renovations before closing on the properties because it wants to have them ready for the market in July.

Thomas Charek, president of Welty Development in Fairlawn, said the project will follow federal guidelines to win U.S. Historic Preservation Tax Credits, but the development team doesn’t plan to seek Ohio State Historic Preservation Tax Credits.

“That’s due to the timing,” Charek said in a phone interview. The state awards the credits twice a year, which would make the summer 2022 opening hard to meet.

One reason the project can skip the much-sought state aid is due to the makeup of the Innovation Landing investor team, which includes Carmen Fiorilli, owner of Fiorilli Construction Inc. of Medina, and Scott Maloney, the architect who is president of K2M Design of Cleveland, which also includes K2M Engineering.

“I found the deal but was able to get together a cohesive team that can do the project quickly,” Charek said, because Fiorilli is serving as the general contractor for the project and Maloney’s K2M is designing it.

Although Donzell Taylor, CEO of Welty Building Co. of Fairlawn, is an investor in Welty Development, Charek said the development concern may use other contractors and subcontractors based on who best fits the project. In this case, Welty has a substantial backlog and some of the investors are putting their skills into the project, Charek said.

Innovation Landing already is committed to the project in a meaningful way.

Through Innovation Landing LLC, the partnership on Dec. 6 acquired for $2.7 million the two buildings that will form the project, according to Cuyahoga County property records.

The seller, an investment group called Terry L Poltorek Kenneth F. Lutke Partners Investment Properties KKC, acquired the two buildings in separate transactions since 1983. Charek declined to say how much it will take to add residences to the buildings, but it’s likely to be at least three times as much as the group spent buying the properties.

That would indicate a development

cost in the $8 million range.

The Cuyahoga County Veterans Service Commission, which assists military veterans with social services, has offices on the first floor of the buildings and will remain there under a long-term lease.

“We’re happy to have them as a long-term tenant,” Charek said. He said Innovation Landing plans to seek a food-related use or coffee shop in about 2,500 square feet of retail space that is empty in the complex.

A mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units, and a single three-bedroom unit, will go into the upper floors of the two-story and three-story buildings.

Innovation Landing joins multiple residential projects in the CSU area that serve students and, in some cases, downtown workers.

David “Joe” Kaufman, a partner in Brothers Printing, at 2000 Euclid Ave., and his brother Jay Kaufman helped to pioneer the residential district by adding more than 30 apartments to their printing building and an adjoining one. He said he is excited to see another largely vacant building complex get reoccupied.

“I’d be worried about being an island because it’s across the street from Wolstein Center so it’s sort of in an island,” David Kaufman said, rather than facing the classrooms and associated buildings at CSU on the south side of Euclid. However, he added, “There are a lot of people in this world smarter than me.”

Mark Lammon, executive director of Campus District, wrote in an email, “The Campus District community is excited about the development of 1835-1849 Prospect Avenue. This project will bring additional residents to our growing downtown neighborhood.”

For his part, Charek said Innovation Landing is predicated on the idea that CSU expects to gain students, including more residential students, under its growth plans.

Charek said the smaller units will go for as little as $750 a month in order to try to attract students.

He noted some students commuting to CSU for law school or graduate business or other degrees may come from as far as Youngstown or Ashland and might find such a rental an attractive way to reduce travel time and car expenses, even if it’s only for a few nights per week.

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

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The two and three-story buildings at 1835-1849 Prospect Ave. East have been acquired by an affiliate of Welty Development of Fairlawn. Plans call for converting office space on the upper floors of the structures to apartments. | CONTRIBUTED DECEMBER 20, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 5

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EDUCATION

Students walk across Cleveland State’s campus in this fall 2021 file photo. CSU is one of eight local institutions participating in a new pilot program working on what’s known as “stranded credits.” | CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY

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Pilot program from public colleges aims to resolve ‘stranded credits’

BY AMY MORONA

Leaders in Ohio want 65% of the state’s workforce to have some type of post-secondary certificate or degree by 2025.

That’s an ambitious goal, especially given that enrollment dropped at the majority of higher education institutions amid the pandemic.

The number of high school graduates in the state continues to fall, too, shrinking that pool of potential students.

Yet about 1.5 million Ohioans fall into the “some college, no degree” category, and an estimated 60,000 people in Northeast Ohio are believed to have what’s known as stranded credits.

Different from student loan debt, credits are “stranded” after a university withholds releasing proof of the credits students have earned when institutional debts like fees or tuition go unpaid.

A 2020 Policy Matters Ohio report found that students of color, as well as older and/or first-generation students, often have higher rates of stranded credits. Those at two-year schools are more affected than their four-year counterparts.

As Crain’s Cleveland Business reported earlier this year, some have called the issue the “transcript trap.”

Students can’t transfer to a new institution or secure a transcript to show a new employer until those debts are paid and credits released.

A new pilot program is launching to reach out to those with stranded credits, and, hopefully, re-enroll them. Four-year public universities in Northeast Ohio — Cleveland State, Kent State, the University of Akron and Youngstown State — are participating, along with the region’s two-year institutions: Cuyahoga Community College, Lakeland Community College, Lorain County Community College and Stark State College.

Leaders are optimistic the partnership could result in a host of interconnected benefits, including boosted enrollments, a more educated workforce and an added kick to the region’s economy.

“No one has come to the state of

Ohio, to my knowledge, and said, ‘I need a less-educated workforce, I need a less-skilled workforce,’” said David Jewell, senior vice president of business affairs and CFO at Cleveland State. “The need is always more of that.”

The new, unnamed pilot is funded by foundations. In addition to the colleges, nonprofit research and consulting group Ithaka S+R and community organizations like College Now of Greater Cleveland are also taking part in creating and piloting what’s been dubbed as a “sustainable, inter-institutional compact.”

There are a few reasons why Ithaka is establishing this initiative here, according to Martin Kurzweil, the director of its educational transformation program.

Some local community organizations and advocacy groups are already doing related work. A few institutions already had debt-forgiveness programs of their own. That aforementioned demographic cliff lingers, and it’s coupled with employers who need skilled workers. Don’t forget those 60,000 students here with stranded credits, too.

“There’s motivation. There’s action. The policy framework is there in Ohio,” said Kurzweil.

Earlier this year, the Ohio Department of Higher Education released guidance dubbed the “College Comeback.” The department, leaders said, is often asked if colleges can offer debt forgiveness in exchange for new tuition dollars.

Institutions can in fact do just that, and the report highlighted places that have already tried similar programs, including Cleveland State’s pilot program from 2019. The school forgave balances of up to $5,000 in exchange for students meeting a host of other requirements as they re-enrolled, including paying that full semester’s tuition and agreeing to meet with a counselor.

In this new compact, participants will work together to find and reach out to eligible students, offering support and guidance. Each of the participating colleges also agreed to

work with students to settle those institutional debts and release transcripts, whether they chose to enroll at the institution they started at or another one of the compact’s institutions.

That’s big. Research shows most adult students who stop and later begin again do it at a school in the same area but different from where they started.

Under the compact’s plan, even if that happens, it’s still a financial bonus for the home institution.

Participating institutions will engage in “periodic financial transactions to account for resolved debts for students who enroll somewhere other than their previous institution,” offering more than the 7 cents on the dollar typically seen once a student’s account heads to collections, according to Ithaka.

Colleges that re-enroll students where they began will see those tuition dollars stay.

But, of course, colleges want more students. Each institution involved saw a decline in full-time enrollment this fall. Yet leaders are pledging that this partnership puts community over competition, underscoring that getting more students back to school is the most important thing.

“Should we miss out on a couple of people because they choose to go elsewhere, it’s still a win for our community,” said Laura Barnard, Lakeland’s executive vice president and provost.

It would be a win for the colleges, too. According to Ithaka, even if just 10% — or 6,000 — of those with stranded credits begin again, they’ll account for a collective $41 million in annual tuition revenue. And if students’ institutional debts are settled for even a dime on the dollar, per Ithaka’s calculations, it’ll amount to about $900,000 to the colleges in payments, compared with just $630,000 they’d probably get in collections.

The pilot’s goal is to enroll students as early as the fall 2022 semester.

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

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MARIJUANA

Weed companies craving conventional credit struggle to find it, absent banking reforms

BY JEREMY NOBILE

Cannabis companies and financial institutions that want to serve them are increasingly frustrated with the lack of access to conventional banking services.

Take Standard Wellness, a vertically integrated marijuana company in Northeast Ohio. The business is in the midst of an ambitious expansion effort in not just the Buckeye State, where it would like to run additional dispensaries, but in a number of other markets including Missouri and Utah, where it’s developing cultivation and processing facilities.

Operating in an industry considered legitimate in most states but that is otherwise federally illicit brings myriad challenges. Key among those is access to traditional banking services, including conventional credit.

This holds back companies like Standard Wellness looking to grow.

“There are many small banks in Ohio we’ve talked to. They will give us a checking account, and those fees have come down,” said Kevin Murphy, an attorney with Walter | Haverfield and co-owner of Standard Wellness. “But they are not the same bank that can make a $20 million or $30 million loan for an expansion in another state, let alone Ohio.”

The Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act was designed to help address these kinds of issues with capital, among other things.

SAFE would also improve overall safety by reducing the reliance cash that can make the industry a target for crooks. This has become a rampant issue of late in California.

Yet, despite SAFE passing through the U.S. House of Representatives five times in two years, only to stall out each time in the Senate, the legislation hit another setback this month when it was removed from the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act on which it was piggybacking. This came much to the chagrin of marijuana companies and banks alike.

“I think it’s incredibly disappointing that an industry that continues to grow, that continues to employ thousands and thousands of people all across the country and state of Ohio, continues to not get any relief on the banking side,” Murphy said.

“We are disappointed the #SAFEBanking act was not included in the #NDAA compromise released today,” the Ohio Bankers League tweeted Tuesday, Dec. 7. “The U.S. Senate continues to put Ohio’s communities at risk by forcing the cannabis industry to operate only in cash.”

There are some workarounds to the cash situation, to be sure. But they are imperfect at best.

Industry officials say an arguably bigger issue for companies is access to reasonable sources of credit.

Although Standard Wellness, for example, has found partners to provide it with basic checking and deposit accounts — for a premium price — complicating its efforts to expand is the inability to secure growth capital through conventional channels.

Today, that remains available predominantly through private sources such as hedge funds, private equity, family offices or one of many real estate investment trusts coming online to serve this need. Those include firms such as AFC Gamma and Chi-

cago Atlantic Credit, which have separately raised millions of dollars recently through initial public offerings that they are looking to lend out.

But banks largely are staying away because of the lingering state of laws and regulations today.

For the legal marijuana industry, access to capital has improved in the last few years, but it remains complicated and expensive because of the lack of better and more traditional alternatives, such as what might be offered by commercial banks.

“Compared with a few years ago, it is very different in an environment today that has historically been capital-starved,” Murphy said. “You can get it. But it is incredibly expensive, and it makes it very difficult to run your business.”

It’s “one of the largest, if not the largest” obstacles in “one of the fastest-growing industries in Ohio and the country,” said Matt Close, executive director of the Ohio Medical Cannabis Industry Association.

Geoff Korff, CEO of Akron Level II cultivator Galenas — which is working to expand to Michigan and get into the dispensary business in Ohio — is in a similar boat as the executives behind Standard Wellness.

“We need access to conventional banking services at market rates, and also market rates for lending and debt options. But everything is just incredibly expensive when you’re in the cannabis industry,” Korff said. “Large, publicly traded companies and multistate operators, they can go to the public market to raise capital. We don’t have any of that. And with the lack of SAFE Banking, it’s definitely harder. We have to try and build our business with one hand tied behind our back.”

While they can vary widely, the average business loan interest rate ranges from about 3% to 7%. In the cannabis space, private sources of capital tend to come at rates between 12% and 20% or more once additional fees are layered on.

Meanwhile, simple checking accounts for marijuana companies tend to carry monthly costs between $1,000 and $2,500 a month.

Justin Strekal, political director for NORML, said he has seen monthly fees on deposit accounts as high as $10,000 in some markets. Such high costs are a hindrance to small businesses trying to stake a claim in the budding marijuana industry that’s already being consolidated by large players.

“The status quo that we have right now is the most advantageous to the largest multistate operators and established businesses who already have been able to find access to banking services at a premium price,” Strekal said. “That is an inherent structural advantage for them over new entrants to the market or small operators who are either unable to pay exorbitant fees or are unable to get access to capital.”

In terms of deposit accounts, that $1,000 to $2,500 range is about what a marijuana business might be charged at Dayton’s Wright-Patt Credit Union, which has about $7 billion in assets and is probably the most visible and prominent financial institution in Ohio serving the cannabis sector.

There are others, like other credit unions and community banks. Those

participating will often serve longtime customers and friends but aren’t broadcasting it. Other banks have declared marijuana customers aren’t worth the risk or financial payoff under the current regulatory system.

There were 706 U.S. depository institutions actively banking marijuana businesses as of midyear 2021, according to FinCEN — or about 7% of the country’s 10,300-some commercial banks, credit unions and savings institutions.

Scott Everett, vice president of new ventures and member business services at Wright-Patt, said these fees may seem high to the cannabis industry. But they’re necessary, he said, in order to manage customer accounts that require more extensive monitoring. And the costs have come down as the regulatory burden has lessened, as regulators become more comfortable with the credit union’s record-keeping.

In what seems to be a first for a financial institution in Ohio, WrightPatt is also preparing to get into financing, which Everett plans to take to market in early 2022.

He said the credit union’s board of directors has agreed to a $130 million allocation for loans to the cannabis industry, which might include a maximum of about $10 million per individual customer.

“We are saying we will do real estate, equipment loans and credit lines,” Everett said. “We are probably going to do lower leverage than conventional loans because of the risk.

And we are going to require personal guarantees, at least initially.”

Rates will still be higher than conventional loans, he said, but should be better than other options in the market. The credit union can do this, he said, because of its state charter and confidence in navigating a now-familiar regulatory landscape.

Wright-Patt simply acts differently from a commercial bank.

“What I’ll say is I can give you an interest rate in the single digits, but you are going to have to accept a bit lower leverage and put a personal signature on your debt,” Everett said.

“But that’s versus a PE guy who might take higher leverage but charge 12% to 14%.”

The passage of marijuana banking reforms would increase competition among financial institutions for relationships with marijuana businesses operating in an industry projected to top $43 billion in 2025 absent federal legalization, according to New Frontier Research.

Everett is fine with more competition, which would come with banking reforms and drive prices for services and credit down. He acknowledges the regulatory landscape that keeps many financial institutions from participating in the marijuana sector is what creates opportunity for firms like Wright-Patt.

“When I lobby in D.C., what I say is, as an American citizen, you should view it as a compulsory obligation to enable the industry to come out of the shadows. That’s why passing something like SAFE Banking is the right thing to do,” he said. “This dichotomy between state and federal illegality is ridiculous.”

Here for you.

Here for life.

www.ncafinancial.com (440) 473-1115 Securities offered through Royal Alliance Associates, Inc. (RAA), Member FINRA/SIPC. RAA is separately owned and other entities and/or marketing names, products or services referenced here are independent of RAA. RAA does not provide tax or legal advice. Investment advisory services offered through NCA Financial Planners. 6095 Parkland Blvd., #210 Mayfield Hts., OH 44124 F: 440-473-0186

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Jeremy Nobile: jnobile@crain.com, (216) 771-5362, @JeremyNobile DECEMBER 20, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 7

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PERSONAL VIEW

Employers must use evidence-based risk mitigation approach for new virus variants RICH WILLIAMS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

BY FIROUZ DANESHGARI, M.D.

EDITORIAL

16 years and out F

rank Jackson is a modest, quiet man with a big, noisy line on his resume: the longest-serving mayor of the city of Cleveland.

We don’t know what the future will bring, but it’s likely Jackson will have that distinction for a long time — possibly forever.

Winning four terms in office, and leading a big American city over 16 years, is a significant achievement. Everyone is eager to see what happens at City Hall as Mayor-elect Justin Bibb takes charge in early January, promising action and a verve not seen in Cleveland for a while. But let’s not turn the page just yet.

Since the end of a year is the time to reflect on the past, it’s appropriate to consider what Jackson has meant to Cleveland, and what the new mayor can learn from his predecessor.

Jackson’s record is, on balance, one of accomplishment, as Cleveland has made progress in improving its schools, bolstering (some) neighborhoods, reviving downtown and encouraging development throughout the city via the $65 million Neighborhood Transformation Initiative. Of course that progress is not enough in one of the country’s poorest big cities. Jackson would be among the first to acknowledge that. One of the admirable things about him was the priority he placed on talking about, and trying to achieve, equitable economic growth that lifts up all of Cleveland’s residents. The city’s social and economic challenges are complex. Jackson approached them practically — “It is what it is” truly was a guiding principle — and had more wins that losses in his time in office.

Back in October 2017, when we endorsed Jackson for what became his fourth term in office, we noted he had been “a steady leader through difficult times, helping Cleveland maintain budget sanity and avoid the financial calamities” that afflicted some industrial Midwestern cities. An excellent recent essay on Cleveland.com by Mark Vosburgh noted that the mayor and finance director Sharon Dumas “kept the city afloat through a foreclosure crisis, a recession and devastating cuts in state aid made by a General Assembly hell-bent on pillaging Ohio’s cities. This is not the kind of fodder that makes for flashy headlines, yet it is of vital importance and requires a great deal of effort.” There were some trims in city services, but as Vosburgh wrote, Jackson “continued to deliver the essentials without resorting to crippling layoffs, fur-

loughs or defaults.” Think about this the next time you read a story about a city somewhere in America that’s reducing core services because it’s having a hard time paying its bills.

Jackson also displayed admirable personal qualities out of step with our current understanding of politics. There was remarkably little scandal in 16 years of the Jackson administration, and he was an honest, direct and thoughtful mayor. You might not have liked everything Jackson did, but you knew where he stood. He represented the city with grace and integrity — a tradition we hope and expect will continue under Bibb.

The mayor’s tenure isn’t without blemishes and missed opportunities, particularly in the fourth term, in which Jackson faced some significant family challenges on top of those presented by the pandemic. A Cleveland.com report last week that Jackson, after hiring a consultant to study ways to improve the city-owned West Side Market, blocked the consultant from recommending outside management as a possible solution, was illustrative of an inflexibility that sometimes marred his approach to governing.

Still, we encourage Jackson to be a resource to the new mayor, and Bibb to seek his counsel. Cleveland is entering an era of many new leaders, but the old guard still has valuable advice to offer.

Just do it This is our final traditional print issue of 2021, ahead of the Book of Lists, which publishes Monday, Dec. 27. If we can leave you with one last thought for the year, it’s this: Please get vaccinated and boosted, if you aren’t already.

As a result of the Omicron variant, hospitals are filling once again with COVID cases. Event cancellations are rising. The best chance to mitigate (though not eliminate) the risks of COVID and return to something approaching normal work, economic and social life in 2022 is to have as many people vaccinated as possible. Don’t fall for the politicization of vaccines. In the spirit of giving, do your part to help things improve.

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

The emergence of a new mutant of COVID-19 (Omicron), along with the government’s constitutionally questionable policy on mandating vaccination, has left some employers questioning what to do. Will I be forced to dismiss my employee who does not want to be vaccinated? Or will I risk a breakout in my workplace or ignore the government mandate?

Daneshgari is a Two published studies, one from Is- professor of rael and one from the Cleveland Clin- surgery at Case ic, indicate that individuals who were Western Reserve vaccinated without any previous expo- University and sure to COVID-19 had a higher chance the founder and of having a breakthrough infection CEO of BowTie than those who were infected. (That is, Medical. individuals with the vaccination were 7.6 times more likely to get infected with the Delta variant than those who had been infected before.) These studies confirm the concept that “natural immunity” provides a more durable immunity than the immunity induced by vaccination. The rationale for vaccination, of course, is that it will induce immunity without the risk of significant morbidity or mortality in cases of high-risk individuals.

Early evidence from South Africa also indicates a likely similar pattern for immunity against Omicron, the new COVID strain, although the final studies will be completTHE COST OF DOING ed in a few weeks.

Between now and when AN ANTIBODY AND the final results of immunity FREQUENT COMBINED against Omicron and other plausible new variants are FLU+COVID TESTING known, employers can use an evidence-based approach IS MINIMAL to mitigate the risk of break- COMPARED WITH THE through infection in their RISK OF “WAIT AND workplaces.

Assessing the immunity of SEE” FOR EMPLOYERS employees based on rapid antibody tests will indicate if WHO HAVE FULLY the individual has durable OPEN AND antibody levels to stand against reinfection with a FUNCTIONAL new variant, regardless of the WORKPLACES. cause of their immunity — symptomatic infection, asymptomatic infection or vaccination. Antibody testing will allow an individual to learn about their “base risk” by detecting the levels of antibodies in their system.

In the background of every employee knowing their “base risk,” an employee with any suspected or symptomatic manifestation (such as, not feeling good, cold symptoms, etc.) can be clarified with a new rapid tests that would allow testing for reinfection with COVID and influenza with a single swab of the nasal area.

The cost of doing an antibody and frequent combined Flu+COVID testing is minimal compared with the risk of “wait and see” for employers who have fully open and functional workplaces.

Use of evidence instead of fear is a solid path toward knowing the risk of breakthrough with COVID strains during the busy holiday season.

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

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

8 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 20, 2021

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OPINION www.naipvc.com

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PERSONAL VIEW

Middle market companies can advance ESG while supporting business goals

BY BRIAN MCDONALD

SALT • SALT • SALT

Call For Pricing!!

GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCK PHOTO

Increased awareness around climate change, racial and social equity issues and COVID-19 has changed the way that many Ohio companies think about environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. The pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities in our economic, political and social systems, as well as the need for resilience in our businesses, including our supply chains and larger ecosystems. This convergence of factors has made ESG a focal point for companies of all sizes. Well-integrated ESG strategies provide real value in helping businesses stay successful in the face of disruption.

Consumer pressures also drive companies to focus on ESG. Younger consumers are especially more likely to consider ESG issues when making purchasing decisions. According to PwC, over half of all consumers (59%) say that a company’s purpose and values play an important role in its decision-making.

Regardless of a company’s size and budget, there are ways to develop and implement an informed ESG strategy that addresses stakeholder expectations and delivers meaningful outcomes. Looking forward to 2022, here are six steps for developing and integrating a successful ESG strategy: 1. Identify ESG issues significant to your stakeholders.

The most critical component of any ESG strategy is understanding stakeholder perspectives. Businesses should assess and rank issues that are important to employees, customers, suppliers, investors and other stakeholders. As you identify core priorities, keep in mind that some issues—for example, COVID-19, racial equality and climate change—transcend a specific business or industry and apply to all companies committed to systemic change.

2. Develop a reporting and measurement framework.

What gets measured gets managed, so it’s essential to build a measurement framework around priority issues.

Consider consulting popular ESG frameworks and tools to set goals and measure progress. For example, the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs), United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) or the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council (IBC) metrics are all valuable tools that can help companies track performance against benchmarks and communicate progress to stakeholders.

3. Take an intersectional approach. As you build an ESG strategy, you’ll notice that many issues are related.

Ensure that your strategy recognizes the complexity and intersectionality of these issues and addresses root causes. For example, lack of access to housing correlates to intergenerational poverty and racial inequality. If your goal is to drive greater racial equality, affordable

housing may be a key pillar of your strategy.

4. Look across your supply chain.

Capitalize on opportunities to work with third-party partners on initiatives that create a broader industry impact. Consider how you can empower, and hold accountable, partBUILD. LEASE. BUY. SELL. MANAGE. ners along your supply chain. Depending on the results of your McDonald is market executive stakeholder assessment, you may Medina Akron Cleveland consider setting goals in the followfor global +1 330 239 0176 +1 330 535 2661 +1 216 831 3310 ing areas: commercial banking at Bank ` Energy: Reduce greenhouse gas emissions and work toward net-zero of America Merrill Lynch in by submitting a science-based target (SBTi). Look across your operaOhio. tions to identify achievable goals, set a timeline and action plan, and report on progress.

Water Softener • Industrial • Food • Ice Melt • Sea Salt ` Stakeholder relationships: Select vendors, partners and, where possible, customers based on fair labor practices and responsible environmental impact. ` Diversity, equity and inclusion: Ensure diverse popuMinimum Delivery: 1 Pallet lations have a seat at the table and feel empowered to contribute their experience and perspective. Bank of America research found that more than 75% of Nasdaq companies don’t have a woman, under-represented minority or LGBTQ+ member on their board. Companies can take meaningful action to address underrepresentation in the workplace by doubling down on transparency and reporting, setting company and supplier diversity goals, enhancing trainings, and rethinking approaches to recruiting.

5. Integrate your ESG strategy across the business.

ESG initiatives should be deeply integrated across the company to deliver meaningful results. ESG goals empower executives to think about the longer-term viability of the company. Every business unit can support ESG initiatives, whether it’s making a fair labor supplier strategy, investing in sustainable and climate-resilient infrastructure, sourcing sustainable energy, or revampMEDINA, OH ing HR policies to increase diverse recruiting, hiring and 1-800-547-1538 retention.

6. Look to the power of your people. Even without a Salt Distributors Since 1966 large budget for ESG initiatives, you have the power of www.saltdistributormedinaoh.com your people. Empowering your employees to drive grassroots change in your community, with the support of your organization, can help inspire meaningful change. Every organization has something to contribute; it’s not about the dollar amount, but it is always about action.

Businesses with well-articulated ESG goals and purGrimm Winter mix 2x4.33.indd 1 9/22/2020 poseful strategies are more likely to be resilient and create long-term value for stakeholders. Middle market companies have a critical role to play, not only in the future viability of their business but in delivering on the promise of stakeholder capitalism.

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rain’s 20 Notable Marketing Executives spend their time promoting some of the more recognized and appreciated parts of the Northeast Ohio culture.

During a pandemic, these men and women met the challenge of marketing during difficult economic times, grew their following, and applied clever and new thinking to (in some cases) old and established institutions.

Among those honored are executives who represent the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Cleveland Metroparks, both selling points to life in this community. The executives also represent those who help the needy, including the United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. Also represented are numerous executives from marketing and advertising agencies in town.

Whether it’s banking or adding a four-season sunroom, these executives help improve the quality of life in the community with a positive vision and energetic message.

GETTY IMAGES

METHODOLOGY: The honorees do not pay to be included. Their profiles were drawn from the nomination materials submitted. This list is not comprehensive. It includes only individuals for whom nominations were submitted and accepted after a review by editors. To qualify for the list, nominees must be based in Northeast Ohio. They must be serving in a senior-level marketing role at his or her organization or at an agency. Nominee must have used his or her marketing skills to significantly advance their or their client's organization. They must be active in the community and/or philanthropic activities, mentoring programs and/or diversity and inclusion initiatives.

MONTRIE RUCKER ADAMS

SONYA AHOLA

LOREN CHYLLA

President and chief visibility officer

Director of marketing and HR consulting

Vice president, multichannel marketing and advertising

Visibility Marketing Inc.

Ahola

Medical Mutual of Ohio

Montrie Rucker Adams’ career in marketing and public relations has spanned almost 30 years.

Visibility Marketing, Adams’ Beachwood-based company, celebrated its 20-year anniversary in 2020. The firm, according to Adams, has worked with several big-name clients in the state to “create public relations strategies around their vision of strategic consumer engagement and visibility.”

The entrepreneur is an accomplished writer, having served as the managing editor of Kaleidoscope magazine, as well as penning pieces for the likes of BlackAmericaWeb.com and The Plain Dealer. Adams also authored “Just Do Your Dream!” — a book billed as a seven-step guide to help people achieve what they’ve always wanted.

Visibility Marketing’s commitment to the community includes an “Anyone Can Serve” campaign in which small businesses and nonprofits are provided services free of charge. Adams also has been a Breakthrough Public Schools mentor and led the board of directors for a local homeless shelter and transitional housing program for women.

The marketing executive recently received the 2021 Lighthouse Award from the Public Relations Society of America’s Greater Cleveland chapter. The award recognizes the accomplishments and community service of a senior PR professional in Northeast Ohio.

Sonya Ahola is blazing her own trail in the family business.

She’s the third generation to work at Ahola, the Brecksville-based company offering payroll services and human resource solutions.

She currently leads Ahola’s marketing and HR consulting divisions.

Her resume details a wide-ranging list of responsibilities in the role, which includes managing all internal and external communications, public relations, social media, trade shows, advertising, content creation and traditional marketing campaigns.

Ahola oversaw a rebrand of the company two years ago that “went beyond a new logo,” according to Corinne Saliba, the company’s HR consultant who nominated Ahola.

“Updates to the mission, vision, and values set the tone for our internal and external brand,” Saliba wrote in Ahola’s nomination form.

More recently, she steered marketing campaigns focused on the company’s clients and communities during the pandemic. #TakeOutTuesdays encouraged social media followers to visit and support some of the company’s restaurant clients, and directed portions of her marketing budget to go toward purchasing food from those restaurant clients to donate to the company’s health care clients in a show of support.

Loren Chylla changed jobs only this month, stepping in to run marketing and advertising for Medical Mutual of Ohio.

But he's being recognized for his 14year tenure at Adcom, a marketing communications company where his client list spanned global brands from the Cleveland Clinic to the Sherwin-Williams Co. As senior executive vice president and account director at Adcom, he shepherded sweeping projects including packages about the Clinic in The New York Times and the Washington Post, a podcast with journalist Joan Lunden and a CNN documentary series.

Chylla's digital-media savvy — he was the first marketing director for news website Cleveland.com — formed the foundation for an integrated digital planning practice at Adcom.

A Northeast Ohio native and Beachwood resident, Chylla sits on the boards of the Mandel Jewish Community Center of Cleveland, the Greater Cleveland Food Bank and the Cleveland Jewish News.

"Loren's approach to problem-solving, data-driven solutions and sound marketing advice has helped sustain us as a vital community resource,” wrote Kevin Adelstein, the Cleveland Jewish Publication Co.'s president, publisher and CEO. “We are so lucky to have his skill set on our board.”

— Kevin Kleps

— Amy Morona

— Michelle Jarboe

10 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 20, 2021

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Moving forward together We’ve been through a lot together and have proved to be resilient. The approaching new year brings with it new possibilities to help our clients, communities and teammates move forward and prosper — safely.

Using our industry-leading digital tools, like mobile check deposits, Erica,® CashPro® and access to Zelle,® individuals and businesses are finding it easier to do their everyday banking. Across the country, the expertise of our specialists and our teammates in financial centers is helping clients meet all their financial needs at every stage of their lives.

In our communities, we continue to collaborate with local partners, business leaders, experts and academics across the public and private sectors to fuel job growth and financial stability. More than $400 million of our $1.25 billion commitment to advance racial equality and economic opportunity is already supporting diverse small businesses and partners, including many recipients here in Cleveland who provide job skilling and hiring programs.

We’ve also increased resources to support our teammates’ emotional and financial well-being. Recently, we raised our minimum hourly wage for U.S. employees to $21 per hour, moving closer to our goal of $25 by 2025.

My teammates and I look forward to growing existing partnerships and creating new ones as we work together to make a difference. Have a safe and happy holiday season.

What would you like the power to do? ®

Jeneen Marziani President, Bank of America Cleveland

Learn more at bankofamerica.com/cleveland

Zelle and the Zelle related marks are wholly owned by Early Warning Services, LLC and are used herein under license. Bank of America, the Bank of America logo, Erica® and CashPro® are registered trademarks of the Bank of America Corporation. Bank of America, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender © 2021 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.

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JEFF CULLITON

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President The Adcom Group

With a career ranging from advertising to technology startups, Jeff Culliton has a deep understanding of the relationship between data and creative messaging and the larger impact marketing can have.

The Adcom president leverages his view of marketing and communications skills to establish and grow his relationships, and he ties strategies to business outcomes to deliver measurable returns on investments for his clients, according to the nomination.

At Adcom, Culliton has led the acquisition of several enterprise accounts for the Cleveland marketing and advertising agency, while helping create its Outcomes Planning and Analytics practice areas.

“Jeff ’s track record and approach-

M

ability make him a go-to resource for marketing strategy in the Cleveland community,” the nomination stated.

A recent graduate of the Cleveland Leadership Center’s Bridge Builders program, Culliton is well-respected in the city’s business and civic community.

As a member of the American Heart Association, he’s raised funds for heart and stroke research and engaged new organizations and leaders with the mission. And at his alma mater, John Carroll University, he advises faculty and coaches soon-to-be graduates about the Cleveland job market and career opportunities.

— Lydia Coutré

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s C s y c t t d 2

t v A p m g n t v a d

MATTHEW GAUDIO Chief marketing officer Advizex

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Probably most marketing executives would tell you that the numbers are important — they’re the ultimate measurement in whether a campaign moved the needle in terms of sales.

But Matthew Gaudio might say it’s more a matter of the data. And for Gaudio, who comes to marketing from a technical background, the data has been looking pretty good.

At Advizex, the Cleveland information technology firm where Gaudio has been chief marketing officer since 2013, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) have increased 450% over three years while Gaudio implemented a new strategic plan. Meanwhile, the executive team of which he is a member returned an inflation-scoffing internal rate of return of 24.87%.

Gaudio has implemented many

changes credited with helping Advizex better combine its marketing and sales efforts, while signing up more than 40 partners over a two-year period.

But then, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Gaudio’s not reluctant to get into the basics of how things are done and sometimes change them. Since 2008, he’s been head of product innovation and chief of technology at a local audio technology company and national practice director for another Cleveland technical company.

Before 2008, he was getting even broader exposure and experience — he was vice president of technology for the Cleveland venture firm Morgenthaler, where Gaudio helped manage and guide 80 portfolio companies.

— Dan Shingler

JULIE GURNEY Director of marketing and client development Benesch

Benesch may be based in Cleveland, but it’s grown significantly across the country in the last couple of decades.

Its success story wouldn’t be quite the same without Julie Gurney, however.

Gurney joined the firm 16 years ago. The AmLaw 200 firm credits its director of marketing and client development with helping fuel the company’s growth into a global player in the legal services world.

Gurney leads an array of initiatives across the firm’s seven offices (which includes a Shanghai location). Her marketing and public relations efforts for the firm’s Chicago office that opened in 2015 helped that location grow from three attorneys to 80 through a series of lateral hires.

Gurney is behind a number of

new service areas that have been brought into the business, including its dental services organization and cannabis practices. Such work has helped the firm grow locally into the third-largest firm in Northeast Ohio.

At nearly 300 attorneys across all offices, the firm has grown its bench of attorneys by more than 76% in the past decade.

Amid the pandemic and a shift to remote work, Gurney launched a COVID-19 resource center for businesses facing data breach and privacy issues.

Her skills are why the Benesch marketing department earned a place among the “18 Business Development Badasses” for 2019 named by the BTI Consulting Group.

— Jeremy Nobile

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CAROLINE GUSCOTT

Marketing executive in transition

Marketing director Cleveland Museum of Art

In Caroline Guscott’s six-year tenure, the Cleveland Museum of Art set four of the highest yearly attendance records in its 105-year history — and was headed to a fifth when the pandemic hit in March of 2020.

During the museum’s closing that year, Guscott and her team developed the “Home Is Where the Art Is” marketing campaign, a nifty play on words that promoted the museum’s digital capabilities and grew its audience locally and internationally. The campaign helped the museum see an 86% increase in visitors to its online collection and an 18.1% increase in all social media engagement.

In June 2021, Guscott and her team were awarded the Public Relations Society of America’s Silver Anvil Award of Excellence for the campaign. “There is so much opportunity here,” Guscott said. “That’s what gets me excited all the time. There are so many ways to connect art with the world.”

She acknowledges that she and her team have to “keep the lights on.” The museum is free, but it needs to raise money to operate. To help facilitate that focus, Guscott helped transition CMA’s communications function into a strategic partnership within the museum’s operations.

— Pat McManamon

Caroline Guscott grew up making frequent treks with her family from Lakewood to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Guscott now works as marketing director at the venerated Cleveland institution, a job she calls a dream come true. — Pat McManamon ` Do you love art, or do you love marketing?

I love both. I remember going to the St. James library when I was in second grade, and I took out a book on Paul Gauguin. I remember my mother saying, "OK, that’s interesting." Well, my mom and dad encouraged my love of art and art history. As I was maturing and entering the workforce, I realized I had an interest in business and marketing and PR, and it was kind of one of those "ah ha" moments when I realized I could do that in a place that shared the story and history of art. At the museum, we’re open for inspiration. ` Is it difficult to market an art museum?

I think it has become easier with the advent of social media and everyone being connected digitally in some way.

You can tell more stories in different ways. You can approach exhibitions or collections or a work of art through different angles. You’re able to explore a lot more. And you can create content for key audiences you want to reach. ` Has the job changed greatly at a museum because of digital media?

The museum has a reputation for digital innovation. As our tools became more refined, so did our strategy. With digital, we’re really able to hone in, and we get results in real time. If it’s a message or artwork that people are grabbing onto, that tells us something.

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ourselves, "How are we talking about it?" Conservation is a good example.

People seem to really be excited when we share information about the conservation team and their role in the museum. We developed content with our team where we share information about what techniques they’re using, the pieces they’re working on, how they work with other departments.

We got a terrific response in terms of impressions and engagement. People loved these behind-the-scenes pieces of content. ` What are the challenges between balancing promotion and fundraising?

The museum is free, but we activate any revenue-generating opportunity to offset operating expenses.

Selling tickets to special exhibitions.

Memberships, because people can support the museum and get benefits.

We want to help further the global reputation of the museum, and we want to be here locally for the community. ` The Met in New York is now charging an admission fee. Is the future bright for the Cleveland Museum of Art? Absolutely. I believe that our leadership very much is passionate about the mission, which is creating transformative experiences through art for the benefit of all the people forever.

Art can affect all of us if we open ourselves to it.

In her five years with the Greater Cleveland Partnership as vice president for marketing and communications, Sarah Johnson’s work included a complete rebrand, a website redesign, and revised messaging with a new logo and graphics.

This followed rebrands she previously guided at Case Western Reserve University and worked on at the Cleveland Clinic.

Johnson, in the midst of transi-

tioning to a new job, also built a new marketing and events team at GCP and set up a new committee of Cleveland-area marketing and communications leaders to better amplify the city’s strengths.

Johnson was born in Liberia when her father worked in the government, and she toyed with the real possibility of pursuing a Broadway career (she won a regional acting competition while at Loyola University-Balti-

more).

She began her marketing career by working for both the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals.

She’s a founding member of the Diversity and Inclusion Council at GCP and is a longtime member of the Open Doors Academy board of directors. She guides an annual holiday Adopt-A-Family program, serves on two alumni boards and regularly volunteers at Moriah House, a crisis shelter for women and children.

two national industry awards in 2015: the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association Adrian Award and the U.S. Travel Association ESTO Destiny Award.

Jones, a boomerang resident who grew up in Shaker Heights, uses her personal journey and her 25 years of marketing experience working as an independent consultant with companies such as the Wrigley Co., ConAgra Foods and KeyBank to help guide Destination Cleveland’s evolution toward attracting out-of-

towners to permanently relocate to the area.

Jones is the receipient of the Sales and Marketing Executives of Cleveland’s Sales and Marketing Award, a Marshall Memorial Fellowship and the American Advertising Federation Industry — Cleveland Impact Award.

She sits on the LAND Studio board of trustees, the Karamu House board of directors, the Deaconess Foundation board of directors and the U.S. Travel Association’s Destinations Council advisory board.

tegic, data-driven decision-making that supports the Metroparks’ goals and initiatives and drives revenue. Research is part of the marketing department’s culture, with more than 40 projects annually.

Manderfield guided the Metroparks’ centennial campaign, the Time to Explore campaign and the rebrand of the zoo with a focus on wildlife conservation. The parks hosted a record 19.7 million recreational visitors in 2020.

That led to the Find Your Path cam-

paign, which encourages individuals to explore the 24,000-acre system. Included was the launching of the award-winning Metroparks mobile app.

The zoo’s Asian Lantern Festival draws more than 185,000 guests annually and is part of Manderfield’s focus on serving and attracting Northeast Ohio’s diverse communities. She also developed the Metroparks IDEA Committee, which seeks the best ways to address inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility.

keting department, where he eventually managed a marketing team for about 10 years.

Embrace Pet has experienced 50% growth each year since Rodgers joined the company in 2018. His work has included creating a user experience team and migrating content from the old website to the new and strategically improving web traffic.

Rodgers also furthers the compa-

ny’s philanthropic efforts by increasing Embrace’s impact on the community and emphasizing donation opportunities. And he advocates for its diversity initiative.

In addition to his work with Embrace, Rodgers is active in the community as a volunteer with the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, Make-A-Wish, the St. Martin de Porres Family Center and Ronald McDonald House Charities.

— Pat McManamon

COLETTE JONES Chief marketing officer Destination Cleveland

As the chief marketing officer of the organization tasked with promoting all of Greater Cleveland, Colette Jones has been at the helm for some of Destination Cleveland’s most popular campaigns.

During her time with the convention and visitors bureau, she was an integral part of the overhaul of the city’s “visitor brand,” including the creation of the ubiquitous tagline and hashtag #ThisIsCLE and the exceptionally popular Cleveland script signs. That effort received

— Kim Palmer

KELLY MANDERFIELD Chief marketing officer Cleveland Metroparks

Kelly Manderfield has the enviable duty of promoting one of Northeast Ohio’s jewels. Her work includes all marketing initiatives for 18 Cleveland Metroparks reservations, eight golf courses, dining, retail and the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. She and her team of 40 manage communications, advertising, research, special events, event rentals, corporate partnerships, retail and creative services, which completes 1,000 creative projects annually.

Manderfield’s work is driven by stra-

— Pat McManamon

DAVID RODGERS Vice president of marketing Embrace Pet Insurance

David Rodgers is skilled at recognizing what could be and making it happen.

He took a job as a forklift driver at ShurTech Brands (now known as Shurtape Technologies) while working toward his undergraduate degree at Baldwin Wallace University. Over 15 years, he worked his way up from forklift driver to sample room coordination and then trade show specialization before joining the mar-

— Leslie D. Green

52% OF MARKETERS EXPECT IN-PERSON EVENT INVESTMENT TO INCREASE IN 2022.

— Content Marketing Institute

obile

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ERIN RUDY Senior director of marketing MRI Software

CONGRATULATIONS SONYA AHOLA CRAIN’S 2 021 NOTABLE MARKETING EXECUTIVES

Empowering small businesses to succeed for generations. »

CLEVELAND

company that originally nominated her. She also has experience working for both a public company and in investment banking.

That means she has more than 10 years of experience in a variety of roles, including finance, marketing and communications, and product management.

Her bachelor's degree from Ohio University is in business administration and finance.

The nomination describes her as an executive who likes to roll up her sleeves and get to work tackling problems directly. It also notes she fosters collaboration with an open and effective communication style.

— Stan Bullard

MATT SEITZ Executive vice president of marketing C2P Enterprises

Matt Seitz joined C2P Enterprises in 2019 and has rapidly made a mark at the Westlake-based financial services holding company.

According to the nomination, Seitz has developed and collaborated on several key processes for financial advisers in the C2P network, including survey management, referral utilization and marketing planning. He also helped advisers leverage their digital marketing efforts during the pandemic and serves on C2P’s MentorConnect portal, “providing marketing leadership to advisors, where he is currently the #1 requested mentor,” C2P art director Rob Gosh said in the nomination.

In addition, Seitz recently spearheaded a branding initiative for the entire enterprise and, as sales lead, ushered in the largest revenue quarter in company’s history. He is concurrently chief marketing officer for JL Smith, an independent financial planning business owned by C2P

» AHOLA.COM » (800) 727-2849

CRAIN’S

As a member of MRI Software's newly formed mergers and acquisitions strategy and corporate standards team, Erin Rudy works with team members to complete due diligence, go-to-market planning and marketing activities.

As MRI is an acquisitive company doing at least five deals annually to bring new acquisitions into the fold for the provider of a broad suite of real estate software and broaden the company's reach around the globe, that's a big undertaking.

She is noted for using data to shape marketing strategies that increase engagement for the company and its new acquisitions. She joined MRI in October 2021 after spending four years at TRG, a Westlake holding

Tap into Cleveland.

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founder Jason Smith. There, Seitz helped transition the firm from in-person to virtual seminars, “bringing in some of its largest clients to date,” Gosh wrote, and employed data-driven analytics to streamline the marketing-to-sales process, “increasing conversion rates and cutting down the sales cycle by over 50%.”

Seitz is an author and speaker on a variety of marketing and business development topics and is active in several nonprofits, including Junior Achievement, the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission and the Make-AWish Foundation — where he was Northeast Ohio Volunteer of the Year in 2010. He also participates in the Conquer Chiari Walk Across America, as a Chiari malformation survivor, and joined the Walk to End Alzheimer’s this year in recognition of his mother’s diagnosis.

— Judy Stringer

RENEE SINGLETON President and CEO Singleton & Partners

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Renee Singleton is a pioneer in more ways than one. Almost two decades ago, she founded Singleton & Partners, the first multicultural marketing firm in Northeast Ohio. Before starting her own company, Singleton was the general sales manager for radio station WZAK, the first African American in that position in local radio.

Since its founding in 2002, Singleton & Partners has worked with public health agencies — most recently the Ohio Department of Health and other state agencies to create messaging around COVID-19 — to help reach underserved or hard-to-reach communities.

Outside of major health systems and public health agencies, Singleton & Partners has created marketing and communication strategies for cli-

ents including Cuyahoga Community College, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and the Ohio Lottery.

Singleton continues her pioneering ways. In 2018, she bought a 7,000-squarefoot building in the Superior Arts District near Cleveland State University to house not only her agency Singleton & Partners but also a new creation — S&P Work Lab. The coworking space features a production facility with state-of-the-art audio and video equipment for content creators.

Among the many recognitions Singleton has received throughout her career, she was a 2020 Crain's Woman of Note for her professional and civic achievements.

— Elizabeth McIntyre

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Congratulations

MELISSA SKINNER Vice president of marketing Great Day Improvements

As vice president of marketing for Great Day Improvements LLC in Macedonia, Melissa Skinner oversees everything from media planning and buying to digital and the company’s customer contact center, ensuring that Great Day delivers “onbrand, customer-focused messaging throughout all touchpoints,” the nomination said.

Prior to joining Great Day in 2011, Skinner worked at such companies as Dots LLC and Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores, giving her a variety of experience in consumer marketing.

She’s “an adaptable self-starter and problem-solver with integrity and confidence,” the nomination said.

Great Day is known for its brands

like Patio Enclosures and Stanek Windows. The nomination noted that Skinner’s work had helped lead to the growth that Great Day has seen in recent years, including a 340% increase in patio enclosure projects and a 188% increase in replacement windows since 2018. And in just the past 12 months, Skinner and her team grew the company’s qualified leads by 66%.

“Melissa’s drive and roll-up-yoursleeves approach is the fuel for her success, but it is her genuine optimism, integrity and kindness that makes her a great leader,” the nomination said.

MICHAEL WILSON The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank is grateful for Michael Wilson’s 11 years of service to our community.

Receiving the Notable Marketing Executive award is well-deserved and we’re so proud to call him a Foodbanker.

— Rachel Abbey McCafferty

MATTHEW SMITH

MICHAEL WILSON

Chief marketing officer

Director, Marketing & Communications Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank

JACK Entertainment

One of many strengths listed on the nomination form for Matthew Smith: His ability to bring to life a vision for what his employers can become.

Smith has done just that with JACK Entertainment through varying initiatives and focuses. Among them: Developing a JACK Entertainment brand refresh, with a philosophy that emphasizes community and social responsibility; building two new marketing teams within the same company for operations in Detroit and Cleveland; improving direct response marketing through customer modeling and machine learning, and new technologies that led the transition to digital marketing. The result: Market share grew by triple digits, according to the nomination.

Smith also made an effort to focus on the community with significant donations of food to the Cleveland Food Bank, and he raised more than $5,000 for the Cleveland Hope Lodge in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month via various initiatives, including selling pink drinks. Smith joined JACK in 2015 and rose from vice president of database marketing to senior vice president of marketing before being named chief marketing officer.

When asked by Cleveland Magazine for its “Cleveland 500” edition who has inspired him, Smith quoted his father: “Even a janitor can find creativity in sweeping a floor.”

— Pat McManamon

HALF OF MARKETERS SAY IT’S BECOME INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT TO CAPTURE THEIR AUDIENCE’S ATTENTION. — Content Marketing Institute

RULA STAMATIS Vice president of customer experience

THE

LAND SCAPE

A CRAIN’S CLEVELAND PODCAST WITH DAN POLLETTA

CONGRATULATIONS, WILLIAM WINANS, on being named a Notable Marketing Executive.

Kichler Lighting

Over the years, Rula Stamatis has contributed to the bottom line of iconic regional brands including Smucker’s, Dirt Devil and Glidden. She now brings her marketing skills to Kichler via a needs-centric approach that raises the bar for how the company sells to customers.

Under Stamatis’ leadership, Kichler saw a 194% increase in website visitors. Additionally, the lighting firm’s influencer engagement went from nearly nonexistent to reaching 12 million-plus potential followers annually.

According to the nomination, the company was challenged to connect with key customers during the pandemic. In response, Stamatis and her team created “Lighting the Way Forward,” an immersive, inter-

active experience featuring live presentations, breakout sessions and even a virtual food court with real-time ordering from Grubhub.

“Instead of waiting to engage, Rula and her team wanted to create a meaningful, resonant and innovative experience to wow customers,” the nomination said. “The program also served as a way to launch Kichler products, allowing attendees to interact with products in virtual showrooms. Attendance was strong, with an abundance of positive feedback about the technology, content and new products.”

A Westlake resident, Stamatis enjoys yoga, traveling, walks and trying new restaurants.

Thank you for your creative vision and compelling storytelling in service of those in need as our Vice President of Brand Strategy and Chief Communications Officer.

— Douglas J. Guth DECEMBER 20, 2021 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 15

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JULIE TUTKOVICS Executive vice president, chief marketing and communications officer Huntington National Bank

Julie Tutkovics believes that the strength of a brand is rooted in the belief in it from colleagues and their ability to deliver the brand consistently. Huntingon’s “Welcome” brand success shows in the many customer service awards the bank receives. Huntington’s “Reinventing Banking” campaign that highlights how money can be demystified by technology and information is the highest-scoring campaign in Huntington’s history.

Tutkovics was recognized by American Banker in October 2021 as one of the Most Powerful Women in Banking; the honor came in part for her role in helping to launch Huntington’s $20 billion community plan focused on social equity, af-

Cleveland Metroparks would like to congratulate Chief Marketing Officer Kelly Manderfield and her fellow Notable Marketing Executives.

fordable housing and food insecurity.

Tutkovics also served as the bank’s leader in Huntington’s recent integration of TCF Bank; her previous experience in mergers came when First Merit merged with Huntington.

In addition, she led the bank’s COVID-19 response and is executive sponsor of Huntington’s Hispanic Business Resources Group that supports the Latino community. She is a board member and leader of Destination Cleveland's sales and marketing committee and is on the board of the Footpath Foundation, which helps underprivileged and minority children experience the outdoors.

— Pat McManamon

MICHAEL WILSON Marketing and communications director Sleepy Hollow Golf Course

Cleveland Metroparks Zoo

North Chagrin Reservation

Download the mobile app at clevelandmetroparks.com/app ©Registered trademark of Cleveland Metroparks.

NOMINATION DEADLINE:

JAN. 5

NOMINATIONS OPEN | CrainsCleveland.com/Nominate

CONGRATULATIONS

RULA on your well deserved recognition From the team at Kichler

Rula Stamatis Vice President, Customer Experience

Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank

Michael Wilson led marketing efforts for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank through one of the most challenging times in the nonprofit’s 39-year history, according to nominator Katie Carver Reed, the food bank’s network partners and programs director.

During the pandemic, Carver Reed noted, Wilson balanced marketing activities related to the launch of the food bank’s capital campaign and the construction of a new facility in downtown Canton with “crisis communications related to pandemic response.”

“Michael stepped into action documenting the struggles and generosity of this community,” she said.

“He worked long hours and did whatever it took to publicize how community members in need of food could access it.”

A Houston native, Wilson came to Ohio to attend the College of Wooster, where he earned a bachelor’s degree

in sociology. He joined the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank in May 2010. In 2011, Wilson initiated the creation of CORE, a growing group of young professionals interested in expanding their professional network while helping those struggling with hunger. He also played an integral role in the food bank’s selection as a Feeding America Foodbank of the Year in 2012.

Outside the office, Wilson is active in Torchbearers, where he served as a board member from 2013 to 2018 and as president in 2017. He received a 30 for the Future award from the Greater Akron Chamber in 2013, was named the food bank’s Employee of the Year in 2013, and was recognized as a Distinguished Sales and Marketing awardee by Sales and Marketing Executives International of Akron in 2014.

— Judy Stringer

FOR 2022, MORE THAN HALF EXPECT MORE SPENDING IN VIDEO, EVENTS, OWNED-MEDIA ASSETS AND PAID MEDIA. — Content Marketing Institute

WILLIAM WINANS Vice president of brand strategy and chief communications officer United Way of Greater Cleveland

Since joining the United Way of Greater Cleveland in April 2018, Bill Winans has improved awareness of the nonprofit’s mission to alleviate poverty and create economic, housing and health equity. He also increased digital engagement 332% and media coverage 165%. As a result, online donations rose more than 600% to an average of $365 from an average of $60.

Winans accomplished these goals through his skill as a storyteller and by developing partnerships with media, the Cleveland branch of the NAACP and other organizations.

In addition to helping the United

Way CEO craft messages on combating systemic racism and the generational poverty it creates, Winans put his education in fine arts to work as executive producer of “Decision Points.” The film not only showcases the life of a single mother but also busts myths about low-income families.

Winans studied painting and filmmaking at the Cleveland Institute of Art and Pennsylvania State University. Prior to United Way, he worked for University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital, Progressive Corp. and Swagelok.

— Leslie D. Green

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12/16/2021 12:02:13 PM

When you spend your days making a difference, people notice. Huntington congratulates Julie Tutkovics for being recognized as one of Crain’s Cleveland Business’ Notable Marketing Executives for 2021. Whether it's welcoming new colleagues, helping to create products that reinvent banking, or exhibiting unwavering confidence in uncertain times, you truly live our purpose of looking out for people every single day. Thank you for inspiring us to do the same for our customers, colleagues, and communities.

Member FDIC. ⬢®, Huntington® and ⬢ Huntington. Welcome.® are federally registered service marks of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated. ©2021 Huntington Bancshares Incorporated.

DIVIDE

From Page 1

increased, she said. Federal investments have increased, too. And communities are working to try to close the gap.

“We’ve gained a lot,” she said.

“We’ve also learned a lot of lessons.

And I think those lessons are important in how we think about this all moving forward.”

One big lesson was in how important the “human side” is to closing the digital divide, Siefer said. Just passing out hotspots isn’t enough; offering the necessary training, the technical support and the digital literacy education opportunities is critical.

“WE’VE GAINED A LOT. WE’VE ALSO LEARNED A LOT OF LESSONS. AND I THINK THOSE LESSONS ARE IMPORTANT IN HOW WE THINK ABOUT THIS ALL MOVING FORWARD.” — Angela Siefer, founder and executive director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance

The early days of the pandemic were about getting people the equipment they needed to close the gap quickly, said Jill Rizika, president and CEO of Towards Employment. To that end, the Cleveland-based workforce development organization built up a Chromebook and hotspot library.

Connectivity is still a challenge for many, Rizika said, but that has been eased some as public spaces like libraries opened back up.

But it became apparent that digital literacy was a hurdle, too. Towards Employment added more formal training in that space, including in digital etiquette as job interviews and jobs themselves become more virtual.

Organizations need to help people “find those bridges across the digital divide,” said Dorothy Baunach, chief executive of DigitalC. The connection is important, but so is being able to use it.

From March of 2020 to March of 2021, nonprofit internet provider DigitalC grew from about 80 customers to 800, Baunach said. In the next three to five years, she expects that customer base to grow to up to 40,000 as the organization scales up.

Much of that growth will be thanks to the Mandel and Myers foundations. In July, the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Supporting Foundation and the David and Inez Myers Foundation announced significant funding — $15 million from Mandel and another $5 million from the combined foundations — to support DigitalC. The funding was to not only scale up the technology, but also its adoption. The organizations wanted to see DigitalC providing connectivity, as well as wraparound services like training and technical support, Baunach said.

On the connectivity side, growth taught DigitalC that it needed to change its approach.

As the organization worked to provide internet access to more communities in Cleveland this year, its leaders realized that it would need to use more kinds of technology. It began with what Baunach calls a “fiber ring in the sky,” a line-of-sight technology used across the world. But Cleveland’s tree cover — and the materials

used in some of its oldest buildings, like brick and stone — meant that particular technology’s reach was limited. Now the organization is pursuing a “multi-tiered technology strategy,” Baunach said.

Ultimately, the technology is just “a small piece of the puzzle,” Baunach said.

“It enables it,” she said. “But it’s the big lift on the empowerment side that’s going to take us working more and more closely together.”

Take, for example, the Greater Cleveland Digital Navigators program launched this past year.

There are voucher programs available for people who may struggle to afford at-home internet access, and Cleveland had done an OK job using word-of-mouth to raise awareness of them, said Leon Wilson, chief of digital innovation and chief information officer at the Cleveland Foundation.

The Digital Navigators program walks residents through the different options, helping them find the best plan for their household, giving suggestions on where to get affordable technology and directing them toward digital literacy training options.

The hotline is staffed by members of the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, the local public library systems and more, Wilson said.

Siefer said helping people navigate different internet access options is important. After all, “free internet sounds like a scam,” she said.

Communities will need to continue paying for digital literacy like this going forward. The federal government is making an “incredible down payment” with broadband subsidies and the infrastructure bill, but these funding sources aren’t long-term solutions, Siefer said. And as technology continues to change, training will have to change with it.

Siefer said the next big challenge in closing the digital divide will be figuring out how to best use the federal dollars at hand. It’s going to require collaboration, understanding the assets already in play and the gaps still to close.

Much of that funding is going to states, so the goal for cities like Cleveland will be to make sure that urban areas, not just rural, are included in those plans, Wilson said.

And working together once those dollars are dispersed will be critical, but challenging, because “everybody has a solution,” Wilson said, from nonprofits to advocacy groups to for-profit service providers.

In general, there’s a lot of passion out there, and a lot of people who “want to do good,” he said, but not all the ideas have been vetted. There’s not a cohesive vision for closing the digital divide. The city and surrounding suburbs need to work together to identify the best solutions for the region, he said.

Baunach thinks the time is right for change. The money is there for the infrastructure, but the community has to work together to help people close those gaps.

“And that’s a heavy lift,” she said.

“It’s all hands on deck from the community. If we work together, we can do this.”

The digital divide won’t be solved by one individual or organization. It’s too big, too broad for that, with wide-reaching impacts on everything from education to health care to job opportunities. But the focus and the passion of those working on it today could make a big impact for the future.

Rachel Abbey McCafferty: (216) 771-5379, rmccafferty@crain.com

EmpowerCLE+ college interns sign up residents for digital literacy training, devices and broadband service in October 2020. | DIGITALC

DigitalC’s director of technology Rolando Alvarez makes adjustments on a broadband radio tower on Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority’s Scranton Castle. | DIGITALC

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December 20, 2021

THOUGHT LEADER FORUM

ECONOMIC OUTLOOK A LOOK AT 2022: OPPORTUNITY AND CHALLENGE IN EQUAL MEASURE From the chaotic turmoil of 2020, the global marketplace cautiously stepped into a growth year in 2021; as vaccination rates rose, businesses launched recovery plans and economic activity slowly returned to pre-pandemic levels.

Although COVID continues to be a public health concern — especially in parts of the world where vaccination rates lag behind industrialized nations — the economic damage it wreaked in 2020 is starting to be reversed.

Here are a few of the factors under consideration by economic forecasters as they look ahead to 2022:

A LOOK AT THE GLOBAL MARKET IN 2022 • The recovery in late 2021 has been strong but not entirely consistent. Inflation remains a concern going into 2022, but the recovery seen this year is expected to continue.

• The global GDP has returned to its pre-pandemic high water mark and experts anticipate that expansion will carry into 2022.

Emerging markets and the Omicron COVID variant are unknown quantities at this point.

• Developments in the global workforce, an investment landscape transformed by evolving digital technology and steadily improving productivity are among the factors driving GDP growth into 2022.

• The economic recovery in emerging markets throughout the globe is especially sporadic and difficult to predict as COVID cases continue to fluctuate.

• Automation both in goods-producing and service industries will likely increase, possibly catalyzed by shortages in the labor market. Artificial intelligence and machine learning will continue to enable new technologies such as voice assistants and autonomous driving.

COMPILED BY CONNER HOWARD, CRAIN’S CONTENT STUDIO-CLEVELAND

THE DANGER OF INFLATION As COVID-induced restrictions eased in 2021, it was expected that inflation would be a relatively light and short-lived side effect of economies reasserting themselves after the early phases of the pandemic. In reality, inflation has proven to be a stubborn factor that may require longer-term policy solutions. Some forecasters are confident that commodity prices will stabilize in 2022 and put fears of inflation to rest, but only time will tell.

Regardless of the role inflation will play in the coming year, investors are advised to seek out companies that demonstrate pricing power and dividend growth.

Wealth managers forecast more potent economic growth in the 2020s than the 2010s

Head of investments | J.P. Morgan Private BankGroup 216-781-2597 John Arrowsmith is Head of Investments for J.P. Morgan Private Bank across Ohio. J.P. Morgan Private Bank provides customized financial advice to help wealthy clients and their families achieve their goals.

T

he global crisis has shifted policymaker priorities, solidified household and corporate balance sheets and embedded innovation. 2021 provided some clarity — economies proved resilient and markets were resurgent — after the confusion of 2020.

As the New Year approaches, there are certainly risks to be managed, including inflation, labor shortages and a persistent global pandemic.

But fundamentally, we are optimistic. We see a strong foundation for a vibrant cycle ahead.

POLICYMAKER PRIORITIES ARE SHIFTING, FISCAL SUPPORT TARGETS NEW GOALS NOW THAT THE EMERGENCY IS OVER As this is written, President Biden’s “Build

Back Better” agenda would spur spending on physical infrastructure, research and development in technology (e.g., robotics, artificial intelligence and biotechnology), subsidize domestic semiconductor manufacturing and support development of clean technology. Other measures addressing education, childcare, and supply chains could deliver some positive long-term economic benefits.

Higher taxes will pay for some of the costs of these policies. Personal tax rates for higherincome families are likely to rise, making asset structuring and planning more critical. While the statutory corporate tax rate may stay the same, changes to global intangible income taxes and a corporate minimum tax will likely

In 2021, as economic activity ticked back up after the shocking recession of 2020, demand outstripped the global infrastructure necessary to fill orders for everything from microchips and raw materials to consumer goods. Ports and shipping avenues impacted by COVID-related safety measures exacerbated things further.

Economic signs indicate supply catching up with demand and supply chain mechanisms returning to pre-pandemic levels of function in 2022, barring additional disasters.

SOURCES: S&P GLOBAL RATINGS, THE CONFERENCE BOARD GLOBAL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK, FORBES.COM, THE ECONOMIST, CAPITAL GROUP

Outlook for 2022: a vibrant cycle on the horizon JOHN ARROWSMITH

BREAKS IN THE CHAIN

be a drag on earnings. However, corporate tax changes will probably not be enough to offset the earnings growth we expect from sales and operating leverage. We also do not expect the higher tax rates, currently proposed, to curtail business investment.

HOUSEHOLDS TO SPEND, CORPORATES TO BENEFIT The aggressive policy response to the pandemic prevented a self-reinforcing downturn and supported household and corporate balance sheets. Looking ahead, we see continued financial strength for both.

Household net worth is at all-time highs, debt service payments are at all-time lows and consumer sentiment has room to recover.

Across the developed world, household savings are elevated. U.S. consumers saved almost $2.5 trillion in excess of the pre-pandemic trend.

This is in stark contrast to the post–global financial crisis experience, wherein falling home values and lower equity prices damaged household wealth.

rate is at the highest level in the series’ history back to 2000, suggesting robust demand for labor. Broadly, wages are up 4% to 5% year-over-year, the strongest pace since the mid-2000s. Given this starting point, we expect U.S. consumers to drive demand and economic growth to extend next year and beyond.

On the corporate side, earnings and margins are at all-time highs, investment grade credit spreads are at all-time lows and demand is strong. In the developed world, the financial sector seems solid and willing to lend. S&P 500 companies have translated approximately 6% global economic growth and 15% sales growth into 45% earnings growth in 2021. That operating leverage surprised investors and led to approximately 25% price appreciation for the index.

Before considering what changes might make the most sense for your portfolio, we recommend that you first take stock of how you’re currently positioned and confirm what your portfolio needs to do for you, your family and your community. As you consider our outlook on the New Year, remember that your own portfolio positioning should reflect a goals-based plan, investing framework and risk tolerance.

Jobs are plentiful and employers are paying a premium to attract workers. The U.S. quits

This advertising-supported section/feature is produced by Crain’s Content Studio-Cleveland, the marketing storytelling arm of Crain’s Cleveland Business. The Crain’s Cleveland Business newsroom is not involved in creating Crain’s Content Studio content.

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A renaissance in Fairfax South of the Cleveland Clinic’s main campus, Fairfax Renaissance Development Corp. and the city have become major landowners through foreclosure sales and discreet acquisitions.

Where Opportunity Corridor flows into East 105th Street, new houses are popping up in a several-block district known as Innovation Square.

At East 105th and Cedar Avenue, Fairmount Properties just broke ground for a 196-unit apartment building with a modest Meijer grocery store, called Fairfax Market, on the first floor.

To the south, McCormack Baron Salazar and Fairfax Renaissance ex-

Planned projects

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Opportunity Corridor 1. Meijer mixed-use building

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The city of Cleveland plans to build a new police headquarters on this property. Members of the Jackson administration believe that the project will boost perceptions of safety in the area and make businesses feel more comfortable investing along the Opportunity Corridor.

Weston Inc. plans to start construction in early 2022 on a 156,775-square-foot freezer building on this site, which the developer will purchase from the city of Cleveland.

The Orlando family will master-lease and operate the facility, where food producers and distributors will be able to lease space by the pallet.

Orlando Baking Co. expects to use 20% to 25% of the space.

pect to start construction on an 82unit, mixed-income apartment building in January. That building is part of the larger Innovation Square vision, a plan to add more than 470 homes over the next five years.

On the east side of East 105th, land-use plans call for a technology and research district called the New Economy Neighborhood, with offices and ground-floor commercial tenants.

“People see all of the vacant land and just think that it’s available and nobody’s paying attention when, in fact, that’s not true,” said Denise VanLeer, the community development corporation’s executive director.

VanLeer is cautious, reluctant to discuss other planned projects because of private real estate speculation. Her staff regularly fields inquiries about developments that they will not support, including self-storage facilities and fast-food restaurants.

With its proximity to the Clinic and University Circle, Fairfax would be seeing growth without the Opportunity Corridor, VanLeer acknowledged.

The health care giant and a slew of

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Premier Development Partners and the Abrams family are planning a 150,000 to 200,000-square-foot industrial building on this privately assembled site. They’re pitching the speculative project to a wide range of tenants, including food processors and food producers. Construction is likely to start in late spring of 2022.

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Fairmount Properties and a slew of partners broke ground Tuesday, Dec. 14, on this $52.8 million project, slated to open in 2023. The 196-unit apartment building will include a 40,000-square-foot Meijer store called Fairfax Market - the grocer’s first such project outside of its home state of Michigan.

2. Innovation Square - phase one

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The community development corporation has played a key role in buying up properties near East 75th and East 79th streets, in an area known as the core job zone. That footprint is where developer Weston Inc. plans to erect a 156,775-square-foot cold-storage building to capture growing demand from food producers and distributors.

Two additional projects — the city’s new police headquarters and a construction-training school — are slated for nearby blocks. Last week, city officials held a groundbreaking ceremony for the $107 million police complex, which is scheduled to open in 2026.

Across the street, a sign in front of Orlando Baking Co.’s Grand Avenue headquarters and production facility trumpets “Opportunity on the Corridor” — 30 job openings at a family-owned business that employs 336 people, almost half of them city residents.

When the company moved to the Kinsman neighborhood in 1979, Orlando was meant to be a catalyst for development in Cleveland’s socalled “forgotten triangle.” More than 40 years later, the market finally feels ripe to John Anthony Orlando, the president and CEO. “I definitely think Opportunity Corridor is going to give people accessibility to our place now. It’s easy to get to. Just having that road out front, it seems to be safer as well,” he said.

An Orlando affiliate will operate the new cold-storage facility. And the family is toying with the idea of opening an artisan bakery next door, on land reserved for retail under the city’s East 79th Street plan. The company also owns property east of its headquarters, where an expansion might be three to five years away.

Even boosters acknowledge that the corridor is not a panacea. A new road won’t change the landscape overnight in neighborhoods grappling with poverty, poor health and crime.

“I get it. It’s always going to be controversial,” said Deb Janik, senior vice president of major projects and real estate development at the Greater Cleveland Partnership.

“But we now have a chance to reconnect these neighborhoods to the interstate system,” she said. “It connected the two largest economic engines in our community, which are downtown Cleveland and University Circle. … And while it’s not a perfect reset, because nothing’s ever perfect, it does give us a chance as a community to reinvest in these neighborhoods — and to find solutions over the next 10 to 20 years.”

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From Page 1

OPPORTUNITY CORRIDOR: PROJECTS AND POTENTIAL SITES Development deals are percolating along the Opportunity Corridor, a long-planned 3-mile boulevard that opened in November. This map shows confirmed projects and sites that could be part of a second wave of investments.

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8. Project Boron phase two

6. Construction Opportunity Institute of Cleveland In early December, Cleveland City Council signed off on a leasepurchase deal that gives control of this land to Norm Edwards and Fred Perkins, who aim to open a construction-training school along East 79th Street. Athletic fields and other related facilities could rise on the eastern end of the site. Facing opposition, the men scrapped their vision of building an asphalt plant and a concrete plant on the property.

‘The tip of the iceberg’ Offering swift freeway access and proximity to workers and public transit, the boulevard also is changing the outlook for older industrial sites.

Along East 55th Street, southwest of where I-490 meets the Opportunity Corridor, the Abrams family is

3. Former ODOT land The Ohio Department of Transportation deeded this land, acquired as part of the Opportunity Corridor project, to the city in November. Other parcels in the area could be in play.

4. Victoreen site Cushman and Wakefield-Cresco Real Estate is marketing this vacant land, owned by the city of Cleveland and Cleveland Neighborhood Progress.

The brokerage saw swift interest from industrial developers.

5. Potential Miceli expansion Miceli Dairy Products Co. owns this property near its headquarters and has been talking for years about a potential expansion.

SOURCE: CITY OF CLEVELAND; GREATER CLEVELAND PARTNERSHIP; TEAM NEO; BURTEN, BELL, CARR DEVELOPMENT INC.; FAIRFAX RENAISSANCE DEVELOPMENT CORP.; CRAIN’S RESEARCH.

Weston Inc. has an option agreement to buy this land from the city of Cleveland. The East 79th Street frontage is reserved for eventual retail development, while the southern portion of the site will enable Weston to expand its cold-storage complex by 105,000 square feet.

partners, including the state, have committed hundreds of millions of dollars to the Cleveland Innovation District, a decade-long push to boost research capacity in the region and create 20,000 jobs, some of them in Fairfax.

But the new, 35-mile-per-hour boulevard is accelerating investments, even though that’s not necessarily clear yet to passing motorists.

“People don’t understand that development takes time,” VanLeer said.

Adam Fishman, a principal with Orange-based Fairmount Properties, said the road was a pivotal factor in the company’s decision to develop the Fairfax Market project, on land owned by Fairfax Renaissance and the Clinic.

“I think it really matters,” Fishman said. “I know it really matters.”

Fairfax Renaissance Development Corp. and housing developer McCormack Baron Salazar are preparing to break ground on a mixed-income apartment building that will be the first phase of a larger reinvestment project called Innovation Square.

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e h d P a t t working with Premier Development Partners to re-imagine 10.9 acres.

The partners plan to knock down aging buildings and replace them with modern space — a 150,000- to 200,000-square-foot industrial building aimed at food-related tenants or distribution users.

Shaw Abrams said his father operated a scrap yard in the area for years and gradually bought up nearby buildings, leased to an eclectic mix of tenants including a bookbindery. In June, the family and Premier paid just over $1 million for a property in the middle of the site, according to public records.

Construction on the speculative project could start in the spring, putting the new building on schedule to open by early 2023, said Spencer Pisczak, Premier’s president.

“The ability to be near downtown, but not in downtown Cleveland, and to be near University Circle, but not in University Circle, is huge,” said Pisczak, who believes planners ought to find ways to extend Opportunity Corridor east, into East Cleveland and north toward Interstate 90.

“I think this should be the tip of the iceberg,” he said.

In mid-October, Cushman and Wakefield-Cresco Real Estate listed a 9.5-acre property for sale on Woodland Avenue, on a slope overlooking Cuyahoga County’s Juvenile Justice Center. The land, owned by the city and nonprofit group Cleveland Neighborhood Progress, swiftly drew two offers from industrial developers, said Eliot Kijewski, a Cresco senior vice president.

He predicted the property will change hands during the first half of 2022.

“Years ago, we made a decision under the mayor’s leadership and direction to embark on a significant land-assembly project. ... Now that the corridor’s complete, I think we’re starting to see payoff on that strategy,” said David Ebersole, the city’s economic development director.

The next opportunity The city has yet to roll out a corridor marketing and branding plan developed by Neoscape, a creative agency with a stable of real estate-industry clients.

Continued on page 21

20 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | DECEMBER 20, 2021

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Cold-storage deal highlights hunger for freezer space

BY MICHELLE JARBOE

The partners behind an unusual cold-storage complex on Cleveland’s Opportunity Corridor believe they’ll fill the building before it even opens.

The roughly $30 million project, the brainchild of Orlando Baking Co., will sit south of the company’s longtime headquarters in the Kinsman neighborhood. But Orlando expects to use only 20% to 25% of the space for its own products — and to rent out the rest to other businesses.

Known in industry circles as a public refrigerated warehouse, the 156,775-square-foot facility is on the drawing board at a moment of surging hunger for cold storage.

The pandemic, supply-chain upheaval and the growth of e-commerce are shining a spotlight on a sector where the typical building is sorely outdated, at 42 years old, according to the JLL real estate brokerage.

“The U.S. has over 330 million people needing food, and as the population continues to rise, the demand for cold storage will follow trend,” researchers at JLL wrote in an autumn 2020 report on post-pandemic prospects for the industry. “With limited cold storage facilities, it is next to impossible to accommodate the population right now.”

Weston Inc., based in Warrensville Heights, is the developer of the Cleveland project, to be designed and built by ARCO National Construction. An Orlando affiliate called Cleveland Cold Storage LLC will master-lease and operate the facility, renting space by the pallet to other companies.

John Anthony Orlando, the bakery’s president and CEO, said he has reached out to local food producers including Miceli Dairy Products Co., on East 90th Street, and Pierre’s Ice Cream Co., in Midtown. But he doesn’t have any letters of intent from tenants — yet.

“We’ve been talking about adding a freezer onto our facility for probably 10 years,” said Orlando, who started renting storage in Columbus four years ago after realizing there were no buildings in Northeast Ohio that could meet his company’s needs.

What began as a plan for Orlando’s expansion turned into a much larger project, one that could grow to 261,775 square feet on roughly 12 acres, based on tenant demand.

Weston has a deal to buy that land from the city of Cleveland, which worked with nonprofits to assemble the property as part of a broader economic-development plan.

“If we can get phase one up and running, we would like to believe phase two would be shortly thereafter,” said T.J. Asher, president of Weston’s acquisitions and development group.

A 2014 study by Bush Consulting Group identified opportunities to add jobs and boost the local economy by investing in regional food producers and the infrastructure to support them. At that time, food manufacturing was a $4.3 billion industry in Northeast Ohio,

employing 34,000 people.

The Cleveland Cold Storage warehouse will enable tenants to more efficiently store products and take advantage of pooled deliveries that cut down on shipping costs, said Nick Pacitti, a Hudson-based consultant working with Orlando. A supply-chain expert who has worked for Kraft Heinz Co. and Nestlé, Pacitti is pitching the project to manufacturers, distributors and other potential occupants.

Pacitti heard about Orlando’s plight a few years ago, in a moment of serendipity, from an Uber driver who was taking him to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.

Since then, he and Howard Lichtig, a vice president with the CBRE Group Inc. brokerage, have helped the family-run business search for development sites.

The JLL brokerage predicts a wave of speculative construction of cold-storage space and a shift toward more urban locations — if developers can find industrial land that’s close to highways.

That’s a huge hurdle in many major cities.

“What’s really unique about Cleveland Cold Storage is it’s going to support and accommodate urban logistics,” Pacitti said.

The city’s asking price for the site, spanning more than 15 acres including a strip of retail frontage along East 79th Street, is $805,500, according to public records. But the deal also involves public incentives to offset some of the developer’s costs.

David Ebersole, the city’s economic development director, expects that $3 million will flow to the project from a $10 million Opportunity Corridor fund earmarked by JobsOhio, the state’s private, nonprofit economic development corporation. That money will assist with site preparations, cleanup and demolition, he said.

The city also is offering tax-increment financing, an arrangement that will plow a portion of new property-tax revenues from the complex back into the project.

Ebersole said the building will be a springboard for additional development along Opportunity Corridor and will help reverse a competitive challenge for the city.

“Now, all of a sudden, not only are businesses more comfortable expanding in the market because they can access that space locally, but … people in Columbus or Detroit or Toledo, they’re going to be shipping their stuff to Cleveland, versus us shipping our stuff down there,” he said.

CJ Follini, an entrepreneur and alternative asset investor, said the Cleveland project seems “phenomenally prescient.” Based in New York, Follini is obsessed with the need to build smaller, colder facilities closer to population centers, through deals such as partial cold-storage conversions of underutilized parking garages.

“This is the first instance I’ve seen of a government … recognizing this hidden need,” he said. “I actually believe Cleveland is being a thought leader.”

Top: Crews demolished dozens of buildings to clear the way for the Opportunity Corridor. But a few empty structures, like the onetime Pavco building near Buckeye Road, still flank the boulevard. Above: The Opportunity Corridor is surrounded by vacant property, including many lots owned by the city of Cleveland’s land bank. Now developers are taking note. | MICHELLE JARBOE/CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

From page 20

land assembly — though the process is never easy, said Tracey Nichols, a former city economic development director who is working as a consultant on several private projects along the corridor.

“Cleveland has a huge opportunity right now to take some of these well-lo-

cated, contaminated properties and turn them around to create new jobs,” she said. “And more than ever, companies want to be closer to cities because they need workers.”

Janik, at the Greater Cleveland Partnership, drew parallels between the corridor and the bus-centric makeover of Euclid Avenue between downtown and University Circle, which has spurred billions of dollars of development since it opened in 2008.

One difference, of course, is that Euclid was lined with buildings, many of them historic. Land near the Opportunity Corridor is largely a blank slate.

“People told me that the Euclid Corridor was an absolute boondoggle that should have never been funded and would never result in any economic development. It’s not true. It’s not true,” Janik said. “We have to show the same commitment now. And be more equitable. And be more inclusive. And be more engaging. And figure out the right way to leverage it.”

“We’re trying to make sure that our narrative is accessible to everyone, from the resident who lives in the Buckeye, Woodland, Central neighMichelle Jarboe: michelle.jarboe@ borhoods to the out-of-state developcrain.com, (216) 771-5437, @mjarboe er who is kind of parachuting in,” C R A I N ’ S C L E V E L A N D B U S I N E S S | S E P T E M B E R 3 - 9 , 2 018 | PA G E 21 Ebersole said.

Promotional materials could debut early next year, though it’s unclear Advertising Section how the city’s approach to Opportunity Corridor might shift under a new administration. A spokeswoman for Mayor-elect Justin Bibb, set to take office Jan. 3, deferred to Mayor Frank Jackson’s team on questions about projects and land-use priorities.

Willis, at Burten, Bell, Carr, hopes to see a shift to more proactive market- To place your listing in Crain’s Cleveland Classifieds, ing. Leaders at economic-development groups including Team NEO contact Ainsley Burgess at 313-446-0455 and the Fund for Our Economic Future said the community needs a betor email ainsley.burgess@crain.com ter understanding of what sites are in play.

“Ideally, there won’t be six maps,” said Bethia Burke, the fund’s president. “There will be more of a shared approach to attracting and growing businesses along the corridor.”

The fund, which provided philanthropic money for land acquisition near the road, has questioned whether the police headquarters and the nonprofit Construction Opportunity ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING Institute of Cleveland are the best uses for large sites. Cleveland City Council approved a lease-purchase land deal for the school in early December.

With new state programs available to pay for site clean-up and demolition, there are resources to continue

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Paul Mucha, CPA, CCIFP, joins Apple Growth Partners as the director of client accounting and business services (CABS). Paul is a graduate of Malone University and has 14 years of accounting experience, most recently as a manager. In addition to his CPA license, Paul is a QuickBooks Certified Pro Advisor and a Certified Construction Industry Financial Professional (CCIFP).

We are happy to announce that Nate Serrano has joined Ancora as a Vice President and Commodity Analyst on the Alternatives team. Prior to joining Ancora, Nate worked in commodity procurement organizations, first at The J.M. Smucker Co. and later at Flowers Foods, where he had procurement and risk management responsibilities in categories such as edible oils, energy and protein meals. Nate earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance with a minor in Political Science from Ashland University.

Minc Law is proud to announce the addition of attorney Caroline Ford. Previously serving as a clerk, Caroline has been trained by the firm in the niche field of defamation law. Caroline has successfully obtained a variety of removals for her clients to date, including revenge porn posts, fake business reviews, and libelous content posted on social media platforms. She has also identified anonymous posters publishing false statements about her clients and has assisted in obtaining judgements.

Elchanan G. Stern joins Ulmer as an associate in the firm’s Business Litigation Practice Group. He works to resolve complex business disputes with a particular focus on protecting the interests of health care clients involved in commercial litigation.

He previously served as an Assistant Prosecutor for the Ashtabula County Prosecutor’s Office and has experience with all aspects of the litigation process. He earned his law degree with honors from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.

Cleveland Water Alliance welcomes Beth Allison to their Board of Directors.

Beth is the Director of Marketing at Kinetico, and previously led product, segment, and eCommerce marketing at Moen. Beth has a Bachelor of Arts in Business and International Marketing from Miami University and is passionate about water innovation projects. Beth looks forward to leveraging her marketing and water background to drive awareness and engagement surrounding CWA’s collaborative and innovative work.

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She also spent time at another financial institution managing the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and fair lending program.

Gallagher Sharp is pleased to announce the addition of Associate Grace M. Karam. As a member of the firm’s Professional Liability and Business & Employment Practice Groups, Grace defends lawyers and other professionals against claims of malpractice and errors and omissions, as well as businesses against employer liability. Grace received her law degree, magna cum laude, from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, and her undergraduate degree from The Ohio State University.

Minc Law is proud to announce the addition of attorneys Michael Pelagalli and Christina Williams.

Michael represents Pelagalli large corporations, execu-tives, medical professionals, small businesses, and individuals in a variety of defamation matters.

His proven track record of success in and out of the courtroom is demonstrated by numerous favorable jury trial verdicts, Williams six-figure settlements, and successful petitions for injunctive or other equitable relief he’s achieved.

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Fifth Third Bank Fifth Third Bank has named Ron Cordaro as Vice President, Commercial Relationship Manager. In this role, Ron is responsible for driving the Bank’s growth in the commercial middle market space within Northeast Ohio. He has more than 12 years of commercial banking experience and most recently was a partner in a business serving the long-term care industry. Ron received a bachelor’s degree in finance from Case Western Reserve University and a master’s degree in business administration from Cleveland State University.

Mansour Gavin LPA Kenneth Callahan has been appointed

by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine to serve as one of five judges on the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.

Callahan possesses over 30 years of legal experience as a public defender, a judge, and attorney, specializing in a wide array of legal matters including complex commercial litigation, receivership, guardianship, and white-collar criminal defense.

His vast experience and perspective are highly regarded and leveraged as an arbitrator serving as a private judge.

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REAL ESTATE

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ESPN Cleveland ESPN Cleveland announced Amy Crossman as new Market Manager, where she will oversee the brand’s content, marketing, and sales. She will succeed Sam Pines, who will take on a larger role as Senior Vice President within Good Karma Brands, the company which owns ESPN Cleveland. Amy joined ESPN Cleveland in 2019 as Marketing Director after building her career in New York, leading media initiatives at esteemed publishers including Time, Inc., The New York Times, Crain’s New York Business, and more.

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IRG Realty Advisors is pleased to announce the promotion of Anthony Smith to Senior Vice President, Controller. Smith has been with IRGRA for over ten years and continues to perform at a high level and elevate in all of his roles. In his previous role as Controller of Property Accounting, he managed one of the largest departments at IRGRA and dealt with massive change, growth, and sophistication within his area. He has enhanced the service level to our clients in the following areas: budgeting, forecasting, account reconciliations, tax planning, reporting, and external audits.

Smith earned the client’s trust and appreciation partly due to his vast knowledge and understanding of the entire portfolio of assets managed by IRGRA.

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SEPTEMBER 2022

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Executive editor Elizabeth McIntyre (216) 771-5358 or emcintyre@crain.com Group publisher Jim Kirk (312) 397-5503 or jkirk@crain.com Associate publisher Amy Ann Stoessel (216) 771-5155 or astoessel@crain.com Managing editor Scott Suttell (216) 771-5227 or ssuttell@crain.com Assistant managing editor John Kappes (216) 771-5359 or john.kappes@crain.com Web editor Damon Sims (216) 771-5279 or dpsims@crain.com Assistant editor Rachel Abbey McCafferty (216) 771-5379 or rmccafferty@crain.com Art director Kayla Byler (614) 312-7635 or kayla.byler@crain.com Senior data editor Chuck Soder (216) 771-5374 or csoder@crain.com Cartoonist Rich Williams REPORTERS

Stan Bullard, senior reporter, Real estate/ construction. (216) 771-5228 or sbullard@crain.com Lydia Coutré, Health care/nonprofits.

(216) 771-5479 or lcoutre@crain.com Michelle Jarboe, Enterprise reporter.

(216) 771-5437 or michelle.jarboe@crain.com Amy Morona, Higher education.

(216) 771-5229 or amy.morona@crain.com Jay Miller, Government.

(216) 771-5362 or jmiller@crain.com Jeremy Nobile, Finance/legal/beer/cannabis.

(216) 771-5255 or jnobile@crain.com Kim Palmer, Government.

(216) 771-5384 or kpalmer@crain.com Joe Scalzo, Sports business.

(216) 771-5256 or joe.scalzo@crain.com Dan Shingler, Energy/steel/auto/Akron.

(216) 771-5290 or dshingler@crain.com ADVERTISING

Events manager Erin Bechler, (216) 771-5388 or ebechler@crain.com Integrated marketing manager Cody Smith, (330) 419-1078 or cody.smith@crain.com Sales manager Mara Broderick, (917) 612-8414 or mara.broderick@crain.com Sales and marketing coordinator Shannon Smith, (440) 281-6397 or shannon.smith@crain.com Account executives Laura Kulber Mintz, Loren Breen, Kaylie West People on the Move manager Debora Stein, (917) 226-5470, dstein@crain.com Pre-press and digital production Craig L. Mackey Office coordinator Karen Friedman Media services manager Nicole Spell Billing YahNica Crawford Credit Thomas Hanovich

Industry experts will examine some of the top issues facing health care.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

OCTOBER 2022

Crain’s Cleveland Business is published by Crain Communications Inc. Chairman Keith E. Crain Vice chairman Mary Kay Crain CEO KC Crain Senior executive VP Chris Crain Secretary Lexie Crain Armstrong Chief Financial Officer Robert Recchia G.D. Crain Jr. Founder (1885-1973) Mrs. G.D. Crain Jr. Chairman (1911-1996)

NOVEMBER 2022

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Crain’s journalists and local real estate experts will share their perspectives on the future of Cleveland’s real estate market and the economy in this morning panel discussion.

A celebration to honor Northeast Ohio's best and brightest professionals who are scaling businesses to new heights, making decisions that put their organizations on the map and producing a stream of impactful work.

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Volume 42, Number 46 Crain’s Cleveland Business (ISSN 0197-2375) is published weekly, except no issue on 1/4/21, combined issues on 5/24/21, 6/28/21, 8/30/21, 11/22/21, at 700 West St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113-1230.

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