after a night of fighting under the stars, SI names this song #12 in the greatest sports musical playlist ever

After a great night of boxing downtown under the stars...


here is a link to the Sports Illustrated top sports songs of all time.

from Warren Zevon's 1987 album, "Sentimental Hygiene"



props to Vinny.

is it time to stop widening exurban roads like Western Reserve?

"just say NO."

Nancy Reagan taught us well.

And this same mentality can be applied to the practice of local government spending local dollars on adding more and more lanes to existing roads.

More lanes mean more future money needed to maintain them.

More lanes mean exacerbating sprawl even with a shrinking population.

More lanes mean turning existing commercial areas into emptiness.

But are the points above the right perspective?



While one of the local newspapers reads: "[Western Reserve Road] which is 10 feet wide on each side, will be widened to 12 feet on each side and will have 4-foot paved shoulders," I've heard from others just how nice it would be if Western Reserve Road was additionally widened to four lanes.

Maybe now is the time to question the wisdom of expanding more and more streets in what used to be the exurbs. (now increasingly the suburbs)

some questions:

When money is taken from the general fund (which it is) to widen roads, does that result in existing roads in your neighborhood not being maintained?

When the labor and time of county employees is used to widen roads, does that mean your issues compete with road widening?

When a two-lane country road becomes a four-lane dragstrip, does that make the situation more of less safe?

When the government subsidizes sprawl in a region that is shrinking, do your personal property values go down?

When these roads are built and the grocery stores and shops move, are you going to have to drive further and further just take care of basic necessities?

- - -

what do you think?

Youngstown's 2011 Free Outdoor Movie Fest starts this Monday

At dusk on Monday June 20 begins the 2011 series of outdoor movies in downtown Youngstown.

This year's lineup begins with "Despicable Me" and as always, drinks and snacks and popcorn will be provided by The Purple Cat and the Touch the Moon Candy Saloon.





The rest of the summer movies in 2011 are:
* June 20th - Despicable Me (PG, 2010)
* June 27th - Iron Man 2 (PG-13, 2010)
* July 11th - Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (G, 1971)
* July 18th - Next Three Days (PG-13, 2010)
* July 25th - How to Train Your Dragon (PG, 2010)
* August 1st - The Social Network (PG-13, 2010)
* August 8th - Rango (PG, 2011)
* August 15th - Rebel Without a Cause (PG-13, 1955)
* August 22nd - Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (PG-13, 2010)
* August 29th - Toy Story 3 (G, 2010)

free movies
under the stars
in the grass
in downtown youngstown

youngstown's first pan-Slavic Fest to feature night disco, imports, other unique events

The first ever "Simply Slavic" fest kicks off this Saturday June 18 in downtown youngstown, celebrating the collective traditions of 12 countries across central and eastern europe.

A unique twist to cap off the day's festivities, there will be a EURO DISCO from 9pm to midnight with contemporary music from these countries, led by local DJ talent. Five types of imported slavic beers will be served throughout the festival.

Check out video 1, video 2, and video 3 for more information (good interviews and content).

Besides the disco, the Simply Slavic Festival will include starting at noon:
- ethnic foods from 12 churches of various nationalities
- baking contest, with winning entries to be raffled off
- Polka bands throughout, with folk dancing between sets
- a huge map of europe to mark your family origins
- discounts to the new OH WOW childrens science museum
- every person upon entry gets one ticket to the raffle of ethnic crafts
- a marketplace for ethnic crafts and sundries


a special flight of import beers will be available for $10, sampling beverages from 5 different countries...

- Pilsner Urquell (Czech Republic)
- Zlaty Bazant (Slovakia)
- Tyskie (Poland)
- Karlovacko (Croatia)
- Obolon (Ukraine)

and, they've got Slivovica, the magic elixir of life - in both Serbian and Croatian varieties


a few volunteers are still needed as of Friday because of last-minute needs to fence off the whole festival, resulting in having to reassign existing volunteers.

If you can help during the day (asking for one hour slots or more, from 12pm to 8pm) and want a free t-shirt, please respond in the comments section below as the organizers need some help!

the bus systems is free - all day Thursday - "dump the pump" day

Who remembers this commercial for WRTA?



Now, replay the video and sign along at the top of your lungs.

Seriously.

Do it.

It feels good.

- - -

Thursday June 16 is national "Dump the Pump" day, and the Western Reserve Transit Authority (WRTA) is pitching in, with the county-wide bus system available FOR FREE all day.

The coupon to ride free is in local newspapers and is available here as well.

All the coupons from people who "dump the pump" on Thursday will be put into a drawing. There will be five 15 ride passes awarded and three 31 day passes awarded.

Click here to see how close the bus comes to your house.

free summer concert series begins Wednesday at Morley Pavilion near Rocky Ridge

Westsiders will be walking over, others will be driving over to Morley Pavilion for the beginning of the summer concert series.

With all concerts starting at 7pm, the music type will shift from week to week.

For example, this Wednesday's concert kicks off with local music talent Sarah Turner (country)



Then the big concert of the season is this Saturday June 18, the Atlanta Rhythm Section:



The rest of the dates:
June 15 - Sarah Turner - Country
June 18 - ATLANTA RHYTHM SECTION - National Recording Artists
June 22 - Canfield Community Concert Band - Concert
June 29 - Del Sinchak & Jack Vasko - Polka
July 6 - Ryan Humbert Band - Americana/Pop/Rock
July 13 - Don Burns - Big Band
July 20 - Going for the One - YES tribute
July 27 - The HouseBand - Rock/Dance
July 31 - The Sensations - Sunday, 5pm to 8pm - Motown/R&B
August 3 - HeartBEAT Afrika - Street percussionAfrican drumming
August 10 - The Juke Hounds - Blues/Rock/Soul
August 17 - Easy Street - Standards/Show Tunes
August 24 - Hey Mavis - Modern Old-timey
August 31 - Michael Austin - Jazz

the city with a cowlick: new map shows Youngstown's boundary adjustments in 2010

On November 17, 1913 the area of land known as Youngstown Township ceased to effectively exist as the township was annexed into the City of Youngstown.

In the 97 years that followed, the western boundary of Youngstown was one straight shot along Meridian Road from Trumbull County down to Boardman and Canfield townships.

Similarly, almost all of the City of Youngstown is to the south of Gypsy Lane, with the exception of North Side Hospital, Stambaugh golf course, and additional industrial lands near the Crab Creek - north of Gypsy but actually in Trumbull County.

In 2010 however, the boundaries changed, albeit slightly, in the name of economic development.

Here is the new map, which now has a funky border in its northwest area, bound to slightly change the coloring of future maps online and in print:


and a zoomed in picture:


Why the slight changes?

In one case, now a bit of Youngstown for the first time rests to the west of Meridian Road. It's 6.4 acres of undeveloped land where Phantom Fireworks will be constructing a new store.

In the other case, about 190 acres of industrial space was transferred from Girard to Youngstown for part of the V&M Steel Tubing manufacturing facility, good direct foreign investment in the Mahoning Valley from a company headquartered in Paris France.

In both cases, successfully completing economic development projects where local jobs will be created was the impetus.

Bottom line, cooperation = economic development = future abilities for all of the Mahoning Valley to market itself.

incubator company Via680 partners with city for public input on future signage downtown

do you have opinions on the signage needed in downtown youngstown?

The YBI-portfolio company Via680 has partnered with the City of Youngstown's Office of Economic Development to develop media-rich tool to collect the opinions of the public.

Click here to watch the video and share your opinions.
The whole process took me 6 minutes.

Please provide advice and they'll listen.


Via680 (the artist formerly known as BIzVeo) produces software that allows the user to send emails maximized with video, embedded questions, and track answers.

what are the applications?

Let's say you're a hospital and you need to make sure your patient is ready for surgery. With Via680's product, you can craft instructions for the patient, ask them questions, receive their input and even post-surgery questions as they recover from home.

Let's say you're a local butcher and you are looking to engage your clients. With Via680s product, you can share cooking videos, recipes, and questions of the specials of the week.

Let's say you are managing a project for work, and need to make sure all of your employees not only listen to information, but also if they understand it. With Via680's product, you can track what employees have opened your email, and by the voting process inside the email, you can quiz what employees actually understand the information.

- - -

All three of the above examples are taking place right now.

The company, Via680, is headquartered in downtown youngstown (inside I-680), partnering with local hospitals and business (just off I-680), and is expanding their reach around the globe (way beyond I-680).

Now Via680's product is helping to advance the civic space.

Watch their video about signage options, and vote on the what you'd like to see downtown.

450+ volunteers planted, digged, and mulched thoughout the city Saturday

In addition to print-based stories in the local media (such as this good story from the Business-Journal), it's interesting to see the contributions from various other sources to provide context and deeper visual imagery.

Check out this video of re-imagining the "triangle lot" near the Golden Dawn on the north side near the intersection of Wick and Logan:



Here's a link to the new Defend Youngstown YouTube channel, where one can subscribe these grassroots four-minute videos as they are produced...



Here's a recap from the new blog from DownForce Imaging (link to new blog)

Photos from the Youngstown CityScape website...

le terroir of Youngstown ... city-produced and foraged foods to be highlighted Thursday

Exciting steps are being taken in the Mahoning Valley to further strengthen the relationships between local growers and local restaurants.

The Lake2River Food Cooperative is getting off the ground, to be established at Youngstown's food business incubator on the north side.

This Thursday, May 19th at 6pm, there will be a culinary feast at the First Unitarian Universalist Church near Wick Park, with proceeds going to the start-up funding needs of the food cooperative.

Along with some beer and wine, the $35 ticket will present a menu prepared by local chefs, with all dishes incorporating local seasonal grown and foraged foods. (includes gluten-free and raw vegan options)

CHECK OUT THIS MENU >>>>

With the exception of the olives, dates and chocolate in the menu below, ALL of the food at the event will be produced/raised/foraged from within the City of Youngstown and surrounding counties.

You can taste on Thursday night:
- kimchi dumplings
- grilled local May asparagus
- watercress soup shooters with crème fraiche
- fresh spring rolls with ohio carrots and radishes
- bruschetta with mushrooms (Morel mushrooms foraged in Youngstown's Idora neighborhood, Oyster and Shiitake mushrooms grown near pittsburgh, and ramps/wild garlic foraged in Columbiana county)
- charcuterie of 5 varied meats: including duck, salami, copa, lomo ... all cured in pittsburgh
- ohio apples, pennsylvania blue cheese and cheddar
- Lucky Penny goat cheese
- Fresh chèvre with medjool dates
- Miller's Farm grass-fed sirloin skewers
- Tofu skewers
- Lamppost Farm's chicken, in indian-spiced lettuce wraps
- strawberry rhubarb squares
- chocolate farmed and produced in Madagascar
- jasmine tea with ice cubes embedded with foraged violets

Welcome to the food culture of Youngstown!


tickets can be rsvp'ed from 2 sources:

Adam Lee
adamlee49 (at) gmail (dot) com

Pat Rosenthal
Common Wealth
phone 330.744.2667 ext 17

by the numbers: Youngstown City Population Stats by Ward, 1980-2010

Since the results of the 2010 Census have come out, stories in the press have centered on the City of Youngstown's shrinking population, now standing at 67,000 residents.

But what about the population figures per ward of the city?

With the recent release of population statistics per census block group and census tract, the populations in each of the city's seven wards in 2010 is available as well.

Here's the compiled data for each of Wards 1 to 7 in 1980, 1990, 2000 and 2010:


For each of those years, the geographic boundaries of the wards have not changed.

Here is a graph of the raw data, showing the population per ward over those thirty years:


Over that same time period, here is the change in the ratio of each ward's population compared to the entire City of Youngstown's population.



some interesting observations from the data:

- Youngstown's (city) population has declined 42% from 115,500 in 1980 to 67,000 in 2010.

- Losing the most population from 1980 to 2010 are the First Wards and the Sixth Wards, both having more than 50% losses.

- Losing the least population from 1980 to 2010 are the Fourth Wards and the Seventh Wards, both having less than 30% losses.

- The least populous ward in 1980 had more people than the most populous ward in 2000.

- Similarly, the least populous ward in 1990 had more people than the most populous ward in 2010.

- In 2010 the Sixth Ward contained 10.8% of the city's population. In 2010, the Fourth Ward contained 18.1% of the city's population. This is getting close to a 2:1 ratio of residents inside each ward when comparing the two jurisdictions.

The conclusion:

Each ward in the city is losing population, but the rate of change per ward has created substantial population inequalities between them.

new First National Bank sign dominates the Youngstown skyline

Workers on Saturday installed the new signage top the Metropolitan Tower (art deco - the tallest) in downtown youngstown.

The sign is massive, almost 6 feet in height and 87 feet in length.

It is definitely readable with the naked eye from the top of the Ward Bakery Building - about a mile from downtown.



First National Bank (headquartered in nearby Hermitage PA) sold their own building, the 224 foot 16-story Metropolitan Tower to Lou Frangos in 2007 (link to press release), shifting itself from the owner to a tenant.

reintroducing The Bridge

amazing video about The Bridge Movement with great story and beautiful imagery:



The vibe in the short from DeKorda captures being on the ground in Youngstown:
- people settling from across the u.s./world
- people discovering the depth of activities that exist here
- people enjoying other people

more shots from around downtown...



here are more beautiful/amazing shorts from SIO Productions:

This one of Ohio Downhill Skating is just fantastic.



Kudos to those with the talents to put these together...

so, exactly what types of products are being made in the Youngstown Business Incubator?

this video shows the products of three of the YBI's growing companies:


All of these companies are locate in the Tech Block, with their physical addresses on downtown youngstown's main street.

Actually, it's a pretty good intro into the software being developed on-site, with Youngstown's world-class talent.

The Bridge presents tonight "Skateistan: To Live and Skate in Kabul" [Afghanistan] and skating-themed local shorts

tonight, on Saturday March 19th, the same crew that brought you this fantastic video of skateboarding in downtown youngstown...



... will be showcasing a series of skating films and video clips and music at The Oakland.

Kicking off at 7pm, the event tonight will feature the following film about skateboarding in the war-torn street of Kabul, Afghanistan.



The film seems to hit on many aspects with a broad interest: urban life, skateboarding, religious conflict with modernity, and hope in a place where outsiders cry there is no hope.

Facebook site for the event here.

Admission $5

@ The Oakland on Boardman Street in downtown youngstown.

behind the grid - a recap of youngstown's first crossword puzzle tournament

I remember cramping up in the third round.

It was during the Tulsa Crossword Shootout of 1987.

In my 37 years of professionally judging crossword puzzle tournaments, it was the first time hitting what us athletes call "the wall."

And there, my friends, is a lesson I'd like to share as you continue your crossword-puzzle ways:

always. stay. hydrated.

- - -

Youngstown's first ever crossword puzzle tournament was actually a pretty darn cool event.

First off, it was a great mix of pure enjoyment and fun competition. Enough competition where it was tense in the finals, but relaxed enough that it was not intimidating.

Second, the event raised money for the entire county's library system. A good cause for sure.

Third, the snacks were spectacular.

How spectacular?

Well, how about this amazingly beautiful and just delicious crossword-themed buttercream cake from Clarencedale Cakes:



This was followed by the WORLD'S FIRST crossword-themed Youngstown-style cookie table.

Did you know oreos are the official cookie of crossword puzzle tournaments? (black and white, and the word is often in puzzles)

I bet the national crossword tournament doesn't even have a spread like this...




About the tournament itself...

participants sat in their own walled off spaces, yet could view the clock up front.


each round had a day-of-the-week puzzle fresh from editor Will Shortz at the New York Times.

round one (Monday puzzle) - 15 minutes to complete
round two (Tuesday puzzle) - 20 minutes to complete
round three (Wednesday puzzle) - 20 minutes to complete


in between each round, every puzzle is judged by an esteemed panel, checking for accuracy and time to complete.


Both factors, time to complete and accuracy, are blended together to make the score for the round which was posted (I have a good picture of the scores taped to the door of the library, but the competitors and scores will remain a secret).

It was amazing to see a handful of people complete the puzzle in just 5 minutes.

Wow.

These judges were very professional.

Here are the hands of one tireless judge . . . strong, yet tender.


Some judges had special knit grading puzzle cozies to keep their answers warm and secret:


Outside, irish step dancing serenaded the puzzle contestants:


Finally, we get to the final round.

The top three finishers went to the front of the room (after the ceremonial cake was cut by the ceremonial blade) to compete on the Thursday-level puzzle on dry erase boards in front of the audience.




I could not believe how ingenious this puzzle was. Stretched across the middle bar was "its all greek to me", signifying something special in the puzzle.

Turns out there were actually four greek letters one HAD to imbed in the puzzle to make it work.

An example:

70A. What players don't have to travel far for:
answer: HΩME

57D. Difference between the rich and the poor:
answer: INCΩP

so H(Ω)ME = H(OME GA)ME = HOME GAME
and INC(Ω)P = INC(OME GA)P = INCOME GAP

unbelievable!

three more of those little betties were embedded in the puzzle.

- - -

Overall, the event was a big success, looking to grow for next year.

If you missed the event and want to support the library;s fundraising efforts, you can click here to donate.

Finally, the outstanding Business-Journal newspaper profiled the competition in a great article here.

high speed rail and train transportation - new time, new place Youngstown's All Aboard Ohio meeting

- - - NEWS FLASH - - -

new early evening time, new location

March 10, 2011
Thursday 6:00pm
@ The MVR in downtown youngstown (MVR map)

In order to accommodate more citizens in learning and getting involved about local passenger rail efforts, the local branch of the All Aboard Ohio train advocacy group will be having its monthly meetings on Thursdays in the early evening. (changing from 12pm on the 16th floor of the Metropolitan Tower downtown)

Your next opportunity to explore the group's efforts will be this Thursday!



While The Guv may have scuttled the Cleveland - Columbus - Cincinnati corridor and its awarded $400 million in federal funds, plans are still ongoing in multiple states with linking President Obama's home of Chicago to points on the east coast.

And trains need to flow between Lake Erie and the mountains, which perhaps places Youngstown along the route.

While the 3C Corridor may be dead, efforts of planning are ongoing to establish the piece of the Cleveland-Youngstown-Pittsburgh in the high-speed rail connection.

Why not stop by and listen?
Good food,
Good ideas,
Trying to improve the quality of life in the Valley.

thank god for organ donors...

With the finishing touches being applied to the $1.4 million restoration of the Opus 582 in downtown youngstown's Stambaugh Auditorium, the engineering marvel from 1926 is attracting music talent from around the world.


The restored organ with its 3,847 pipes (I've also read 3,905 pipes) and hand-crafted wood panels and metal ornaments seems quite at home at the irreplaceable Stambaugh Auditorium.


From its inside...

the concert hall:


the marble room:


the grand ballroom:


(previous three photos from Stambaugh Auditorium's website)
(more interior and exterior photos here)

according to this article in the Business-Journal, a $750,000 grant was provided by the Joseph G. Bradley Charitable Foundation to aid in the reconstruction.


More great information on the refurbishing can be found on the wytv website here.

More video telling the tale here (before) and here (after)...

- - -

The operational skinner joins such other venerable organs downtown like the "Mighty Moeller" at Trinity United Medodist and its 5,000 pipes (link).



one wonders, with all the dozens of theaters and churches in downtown youngstown (past and present), what is the organ-per-capita density compared to other U.S. cities?

one week till Youngstown's first crossword puzzle tournament: a fundraiser for the library

Saturday March 12th will be the date for the first-ever Youngstown Crossword Puzzle Tournament.

I stink at crosswords, unable to complete even the Monday crossword in the New York Times. (did you know nytimes crosswords increase in difficulty by the day in the week?)

Yet I will be there on Saturday as well . . . cause it sounds like fun, and the small $10 registration fee goes to a good cause - to assist programs at The Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County. (www.libraryvisit.org)

Plus, when someone asks me what I did over the weekend, I can say I participated in a crossword tournament, gaining the love and adoration of my co-workers and friends.

The 1st Youngstown Crossword Puzzle Tournament will include:

- four spanking new puzzles provided by Will Shortz, puzzle editor of the nytimes

- the world's first crossword-themed Youngstown Cookie Table

- a special crossword cake by the pastry chefs Clarencedale Cakes

- an individualized mini-crossword cake for the grand winner

- an extra secret prize, you'll for sure be telling your friends about

Most importantly, the $10 registration fee will be your donation to the Public Library System of Youngstown and Mahoning County, which does so many wonderful things for the the community, as highlighted in this video:



Looking to Sign Up for the fun event?
WALK-UP REGISTRATION or CLICK HERE.

Can't make it to the event and want to support our efforts?
DONATE HERE



more info is available on the Tournament's Facebook Page.

The tournament will feature three rounds of doing puzzles individually and scored for fun (20 minutes each round for a Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday puzzle), and the top three contestants will advance to a final round and the grand prizes.

note:
The Tournament is from 10am to 1pm on Saturday, March 12th
at the Poland Library (bottom floor near the cafe) in the southeast suburb of Poland, Ohio

A pre-event interactive session will take place from 11am to 12pm this Saturday, March 5th
at the Boardman Library in the southern suburb of Boardman, Ohio
highlighting free crossword puzzle tips for those looking to improve their skills

This tournament benefits the Library System of the entire county!

A nice way for the region to help a great regional organization.

- - -

If you love your library, come out next Saturday or make a donation...

Govering magazine strikes again - headlining Youngstown to successful state-based economic development within comprehensive article

"In the shadow of the iconic 1919 Home Savings and Loan Company building downtown, a managed cluster of high-tech startups is injecting new energy into the city.

It’s the Youngstown Business Incubator (YBI), a nonprofit corporation, and it’s not only redefining the industry of this hardscrabble valley on the eastern edge of Ohio; it’s changing the notion of what cities and states can do to spur innovation and investment. "

continuing...

"Now more than ever, states are playing the part of venture capitalist -- and despite the recession, it turns out they’re uniquely suited for the role.

As the recession froze private-sector investment, venture capital firms began avoiding early-stage deals, saving their money for less risky, later stages of development. That created a void.

Governments began to realize they could fill the gap by providing seed money to new startups in all sorts of emerging industries, from biotech and health care to nanotechnology and solar power."

and ending...

"“This is a city that essentially was dying,” says the SSTI’s Berglund. “And they’ve taken a really innovative approach with their incubator program.”

While some may consider it a waste of taxpayer money to heap funds on luring high-tech firms to the Rust Belt, Cossler says Ohio’s venture capital investment is critical.

And, he says, it’s not even all that different from the industry that built Youngstown in the first place. “If you reduce software to a common denominator, it’s a steel company,” he says. “You’re taking raw materials and blending them together to create a value-added product. It’s all manufacturing.”"

click here to read the whole story.