Med Mart -- "We need it." Remind me why. Please.

Did the Plain Dealer actually think that Cuyahoga County Commissioners would really insist MMPI pay property taxes? God. The PD has kept itself innocent all these years. And it remains naïve and innocent. Like Bernie Madoff.

I also loved the PD editorial last Sunday. The headline was "One piece at a time." It's the subhead that really gets me: "Medical mart development agreement is acceptable; the challenge will be to make sure the project stays on course."

Just as the paper monitored Gateway and the Browns Stadium. Kept them on course. Of course. We still don't know what the Browns Stadium cost the city; nor what it is still costing the city.

Have you notice that not one of the high profile PD columnists has taken a crack at the issue. Why? Self-censorship. That’s why. They don’t dare cross the line. It’s safer to write about a rabbit and your 10-year old daughter. What editor can find a complaint there?

It’s why newspapers are seen as so irrelevant to so many. Just can’t pull the trigger on the big guys.

By last Thursday, Cuyahoga Commissioners - possibly without Tim Hagan who is experiencing heart problems - will sign the deal to give MMPI (Merchandise Mart Properties, Inc.) hundreds of millions of tax dollars to do what no one can say with any confidence is a wise decision. A $1 billion dollar blunder.

But we JUST NEED a convention center. So what if we’re doing it wrong. So what if it’s done at unbelievable cost. We NEED it. So they say. Our “leaders.”

There has been dispute about who owns the final product. This has no meaning whatsoever. Since whichever entity owns it – county or MMPI – it will run the same way and the costs and profits will go the same way. A public oversight committee (named by the same people who concocted this scheme) will be meaningless. The PD’s promise of oversight will be laughable. (As was the paper’s crowing that the lease was released a week before the vote, as if it makes a bit of difference.)

MedCity News – a publication headed by two former PD reporters, Chris Seper and Mary Vanac (two the paper didn’t want to lose but took the paper’s buyout) say that MMPI now “will have to prove they know what they’re doing.” The publication deals, it says, with “health care as an economic engine of American cities.” You find it here.

It’s not assured that they will have to do so. The contact says, as MedCity reports, that “MMPI has one year to convince 10 tenants to spend three years in the medical mart.” However, MedCity already reported, “its likely many initial tenants in the permanent showrooms of the proposed medical showplace will feature beds, chairs and floor tiles meant for hospitals, private practice and some home care settings.” As I said when I read it, sounds like a barn-burner economic plus for Cleveland.

The point is that it may be easy for MMPI to get 10 outlets to rent for a time. Tower City got upscale outlets here when it opened because of Forest City’s ability to ask favors of people they do business with elsewhere. It had no long term meaning.

Erick Trickey of Cleveland Magazine has some interesting stuff on his blog here questioning use of the bed tax that would mean more public money flowing to MMPI.

He also information from MMPI.

He quotes Commissioner Peter Lawson Jones saying that it is very possible more money will come from new sources.

Well, back last April when Squire-Sanders chief honcho Nance - conveniently consultant to Cuyahoga County, negotiator with MMPI and representing the Greater Cleveland Partnership - called for a 2 percent increase in the bed tax to produce an extra $50 million AND taking $2.5 million from Positively Cleveland (Visitors Bureau) for another $50 million over 20 years.

Think there may be any more flows of revenue unrevealed. Maybe the PD will threaten them.

This deal has stunk to high heaven from the beginning. Nothing has changed it.

Heywood Sanders, public policy professor at University of Texas-San Antonio and a national respected expert on the convention business, is skeptical of this entire deal. He has been for a long time. For very good reason, as he well knows.

“First, it’s not clear there is any demand among the medical device manufacturers for this kind of ‘mart’ or ‘showroom,” he writes in an e-mail response to me.

“They (medical device industry) already have marketing and sales staffs and approaches, and they prefer to sell their own stuff in environments that they either fully control or in hospital/clinic settings where they know how the product is being used.”

Of course, this isn’t even MMPI’s business – the medical aspect. MMPI lists such industries it serves as “office/retail, home furnishings, gift and home, kitchen and bath, fine crafts. Not a medical hint on its business list. See for yourself here.

Sanders goes on: “Second, the tie to the convention center is simply wacky.” WOW! (Of course, we’ve said all along that the med mart has been an excuse to spend $1 billion on a convention center. We NEED it.)

“Medial and health care associations make their money from conventions, most of it from renting exhibit space to exhibitors. They have no incentive to share exhibitors with a Med Mart, and no particular reason to come to Cleveland. They’ll go to where they can get the space they need, in locations that are draws for their members (I say, think San Diego). Remember they are effectively in the business of delivering ‘eyeballs’ to exhibitors and running professional education programs that require substantial attendance.”

He concludes by writing: “It is striking to me that MMPI has effective stalled this deal for over a year, and now gets to shop around for another year (or more) to see if it works. If there really was a demand for this thing, they would know it by now.”

If that’s true, what the hell is going on?

There’s a lot of money out there for the taking. Figuring out how to finagle the deal seems to be the agenda of the County Commissioners, MMPI, Fred Nance and the Greater Cleveland Partnership.

I love that the Plain Dealer editors have some confidence in this deal. Even though they write in their editorial, “Based on the past performances of this trio – recall how they fumbled the Ameritrust project for their own new home – it’s hard to imagine them making such a tough decision. But they seem willing to, and this newspaper will do what it takes to make sure the people of Cuyahoga County have enough information to evaluate – and influence – their decision-making.”

Dream on, Plain Dealer, dream on.

As I said, as they will say and as the PD will say, “We NEED it.”

Well, actually, we don’t.

Finally, Transparency -- Open Green, Openly Proclaimed

The desperation of our grasping corporatists has to amaze anyone who has watched the fiasco that goes for civic and public decision-making.

Isn’t there some irony in the owners of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Cleveland Indians – for whom Tim Hagan has bestowed hundreds of millions of dollars in public funds via Gateway – come back and bite him on his exposed ass.

How about the Plain Dealer, which this past Sunday editorialized “Medical mart development agreement is acceptable” and today editorialized, “Don’t rush into a complex deal.”

“Broadly, this agreement tries to balance the interests of a private developer and county taxpayers who, for the next 20 years, would foot almost all of the bills to design, build and operate the showrooms and a meeting center marketed primarily to the health care industry but ultimately owned by the public,” editorialized the PD on Sunday.

“Is it a sure thing? Of course not. There are no sure things. But it’s a project worth pursuing – with eyes wide open and requisite skepticism,” the paper’s editorial concluded on Sunday.

Today, say the editorialists, “What’s the rush?”

And, “More time to study and discuss is needed to bring some trust to this important public project.” Now it’s not balanced apparently.

How embarrassing.

Does anybody around here understand what they are doing?

Is it only mass greed that propels all decision-making here?

Certainly, ravenous self-interests guide Cavs owner Dan Gilbert and Indians’ owner Paul Dolan. Neither has shown any great concern about Cleveland. They each essentially enjoy a free stadium and arena. Neither pays a penny in property taxes for their structures.

They pleasure themselves in welfare benefits befitting kings.

Hagan, who has tried to power this deal for his family friends, has to revert to his old fiction that only if you run for County Commissioner are you qualified to opine on anything. Pathetic thinking.

Lurking behind the Gilbert ploy obviously are Forest City’s principals Sam Miller and the Ratners. So gluttonous are our home-grown developers that they would bring down the town, even if it meant destroying what they have built here.

This pursuit of the Med Mart and Convention center in their backyard has been a bad joke from the beginning.

I blame our civic leaders, a hapless, cowardly bunch, and the Pee Dee – as I like to call it in these instances – for its continued lack of responsibility in assessing what’s going on, its failure to take on the greed that has been sucking Cleveland dry.

Let’s just dump the medical mart and convention center idea. Why bother. Why fake the need.

Let’s just build a pyramid. Let’s spend $2 billion on it. Let’s have Forest City be the construction manager. Let’s let MMPI be the owner. Let’s not tax it. Let’s pay for it all.

Let’s just payoff these people – the Ratners, Miller, Gilbert, Dolan, Jacobs – and have over with it. Give us some peace and quiet.

Wouldn’t that be easier? More honest?

The Jacobs Shoe Drops on the Med Mart

“I would suggest to you that the Mall C site is by far the superior site for several reasons,” writes Jeff Jacobs in an advertisement on Sunday. He didn’t add, “And my dad owns the hotel and parking garage across the street!”

Two developers – Ratners & Jacobs – have been playing this game for at least 20 years.

Both seek public subsidy for their private businesses.

They have been ruining the public life of this city and county for their own selfish interests.

Back in February, I wrote: “Are we seeing another tiff between our heavyweight developers behind all these machinations?” I was talking about the Medical Mart and new Convention Center fight over their site placement.

“The Tower City site, obviously benefits Forest City Enterprises. That’s Sam Miller and Al Ratner and family.

“The new choice of the Mall benefits Dick Jacobs, rival for power in this town to the Forest City gang.

“How? The Medical Mart would be located right across the street from Jacobs’s Marriott hotel and (his) underground garage – both had 20-year tax abatements and millions of dollars in generous 20-year, zero percent interest loans from Cleveland – giving Jacobs a boost.”

Read the full article questioning the need for a Med Mart here.

So this Sunday’s Plain Dealer served – by a front page repeat story – Forest City’s continued fight against the Mall site with another simplistic plea from Dan Gilbert, owner of the Cavaliers. His silly citing of Detroit’s downfall because of placement of casinos (not the decline and fall of the auto industry) is laughable. But the Plain Dealer serves as a conduit for these greedy developers.

Then the PD served (at least it made some money) by the Jacobs ad – full-page, A-5 – without even commenting on the unusual paid propaganda ad by son for dad.

Can’t we see that the only reasonable decision is to call it all off and allow these avaricious developers to stop destroying the city for their own selfish purposes.

Forest City’s power has been waning for years. The Ratner family got tens of millions of public dollars for Tower City and related buildings, got huge amounts of RTA public funding (Waterfront line to its door; tunnel to Gateway via RTA, then tunnel from Tower City to the new federal court building, built on its land with federal dough via Rep. Lou Stokes – then Stokes became director of Forest City). Twenty year tax abatement and more millions of public subsidies for the Ritz-Carleton luxury hotel.

The gifts never end. Their grabbing monumental.

Then Dick Jacobs came to town. His power rose. Tax gifts and tax abatements in the tens of millions for Key Center & the Marriott and the parking facility under Mall A. Hundreds of millions of dollars for Jacobs Stadium and his Indians, which he sold at hundreds of millions in profits. Possibly as much for Jacobs’ deal on Chagrin Highlands. Not to mention that the same County Commission – Tim Hagan, Jimmy Dimora & Peter Lawson Jones – bought Jacobs’ dead E. 9th street corner at the Ameritrust Building for some $22 million. It was wasting away and now it’s corroding on the County dime (read taxpayer).

His handouts never end. His greed unquenchable.

Yet, these two families – given so much – are throwing the city and county into a desperate, despairing fight over the Medical Mart, which should not even be built.

THEIR GREED IS ENORMOUS. IT IS KILLING THE CITY, DESTOYING ITS CIVIC PSYCHE, DROWNING IT IN DEBT.

The newspaper continues to feed the avarice on its front page by allowing self-serving factions dictate the public discussion.

There is no public debate because the main instrument of public discussion either hasn’t a clue or has taken sides.

The PD is furthering Forest City’s desires via the continued – supposedly balanced articles – game played by the Ratners with Gilbert’s self-serving blathering about Detroit when his game is casinos he’ll own.

The whole thing has gotten totally disgusting and there isn’t a voice out there willing to call the games these people are playing.

Shame on us all.

Jeff Johnson -- A Future Cleveland Mayor?

The retirement of Glenville Councilwoman Sabra Pierce Scott should mean a return to city hall of Jeff Johnson. With a bit of humility Johnson becomes a strong future possibility for Mayor of Cleveland.

He’s got the guts for the job.

Some believe Scott now will run Mayor Frank Jackson’s campaign, and then take a position in the administration that will mean more pay, less work and a better pension. What a bargain!

Her decision, however, may mean a lot more to the city. It could be a big positive for the future. Scott, a bright woman, fit unfortunately the norm for Council members: play it safe, go along to get along. A tragic character for Cleveland politicians. All too familiar.

Johnson allowed his arrogance to throw him off the path of political stardom here when he was videotaped seeming to ask for campaign contributions for political favors. It was sleazy stuff to watch.

It was a familiar Johnson I saw on the video. A bit brash and seemingly a political wheeler-dealer. I don’t think that’s the real Johnson and I believe he was set up for that fall. Now, it would be fitting if we saw a more mature Johnson. Hopefully, age and knocks have helped him.

I remember taking Councilman Johnson to lunch at the old Otto Mosher’s when it was a restaurant on E. 4th Street with history leaking off its dark wall filled with photos of past celebrities. It told of an age when Cleveland was a real big city. An old African-American man always controlled the seating. He would slowly usher you down the narrow isle, past the long bar, to seat you in an old chair at an old table.

Johnson, a life-long Clevelander, had never been to the renowned downtown restaurant. It indicated to me his limited sophistication.

He’s traveled a long way from those days.

Mayor Frank Jackson decided not to keep Johnson at City Hall when he became mayor. Johnson had been given a second-chance by former Mayor Jane Campbell. Johnson returned the favor by backing Campbell over Jackson. Jackson, however, may live to regret that short-sighted decision.

Johnson has the resolve to forge ahead with his new political plans. Johnson isn’t one to back away from a fight.

Indeed, I wrote in the 1980s that Johnson was the principal reason Council President George Forbes decided to leave Council and run for mayor, where he was defeated by Michael White. Johnson replaced White when White left Council and also when White left the state senate. They were uneasy partners. Johnson could – not this time – but in the near future replace White’s mayoral candidate Jackson.

Here’s what I wrote in 1989 in an article in the Cleveland Edition:

“A year ago in an election eve TV interview Council President George Forbes promised a certain politician that he’d “kick his ass” and run him straight out of politics.

“Forbes was talking about Glenville Councilman Jeff Johnson.”

I continued: “One year later, Johnson – more than any single individual – had laid the conditions and tested the strategy adopted by Michael White to retire one of the city’s most powerful politicians in its history.

“You might say Jeff kicked his (Forbes) ass.”

Johnson challenged Forbes when no Council member, especially an African-American, would stand up to the dictatorial leader. Forbes was too powerful for challenges. At least that’s what all seemed to believe.

However, Johnson, challenged Forbes over and over, demanding that Forbes “respect” him. Forbes became so enraged at one point that he tossed a chair at the young Johnson. It was a glancing blow at a private meeting but it got plenty of press coverage.

Ostracized by Forbes and his fellow toadies in Council, Johnson ran against Virgil Brown, the first African-American County Commissioner. He lost. However, Johnson used a cross-over strategy, appealing to white West Side voters. It was the strategy that White was to repeat. He used most it effectively against Forbes in the mayoral race, defeating him handily.

Johnson showed fortitude I rarely saw in Cleveland politics.

He even filed ethics charges against Forbes who had been holding up the building of a Burger King in his ward. Forbes wanted it built on land he owned.

Unable to break Johnson, Forbes organized a brutal attack on the Glenville Councilman. It took place at the end of a Council meeting. African-American legislative members, one after another, took turns personally attacking Johnson.

Here’s veteran Councilman Ken Johnson: “You have been a disgrace to me, to my people, and to this Council,” Ken Johnson attacked his colleague. He complained, he said, because they had the same last name.

Fannie Lewis pleaded with Johnson to give in to Forbes: “You’re too young to get killed… so please sit down and talk.”

Johnson didn’t back off. Here was Jeff’s emotional response:

“You talk about respect for the Chair. I have never across this table called him a name, disrespected him, unless you consider a disagreement disrespect, which I don’t.

“How about respect for me? How about respect for fellow Councilmen. Because we gave him authority to be President, we didn’t give him authority to disrespect. And that’s the bottom line – a human being to a human being. He has disrespected me… I have not been brought up to accept that from anyone,” said Johnson.

I said at the time that it was Johnson’s refusal to buckle under that forced Forbes to make political mistakes that undermined his position as the city’s leading black politician. Forbes had worn out his welcome by his abusive acts.

Forbes, Arnold Pinkney, Lou Stokes and even White have blocked the development of black political advancement here for many years. This is another of the sad legacies that have thwarted and discourage the development of leadership that Cleveland so seriously lacks.

I’m hoping that Jeff Johnson can show the maturity to end the city’s political leadership drought, at least.

From Cool Cleveland contributor Roldo Bartimole roldoATroadrunner.com
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