The Land

🎉 Thrilled today to receive funding from Press Forward, the nationwide initiative strengthening communities through local news! We’re in great company: 205 small, local newsrooms across the U.S. are sharing $20 million for reporting on communities and regions that have traditionally gone uncovered. Since 2020, we have been on the frontlines, creating local news by and for Greater Clevelanders. We've been training Clevelanders on how journalism works, and giving them the tools, mentorship, and funds to do their own reporting. A review panel of national foundation and journalism leaders read about how our stories make a difference right here at home and awarded us $100,000 in funding. Learn more: pressforward.news/grantees #PressForward

Public Square in Downtown Cleveland is set to undergo a potentially transformative revitalization, thanks to an investment that marks the beginning of a series of public realm enhancement efforts. https://lnkd.in/gVXVsRtU

A check for $32,000 was presented during an Ice Cream Social + back-to-school event at the Community Center playground. The event offered free book bags, community partner resources and treats like ice cream and a video game truck for kids. The funds have also contributed to the establishment of the Spectrum Training and Technology Center at Lakeview Community Center. https://lnkd.in/g9bmmN7y

“Open streets encourage people to get out, get active, socialize and experience their neighborhood in a whole new way,” said city spokesperson Tyler Sinclair. https://lnkd.in/gwDYbg2g

The playground at a popular park on Cleveland’s West Side has closed for demolition and a much-anticipated renovation spurred by neighborhood volunteers. Impett Park’s playground closed Aug. 27 for a project that will result “in a state-of-the-art and inclusive playground, designed by residents, that will set the new standard for City of Cleveland parks,” Councilman Charles Slife said in a recent message to residents. https://lnkd.in/geCUMyCR

At the corner of East 79th Street and Hough Avenue, a grass lot is all that remains of the Seventy-Niners Café, the bar where the spark of the 1966 Hough Uprising was ignited. Fifty-eight years later, a new Cleveland Civil Rights Trail marker stands in its place, commemorating the uprising and its significance in Cleveland’s civil rights history. https://lnkd.in/gbXpnD-K

Cuyahoga County, Cleveland Metroparks and the City of Cleveland are collaborating on a multi-million dollar waterfront development project. The project includes a walkway along the lake where lake-lovers can walk, bike and take in the beauty of Lake Erie. Shore Acres, a neighborhood located between E.149th and E. 152nd in North Collinwood, has such serious erosion problems it had to close its park. Through lucky timing, determination, hard work and the strength of a neighborhood working together, Shore Acres can now look forward to a walkway along the lake and a rebuilt lakefront park. https://lnkd.in/gUEswtGU

In August, at an event hosted at the Cleveland Botanical Garden, the Holden Seed Bank celebrated one year of collecting seeds for reforestation with a focus on the biodiversity of native species. https://lnkd.in/gKNP6WQa

More than 250 donors contributed to the daylong “Day of Giving.” BGCNEO leaders are still determining how exactly to use the funds, but said the money will “enable us to serve more youth.” https://lnkd.in/ghtDvk9n

Accessibility to Lake Erie has been a lingering issue for some Clevelanders, with disparities often falling along racial or socioeconomic lines. Yet, Cleveland Metroparks is charting a new course on the lakefront through inclusive sailing opportunities. https://lnkd.in/ghf7eu7e