Second Life for Breuer Tower?

Protesters at last Thursday’s rally at the Cleveland Trust/ Ameritrust/ Breuer Tower will tell you that the building – built in 1971 to house the offices of Cleveland Trust Bank – has been vacant for quite a while. They think vacant, however, doesn’t mean dilapidated or beyond reasonable use. Opponents of demolition converged on the tower late last week, demanding the landmark by a well-regarded architect be considered for preservation, saving taxpayer money.

Some research indicates that architecture firms Kohn, Pedersen, Fox and Cleveland-based Fleischman and Associates proposed to demolish the tower because it is structurally inadequate and a newer structure would be more aesthetically pleasing – or, to quote neo-beatnik M. Doughty, “in other words, fly”. It is alleged to be the location of the “new county administrative center,” though it seems that no formalized timeline or grand design has been unveiled to the general public as of yet. I tend to agree with the protesters here: Do we really need a new county headquarters, or perhaps a vacant lot, to go in the tower’s place? For our tax dollars? C'mon.

I wonder why the building can’t be saved, but I’ve got a slightly different take on this than anyone else I’ve heard, be it protester or politician: offer its space up RENT FREE to companies who want to relocate their world headquarters to Cleveland for a lengthy period of time. Like, say, 10 years. Got yer attention? Now hear me out. We’ve got this new brand Cleveland Plus (or "+" as it sometimes likes to call itself). Wanna give that plan some real teeth? Launch a contest to subsidize rent for a mid-level company (or a handful of smaller ones) and have them relocate to Breuer Tower.

Can you even comprehend the overhead a mid-level company has? Imagine taking the rent out of the equation for them for a decade! Or an upstart company that is rocking hard, or a mid-level that needs a push financially to get them to Fortune 500 or 1000 status? Talk about a business incubator! Why isn't this being considered a legitimate opportunity for the building? Cleveland would win them over once they were here. Those commissioners, "the Plus" and the "Tech Czar," Michael DeAloia, could be on the phone with some of those hi-tech companies right now, trying to cinch a deal.

Offer it to Google/YouTube. Quicken Loans. Progressive Insurance. Motorola. Intel. Bank of America. Virgin. Or some of the larger regional companies that might be thinking of leaving for more fertile ground. Or how about some of the "on-the-cusp" tech, biotech and renewable energy companies out there? There are no green energy companies (solar, water, wind) here in Cleveland that I'm aware of. Why not here? If we think wind turbines on the lake are a smart investment in our future, maybe a wind company anchored here in town is as well...?

We pine away for a time when companies will come and pick us with the same zeal that makes bridesmaids jump for the bouquet. But no one outside the city wants to get married? So, how about a dowry. We do want to attract these kinds of businesses, right? We always say we do. We could all put our money where our mouth is. And it is OUR money, Cleveland. Shouldn't we ask -- nay, demand -- the commissioners to look more closely at what that cash is really going to do for the city? We as a city could offer the tower to businesses and, at the very same time that the news of Ford's closings and record-high foreclosures are permeating the airwaves and newsprint, taxpayers could be working to counteract the loss of jobs from the region.

We can be the change we wish to see in the region.

So I'm thinking, let's hold a challenge, anchored by the county commissioners, co-sponsored by the city and Cleveland Plus, and open the Breuer Tower up to companies all across the country and the world! “Hey! Wanna to relocate your world headquarters? Tell us why you want to come to Cleveland and set up shop in this historical building... and we’ll give you the space rent free for 10 years! C’mon, whaddya say? We'll even kick in the $11M of additional taxpayer money that we were gonna demolish it with to renovate it! Let’s hear from you!”

We won't give the use of the building to just anyone. We already know we live in a beautiful city, with spectacular resources of many varieties, on a Great Lake, and we're a hub for one of the most successful airlines in business travel. We want a company or a few that get it, too.

Noted Modern architect Marcel Breuer designed the tower and is perhaps best known for his design of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. The entire tower complex (Breuer Tower, the gorgeous Rotunda, a low-rise building, and the parking garage) apparently wasn’t worth much when the thought of razing the tower came about. But the tower's design was innovative at the time and heck, it was apparently worth most of the $21.7M the Cuyahoga County commissioners used to buy it in the fall of 2005.

What would Charles Landry do with the building? And where are our leaders??

Now, I'm no math major, and I'm no urban planner either, but that’s a lotta quid to fork out for what could potentially be an empty lot. Wouldn’t you rather see that $11M used to renovate the tower and revitalize the city? And doesn't it make sense to remain true to the innovative spirit that the designer had for it in the first place?

The Breuer Tower's entrance is located on East 9th Street, which is prime downtown real estate after the Euclid Corridor project is completed. It sits opposite National City Bank headquarters and Huntington Bank’s regional HQ -- and the block was featured in Spider-man 3, for heaven’s sake, so it's famous! By offering the no-cost rent to attract a powerhouse company and employer, the county looks heroic (I’m thinking Justice League of America here) utilizing tax money to improve the economy of the city for at least a whole decade. And probably longer. A lot of people fall in love with Cleveland when they come here.

As for the company (or companies, potentially) moving in? They win a ton of primo real estate space in the building, sans rent, in a market that is marketing itself as boasting 4 million people. We all know the tower needs some elbow grease to bring it back to prominence. But I’d much rather see our tax dollars used for that, given the plan above, wouldn’t you?

And while they’re at it, the commissioners could even offer an olive branch to those still honked off about Issue 18: give a whole floor to the plethora of arts organizations in Cleveland -– all of which are currently paying separate overhead for their own collective spaces.

If the arts organizations bring joy, class and value to our region -- and they do -- doesn’t it make sense to extend them a new "Cleveland Arts Cooperative" collective space? There's your public underwriting for the arts right there! Bring them downtown, too! Heck, they’ll all be walking distance from the theatre district.

Then the commissioners could legitimately tell those smokers who are being taxed that they just actively participated in (and directly impacted) the renovation of downtown’s historic skyline and revitalized Cleveland’s economic development.

It all adds up to something a whole lot cooler than just another new administrative building, parking lot or (worse) a vacant lot, which could go just about anywhere else downtown where a far worse off building could be removed. There are plenty of other locations downtown where "some building" could get torn to make room for something new. No wonder some urban planners in town are nauseous by the idea.

It takes some forward thinking to keep something historical and useful and effective. Only in Cleveland would we consider the tearing down of such a statuesque thing as acceptable. Agree with me? Got another idea? Write your county commissioners and ask them how well the alternatives have been explored. Email Jimmy Dimora (CNJCD@cuyahogacounty.us), Peter Lawson Jones (CNPLJ@cuyahogacounty.us) and Timothy F. Hagan (CNTFH@cuyahogacounty.us) and feel free to copy us at Letters@CoolCleveland.com.

Just some food for thought this Wednesday morning, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Writer-man.

From Cool Cleveland Managing Editor Peter Chakerian peterATcoolcleveland.com

Breuer Tower photo courtesy of Norm Roulet http://realneo.us (:divend:)