Issuu

House bill could let APRNs prescribe. PAGE 10

Healthy child blog now a nonprofit space. PAGE 12

CRAINSCLEVELAND.COM I February 17, 2020

BEER

RENOVATING FOR MODERN TIMES Great Lakes Brewing Co.’s largest-ever revamp reflects a competitive landscape BBY JEREMY NOBILE

Beyond marking the next chapter for a storied local company, the largest renovation to date at Ohio’s oldest continuously operating craft brewery is also a sign of the times for the craft beer business. Great Lakes Brewing Co. last week unveiled a slew of upgrades at its Ohio City restaurant/brewhouse that collectively reflect a redesign in the business concept that’s tailored to draw customers in an increasingly competitive market. There is still plenty of space for sitdown dining — there’s a virtually net-neutral impact to total bar and table seating — but some areas, like the eco-friendly Beer Garden, have been tweaked to appeal to a more casual crowd interested in drinks, quick bites and hanging out. Longtime fans need not worry, though. The changes are meant to highlight the charm and heritage of the business, not pave over it. It starts with the new entrance, now marked by large, restored double doors that date back to the building’s 19th-century heritage. Six pounds of paint were sanded off the doors, which hadn’t been used in decades. Some of the buildings on Market Avenue were originally stables and storage for the Leonard Schlather Brewing Co. Just inside the entrance is an original grain scale that still works. See GLBC on Page 18

Jim Hess works on lighting at Great Lakes Brewing Co.’s Ohio City brewhouse. | KEN BLAZE FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

MANUFACTURING

REAL ESTATE

Company’s gains far exceed its low profile Feud erupts at potential Sherwin-Williams also is credited for being upfront with shareholders Sherwin-Williams HQ site BBY JAY MILLER

Contrary to the beige image it has cultivated in Northeast Ohio over decades, watching The Sherwin-Williams Co. is not at all as boring as watching paint dry for its shareholders and the home improvement industry. In the coatings industry, it places gold or silver worldwide in most key

categories, and it excels in the favorite color of the financial community — green. It’s an innovator in its industry and it has been adding dozens of retail stores a year, bringing its total to more than 4,700 stores at a time when most retailers are pulling back their brick-and-mortar presence. But until Sherwin-Williams stepped into the spotlight earlier this month,

NEWSPAPER

when it announced its plan to spend $600 million to erase an eyesore parking lot on Cleveland’s Public Square with a new corporate headquarters and consolidate its research and development at a new center in Brecksville, the company has assiduously cultivated a low-key, “nothing to see here” profile around town. The company ranks No. 2 in the world among paint and coatings manufacturers behind Pittsburgh-based PPG Industries Inc. by both PCI and Coatings World magazines. Sherwin-Williams is the larger company overall, in part because of its sale of brushes and other painting supplies through its stores, but PPG’s coatings-only business — among its paint brands are PPG, Glidden and Dulix — is bigger. See S-W on Page 18

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BBY STAN BULLARD

The only structure standing amid the sea of parking lots near Cleveland’s Public Square that is earmarked for the proposed headquarters of Sherwin-Williams Co. is the subject of a court fight. An affiliate of Stark Enterprises of Cleveland filed a foreclosure proceeding against the new owner of its five-floor former headquarters at 1350 W. Third St. on Thursday, Feb. 6, in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas. The suit is to collect on a $1.6 million demand note that the shopping center owner and developer and The Beacon apartments developer issued in December

2018 to the buyer of the building, an affiliate of Realife Real Estate of Fairview Park called 1350 W. 6th LLC. The note was filed as the structure changed hands Dec. 21, 2018, according to Cuyahoga County land records, which do not record a sale price directly for the property. Realife is led by Yaron Kandelker, an Israeli native who now makes his home in Cleveland and who has been rapidly accumulating commercial properties in Northeast Ohio. The practice of holding a note on a property sale is sometimes used as companies or individuals seek to move fast to close a deal. See STARK on Page 19

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In addition to winning a championship, selling out the arena for every game and aiding in building a $1.5 billion brand, LeBron James’ return helped the Cleveland Cavaliers compile one of the largest followings in professional sports. The Cavs have more than 24 million followers on social media, a total that ranks sixth among sports clubs in North America. That number has continued to grow, and the Cavs are attempting to capitalize on it via an NBA international marketing program that is in its first season. The program, which was approved last April, allows teams to work with up to two sponsors on marketing campaigns outside the U.S. and Canada. Domestically, teams can only participate on such campaigns within a 150-mile radius of their home arenas. The three-year test program is a spin-off 10/7/19 12:47 of PM sorts from a jersey patch sponsorship initiative that has proven to be “extremely valuable to the NBA,” Matt Wolf, a senior vice president of marketing and business for the league, told Crain’s. In Goodyear, which generated about 46% of its 2019 revenues outside of North and South America, the Cavs have a natural first partner for the international marketing program. The Akron-based tire and rubber manufacturer’s Wingfoot logo has been displayed on the front of the Cavs’ jerseys since the 2017-18 season. The multilayered partnership, at

as much as $10 million annually, is one of the Cavs’ largest. The new agreement with Goodyear isn’t finalized, but Cavs president of business operations Nic Barlage told Crain’s the deal will be “built into” the existing partnership. “We’ve been working a lot with the league and Goodyear on how we can keep pushing those boundaries and how we can grow the platform because it’s such a significant one for us,” Barlage said. Wolf said current partners have been a natural fit for the international marketing program, but clubs are also using it as a way to strike lucrative new deals. He cited NEC Corp., a Japanese company that became the Washington Wizards’ first international partner last October. The company was a logical target because of the presence of Rui Hachimura, a 6-foot-8 forward from Japan who was selected ninth overall by the Wizards in the 2019 draft.

‘Scalable’ campaigns The Cavs have had “multiple” conversations with potential partners for the other international marketing slot, Barlage said. Shelly Cayette, the club’s senior VP of global partnerships, said the Cavs are targeting Ohio-based companies that have international operations. They’re also looking for organizations that could align with the Cavs’ five international players: Matthew Dellavedova and Dante Exum (Aus-

Cedi Osman, who hails from Turkey, is one of five international players on the Cavs’ roster. | JASON MILLER/GETTY IMAGES

Global appeal 24 million-plus: The Cavs’ total following on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Weibo, YouTube and other social media platforms. 80 million: The Cavs’ total fans, according to the 2019 NBA International Fan Study. 14: Countries in which the study said the Cavs have one of the three largest followings. The group: Brazil, Colombia, France, India, Kenya, Senegal, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and Vietnam. Five: The Cavs’ NBA rank in followers on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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tralia), Tristan Thompson (Canada), Ante Zizic (Croatia) and Cedi Osman (Turkey). In Turkey, where Osman is the most popular NBA player aside from James, the Cavs have almost 3 million fans. Boosted by a partnership with Yunus Emre Institute, the team will celebrate Turkish Heritage Night against the Milwaukee Bucks on April 11. The theme night isn’t part of the international marketing program, but such events are annual examples of how teams can establish new partnerships via their expanded reach. Cayette said the Cavs have formed a task force that meets biweekly to discuss potential partners and best practices for the new international program. “How people do business in different cultures and countries is very different,” Cayette noted. “You can’t

have a blanket approach.” Much of the business side’s focus this season has been on the two-year renovation of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and celebrations associated with the franchise’s 50th season, Barlage said. The president of business operations expects the international marketing campaigns to “ramp up” this summer. Cayette, who is in charge of the Cavs’ global partnerships, said the team likely will work with outside agencies that can help them engage with potential sponsors. About six months after the international program started, a tweet by Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey that voiced support for protests in Hong Kong caused tensions with China. Basketball is the most popular sport in China, and the world’s most populous country is

home to Tencent, a streaming platform that has a $1.5 billion deal with the NBA. As the league has worked to repair that relationship, its clubs have struck more than a handful of deals with global partners for team branding that can appear in stores and on a sponsor’s social media channels. Goodyear is “collaborating with the Cavs on potential programs that align with our marketing and business initiatives in markets beyond the U.S.,” said Julianne Roberts, the company’s director of business communications for the Americas. Digital campaigns are the “most scalable,” especially in the early going, because teams and corporations can capitalize on the league’s huge international following, said Wolf, the NBA senior VP. About two-thirds of the league’s social media followers are from outside the U.S. The Cavs’ 24 million-plus followers includes a group that is the league’s fourth-largest on Weibo, a Chinese social platform. The five North American teams ahead of the Cavs in the social media rankings are all NBA clubs. If the field is narrowed to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, Cleveland ranks fifth with a combined following of 19.4 million. That figure is more DCA than Roofing3.5 Ad-1-20.indd million ahead of the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys. “It’s great to have followers, but to keep them engaged is more important to us,” Barlage said. “That’s why you’ve seen us dedicate the resources we’ve dedicated to digital and content production: because it’s what makes it sticky. Ultimately, it’s what allows you to get data, and the data allows you to really try to grow the business.”

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Matthews Real Estate Investment Services Inc.’s Cleveland office has grown so much that it’s about to expand to a new suite on the fifth floor of EY Tower, at 950 Main Ave. Even though the namesake founder of Matthews is Kyle Matthews, who is based in Los Angeles, he has a strong Cleveland connection as the son of Clay Matthews Jr., the former Cleveland Browns linebacker who was a star on the 1980s Kardiac Kids teams. He wore the colors from 1978 to 1993, and Kyle Matthews tells people that he grew up in Cleveland. However, the younger Matthews is known as a star in his own right, in investment real estate. The company is an offshoot of Matthews Retail Group, which he launched in 2008 and has since expanded into investment sales, investment debt, leasing and property management. He has closed more than 1,000 deals and won sales awards in stints with both Marcus & Millichap and Colliers International before opening his own investment shop. The Cleveland office is one of 10 offices and part of a company with 100 agents. The Cleveland office was launched in June 2018, when Ben Snyder joined the company as a senior vice president to oversee Midwest shopping center and retail property sales. He previously served as a vice president in transactions for DDR Corp., the Beachwood shopping center-focused real estate investment trust that's now known as Site Centers Corp. In that role, he handled more than $2 billion in transactions over four years.

Roth

Snyder

Fast-forward to last October, and the company added David Roth, previously vice president of investments at the Cleveland-based NRP Group multifamily concern, as an executive vice president and national director of the Matthews multifamily group. In that role, Roth is charged with building the institutional multifamily platform through recruitment, management and mentoring. While at NRP for a decade, Roth managed transactions across the country with a total value of more than $2 billion. He was so well regarded that J. David Heller, NRP co-founder and CEO, was quoted in a news release about the staffer going to a new job: “It’s not easy to lose someone with the level of talent and dedication that (Roth) has displayed during his time at NRP,” Heller wrote. “However, I am proud to see David Roth take the next big step in his career which will allow him to grow and find his own place as a leader both professionally and in the community.” Also signing on with Matthews at the same time as Roth was Alexander Ison, the former manager of investments at NRP, who joined the brokerage as its director of finance for multifamily. Another young heavyweight who

signed on to join Matthews and work with Roth in the multifamily practice is Robert Starrett, previously director of investments at Mid-America Management Corp., a Beachwood real estate ownership, management and brokerage concern. Prior to that, he was an asset manager at NRP and worked directly with Roth. He has managed more than $1 billion in investment deals and financing transactions during his career. Roth said he was attracted to Matthews because it allowed him the opportunity to join an organization near the ground floor. He added that its philosophy meshed with his own to make the right deal for the client’s interest and not just close a sale. Starrett said he joined Matthews because “it was too good an opportunity to pass up.” All told, the Matthews outpost here has grown to 10 staffers, which is prompting the move to EY Tower, which Snyder said will have room to accommodate the growth of the office to 20. At EY, the firm has agreed to lease 3,000 square feet, almost twice as much space as it occupies at the Caxton Building, 810 Huron Road, when it moves in April, Snyder said. Matthews clearly focuses on the top tier of transactions, the institutional level of real estate. However, Roth refused to let the company be put into that box. He said the firm’s senior staffers will handle transactions in the $2 million to $10 million range, but he pointed out that it has junior staffers to handle smaller fare. Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter

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MANUFACTURING

Innovation and talent are manufacturing’s big challenges Survey indicates 70% of region’s manufacturers expect to grow, even if economy doesn’t Manufacturing sectors with the highest export concentration in 2019

BBY KIM PALMER

A new quarterly report and survey from Team NEO and Magnet found that more than 70% of the region’s manufacturers expect to see gains in revenue, profitability and workforce in 2020. More than half (56%) of the manufacturers that responded to the 2020 Ohio Manufacturing Survey reported increased revenues in 2019 and said they expect similar gains in 2020, despite only 35% expecting the overall economy to expand this year. “Manufacturers are ready to grow, they are excited, and the optimism has been there for a couple of years,” said Ethan Karp, president and CEO of Magnet, the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network in Cleveland. The findings are based on survey responses from 673 mostly small and mid-size Ohio companies, representing more than 25 types of manufacturing. About 90% of the respondents had fewer than 500 employees, and 88% reported less than $100 million in revenue. The survey was conducted from November 2019 through the end of January. Manufacturing accounts for 20% of Northeast Ohio’s economy, or $42.6 billion in gross regional product. About half of respondents said increased revenue in 2019 came from the development of new product lines and/or expanding into new markets.

Location Quotients (LQs) compare NEO manufacturing sectors’ export levels to the U.S. average. An LQ of 1.5 demonstrates that exports are 50% higher than the national average. A 4.0 means exports are four times higher. Nonmetallic mineral product Paper Printing and related support Leather and allied product Electrical equipment; appliances and components Chemical Machinery Plastics and rubber products Fabricated metal products Primary metal 0

.50

1.0 U.S. average

1.50

2.0

2.5

SOURCE: TEAM NEO QUARTERLY ECONOMIC REVIEW, FEBRUARY 2020

Regional manufacturers represent a broad variety of sectors within the industry. Chemical, fabricated metals and transportation equipment produce a combined $17.5 billion annually. “We are seeing increased diversification in manufacturing sectors,” said Jacob Duritsky, vice president at Team NEO, the Cleveland-based business development organization. “This is important because we know it helps manufacturers to be more resilient.” Manufacturing exports play a vital role in bringing outside revenue to the region. According to Team NEO, at least 10 of the region’s manufacturing sectors sell goods outside Northeast

4.0

AIM HIG

he said of the risk-aversion around the expense and lack of awareness of how to use these new technologies. Advances in technology for the manufacturing sector, specifically the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT), is vital to maintaining competitiveness in a global market. Adoption of IIOT by regional manufacturers has the potential to increase the gross regional product by an additional $13 billion by 2025, according to Duritsky, who noted that advances in technology offer manufacturers the means to increase productivity, a trend that has plateaued recently. Since 2001, manufacturing has seen a 40% decline in jobs concur-

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Ohio at up to four times the average of the 20 largest cities in the United States. Karp said manufacturing, which employs more than 270,000 workers in Northeast Ohio, is poised to grow, but only if companies can overcome two major challenges: talent and innovation. “Ninety-four percent of the companies are reporting that they are innovating, or they want to innovate,” Karp said. Yet, according to the survey, innovation “is not very high on their priorities.” He added that of the manufacturers surveyed, only 10% have integrated any type of smart technology, a result

3.0

rent with a 50% rise in productivity. The next wave of productivity gains, according to Karp, will be the continued automation of repetitive tasks, a move that he said will eventually drive up overall wages by cutting costs and eliminating about 30% of the lowest-paying positions. “Automation and robots are going to supercharge the productivity of the workers that are already there,” Karp said. “We explicitly asked, and 85% of the manufacturers said in this market they are using automation to augment — not replace — current staff.” On the issue of talent, workforce shortages continue to dog the industry. According to the survey respondents, about 8,000 jobs, out of 46,200 job openings at Northeast Ohio manufacturers, went unfilled in 2019. “When you ask why we are not filling those open jobs, it starts with perception,” Karp said. “Changing perceptions is one of the major themes of the past five years in manufacturing.” He added that younger generations don’t consider manufacturing a viable, long-term career because of perceptions it’s dark, dirty and dangerous. “If for 30 years you watch people get laid off in manufacturing, it is hard to change that perception for the next generation,” he said.

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FROM THE EDITOR

RICH WILLIAMS FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

Business founder brews up hope

EDITORIAL

Three things we like ... P

eriodically in this space in 2020, we’ll point out some developments that give us faith in the progress being made in the region and statewide — as well as some that don’t. Let’s start with three things we like. ``Promise kept: The Fund for Our Economic Future last week reorganized its board in a move “to better align” with its mission “to promote growth and opportunity throughout Northeast Ohio.” The funding alliance added eight civic members to its 35-person board, an expansion that it said “is in direct response to the call for greater attention to systemic racial inclusion” that the Fund advanced in its The Two Tomorrows report in 2018. When Fund president Brad Whitehead announced last November that he would step down from that role, he said, “I believe we are falling short of our potential as a region in part because we are not allowing sufficient space for generational leadership.” The Fund is doing that with its board changes and with its choice in December of Bethia Burke to replace Whitehead in March. These moves set a strong example for a region that’s not always open to change and fresh perspectives. ``Talk it out: The Cuyahoga WE’RE POINTING OUT County Board of Elections THREE DEVELOPMENTS said it won’t count any votes cast for two issues on THAT GIVE US FAITH IN the March 17 ballot in THE PROGRESS BEING Cleveland — one to reduce the size of city council, the MADE IN THE REGION other to cut members’ pay AND STATEWIDE — AND — after the group that pushed for the measures TWO THAT DON’T. withdrew its request, though ballots already have been printed. We considered the proposals rushed and ill-considered, so we’re glad they’re a no-go. This does, though, give space for council members to meet with critics who have ideas — on commenting at meetings, perhaps, or a pay freeze — for reforms that could raise accountability and help Cleveland function better. Let the good-faith talks begin. ``Entrepreneurial energy: MedPilot, a Cleveland software company that uses artificial intelligence and machine learn-

ing to transform patient billing, and has grown to 40 employees since moving here from New York in 2018, just raised $1.5 million from investors that included JumpStart Inc., attorney Jon Pinney, North Coast Angel Fund and Valley Growth Ventures. EmployStream, a Cleveland software-as-a-service startup that helps employers ease the onboarding process for new hires, closed a $7 million round led by Plymouth Growth Partners, with support from JumpStart and others, to expand its product development. Six early-stage startups were named to take part in the first gBETA business accelerator program in Cleveland. And that’s just in one week. Don’t buy the decline narrative of this region.

... and two we don’t ``Power play: The Trump administration’s budget proposal eliminates a loan program that could help Lordstown Motors, a new venture that’s trying to reopen the former Lordstown GM factory. At issue is the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Loan Program, created in 2007 to foster development of fuel-efficient vehicles. Lordstown Motors has said it’s considering asking for $200 million from the loan fund, though it may have other financing options, and the Department of Energy says the program still has money available to loan in this budget cycle. Still, Ohio’s congressional delegation needs to stay on top of this. There has to be a way to leverage public-private partnerships to rebuild the manufacturing economy of places like Lordstown. The challenge is too large for the government not to play some role. ``Going nowhere: Two proposed bills in the Ohio statehouse that target how parks systems acquire private property to develop recreational trails for public use are a solution in search of a problem. House Bill 288, for instance, would prohibit the employment of eminent domain for any trail used for biking, hiking and skiing. It’s wise for government to be judicious in its use of eminent domain, but the practice is rarely used in this context and when it is, it’s for a public good. This is another example of the state encroaching on local governments, and we hope these bills take a hike.

Publisher and 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

Entrepreneur Kim Jenkins believes in creating opportunities. That was his simple goal when he started Rising Star Coffee in 2012. The former Lockheed Martin engineer, who ran a research division for the global aerospace and advanced technologies company, moved to Northeast Ohio earlier that decade because his wife, who is Elizabeth from here, wanted to return home. McINTYRE Less than eight years later, Jenkins completed his mission of creating those opportunities. On Feb. 3, he officially sold Rising Star to four employees. “This has been a long time in the works,” he told me. Talking to Jenkins, I realized he shares a lot in common with Brad Whitehead, the president of the Fund for Our Economic Future, who announced in November he was stepping aside to make room for the next generation of leadership of the economic development nonprofit. Next month, Bethia Burke will take the helm of the Fund, where she’s worked since 2010. We need more business leaders like Whitehead and entrepreneurs like Jenkins, people who think creatively about transition plans and creating openings for new leaders. For Jenkins, Rising Star Coffee grew from a coffee-roasting passion he developed in the early 2000s when he started roasting beans in a hot-air popcorn popper at home. The business person in him knew, though, he needed to differentiate his passion product from others in the marketplace. What resonated for him was providing opportunities for his staffers. So he set out to pay a living wage of at least $15 an hour for his employees, most of whom are in their 20s. “I want these kids to have the highest history of income they can have when working for Rising Star for credit rat- WHAT RESONATED ings and other things,” he said. That meant the company FOR KIM JENKINS used metrics and carefully WAS PROVIDING monitored tips per hour that each barista received, as well OPPORTUNITIES FOR as the tip percentage per pur- HIS STAFFERS. chase. The business then runs the tips through payroll, even though it costs them more, to ensure higher wages for their workers. “The founding principle and value for Rising Star is there’s enough margin in coffee in all aspects that every stakeholder should share in the prosperity,” Jenkins said. “This is not a zero-sum game business model. This is a business model where we say everyone from the farmers who grow the coffee, to the mill that processes the coffee cherries, to the shippers, the brokers, the roasters, the cafes, and even our customers who come in and order a $3 cup of coffee, they all share in the prosperity.” Rising Star, which employs nearly 50 people, now has five cafes — in Lakewood, Ohio City, downtown Cleveland, Cleveland Heights and Shaker Heights — and its wholesale roasting facility in Cleveland. And earlier this year, Jenkins turned over the keys to his business to his one-time employees, and now new owners, Brandon Riggs, Dawn Fox, Bruno Green and Christos Kallas. It’s what he prepared them to do, by providing the training and opportunities to one day take over the business. That’s what smart business leadership is about: preparing the next generation. As for Jenkins, he’s taking the advice of the new Rising Star Coffee ownership. “They told me to get lost for a month,” he said, adding he’s always available for advice when needed. As new owners, they need room to run the business and Jenkins is happy to oblige. The 66-year-old isn’t walking away from his entrepreneurial spirit, though. “I think I still have one more startup in me,” he said. Whatever it is, it will, no doubt, create opportunities for many others.

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.

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8 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | FEBRUARY 17, 2020

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OPINION

PERSONAL VIEW

How to increase the power of male allies in the #MeToo era BY RACHEL TALTON

I have a client — I’ll call her Susan — who is now the CEO of a global firm. She started in marketing and was always very good at her job and worked hard. One evening, in her position as a middle manager, she stayed late and her boss entered her office, as he often did. They had a project coming up for review, so they talked about that and chatted casually. Then, unexpectedly, he put his hand on Susan’s thigh. Susan dismissed it as a “mistake,” but the following week, in a similar situation, he tried to kiss her. She politely declined, brought up his wife (whom she knew) and asked him to please not do that because it made her uncomfortable. Still, his behavior continued, despite being “talked to” by his boss. Instead, it was Susan who changed: She altered her work hours and her meeting schedule to avoid him. She stopped coming in early and staying late. Ultimately, her boss was promoted and moved to another part of the country. But Susan was never the same. Today, in the #MeToo era, Susan’s story is not unique or extraordinary. It is one of many stories of women who have been harassed, abused, raped and routinely reduced to their sexuality and devalued for their brilliance and creativity by male colleagues in the workplace. In turn, men have been fired, ostracized, paralyzed and generally vilified. So, where does this leave us in 2020? In a more empowered, but a more polarized and uncollaborative environment. More than 10% of men and women said they would be less willing than previously to hire attractive women, according to a post-#MeToo study, “Looking Ahead: How What We Know About Sexual Harassment Now Informs Us of the Future,” by Leanne E. Atwater and Allison M. Tringale. Twenty-two percent of men and 44% of women predicted that men would be more apt to exclude women from social interactions, such as after-work drinks, according to the same study, and nearly one in three men thought they would be reluctant to have a one-on-one meeting with a woman. This is not an environment for women to thrive — especially women looking to ascend to the executive ranks — or for a company as a whole to thrive. Men and women need to be allies and partners, not adversaries standing in opposite corners. Research by Brad Johnson and David Smith in the Harvard Business Review shows that when men are deliberately engaged in gender inclusion programs, 96% of organizations see progress — compared to only 30% of organizations where men are not engaged. But today, too many companies still miss the mark on

gender equity efforts by focusing gender initiatives solely on changing women — from the way they network to the way they lead. We need men in the game, too. We need them as our allies and partners to promote gender equity and make the workplace a less polarized, more collaborative environment for everyone, male and female. Talton is CEO According to a study that Boston of Synergy Consulting Group conducted in Marketing 2017, there are five ways in which Strategy & men can help drive gender equity in Research Inc. the workplace: and Flourish 1. Support flexible work policies Leadership LLC 2. Model the right behaviors 3. Communicate fairly 4. Sponsor a high-potential woman or women 5. Get involved with company-specific initiatives for women I echo these and add a few more, based on more than two decades of experience and research in this area:  Just listen! Generous, world-class listening requires focus, sincerity, empathy, refusal to interrupt and genuine valuing of a woman’s experience and her willingness to share it with you.  Respect the space. Tread respectfully into spaces created for women. Before you utter a word, revisit the recommendation above. Honor the strength of “femaleness,” but treat all women as individuals. Perhaps it’s controversial to say this in 2020, but men and women are not interchangeable. And that’s a good thing. We should take advantage of the distinct strength women bring to the workplace, but we should never expect them to fit neatly into defined gender roles. It’s not about you. Ask women how you can amplify, not replace or usurp, existing gender parity efforts. Refrain from taking center stage, speaking for women or “mansplaining” how women should approach gender equity efforts.  Be comfortable being uncomfortable — like your female allies. Developing psychological standing requires a commitment to learning and advocating for gender equity. The solution is more interaction and learning, not less.  Be supportive, not patronizing. The best cross-gender ally relationships are reciprocal and mutually growthenhancing. Share your social capital (influence, information, knowledge and organizational resources) with women’s groups, but ask them — don’t assume — how you can best support their efforts. Remember the best part of being allied. Keep in mind that committing to express as little sexism as possible is the easy part of being a strong ally to women. The hard part requires men to use their experience to become the strongest public ally for professional, personal and social justice they can be.

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LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Support for HHS levy is criticized I was disappointed to read Crain’s endorsement of Issue 33, the Cuyahoga County health and human services levy. Please allow me to point out some very important facts that were omitted from your editorial. Cuyahoga County’s Investment Report as of Dec. 31, 2019, shows that the county has an investment portfolio with an average daily balance of over $1 billion. That is $1 billion extracted from the citizenry and businesses of Cuyahoga County sitting idle in the county treasury. The county is using the emotional appeal of health, poverty and drug addiction to drain even more funds from the fragile local economy and feed the county government’s voracious appetite for greater spending. Government should not extract taxes from the citizenry in excess of what the government needs to fulfill its basic functions. Given that the county has a cash balance of over $1 billion, how can the Budish administration justify going to the taxpayers and asking for more? The county’s total annual revenue is about $1.429 bil-

lion, so the current investment fund balance reflects about 70% of annual revenue. That tells me that the county’s finances are currently very, very strong and there is not a clear and compelling need for new revenue. Most people believe you can never have enough money, but we need to challenge the county leadership to answer the question “How much is enough?” Voters should reject this unnecessary money grab by the Budish administration and the Democratic members of the county council. Republican council members Jack Schron and Nan Baker were the only county leaders with the good sense to vote against this nonessential and nonsensical levy. The county’s unnecessary tax increase will make it harder for us in Independence (and other places) to pass school levies that are of considerably greater need. Our county leadership is headed down a bad path again with this levy, just like they did with the plastic bag ban. Kenn Synek Member, Independence City Council FEBRUARY 17, 2020 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 9

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INSPIRED GROWTH A blog on healthy childhood development grew into a nonprofit storefront facility in Bedford. PAGE 12

HEALTH CARE

The right prescription

If Ohio House Bill 177 passes, APRNs will be allowed to prescribe independently without having an agreement with a collaborating physician. But physician groups say the requirement should stay. BY LYDIA COUTRÉ

See BILL on Page 12

MARK DANE/ISTOCK

Ohio’s advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) have turned to the state legislature to seek autonomy in their ability to prescribe and practice, a move that physician groups in the state strongly oppose. There have been several unsuccessful attempts in recent years to pass such a bill, but supporters of House Bill 177, which is currently in committee, are hopeful that this time will be different, especially given the Federal Trade Commission’s January letter urging the Ohio legislature to adopt the proposal. Currently, before engaging in practice, APRNs must enter into a standard care arrangement with a collaborative physician who provides oversight of the care provided by these advanced practice nurses. The Ohio Association of Advanced Practice Nurses (OAAPN) states that lifting the mandatory agreement would help increase access to quality, cost-efficient care. Physician groups have pushed back, saying the current model of physician-led, teambased care is effective and ensures patients receive safe care.

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FOCUS | HEALTH CARE

A Treehouse grows in Bedford

Therapists’ healthy childhood blog branches into nonprofit play facility BBY DOUGLAS J. GUTH

Thoughts of a treehouse may conjure comfy memories of hours spent frolicking in the summertime twilight with friends. While that feeling may not be exactly what Claire Heffron and Lauren Drobnjak had in mind when launching The Inspired Treehouse — an online platform promoting healthy childhood development — the business partners did want to convey images of a friendly atmosphere open to all. “It sounded childlike and playful and a warm place to be,” said Heffron, a career occupational therapist who started the blog and online business with Drobnjak in 2013. Their platform provides information, resources and digital products promoting developmental growth in the classroom or at home. With a following of parents, teachers and therapists, the blog’s larger goal is to conquer the roadblocks that arise for children at all levels of physical and cognitive capability. Posts tout the fine motor and sensory skills crucial to a child’s development, as well as activities organized by season, holiday and other kid-friendly themes. One popular post on sensory processing covers strategies to help children pay attention, including the use of fidget toys for kids to hold when their attention is needed for extended periods. Valuable tips collected over decades of professional child therapy experience inspired the Treehouse’s initial launch. Heffron and Drobnjak met in the mid-2000s at Bedford City Schools: Heffron previously worked in the autism program at Achievement Centers for Children, while pediatric therapist Drobnjak had skilled nursing knowledge. “We knew we had so many great ideas, we toyed around with a brickand-mortar space and what we could do with it,” Drobnjak said. “Our business mentor suggested writing down a business plan first, and suggested the blog format.”

Lauren Drobnjak (left) and Claire Heffron host small playgroups for children of all abilities at The Treehouse in Bedford. | CONTRIBUTED

State of play Although a blog may not have been in their original plans, the partners can’t deny its popularity. Their site gets 200,000-300,000 page views monthly, including 245,000 views via 131,000 unique visitors in January 2020. Alongside informative posts, Inspired Treehouse offers an array of downloadable therapy tools and resources. “Children & Nature Toolkit” is a $15.99 e-book that incorporates the natural world into therapy practice. Using evidence-based information compiled by the authors, teachers can identify nature-related activities targeting self-care, taking turns, self-control and other skills needed for developmental growth. Meanwhile, free printables teach children how to improve core strength by moving their bodies. Building torso

BILL

From Page 10

Reginald Fields, spokesman for the Ohio State Medical Association, said he recognizes this is a “delicate” issue. Nurses, nurse practitioners and other professionals play vital roles in health care delivery, but the team needs to remain physician-led, he said, noting physicians have significantly more education, training and experience. “Physicians and nurses could not be effective without one another, but to essentially want to completely eliminate a physician from a patient’s team-based care is ... not a good idea, and it really jeopardizes an individual’s safety,” Fields said. Jeana Singleton — an attorney at Brennan, Manna and Diamond, whose team serves as general counsel for OAAPN — stresses that lifting the mandatory standard care arrangement does not mean ending the collaborative, team-based approach. As health care leaders encourage providers to practice to the top of their license, the question becomes what is that highest point. “If APRNs are better able to practice to the full extent of their education,

Fields

Greaves

training and abilities, and if institutional health care providers are better able to deploy APRNs as needed, health care consumers are likely to benefit from improved access to health care, lower costs and additional innovation,” according to the FTC letter. John A. Bastulli — vice president of legislative affairs for the Academy of Medicine of Cleveland and Northern Ohio, the regional physician organization — argues that APRNs are already there. “They are currently working at the top of their license,” he said. “What they are seeking is to expand their scope of practice and to practice independent of a care arrangement with a physician that they have a supervisory agreement with.” The standard care arrangement was instituted in the 1990s, but times have changed since then, Mary Jane

muscles for better posture and motor skills doesn’t have to be boring, so the entrepreneurs implemented card games and yoga moves for tiny folks to get strong middles. “There’s some targeted exercises, but it’s exercise through play, so kids don’t realize they’re working on core strength,” explained Heffron. “The big thing for me and Lauren is that presentation doesn’t matter unless people can understand it. If we can provide something that’s accessible and well-designed, people will be drawn to it.”

Accessibility is also the watchword for a nonprofit studio space the pair opened as an addition to their online business. Simply called The Treehouse, the 1,200-square-foot Bedford storefront organizes free and low-

cost developmental play groups for all children regardless of ability level. Play sessions at the 2-year-old facility last from 60-90 minutes, integrating motor and sensory activities related to a playful theme. A circus-centric gathering may have participants balancing beanbags on their heads or sharpening their trapeze skills by running and jumping through an obstacle course. “There are different themes each week, so kids are never coming in doing the same things,” Heffron noted. “Depending on the theme, we’ll bounce from movement to tabletop activities.” The Broadway Avenue space, in past iterations a hair salon and Indian grocery store, also hosts yoga and music-therapy sessions, as well as training for teachers keen on gleaning new ideas for the classroom. Play groups — which typically ac-

Maloney, director of the Government Relations Committee for the OAAPN, argued in prepared testimony for an Ohio House of Representatives Health Committee hearing on the bill in late January. Ohio’s growing elderly population, with multiple chronic health problems, and the increase in the insured population have expanded the need for health care services and primary care providers, according to her written testimony. Joscelyn Greaves, OAAPN president, said the biggest thing the bill will accomplish, if passed, is increasing access to care, which she said is a “huge need” in the state. Kaiser Family Foundation has identified 155 primary care health professional shortage areas in Ohio, predominantly determined by the number of health professionals relative to the population with consideration of high need. “We have 17,000 APRNs in the state,” Greaves noted. “We want to be able to remove that barrier and allow us to be able to go into those areas where there’s minimal health care available at this point.” Greaves added that as more health care systems acquire practices, there are fewer physicians available to enter into standard care arrangements because

they often aren’t allowed to collaborate with APRNs who aren’t a part of these large systems. Fields said he doesn’t see a risk of APRNs being unable to access a collaborative physician, claiming there are physicians out in rural areas of the state who are available if APRNs want to practice there under a standard care arrangement. “It’s just an argument that may be true for other states, but it’s not true here in the state of Ohio. We don’t see that level of shortage,” he said. Roughly half of U.S. states require some form of physician supervision for APRNs, but the specifics vary. In Ohio, there’s a baseline of specific times when APRNs can diagnose and prescribe, Fields said. The agreement with a physician spells out how the two will collaborate on conditions and situations beyond that. “So the physician essentially serves as really a safety buffer for when you have some higher-level medical attention that’s needed," he said. For example, a nurse practitioner may be able to prescribe something for a basic cold, but for a more medically complicated situation, “there are clear lines where the physician needs to be involved and should be

Getting physical

commodate six to eight participants — are split between typically functioning children and those with special needs. The latter group may be on the autism spectrum or have physical impairments and behavioral issues that make it difficult for them to transition between activities. Ranging in age from 2 to 10, the small groups mix well, with typically functioning attendees often serving as activity leaders. “If there are kids having a hard time taking turns, their peer models will demonstrate that for them,” Heffron said. “Children don’t perceive disabilities the same way adults do. They just see buddies to play with and don’t see limitations as much. It’s a nice, handy way to incorporate acceptance. It comes very naturally most of the time.” The Treehouse currently hosts children from Bedford, as well as Lakewood, Parma and Cleveland. Programs are free for once-a-week guests, while additional classes are $5 each. About 80 kids attend sessions each week and 300 families total, with word spread mostly by referral. “Some families are working multiple jobs to make ends meet, and we have so many teachers coming to us saying their kids need help,” Drobnjak said. “This was the perfect opportunity to grab kids who don’t have an identified need, but definitely have a need. We knew we had the skills and resources and wanted to be able to do this for anyone, whether they can afford it or not.” The Treehouse, a 501(c)(3) organization, relies on contributions from individuals and corporations. Considering there’s a waiting list for play groups, the entrepreneurial twosome would be thrilled to open their welcoming environment to additional newcomers. “It gives parents peace of mind to have a place offering these beneficial services while they get a break,” Heffron said. “Not having that waiting list would be awesome.” Contact Douglas J. Guth: clbfreelancer@crain.com consulted,” Fields said. In its letter, the FTC, which also encouraged Kansas legislatures to pass a similar bill, highlighted concerns about competition in health care, noting that even “well-intentioned” regulations could have overbroad, unnecessary restrictions that limit competition. “Undue regulatory restrictions on APRN practice can harm patients, institutional health care providers and both public and private third-party payors,” the letter stated, citing a 2014 FTC policy paper which said that “state- mandated supervision of APRN practice raises competitive concerns, may impede access to care and may frustrate the development of innovative and effective models of team-based health care.” Bastulli said physicians are “very willing” to engage with APRNs to address access and cost containment. Previous legislation expanded the number of APRNs in a supervisory agreement and liberalized the formulary of medications they could administer, “while at the same time maintaining physician supervision as part of the health care team,” he said. Lydia Coutré: lcoutre@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @LydiaCoutre

12 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | February 17, 2020

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FOCUS | HEALTH CARE | ADVISER

2810 CLINTON AVENUE CLEVELAND, OH 44113 MALACHIHOUSE.ORG

ICHRA redefines employer-sponsored health insurance BY FRANK SPINELLI

For years, employer groups have embraced the idea of adopting a defined contribution health insurance delivery model to better manage and control what in many cases is the second-largest expense in their budget. Recent federal legislative and regulatory initiatives expanding the use of health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) may prove to be the best vehicle to clear a new path for defined contribution in health care. Effective Jan. 1, employers can offer, on a pre-tax basis, what is called an Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA – “ick-rah”) instead of offering a group health plan. Just as the shift from defined-benefit pensions to defined-contribution 401(k) plans altered how Americans save for retirement, ICHRAs could have a similar effect on how employers of all sizes fund and manage employee health benefits. While traditional group health insurance will continue to prove the more favorable route for many, this new tool is widely viewed as a way to strategically position benefits offerings while controlling costs and, at the same time, expand employee choice. Through the rule’s provisions, employers may elect to replace part or all of their group health plan with a defined-contribution ICHRA. This will allow employers to reimburse employees for some or all of the premium cost of individual health and Medicare plans that their employees will purchase in the individual market.

The future In January, Stan Sieniawski, practice leader of Oswald’s Medicare and Individual Health Solutions practice, attended a Washington, D.C., roundtable where he joined leaders from the Departments of Labor, Treasury, Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to discuss the administration’s goals regarding ICHRAs. The governmental agencies projected it will take approximately five years to fully adjust to the updated rules, at which time an estimated 800,000 employers will offer ICHRAs covering approximately 11 million employees and dependents. The agencies further indicated that ICHRAs may serve to appeal to two large and distinct employee segments: baby boomers and millennials. Baby boomers, many of whom are working beyond age 65, may appreciate the broader network access and lower outof-pocket costs afforded through Medicare, while millennials could welcome the plan choice and having control over their health insurance.

The mechanics When properly situated, an ICHRA program eliminates the risk of both the 4980H(a) and (b) Employer Shared Responsibility penalties by following several safe harbor rules that have been established to ensure affordability. The law introduces a fresh strategic

opportunity — however, the regulations and “small provisions” could be the framework for unintended consequences. These caveats include, but arSpinelli is vice en’t limited to: president,  Specific permisdirector of sible classes of affinity groups employees, as deand emerging fined by the law. markets, for  All participants Oswald Cos. must be enrolled in an individual health or Medicare program.  The ICHRA policy must use “reasonable procedures” to substantiate participants are enrolled in coverage.  An organization may not offer both a group health plan and an ICHRA to the same class of employees.  An ICHRA must be offered on the same terms to all employees within a specified allowable class.  The list of provisions is complex and confusing, but the effort will be worth it for employers who seek a new way to position their employee benefits offering.

Early findings Having analyzed scores of possible ICHRAs for employers since late 2019, we have found that approximately 40% make sound financial sense. Our experience, from the dozens of companies we have implemented or are currently implementing, has taught us that a successful ICHRA rollout relies on three major areas: 1. STRATEGY/DESIGN AND COMPLIANCE: Analyze and design a plan that is right for organizational financial goals and culture, including providing the necessary model notices and legal documents to ensure compliance. 2. EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT AND ENROLLMENT: An education, communication and rollout strategy are paramount to a positive experience. Employers need to provide opportunities to have individual health insurance specialists meet one-on-one with employees to assist them in making informed individual health insurance decisions. 3. ADMINISTRATION: From the initiation and communication of the program to the management and delivery of monthly employee reimbursements, the new program comes with a host of new administrative functions, all of which must be handled systematically. If we have learned anything about the health insurance industry over the past decade, it is that things change and they change quickly. The ICHRA regulations allow an opportunity for those seeking a path to defined contribution and a path for those who seek to get out of the annual health renewal game. Is ICHRA a health insurance gamechanger? While the final answer will require time, all indications are that the answer for many will be yes.

BLESSING OF PEACE

Planned or deferred gifts to Malachi House are one of the most important ways you can help us build our endowment to ensure our home will always be there in perpetuity for those who need us most, when they need us most. It is difficult to see our residents come to Malachi House in their terminal state, many times with fear and confusion in their eyes. As the days and weeks go by, it is truly a blessing to witness their transformation as they smile, enjoy home cooked meals, feel a sense of family and engage with volunteers, hospice teams, staff and board members. The peace they ultimately experience is a result of the loving care they receive. Won’t you consider being a part of that peace? Judy Ghazoul Hilow, Executive Director jhilow@malachihouse.org

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2/5/20 3:42 PM| 13 FEBRUARY 17, 2020 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

2/13/2020 12:00:19 PM

FOCUS | HEALTH CARE

Building a foundation for access Entrepreneur leverages tech to improve health care access in Northeast Ohio and around the world “THIS IS AN EXPENSIVE PLATFORM THAT WE’RE FUNDING, BUT WE REALLY BELIEVE IT IS SAVING LIVES.”

BY JUDY STRINGER

When then-Ohio attorney general Mike DeWine told PartsSource founder Ray Dalton the state needed more detox beds to meet escalating demand, Dalton asked how DeWine knew that was the case. It was early 2017 and the opioid epidemic was raging, with Ohio among the hardest hit, Dalton said, but no one was tracking the state’s addiction response capacity or availability. “DeWine’s answer was, ‘Well, you’re the tech guy. Why don’t you go figure it out?’ ” he recalled. “So we set out to do that.” Under the auspices of The Dalton Foundation — an Aurora-based charity established in 1999 — the serial Northeast Ohio entrepreneur hired four “area reps” to map out Ohio health care facilities that offer substance abuse services. Then, later that same year, he launched reLink. org, a geolocated, real-time platform for connecting people struggling with addiction to treatment resources in their area. Today, Dalton said, the website includes “every type of service to the addiction marketplace, from detox to housing to employment,” and has been expanded to encompass re-entry help for former convicts and so-

— Ray Dalton, founder and chairman, The Dalton Foundation

cial service resources for victims of human trafficking. “We have more than 8,000 organizations across the state listing the availability of over 100,000 recovery and re-entry services,” he said. “And it’s a free service that is now being used about 1,200 times a week.” Physicians and nurses at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and Nationwide Children’s Hospital, for example, rely on reLink. org to place discharged overdose patients into rehab beds and/or to help the patient’s loved ones locate addiction education or counseling. Administrators and counselors affiliated with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction refer inmates and their families to reLink. org to find agencies and nonprofits with prerelease resources like workforce readiness, upskilling and job placement. Across Ohio, however, more people log onto the site from public li-

braries than from homes, hospitals, jails or any other type of location. “If you’re homeless or you’ve been thrown out of your home, or when you’re down and out and nobody’s there to help, where do you go to use a computer safely? The public library,” Dalton said. “Our goal was three clicks, three seconds and at least three answers. That’s really what we strive to do.” ReLink.org is Dalton’s newest venture. In addition to Aurora-based PartsSource, a fast-growing medical parts supplier purchased by Great Hill Partners in 2017, Dalton founded two medical device repair companies, NationalMD and OneSource Services, which were acquired by General Electric Medical Systems, in 1996 and 2000, respectively. He said a fraction of profits from those sales — particularly the PartsSouce divestiture — support the Dalton Foundation and its programming. ReLink Medical, a Twinsburg

company that sells, recycles or otherwise safely discards retired medical equipment, also provides ongoing funding for the foundation, according to Dalton, who established that company in 2015 with his son, Jeff. The 50-person ReLink Medical cleared nearly $13 million in 2019, the elder Dalton said, and provides 10% of its earnings to the foundation. “We have contracts with about 1,000 hospitals across the U.S., where we take all the equipment they’re getting rid of or updating or consolidating, bring it to our Enterprise Parkway facility, where it can be cataloged and tested, and then repurpose that equipment all over the world,” he said. Roughly 15% of ReLink Medical’s recaptured equipment makes its way to developing nations through ReLinkGlobalHealth.org, an arm of the family foundation that “works with organizations and hospitals in developing countries,” Dalton said, “to strategically understand the kind of equipment that they need and help them obtain that equipment.” Like ReLink.org, that initiative began with logging existing assets. Dalton said the foundation partnered with government agencies and NGOs in Haiti to create a digital database of medical providers

and the equipment available in hospitals and clinics across the country. ReLinkGlobalHealth.org then helps those organizations source used equipment from ReLink Medical to fill any gaps and provides funding for shipping expenses, when appropriate. “We also help them develop a training program,” he added, “so when they receive the equipment, they know how to use it, and a service strategy, so they know how to get it working and continue to keep it working.” In addition, individual Haitians can use the website to find medical services and providers. The Dalton Foundation has spent about $2 million building out these searchable databases, and Dalton estimated it costs another $600,000 per year to keep them up and running. He said the foundation has not solicited much in the way of outside resources in its quest to leverage technology as a tool to improve health care access to vulnerable populations. To him, it’s a ministry as much as a mission. “This is an expensive platform that we’re funding,” Dalton said, “but we really believe it is saving lives.” Contact Judy Stringer: clbfreelancer@crain.com

Join us for a panel discussion celebrating the accomplishments of these key individuals and organizations from the last four decades. 1980s ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME // Mike Benz COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT // Cleveland’s Neighborhoods

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14 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | FEBRUARY 17, 2020

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THE LIST

Largest Philanthropic Gifts of 2019 Ranked by gift amount RECIPIENT

DONOR (CONNECTION TO RECIPIENT)

AMOUNT

DATE

DESCRIPTION

DEVELOPMENT CONTACT

Cleveland Clinic

The Lord Foundation of Ohio

$261,668,808

Oct. 2019

Research and education

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

Cleveland Clinic

Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation

$23,000,000

July 2019

Global leadership training

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

John Carroll University

Anonymous (Graduate)

$20,000,000

Feb. 2019

Unrestricted

Doreen Riley 216-397-1990

University Hospitals

Sarah S. and Alexander M. Cutler

$15,000,000

Oct. 2019

Men's comprehensive care

Sherri Bishop 216-983-2200

Akron Children's Hospital

Joel and Cassie Testa; Jim and Julie Thomasson

$14,800,000

March 2019

Donation of Cynthia Parker Matthews Building (Akron Children's Health Center, Boston Heights) (1)

Shelly Brown 330-543-8900

Cleveland Foundation

Anonymous

$10,477,034

Dec. 2019

Named fund to support various nonprofits

Kaye Ridolfi 216-861-3810

Case Western Reserve University

Coleman and Susan Burke Foundation Inc. (Alumnus - Coleman Burke)

$10,000,000

Jan. 2019

The Coleman P. Burke Environmental Law Center

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Cleveland Clinic

Stephen D. Rosenthal

$10,000,000

April 2019

Heart & Vascular Institute

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

University Hospitals

Roe Green

$9,000,000

May 2019

Travel medicine and global health

Sherri Bishop 216-983-2200

Case Western Reserve University

Anonymous (Alumnus)

$8,500,000

Aug. 2019

Merit scholarships in the College of Arts and Sciences and School of Medicine

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Walsh University

Rambo family (Alumni)

$8,300,000

June 2019

Program development, scholarships and lab updates for Byers School of Nursing

Eric Belden 330-490-7337

Baldwin Wallace University

Austin E. Knowlton Foundation

$8,000,000

Oct. 2019

Knowlton Center (new math, computer science, engineering and physics building)

Robert Helmer 440-826-2424

Cleveland Foundation

Holsey Gates Handyside Trust

$6,715,966

Dec. 2019

Various existing Cleveland Foundation funds

Kaye Ridolfi 216-861-3810

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Anonymous (Trustee)

$6,000,000

June 2019

Curatorial endowment

Colleen Russell Criste 216-707-2154

Case Western Reserve University

Anonymous

$5,600,000

Sept. 2019

Scholarships in the College of Arts and Sciences

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Cleveland Clinic

Samuel H. and Maria Miller Foundation

$5,500,000

Dec. 2019

Emergency services

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

Case Western Reserve University

Thomas M. Becker (Alumnus)

$5,000,000

June 2019

Thomas M. Becker, MD Professorship at the School of Medicine

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Cleveland Clinic

Anonymous

$5,000,000

Nov. 2019

Unrestricted

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

Cleveland Clinic

Edward J. DeBartolo Jr.

$5,000,000

Dec. 2019

Autism scholarships and Cleveland Clinic Children's

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

Cleveland Neighborhood Progress

Cleveland Foundation

$5,000,000

April 2019

Three years of operational and program support; management of Strategic Investment Initiative

Andrew Harris 216-453-1457

Cleveland Clinic

The Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation

$4,975,000

Feb. 2019

THRIVE Program for caregiver education and retention

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

Case Western Reserve University

Anonymous

$4,700,000

Feb. 2019

STEMpower Global Fellows Endowed Fund

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Case Western Reserve University

Anonymous

$4,200,000

Dec. 2019

Oral health research

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Case Western Reserve University

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

$4,100,000

Nov. 2019

HIV research in developing countries

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Cleveland Clinic

Anonymous

$4,000,000

March 2019

Neurotechnology research

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

The Youngstown Foundation

Judge William Rayen Trust

$4,000,000

Jan. 2019

Youngstown City School District (educational purposes)

Janice Strasfeld 330-744-0320

Cleveland Neighborhood Progress

The George Gund Foundation

$3,600,000

April 2019

Three years of operational and program support

Andrew Harris 216-453-1457

Cleveland Foundation

Franklin G. Smith Trust

$3,533,490

Jan. 2019

Named fund to support various nonprofits

Kaye Ridolfi 216-861-3810

Playhouse Square

Lori and Rick Buoncore (Board member - Rick Buoncore)

$3,500,000

Aug. 2019

Advancing the Legacy Campaign for Playhouse Square

Michelle Ryan Stewart 216-640-8410

Hiram College

Harlene Lee (Graduate)

$3,287,207

Aug. 2019

Student health/athletics and endowed scholarships for students

Jennifer Schuller 330-569-5839

Stark Community Foundation

Anonymous

$3,100,000

Nov. 2019

Named fund to support the donor's charitable interests

Bridgette Neisel 330-454-7992

Case Western Reserve University

The Ralph T. and Esther L. Warburton Foundation

$3,000,000

Aug. 2019

Scholarships for dental medicine, medicine and nursing students

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352

Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Museum of Art

Anonymous (Alumna of CWRU; honorary trustee with CMA)

$3,000,000

Dec. 2019

Capital improvement

Abby Mitchell 216-368-4352 Colleen Russell Criste 216-707-2154

Cleveland Clinic

Anonymous

$3,000,000

Oct. 2019

Congenital heart surgery research

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

Cleveland Clinic

Anonymous

$3,000,000

Dec. 2019

Research

Cindy Fink 216-448-0663

The Cleveland Museum of Art

The Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation (Trustee)

$3,000,000

April 2019

Capital improvement

Colleen Russell Criste 216-707-2154

The Cleveland Orchestra

Anonymous (Longtime supporter)

$3,000,000

Nov. 2019

Education concerts

Jane Hargraft 216-231-7520

University Hospitals

Anonymous

$3,000,000

Aug. 2019

UH Seidman Cancer Center

Sherri Bishop 216-983-2200

RANK

RESEARCHED BY CHUCK SODER: CSODER@CRAIN.COM

Download all 91 gifts on this list in Excel or PDF format. Become a Data Member: CrainsCleveland.com/data Donations to religious organizations are not included. Information is from gift recipients, philanthropic organizations and Crain's research. Send feedback to Chuck Soder: csoder@crain.com. (1) The building will be given to Akron Children's once the hospital's 30-year lease ends.

February 17, 2020 | CRAINâ€™S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 15

AKRON | NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH

Bridging city’s past and potential future With a history rich of immigrants but marked by poverty, Cascade Valley is on the rise in eyes of developers BBY DAN SHINGLER

About this series

You’d never know it today, but Cascade Valley used to be one of Akron’s most densely populated neighborhoods. Now, the neighborhood just north of downtown sits mostly vacant but is attracting development once again. “At one time, there was a ton of houses on all these little streets, but they were kind of slums,” said Jason Segedy, Akron’s director of planning and urban development. “They were shacks and cottages that were really run-down, and they were the first things to go back in the 1950s,” when much of Akron’s urban areas were redeveloped and blighted areas were cleared. The portion of the neighborhood most folks know best is usually considered part of downtown Akron, but is actually in Cascade Valley, Segedy noted. That includes the city’s popular Luigi’s Restaurant and Jilly’s Music Room, both on North Main Street, as well as the Northside Lofts and Northside Marketplace on Furnace Street, built by developer Joel Testa. The area also includes the Courtyard Marriott, which has been downtown’s major hotel since it opened in 2016. But while that’s the hot spot today, it’s the area farther north, where there is little development today, that Segedy and others hope to see gaining increased activity and new construction. Segedy knows the city like someone who’s proud to have been a map and history nerd his whole life, but he’s got a special connection to this neighborhood. “My great-grandparents lived in that house,” he said, pointing to an old, royal blue spot on Mustill Street. “With eight kids, too. There were 10 people living in that little house!” They were part of a wave of Italian immigrants, Segedy said, setting up in Akron Italian-style, complete with chickens in the backyard, along with a pig. At least, that’s the family legend. That was typical for Cascade Valley, he noted. It was home to wave after wave of newcomers: Irish, Italians, Appalachians, African Americans, Eastern Europeans and others. They all crowded into the small valley along the Little Cuyahoga River, making their lives in everything from the few houses that still exist today to ramshackle structures never meant for history. That’s how the neighborhood remained well into the 20th century, Segedy said. The area was also, for a century or

We thought we knew a fair amount about Akron, which is the hometown of some of us at Crain’s. That is, until we started driving around with Akron planning director Jason Segedy, who agreed to take part in an ongoing series to show us his knowledge and passion for the city — one neighborhood at a time. This month, we look at Cascade Valley, a once densely populated neighborhood that was a hot spot for the city’s jazz scene. The area is now largely vacant, but is starting to attract development again.

more, generally low-rent and highvice. As recently as the 1980s, North Howard Street was synonymous with Akron’s prostitution district. Segedy and others who love the neighborhood’s history say its relationship with vices of nearly every sort goes back more than a century. “During Prohibition in the ’20s, there were mafia-run casinos, brothels and bars down here. It’s always had a sort of a checkered past in terms of vice,” Segedy said. Its low rents, however, also made it the center of something else in Akron. “That’s where jazz started here, on Howard Street. They had 10 or 15 clubs here,” said Tony Troppe, a developer, jazz musician and owner of the nearby club, Blu Jazz+ on East Market Street. Cascade Valley had a vibrant African American population and one of a limited number of hotels between New York and Chicago that would rent a room to black musicians. As a result, Troppe said, the best jazz musicians made regular stops on Howard Street. “Akron became a very prominent place for jazz, because it was so strategically located, and this was the center of it,” he said. Now, the place is hardly crowded with newcomers. Today, the city puts the neighborhood’s population at just over 2,200 people, but Segedy said it once held many times that number. If you drive into the neighborhood from downtown, it begins when you hit the Northside Lofts on North Main and Furnace streets. Drive another mile and you exit the neighborhood at Olive Street. East and west, the neighborhood is about threeand-a-half miles wide, straddling the Little Cuyahoga. Much of Cascade Valley looks downright bucolic, with roads winding along the river and tree-covered

Luigi’s Restaurant in Cascade Valley is an Akron mainstay.

The Northside Lofts, left, and the Courtyard by Marriott anchor one of the more well-known areas of Cascade Valley that’s populated by restaurants and

Cascade Village is a development of 300 attached homes that was built in the early 2000s, replacing subsidized housing.

hillsides all around. It’s not completely empty. For one thing, it includes Cascade Village: 300 attached, single-family homes built in the early 2000s that replaced former subsidized housing units that Segedy said were an eyesore. “This is a great development. It replaced the projects, which were called Elizabeth Park. They looked like barracks and were just hideous-looking buildings. These are beautiful,” Segedy said. There are also new, market-rate homes being built by Ryan Homes on what was once city-owned land on Hickory Street near Memorial Parkway. The project — a mix of townhomes and stand-alone single-family homes — is Ryan Homes’ first in the city. There’s already a waiting list for more than 50 homes, selling at prices north of $200,000, Segedy said. When talking about the development, which it has dubbed Hickory Ranches, Ryan Homes touts the quick access to downtown Akron and proximity to Northside Marketplace, local parks and the Ohio & Erie Towpath Trail. Today, that development and Cascade Village anchor the neighborhood, which remains pretty quiet

and trouble-free, according some who’ve operated businesses there. In 2018, Sean Linton moved his Fully Loaded Chew into a building that once housed an Italian soap factory. At the time, he wasn’t even aware the area was called Cascade Valley. He just thought of it as the edge of downtown, and he found a reasonably priced building that worked for his company, which produces tobacco-free snuff. Since then, though, he’s learned more about the neighborhood, which he said has been safe, convenient and a good place to do business. “The transit is great: You just hop off the expressway on Perkins (Street),” said Linton, a Green resident. “It’s a pretty easy commute.” If the neighborhood has a rough history, it’s not evident today, he added. “In 18 months being here, we’ve had zero issues. We have good surveillance, too, but our alarm’s never even gone off,” he said. Benjamin Patrick strikes a similar note. He owns and operates Akron Recording Co. in the Whitespace Building on Furnace Street, home of the former marketing agency Whitespace Creative. Patrick leases about 3,000 square feet of space in

the building. He was attracted both to the local music history and the building, which is well-known in the neighborhood because of its 2017 renovation by former Whitespace owner Keeven White. “It was kind of the whole package,” Patrick said. “It’s a historic neighborhood with Howard Street. That used to be considered downtown Akron, and they had jazz clubs and a thriving jazz scene. The neighborhood is kind of tucked away, too, which is nice for our business because we have a lot of equipment.” His landlord, White, closed his marketing firm in the building last year but still spends a lot of time there and is continuing to renovate. White knew all about the neighborhood and its past when he moved in — it was one of the reasons he went there. “I think the neighborhood has been fairly stable, but it’s moving up now,” White observed White credits Troppe, whom he counts as both a friend and a mentor, for much of Cascade Valley’s recent revival. Segedy echoes that. Both said Troppe’s Cascade Lofts, 24 luxury apartments the developer created from the bones of the former Swinehart Tire & Rubber Co., have helped

16 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | February 17, 2020

P016_017_CL_20200217.indd 16

2/14/2020 3:10:25 PM

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PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

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spark new interest in the area. The apartments opened in 2017, and Troppe followed with the adjoining Lock 15 Brewing Co. in 2018. An optimist with a love of historic buildings, Troppe has long been a champion for the neighborhood. He said he’s just bringing activity back to where it was meant to be, in a great neighborhood nestled up to downtown with beautiful natural features. And he’s not finished. . “We have plans to continue this development at North and Howard with another 24 units we’ll be putting atop a parking garage,” he said. He’s also looking to build on land that he owns across Howard Street. “That’s slated for 40 units on top of 25,000 square feet of mercantile space: retail, restaurants banking, all sorts of mixed-use,” Troppe said. He’s renaming his part of the neighborhood “NoHo,” for North and Howard streets. A maverick, Troppe can sometimes take longer than anticipated to complete a project, but he nonetheless seems to find a way to get them finished, said Segedy, White and others. Troppe said he’s convinced the neighborhood will continue to attract younger residents, as he said Cascade Lofts has proven it can do. Right now, Troppe said, the area is a bit constrained by the city’s big sewer project, which has disrupted the neighborhood with heavy construction, especially along Cuyahoga Street. That could be keeping some would-be residents and builders away, Troppe noted. But once the sewer work is done, he thinks the neighborhood’s location and natural features, along with the city’s current tax abatement on new residential construction, will lead to a wave of new homes and development. “Now’s the time to get in here,” Troppe said. Dan Shingler: dshingler@crain.com, (216) 771-5290, @DanShingler

ACCOUNTING

LAW

Apple Growth Partners

Thompson Hine LLP

Gallagher Sharp LLP

Apple Growth Partners (AGP), award-winning accounting and business advisory firm, proudly announces the addition of Robert Jackson, CPA, MTax, to the Cleveland office as a senior tax manager. Jackson comes to AGP with a wealth of tax and public accounting experience spanning more than two decades. Spending most of his career in senior-level leadership roles, Jackson recently served as a senior tax manager and managing director for a local and national public accounting firm, respectively.

Thompson Hine LLP is pleased to announce that Thomas R. Butchko has been promoted to partner in its Commercial & Public Finance practice group. Thomas focuses on the development, negotiation and documentation of senior and subordinated credit facilities, asset-based loans, senior and mezzanine debt placements, acquisition financing, structured finance transactions and other complex financing transactions involving banks and other financial institutions, as well as public and private companies.

Thompson Hine LLP is pleased to announce that Steven G. Stransky has been promoted to partner in its Privacy & Cybersecurity practice group. Steve, who spent 10 years serving in the federal government, including as deputy legal adviser on the President’s National Security Council and an attorney at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, helps clients assess and mitigate cybersecurity risks and comply with federal, state and foreign laws and regulations governing data privacy and security.

Gallagher Sharp is pleased to announce that Rema A. Ina has been named a Partner. Rema works in the Employment Law, General Liability, and Insurance Coverage practice areas. She devotes a large amount of her time to defending employers against claims involving discrimination including the FMLA, ADA, and FLSA, and provides training on sexual harassment and ADA compliance. Rema also represents insurance carriers in coverage and defense matters and frequently lectures on data and cyber security.

BANKING

LAW

Civista Bank

Thompson Hine LLP

Civista Bank welcomes Carl Kessler as Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer. He brings over 25 years of experience in technology and cybersecurity to the Civista team; having served nearly 20 of those years working in the banking and financial industries. Kessler will lead Civista’s technology-based strategies; continuing bank efforts to provide innovative solutions and positively impact the Civista customer experience.

Thompson Hine LLP is pleased to announce that Thomas M. Ritzert has been promoted to partner in its Business Litigation practice group. His experience includes cases involving fiduciary relationships; shareholder disputes; business torts; trade secret and non-compete matters; commercial and contract disputes; and eminent domain and property matters. Tom also defends corporations and directors in class and derivative shareholder actions challenging mergers, acquisitions and tender offers.

Thompson Hine LLP is pleased to announce that Jim Henderson has been promoted to partner in its Business Restructuring, Creditors’ Rights & Bankruptcy practice group. Jim focuses his practice on representing secured lenders in workouts, Uniform Commercial Code issues, and other bankruptcy, finance and commercial law matters. He received his J.D., cum laude, from the Case Western Reserve University School of Law.

LAW

FINANCIAL SERVICES

LAW

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.

Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. is pleased to announce that Adam R. Jacobs has been promoted to Senior Director-Investments bringing over 14 years of experience. Adam, as a partner of The Hartzmark Group of Oppenheimer for the past 11 years, offers guidance as a Financial Advisor helping individuals, families, small businesses & entrepreneurs plan for life’s milestones. The Hartzmark Group has a legacy in the ﬁnancial service industry spanning four generations going back to the Great Depression.

LAW

Thompson Hine LLP Thompson Hine LLP is pleased to announce that Andrea R. McCarthy has been promoted to partner in its Corporate Transactions & Securities practice group. Andrea advises public companies on securities and general corporate matters, such as federal and state securities law filings and compliance. She has experience with transactions including follow-on and secondary offerings, IPOs, private placements, venture capital financings, and public and private company mergers and acquisitions.

Jennifer E. Horn has joined Taft as an attorney in the Business and Finance group. She focuses her practice on mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture capital transactions. Jen has served as outside corporate counsel to several global corporations. She has experience working with new and emerging companies, corporate entity selection and formation, and a wide range of general corporate matters. Jen received her J.D., cum laude, from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.

Gallagher Sharp LLP Gallagher Sharp is pleased to announce that Joseph Monroe, II, has been named a Partner. Joe is a member of the General Litigation and Transportation practice groups, defending public and private companies, individuals, and insurance carriers facing litigation involving property damage, personal injury, and wrongful death. He has experience with claims involving premises liability, employer intentional tort, and auto accident liability, along with a wide variety of other civil litigation.

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February 17, 2020 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 17

S-W

From Page 1

The Rockefeller Room on the second floor of Great Lakes’ brewpub wasn’t renovated, but it’s an area the business wants to better utilize following its brand refresh. | KEN BLAZE FOR CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS

GLBC

From Page 1

Straight ahead is the original seven-barrel brew system that got the brewery going in 1988 and is still used today. For years, the previous entrance filtered into the adjacent room, so many visitors may have never seen it before. The Beer Garden, featuring a retractable canvas roof, is among changes customers will notice. That area has been revamped with a beerhall concept in mind: large tables with open seating and a pared-down menu featuring shareable foods like tots and sliders. TVs let folks watch a game. That area also has the option to open and connect to the sidewalk, where additional tables and seating will pop up in the warmer months. “It’s meant to appeal to a more raucous, beer-drinking crowd, which we think can be really appealing to some people, especially in the summertime,” said Great Lakes CEO Mark King. “We had a lot of formal dining areas before. So this is something we were kind of missing.” Great Lakes founders Dan and Pat Conway installed King as just the second-ever CEO last fall, charged with leading the employee-owned craft brewery through the most competitive market it’s ever seen. There are about 7,500 craft breweries in operation across the U.S. today.

Ohio is home to about 330 of those and is on track for 400 in total this year with other breweries in planning. For Great Lakes, Pat has said that climate spurred a “circling of the wagons” to figure out a plan for taking the business from “good to great.” Practically speaking, that means capturing revenue and market share with the potential to be spread among more brewery/restaurants than ever before in Northeast Ohio and beyond — something Great Lakes didn’t have to pay much mind to until craft beers and the breweries making them spiked in popularity and prevalence in the 2010s. Of course, times have changed since the Great Lakes concept was struck in 1988. So there’s an intrinsic need to evolve with the times. For the Ohio City brewery, that also means crafting new, innovative beers that resonate with a younger crowd of imbibers keen to experience novelty, hazy IPAs and other styles that have been historically less popular in the overall beer segment than more straightforward ales and lagers. It also means shifting some production from bottles to cans as aluminum becomes the more popular beer vessel than glass for consumers. Great Lakes has a bottling line, but no cannery of its own, so for now it’s contracting its canning to another company. Canning equipment is on King’s wishlist; the challenge is finding the right space for it.

The brewhouse and restaurant renovations are part and parcel of Great Lakes finding its place in today’s business landscape. “The neighborhood has changed. The industry has changed. Peoples’ tastes have changed. How they use restaurants has changed. All those things have evolved, and we needed to take a look at ourselves and decide how we were going to evolve and how we’re going to stake our claim for this new generation of beer drinkers,” said Bridget Barrett, Great Lakes’ director of customer experience. “This is the most significant update to operations we have made since the restaurant opened. We’ve not taken on anything like this in 30 years.” In total, Great Lakes is putting approximately $700,000 into upgrades, but a lot of those won’t be noticed by customers. The biggest cost is for redesigning the kitchen, a necessity for the two-menu concept, which will feature some new options, such as a bone-marrow appetizer, steaks and veal chops for dining-minded visitors, plus shareable foods like sliders. With all these upgrades comes a more thoughtful use of space in general. There is still plenty of bar seating; now, you’ll even be able to reserve those seats and others online through Resy. The cellar is effectively unchanged, but will feature more regular programming. Bill Squire will continue to do standup some nights, while others will host euchre tournaments, bingo and karaoke. Upstairs dining rooms that were underused — such as the Rockefeller Room, where lore claims John D. Rockefeller once worked as a bookkeeper and walls have long been lined with the art of past Great Lakes beer labels — will now be used more regularly for lunch and dinner crowds. “We’re going to get foot traffic up, get beer in more mouths, have a beer-drinking experience and still cater to fine dining,” King said. “It’s a necessary investment to support these concepts.” Some of those tweaks didn’t require any renovating but roll into the overarching goal of better space use. “We are taking a very holistic approach to this by looking at every aspect of service from the menu to the music, to events we put in these spaces every night to the beers we have on tap to how the hostess greets you and how easy we make it to make a reservation,” Barrett said. Jeremy Nobile: jnobile@crain.com, (216) 771-5362, @JeremyNobile

18 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | February 17, 2020

In addition to its ubiquitous Sherwin-Williams brand, the company markets its products under other brand names, including Duracraft, Dutch Boy, Krylon, Minwax, Thompson’s Water Seal and Valspar. It also sells industrial coatings, both paint and powdered, to auto and appliance makers, bridge builders and metal extruders. What’s hidden is a company that had $17.8 billion in sales in 2019, an increase of 2.1%, or $366.3 million, over 2018, and 104% over the last decade. Gross profit for the year increased $617.5 million, or 8.3%, to $8 billion. It operates in 120 countries and has more than 60,000 employees worldwide, including 4,900 in Northeast Ohio. Its stock price hit its all-time high of $596.54 on Jan. 23, up from $65.04 a decade earlier. By comparison, the S&P 500 index, which includes Sherwin-Williams stock, rose from $1,329.15 to $3,329.52 over the same time frame. (Since its peak, the stock has dropped to the $580-a-share range.) Sherwin-Williams is hard to reach for reporters, and a company executve was not available to comment for this story. But in a Jan. 31 call with securities analysts, chairman and CEO John Morikis said he expects the growth to continue. “We currently see a similar environment to last year with North America architectural demand remaining solid and industrial demand remaining variable by geography and end market,” he said in the conference call. “We have many opportunities to grow (market) share in all of our businesses, and I remain highly confident in our ability to provide customers with solutions based on innovation, value-added service and differentiated distribution. We enter 2020 well-positioned and focused on what we can control.” Morikis said home remodeling is the company’s strongest customer segment, as new-home construction remains sluggish. He said that in 2019, the company introduced 27 new products and added 84 new company-operated paint stores. In its largest acquisition ever, the company in 2017 purchased Valspar Corp., a Minneapolis competitor that expanded Sherwin Williams footprint in the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, the Middle East and Africa and expanded its coating offerings in packaging and coil segments. If it has a black mark, it is the role paint, which until 1978 used lead to help it dry faster and last longer, has played in creating a hazard in older homes. Ever since lead was banned in paint, paint companies have been fighting legal actions that sought to hold the companies responsible for the learning impairments and development delays in children caused by the lead in paints. While most courts accepted the paint companies’ arguments that they discontinued marketing lead paints when the hazard and the risks to children became known, Sherwin-Williams and two other paint companies last July settled a lawsuit with 10 California cities and counties for $305 million that will be used for a remediation program to eliminate the lead hazard in older homes. The investment world has had high praise for the company. “They really are one of the great Cleveland companies, one of the great

Midwestern companies,” said Adam Seesel, a portfolio manager of Gravity Capital Management, a New York investment firm. “They understand their business, you know, down to the last penny, and they’re just relentlessly focused on executing.” Seesel said the company’s success is based in part on the network of the more than 4,700 retail stores it operates — most paint companies sell their paint through hardware stores and home improvement centers — and on its relationship with painting contractors. Other companies, Seesel said, can’t coordinate pricing or promotions because of their patchwork sales network. Sherwin-Williams, because it operates its own branded stores, can. “It’s just a well-oiled machine,” he said. “They can coordinate the sales promotions 100%. They have several thousand reps associated with the stores who go out to the job sites to make sure the painting contractors are well taken care of. They had a fleet of 900 trucks that can replenish painters intraday. No other paint company does this. That’s why they’re growing paint sales in the U.S. twice as fast as ... the industry average.” The company also offers contractors an app, called Pro, that gives contractors the 24/7 ability to order paint. It even includes a paint calculator to help the contractor estimate how much paint a contractor needs daily. “It’s wired into their stores and at night that paint contractor, after he’s finished, can update how many gallons he needs, you know, what color, all this sort of stuff,” Seesel said. “And in the morning, it’ll be ready for him at the Sherwin-Williams curb. That’s a huge, huge deal.” The company’s fleet of trucks also makes paint deliveries during the day to contractors and home builders. While the company talks little with the media, it gets high marks for the amount of information it shares with shareholders and the investment community. Sherwin-Williams was No. 1 on the most recent Rittenhouse Rankings Candor Analytics Survey, a yardstick that measures the accountability, leadership and relationships with stakeholders of a group of 100 companies that are in the Fortune 500. Laura Rittenhouse, a former investment banker who leads the consultancy that created the rankings, pointed to Sherwin-Williams’ most recent annual letter to stockholders as an example of the company’s approach to transparency. “In their most recent letter, the 2018 letter, they had four commentaries about things that didn’t go right, like ‘lead paint abatement resulted in a pretax charge of $136.3 million,’ or that ‘we face significant raw material inflation,’ et cetera, et cetera,” she said. “I mean, so much detail. I don’t see that in other company shareholder letters.” Rittenhouse’s candor scores are highly regarded by many investors, including Warren Buffet, considered one of the world’s most successful investors with a net worth of nearly $90 billion, and Jack Welch, the former CEO of the General Electric Co. Rittenhouse would not disclose in a telephone interview whether Sherwin-Williams held on to the No. 1 spot in her forthcoming rankings, but she said it will continue to be among the most candid firms. “Yeah, that’s very definitely, very definite,” she said. Jay Miller: jmiller@crain.com, (216) 771-5362, @millerjh

CRAIN’S CLEVELAND LOOK BACK | 1987-1990

An uphill climb for downtown retail

crainscleveland.com

Nostalgia dominates discussions of downtown shopping, whether it was the era before World War II and suburbanization changed the Northeast Ohio marketplace or later. In downtown Cleveland, there was a second shot at revitalizing downtown retail in the form of the Avenue Shops at Tower City Center and Galleria at Erieview Tower. Both remain light-filled, marble-floored, massive public spaces. Many of the storefronts at the Avenue above the city’s one-time railroad terminal are empty today, although about 20 are still in operation, including Brooks Brothers and a very busy Dollar Store. Across town, the Galleria’s Winking Lizard Tavern and Parker Hannifin Downtown YMCA have followings. However, if storefronts don’t house offices or the Cleveland Hungarian Museum, they’re empty. — Stan Bullard

``IN THEIR OWN WORDS “The Galleria will create excitement and create an entirely new core of activity with upscale stores and restaurants which will be enjoyed by both downtowners and suburbanites.”

REPORTERS

Stan Bullard, senior reporter, Real estate/ construction. (216) 771-5228 or sbullard@crain.com Jay Miller, Government. (216) 771-5362 or jmiller@crain.com Rachel Abbey McCafferty, Manufacturing/energy/ education. (216) 771-5379 or rmccafferty@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 Dan Shingler, Energy/steel/auto/Akron. (216) 771-5290 or dshingler@crain.com Lydia Coutré, Health care/nonprofits. (216) 771-5479 or lcoutre@crain.com

——Mayor George Voinovich, later governor and U.S. senator, in remarks as construction of the Galleria began May 8, 1986

Although the settings are spectacular architecturally, the reality is that many stores are dark at Tower City and Galleria in 2020. The American Greetings card shop closed in January at Avenue Shops as part of the shutdown of Papyrus stores. | STAN BULLARD

``THE HISTORY

``WHY IT MATTERS TODAY

The underpinning of 1980s and 1990s-era downtown malls was the “hole in the doughnut” theory. The market areas served by enclosed malls surrounded urban cores, but the city centers might be fertile ground for more of them. The other idea was that the right mix of retailers would draw shoppers. The rap on the idea was prescient: How much shopping can the lunch crowd feed? Years later came the answer: not much. The other part of the equation was that downtown Cleveland at the time housed many corporations. It later lost many of them to out-of-town owners, moves to the suburbs or failure. Cleveland was home to national developers Jacobs Visconsi and Jacobs and Forest City Enterprises Inc. that the Voinovich administration sold on doing downtown deals. That administration was adept at landing federal funds crucial to the $100 million that went into Tower City’s Avenue and $70 million for the Galleria.

The massive investments in the enclosed malls helped downtown Cleveland gain national attention. They were crucial in helping spin the city’s comeback story after it became the first major city to go into default since the Great Recession. Perhaps more important, for the Gen-Xers and millennials who play such a big part in the revival of downtown living, visits to the malls as youngsters may have helped ignite the desire to live downtown. Both properties were crucial to giving new life to existing, if timeworn, properties. The Avenue mall at Tower City was one property in a massive complex of five buildings that was put in place by yoking together parts of the original downtown Union Terminal train complex. Other elements of Tower City added a Ritz-Carlton hotel, two skyscrapers on pads that had waited for new construction since the 1930s, and renovation of the former, and mas-

STARK

From Page 1

It’s also used if banks are unwilling to write a mortgage on a transaction, such as on an empty building like the one Stark was vacating to move its headquarters to the office portion of Lofts at Rosetta, 629 Euclid Ave. However, Kandelker fired back in court on Thursday, Feb. 13, as his attorneys filed a motion to have the judgment lien overturned and asked for a court order preventing the foreclosure or other actions from proceeding. Judge Joseph D. Russo on that day filed a journal entry declining to issue a temporary restraining order as the parties had agreed to enter settlement discussions. Realife maintains the judgment lien was improperly obtained, but

An affiliate of Stark Enterprises filed a foreclosure proceeding against the new owner of its former headquarters at 1350 W. Third St. The building sits on part of the potential Sherwin-Williams headquarters site. | STAN BULLARD

“To be very honest, Richard Jacobs and Albert Ratner wanted to outdo each other. It evolved so that Jacobs undertook projects north of Superior Avenue and (Ratnerled) Forest City undertook projects on the south side of Superior. They both had their visions for how to undertake downtown retail and knew how to put it together. In the era after default, the city was in the position that beggars can’t be choosers.”

ADVERTISING

Local sales manager Megan Norman, (216) 771-5182 or mnorman@crain.com Events manager Erin Bechler, (216) 771-5388 or ebechler@crain.com Integrated marketing manager Michelle Sustar, (216) 771-5371 or msustar@crain.com Managing editor custom/special projects Amy Ann Stoessel (216) 771-5155 or astoessel@crain.com Associate publisher Lisa Rudy Director of advertising sales Scott Carlson Senior account executive John Petty Account executives Laura Kulber Mintz, Loren Breen 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

——Andi Udris, former Cleveland economic development director

Galleria gave Erieview Tower a front door on East Ninth Street.

sive, U.S. Post Office. Galleria was part of a repositioning of the Erieview Tower, which had lost major tenants to new buildings nearby. The East Ninth Street address of the shopping center made the tower seem closer to the city’s financial district.

did not spell out how so. Stark had maintained the borrower did not make an $11,000 monthly payment due in January. James Asimes, Realife’s director of acquisitions, responded to a question about whether the dispute was linked to a potential sale associated with Sherwin-Williams by writing in an email, “We continue to own and control the property, and expect that to be the case well into the future.” The bulk of the proposed Sherwin-Williams downtown site incorporates two blocks of parking lots spanning the area from West Third to West Sixth Street, as well as Superior Avenue to West St. Clair and a parking lot on the west side of Public Square that are owned by two other groups. The tiny, 18,000-square-foot building sits on a piece of ground smaller than 1/10th of an acre, according to county land records.

“I get goosebumps remembering how exciting it was when Tower City opened. The high-end retail there was unbelievable. After Dillard’s (formerly Higbee’s) closed, it was different.”

CUSTOMER SERVICE

Customer service and subscriptions: (877) 824-9373 or customerservice@crainscleveland.com Reprints: Laura Picariello (732) 723-0569 or lpicariello@crain.com

——Dyann Davison, executive vice president, Hanna Commercial, Cleveland

Mark Jablonski, a real estate owner and developer who operates Centermark Development of University Heights, said in a phone interview that he can see why the paint and coatings giant might want to square off its ownership of the entire block. However, he added he does not feel it could derail such a momentous deal as it’s on the edge but not at the center of the proposed project. If the parties do not settle, foreclosure might pose less delay than previously, said Mike Sikora, managing partner of Sikora Law LLC of Cleveland, since state law has strengthened the ability of receivers to sell properties. A Sherwin-Williams spokeswoman did not respond to emails about the building on West Third. Stan Bullard: sbullard@crain.com, (216) 771-5228, @CrainRltywriter

Publisher/editor Elizabeth McIntyre (216) 771-5358 or emcintyre@crain.com Group publisher Mary Kramer (313) 446-0399 or mkramer@crain.com Managing editor Scott Suttell (216) 771-5227 or ssuttell@crain.com Sections editor Michael von Glahn (216) 771-5359 or mvonglahn@crain.com Creative director David Kordalski (216) 771-5169 or dkordalski@crain.com Web editor Damon Sims (216) 771-5279 or dasims@crain.com Associate editor/Akron Sue Walton (330) 802-4615 or swalton@crain.com Assistant editor Kevin Kleps (216) 771-5256 or kkleps@crain.com Senior data editor Chuck Soder (216) 771-5374 or csoder@crain.com Editorial researcher William Lucey (216) 771-5243 or wlucey@crain.com Cartoonist Rich Williams

Crain’s Cleveland Business is published by Crain Communications Inc. Chairman Keith E. Crain Vice chairman Mary Kay Crain President 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) Editorial & Business Offices 700 W. St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113-1230 (216) 522-1383 Volume 41, Number 6 Crain’s Cleveland Business (ISSN 0197-2375) is published weekly, except for the first issue in January, July and September, the last issue in May and the fourth issue in November, at 700 West St. Clair Ave., Suite 310, Cleveland, OH 44113-1230. Copyright © 2020 by Crain Communications Inc. Periodicals postage paid at Cleveland, OH, and at additional mailing offices. Price per copy: $2.00. Postmaster: Send address changes to Crain’s Cleveland Business, Circulation Department, 1155 Gratiot Avenue, Detroit, MI 48207-2912. 1 (877) 824-9373. Subscriptions: In Ohio: 1 year - $64, 2 year - $110. Outside Ohio: 1 year - $110, 2 year - $195. Single copy, $2.00. Allow 4 weeks for change of address. For subscription information and delivery concerns send correspondence to Audience Development Department, Crain’s Cleveland Business, 1155 Gratiot Avenue, Detroit, MI, 48207-9911, or email to customerservice@crainscleveland.com, or call (877) 824-9373 (in the U.S. and Canada) or (313) 446-0450 (all other locations), or fax (313) 446-6777.

February 17, 2020 | CRAIN’S CLEVELAND BUSINESS | 19

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2/14/2020 2:58:47 PM

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