ShoreBank scales back lending

Transcription

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Vol. 31, No. 14
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ShoreBank scales back lending
Chicago branches, ShoreBank also
is in Detroit. A Pacific Northwest
branch is separately chartered and is
unaffected by a cease-and-desist order
ShoreBank received last July from the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and
the Illinois Division of Banking that
claimed the bank was engaging in
unsafe or unsound practices.
The practices ShoreBank was
rebuked for include “operating with
an inadequate level of capital protection for the kind and quality of assets
In response to FDIC mandate, community
institution focuses on raising capital levels
By ARIELLE KASS
akass@crain.com
ShoreBank, a Chicago-based bank
focused on community development
in urban areas, has curtailed its lending
in Cleveland and across its footprint
as it tries to raise at least $159 million.
Brian Berg, a spokesman for ShoreBank, said the bank is “continuing to
take care of our existing customers”
and is raising deposits, but has
“curtailed small business lending and
real estate lending for several months
bank-wide.”
In addition to its Cleveland and
Opportunity
Corridor plan
moves ahead
held,” “engaging in hazardous lending
and lax collection practices” and
“operating with an excessive level of
adversely classified loans.”
The bank also was operating with
policies that jeopardized the safety
of its deposits and resulted in inadequate earnings, the order said.
ShoreBank was ordered to return
the bank to a “safe and sound”
condition, including increasing its
capital levels.
See LENDING Page 6
FROM START TO FINISH
Committee conceptualizes
development along I-490,
University Circle link
By JAY MILLER
jmiller@crain.com
A sour economy and a lack of firm
financing haven’t deterred state
highway planners and Cleveland
community leaders from pressing
ahead with the Opportunity Corridor,
a $350 million plan to create a 2.75mile boulevard and development
zone that would connect the eastern
stub of Interstate 490 with University
Circle.
The Ohio Department of Transportation expects to select a final
route for the four-lane road by early
2011, with construction likely to
begin in 2015 and to be completed in
2019. That’s a long way off — too
long for some advocates — but the
project is in a better position now to
move ahead than it has been since it
was first proposed in 2003 during
planning for reconstruction of
Cleveland’s Inner Belt.
Terri Hamilton Brown, a consultant
to the Greater Cleveland Partnership
business advocacy group who’s
heading a public-private steering
committee planning the corridor, said
she hopes the committee can complete
a community and economic development plan for neighborhoods along
the route by Jan. 1 and can win the city
of Cleveland’s approval of a land use
plan before year-end.
The project still needs to line up
federal, state and perhaps local money
The Parmageddon, named after Mr. Fish’s
hometown of Parma, begins with sharp
cheddar and potato and cheese pierogi.
JASON MILLER
Chef Matt Fish is opening a second Melt location in Cleveland Heights.
MELT SPREADS
Lakewood’s master of the grilled cheese preps for
East Side restaurant opening, sees further growth potential
By KATHY AMES CARR
kcarr@crain.com
S
ince Melt Bar and Grilled
opened its doors in September
2006, the local culinary destination has developed its own
brand, a tattoo fan club and a loyal
following of customers for the
humble grilled cheese.
Now the popularity of the Lakewood
establishment — with its whimsical
variations of the classic American
sandwich along with an expansive
beer selection — has prompted chef
and owner Matt Fish to expand with
a second location that is set to open
May 21 at Cedar and South Taylor
roads in Cleveland Heights.
With the new location, Melt will
employ a total of about 110 people,
most of whom work full time.
If all goes well at the East Side
digs, the sandwich artist hopes to
expand the Melt concept further;
The sandwich also includes grilled onions
and napa vodka kraut, and is served with
sweet slaw and fries.
The Parmageddon is served.
See MELT Page 5
14
See CORRIDOR Page 13
0
NEWSPAPER
71486 01032
6
SPECIAL SECTION
We spotlight
some of
Northeast
Ohio’s family
businesses
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of $3.4 billion. Here are some of those projects:
Cleveland Independents,
I Buy NEO and the
Hudson Gift Card
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others enhance regional
economies in our Small
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4/2/2010
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Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
3
INSIGHT
Bank failures in
Ohio likely done,
at least for now
Officials optimistic that recent successful
capital-raising efforts are positive signs
By ARIELLE KASS
akass@crain.com
FILL ’ER UP!
Arena officials are charged with booking their venues
as fully as possible. Trust them when they say it isn’t easy.
L
eave it to the, ahem, pro
wrestling outfit WWE to
illustrate the very real
complexities of arena
scheduling.
WWE last May put the NBA in a
pickle: The Denver Nuggets were
to play host to the Los Angeles
Lakers in Game 4 of the Western
Conference Finals, except nine
months earlier WWE had reserved
Denver’s Pepsi Center for the
same night. Grappling of a different
sort ensued, and NBA, Pepsi
Center and WWE officials talked
tough before eventually moving
wrestling to Los Angeles.
All the while, arena executives
the country over nodded their
heads knowingly: Satisfying
primary tenants — the Cavaliers
and Lake Erie Monsters, in the
case of Quicken Loans Arena — is
job No. 1, but filling the arena’s
datebook with concerts and other
special events is a close second.
“It’s a fascinating process,
maximizing these schedules,”
said Lee Esckilsen, who is
founder of ESVenues, a venue
development and management
See ARENA Page 12
Story by JOEL HAMMOND ■ Illustration by KRISTEN WILSON
He knocks on wood as he says it,
but Ohio Bankers League president
and CEO Mike Van Buskirk thinks
the March 19 failure of American
National Bank in Parma is the last
the state will see this recession.
“I’m hopeful Ohio will work
through the rest of the recession
with no more failures,” he said.
“Based on the information I have
access to, I don’t expect another
bank failure in Ohio.”
With 702 banks on the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corp.’s problem
bank list and more than a handful of
Ohio banks operating under cease-
and-desist orders and regulators’
watchful eyes, that’s hardly a sure bet.
More than 200 banks, including
three in Ohio, have been closed by
regulators since 2008. In addition to
American National, AmTrust Bank
in Cleveland was closed last Dec. 4,
and Peoples Community Bank in
West Chester, near Cincinnati, was
shut down in July 2009.
But Mr. Van Buskirk is not the
only one optimistic about the future
of the state’s troubled banks. Scott
O’Donnell, retired state superintendent of financial institutions, said
he thinks the problem bank list has
“reached its maturity” and that
Ohio banks “have to be better than
See BANKS Page 9
THE WEEK IN QUOTES
“When you don’t have
a job, it doesn’t matter
what the terms are or
how we rework their
loan, it’s a real
stumbling block.”
— Brian Berg, ShoreBank
spokesman. Page One
“What you’ll see is
organizations that
want to be ahead of the
curve starting to put
these charging stations
in so there is a basic
infrastructure in
place before the (electric) vehicles arrive.”
— Nathaniel Smith, president,
Recharge Power. Page 3
“Growing up, the
dinner conversations
were always centered
around business, and
(my siblings and I)
were like sponges,
soaking it in.”
“I never felt pressure
to go into the business,
but when you come
into it, you certainly
want it to do well. You
feel a special responsibility for it.”
— Dan Malley, grandson of
Malley’s Chocolates’ founder
Mike Malley. Page 18
— Al Hilkert, fourth-generation
owner of Botzum Bros. Hardware.
Page 19
Gates Mills company eyes a jolt from budding electric-car market
By JAY MILLER
jmiller@crain.com
Recharge Power will pitch charging station to garages, other lot operators
A fledgling company in Gates Mills
is trying to get in on the emerging
market for electric-powered vehicles.
Recharge Power LLC has developed a vehicle-charging station that
it hopes to sell to parking lot operators, hospitals, universities and cities
to accommodate an expected boom
in the number of vehicles that can be
recharged.
Nathaniel Smith, president of
Recharge Power and former chief
financial officer of toy maker Little
Tikes Co., said the company plans
to introduce its two-unit charging
station to the public in May during
the International Parking Institute
show in Las Vegas.
“We’ve chosen to focus on the
commercial garage environment,”
he said. “We think it’s going to be a
great opportunity.”
Mr. Smith said the company’s
main proprietary advantage will be
its ability to track and bill vehicles
that use parking spaces equipped
with its chargers. Drivers also
would be able to find an available
charger by using a GPS navigation
system.
Plug-in vehicles, such as the
Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf that
are due out in the next 12 months,
rely on rechargeable batteries to
power their engines rather than the
combination of gasoline and
battery power that run the hybrid
engines found in vehicles such as
the Toyota Prius. Most plug-in owners
will use home chargers to power
their engines, but scattered public
chargers will reduce what is called
“range anxiety” because of the limits
on how far the vehicles can go on a
single charge.
Mr. Smith believes that places
such as universities and hospitals
will be good, early markets for his
chargers.
“What you’ll see is organizations
that want to be ahead of the curve
starting to put these charging
See RECHARGE Page 8
4
4/2/2010
2:44 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Bingham apartments in a jam
Developers default on downtown building’s loan
By STAN BULLARD
sbullard@crain.com
The developers of the Bingham
Building, the largest of the apartment
conversion projects that have given
downtown Cleveland a residential
neighborhood over the last 20 years,
have defaulted on their first mortgage
loan insured by the Federal Housing
Administration.
The Bingham’s $46 million first
mortgage is among 26 defaulted loans
totaling $306 million that are part of
an auction held on behalf of the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban
Development that will dispose of the
loans. A bidder has won the auction
for the loan on the Bingham, but
HUD will not reveal its identity until
the loan sale closes.
Whoever wins the auction — in
times past, financial concerns were
primary bidders due to the vast cash
required — wins the right to foreclose
on the building at 1278 W. Ninth St. in
the Warehouse District. Exercising
that right would allow the replacement lender to sell the property to
recoup the debt, with the sale
displacing as owner the Chicago-based
investment group that invested $80
Business as usual
At FirstMerit, usual business is extraordinary. We’ve been providing our customers with more
for over 165 years, which is why we’ve enjoyed 43 consecutive quarters of profit. For our customers,
this means that we continue to offer uninterrupted service, a full array of business checking benefits,
and a team of bankers focused on you and your business. We will partner, listen and work with you to
build your business as big as you dream. It’s what we provide each and every day – business as usual.
million to redevelop the property.
The investors in Bingham Burnside
LLC, which converted the building,
were principals of Burnside Construction Co., formerly a Chicago homebuilding concern.
Despite the default on the FHAinsured loan, Tom Yablonsky, executive director of the Historic Warehouse
District Development Corp. and executive vice president of the Downtown
Cleveland Alliance, said the Bingham
Building was crucial to downtown
because it was large enough to add a
grocery store, Constantino’s Market.
The lack of a place to buy food essentials was a shortcoming of downtown.
“It’s the biggest apartment building
in the Warehouse District,” he said.
Mr. Yablonsky said he did not
know if vacancy or inadequate rents
torpedoed the project. Others put
Bingham’s occupancy above 80% —
lower than most downtown rental
properties — and its rents in the
range of $600 to $2,500 monthly.
As with many downtown projects
that recast old office or warehouse
buildings as lofts, FHA insured the first
mortgage. When the Bingham and
other downtown buildings were undergoing conversion, developers said
the FHA insurance was vital because
lenders otherwise would not fund
risky projects in untested markets.
However, if a developer or owner
misses a few loan payments, a lender
automatically can recoup the principal
from HUD in weeks by turning over
the loan to the agency. The agency
then disposes of the loans for whatever
it can. Receipts from loan sales go back
to FHA, and, like the premiums property owners pay for FHA insurance,
support the efforts of HUD, which
receives no taxpayer funds.
PFC Corp., a lender in Newport
Beach, Calif., that loaned the Bingham’s developers $45 million in 2003,
assigned the mortgage to HUD March
16, according to public records.
George “Bud” Arquilla, a member of
Bingham Burnside, did not return two
messages at Illinois Flush Co. of Chicago, a company he recently sold, and
there was no answer at Chicago
phones listed in his name.
■
COMING UP
FirstMerit – More Bank for Your Business.
firstmerit.com
1-888-283-2303
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4/2/2010
11:59 AM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
5
Melt: Restaurant draws tattoo ‘subculture,’ food show hosts
continued from PAGE 1
sites Mr. Fish is considering include
Avon, Avon Lake or Strongsville, and
other outside markets such as
Columbus, Cincinnati or Pittsburgh.
“The demand is there,” the Lakewood resident said.
Indeed, from 2007 to 2009, the
neighborhood bar more than
doubled its revenue, according to
Mr. Fish, although he declined to
discuss specific revenue numbers.
In the beginning, the long hours
were hard to swallow, but now Mr.
Fish shrugs at his 80-hour-per-week
average.
“It’s not bad,” he said. “I used to
work between 100 and 110 hours a
week.”
Worth the wait
Melt during its first few months
was busy, but like many restaurants, it had its down time in the
afternoons, when traffic tapered off.
Now the establishment is known
for an hour-long wait even during
the afternoon on a weekday.
“It sucks for the customers,” Mr.
Fish said. “We don’t want to turn
business away.”
Perhaps the wait won’t be as
much of an issue at the new location, a 4,500-square-foot space that
will seat 160 people. The 3,600square-foot Lakewood Melt seats
100. The new location’s kitchen also
is about double the Lakewood
kitchen’s current size, which Mr.
Fish said is a reason for the long
waits because cooks can’t handle
orders as quickly as demand
warrants.
Mr. Fish said he hopes the East
Side Melt, with its proximity to Case
Western Reserve and John Carroll
universities, will serve a new clientele
that is not always willing to drive to
the West Side.
The chef said the total cost of the
Cleveland Heights project, which is
located in a building that had been
vacant for about two years before
he gutted it, was about $650,000,
financed in part through private
loans. Lakewood Melt’s total project
cost was $210,000.
Geoffrey P. Loree, owner of the
Cleveland Heights building, said he
was intrigued after his first visit to Melt
on a weekday night in October 2008.
“I’m an impatient man, and we
were on a two-hour wait,” said
Mr. Loree, who also is founder of
Stow-based Gloree Group, a private
equity firm. “I was fascinated that a
Cleveland restaurant could have
that long of a wait on a Tuesday
night, so I started walking around
and looking at the red brick and the
décor.”
Melt’s interior had characteristics
similar to those of his own building,
Mr. Loree said.
He envisioned another Melt in
Cleveland Heights, so he invited Mr.
Fish out to tour his fixer-upper, for
which Mr. Loree paid $265,000 in
2007.
“He saw the potential, and nearly
“I was fascinated that a Cleveland restaurant could have
that long of a wait on a Tuesday night.”
THE DISH ON FISH
Chef Matt Fish, 37, graduated in
1997 with a degree in culinary arts
from Cuyahoga Community College.
He has been a chef for 17 years,
and has cooked at local restaurants
that include Johnny Mango and Fat
Fish Blue in Cleveland.
While Mr. Fish has been
consumed by the opening of his
second location, he said he does
enjoy rockin’ out on the drums when
he can and has played in various
local bands.
– Geoffrey P. Loree, founder, Gloree Group
two years later, here we are,” Mr.
Loree said.
Opportunity knocks
Robert Welcher, president of
Restaurants Consultants Inc. in
Columbus, said independent restaurants run the risk of diluting the
individuality of their brands during
expansion, depending on how
quickly they grow and whether they
have a strong operating infrastructure.
“Three to five (restaurants) is the
magic number,” Mr. Welcher said.
Even then, restaurant owners need
to have a sound growth plan before
expansion takes place, he added.
Mr. Fish said his strategy is to
avoid the cookie-cutter approach by
exposing an old building’s characteristics while sprinkling the walls with
unique Melt deco.
Mr. Fish also is methodical in his ex-
pansion approach, and said he wants to
ensure the long-term viability of the
Cleveland Heights restaurant before
he takes the next expansion step.
Even though dents to consumers’
discretionary income have hurt the
restaurant industry in general,
and fine-dining establishments in
particular, the recession has provided
a window for strong businesses to
expand, said Geoff Hetrick, president and CEO of the Ohio Restaurant Association.
“I like to refer to this as the
opportunity economy,” Mr. Hetrick
said.
Tat-mania
It doesn’t hurt that Melt’s
mystique has garnered national
media exposure.
Most recently, Adam Richman
from the Travel Channel flew in on
Feb. 27 to film a “Man v. Food”
episode and to take the Melt Challenge.
In the episode, Mr. Richman
declares war on nearly five pounds
of food — 3.5 pounds of 13 different
types of cheese stuffed among three
slices of bread with fries and slaw —
and tries to eat it all.
The show is scheduled to air this
summer, and Mr. Fish is sworn to
secrecy about whether Mr. Richman
was able to finish the monstrosity.
Mr. Fish also was featured
constructing Melt grilled cheeses on
Food Network’s Feb. 8 episode of
“Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,”
during which host and Cleveland
food aficionado Guy Fieri exclaims
to Melt’s mastermind, “You are
crazy!”
Crazy and committed, indeed. Mr.
Fish began last September offering
25% lifetime discounts to people
who got variations of a Melt tattoo,
and more customers bought into it
than he expected.
“I thought we’d get maybe 10 to
15 people a year,” Mr. Fish said.
“Now it’s like a subculture.”
Currently, there are 97 Melt disciples, and besides receiving the food
discount, they also were invited to
the “Man v. Food” taping and likely
will be a part of the new location’s
grand opening.
Mr. Fish also is covered in ink; his
tattoos include Cleveland icons
such as the Terminal Tower, LTV
Steel and the West Side Market.
As to whether he has a Melt
tattoo, he shook his head, referencing
superstition steeped in folklore.
“I don’t want to jinx anything,”
Mr. Fish said.
■
In
Recognition
Case Western Reserve University
announces the newly endowed
F. Joseph Callahan Distinguished Lecture
and is proud to honor his legacy of innovation
and leadership in our community and beyond.
Joe Callahan
Chairman Emeritus, Swagelok Company
6
4/2/2010
11:49 AM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Lending: Bank working quickly to raise money
That original order was updated
in late March to require the bank to
“promptly increase” its Tier 1 and
total risk-based capital ratios to 9%
and 12%, respectively, Mr. Berg said
in a statement. As of Dec. 31, the
levels were 1.8% and 4.6%, respectively, according to the bank’s FDIC
call report.
The quest for capital
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The bank has been meeting with
potential private sector investors
and intends to reach the new
requirements “as expeditiously as
possible,” Mr. Berg said.
“We’re moving forward with our
efforts to raise capital,” Mr. Berg
said, noting that because the bank
is privately held, he could not
discuss details of the efforts.
“We’re being assisted by Chicago
banking and community leader
David Vitale and other expert advisers
who understand the importance” of
the bank, Mr. Berg stated.
Mr. Vitale, a former chief administrative officer for the Chicago Public
School System, president and CEO of
the Chicago Board of Trade and vice
chairman and director of Bank One
Corp., will become ShoreBank’s
executive chairman once the capitalraising effort is complete.
The bank also has applied for
financing under the U.S. Department
of Treasury’s new Community Development Capital Investment Program,
which is intended to increase lending
to small businesses and community
development projects, Mr. Berg said.
Crain’s Chicago Business reported
March 15 that ShoreBank was talking
to a group of banks and the John D.
and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation about the possibility of infusing
more than $200 million into the bank,
which would allow it to qualify for
$70 million in federal funds.
Banks contacted to help include
J. P. Morgan Chase & Co., Bank of
America Corp. and Citigroup Inc.,
Crain’s Chicago reported.
Mr. Berg said ShoreBank simply
wants to put the capital issues
behind it so it can return to lending
in its niche.
Embedded in the community
Here in Cleveland, the bank lends
in underserved communities, Mr.
Berg said. It specializes in lending to
small businesses such as day care
centers, faith-based community
institutions and health clinics.
Mr. Berg said in the recession,
small business borrowers in particular
have struggled to pay back loans.
“When you don’t have a job, it
doesn’t matter what the terms are
or how we rework their loan, it’s a
real stumbling block,” he said.
After the bank works through its
capital issues, Mr. Berg said, “we’ll
be able to continue lending to small
businesses and other development
projects. I’m confident we will be
able to continue to serve the small
businesses.”
Duane Thornton, executive
director of The Presidents’ Council —
a network of CEOs of African-American-owned businesses in Cleveland
— said “no one is doing what
ShoreBank does” to help minority
borrowers in this community. The
bank has helped with a $25 million
fund for minorities with business
visions and has been focused on
community development, he said.
“They’re really in the community,”
Mr. Thornton said.
Mr. Berg said when ShoreBank
first came to Cleveland in 1994, it
had a $7 million loan fund in this
area. That $7 million since has been
leveraged to allow for $200 million
of loans over 16 years, he said.
The bank, which had $2.2 billion
in assets on Dec. 31, posted a loss of
$105 million in 2009.
“Once we get through this mess,
we just want to get back to our knitting,” Mr. Berg said.
Mr. Berg said that while lending
has been curtailed, there still are
opportunities for loans to good
customers who need lines of credit
extended or for loans made via the
Small Business Administration.
While SBA loans were not a focus of
the bank in 2009, there are about six
in the pipeline in Cleveland now.
ShoreBank also is continuing its
outreach to individuals who do not
have traditional bank accounts and
Mr. Berg emphasized that ShoreBank
Enterprise Group — the nonprofit
arm of the bank — is unaffected by
the capital situation and is continuing
business as usual.
■
Steve Daniels of Crain’s Chicago
Business contributed reporting to
this story.
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4/2/2010
3:12 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
7
Komen’s local arm diversifies revenue, beefs up support
Nonprofit culls new
funding outside of
Race for the Cure
By SHANNON MORTLAND
smortland@crain.com
Having once been a grassroots
organization that largely relied on
volunteers for guidance, the Northeast Ohio affiliate of Susan G. Komen
for the Cure has grown up.
In the last five years, the nonprofit
that funds breast cancer research
and services has instituted multiple
business practices that have enabled
it to increase and diversify revenue,
support more research and provide
additional services to a growing
population base, said Sophie Sureau,
who joined Komen in 2005 as its executive director in Northeast Ohio.
She previously was co-founder of
Entraide Grandes Brules, a Canadian nonprofit that provides services
to burn victims and their families.
“When I arrived, this was a really
well-oiled machine, but it pretty
much was run by volunteers,” she
said. “My first thought was that we
needed to build a structure for this
organization to be operated more
like a business.”
Ms. Sureau hired two employees
to add to the existing three and led
the change to a new software system
that allowed the local affiliate to
better track its donors. Additional
events also have been added to raise
money so the organization isn’t so
dependent on the Race for the Cure
in the fall, she said.
Komen’s dependence on the race
last year caused the organization to
fall $200,000 short of its $2.6 million
fundraising goal for the fiscal year
that ends March 31, she said.
Though there always will be
people who don’t pay to participate
in the race, last year about 10,000
of the estimated 25,000 to 30,000
people who raced did not pay the
entry fee, which culminated in a loss
of $250,000 in entry fees Komen should
have collected, Ms. Sureau said.
“The race is a wonderful community event, but it’s a fundraiser,” she
said. “This is where we get at least
60% of our income.”
Komen’s income ratio was even
more lopsided in 2003, when about
86% of its revenue came from the
race, Ms. Sureau said. That was
somewhat remedied with the introduction of new fundraising vehicles
such as Volley for the Cure, through
which high school students raise
money for the organization with
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volleyball tournaments held from
September through November, she
said. The tournaments raised $100,000
for Komen last year, she said.
“It’s a good way to engage and
empower young people to get
involved in breast health,” she said.
Many small grantmakers across
Ohio are trying to find new ways to
make money in a struggling economy,
and it’s an uphill battle, said George
Espy, president of the Ohio Grantmakers Forum.
“It’s hard to raise money now
because people aren’t able to give
as much as they did before,” he
said. “And more people are coming
to them for help than before.”
However, such efforts have paid
off for Komen. In the fiscal year that
ended March 31, Komen’s revenue
is expected to be $2.4 million, up
from just $1.1 million in the fiscal
year that ended March 31, 2005,
Ms. Sureau said. Komen also
provided $1.5 million in grants to
support research and programs,
compared to just $865,000 in grants
five years ago, she said.
The fundraising goal for the fiscal
year that began April 1 has been set
at $2.64 million, she said. The nonprofit’s work hasn’t gone unnoticed
by the national arm of Susan G.
Komen for the Cure, which recently
named the Northeast Ohio organization its affiliate of the year for its
turnaround efforts.
Though the Northeast Ohio affiliate
has implemented some successful
measures, it still has some hurdles
to clear in the road ahead.
Ms. Sureau said Komen is working
to better inform the public of what
the organization does and how it
raises money. Among those efforts,
she said, is meeting personally with
local businesses to urge them to
sponsor a team for the Race for the
Cure, or at least encourage employees
to register and participate.
About 6,000 people participated
in the race last year through
company teams, which is 40% less
than the 10,000 team participants
in 2006, she said.
“We’re doing more outreach to
companies and making sure to give
them ideas,” such as how to incorporate the race as a team building
or wellness exercise, Ms. Sureau
said.
The organization throughout the
year also will videotape people
telling their story of breast cancer
survival and the videos likely will be
available on Komen’s Facebook
page, YouTube and its web site, she
said.
Komen also agreed to begin
serving seven more counties, bringing
its service area to 22 counties, she
said.
That means the organization
will have to raise more money for
research and services even as the
need for breast cancer services
such as mammograms increases
in its original 15 counties, she
said.
■
8
4/2/2010
11:15 AM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Recharge: Station market
wide open, advocate says
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stations in so there is a basic infrastructure in place before the vehicles
arrive,” Mr. Smith said.
The company is largely privately
financed, Mr. Smith said, though
Recharge Power also has won three
economic development loans totaling
nearly $200,000 from Cuyahoga
County. The latest, a $98,000 North
Coast Opportunities Technology
Fund loan, will help the company
install and monitor 21 trial chargers.
Recharge Power sought but did
not win a $1 million Ohio Third
Frontier grant to assist in the development and testing of the recharging
stations’ sensor technology over the
next 18 months. The grant listed
Case Western Reserve University,
I2C Technologies of Uniontown,
Honeywell Microelectronics & Precision Sensors of Plymouth, Minn.,
and Youngstown State University’s
Center for Transportation and
Materials Engineering as collaborators.
Gregory Zucca, senior development finance analyst with Cuyahoga
County, said Recharge Power is
“using off-the-shelf technology in a
new way.”
“It has a lot of potential,” said Mr.
Zucca, who noted that employees at
institutions such as hospitals and
universities already are asking for
workplace charging stations.
Jeanne Trombly, managing director
of Plug In America, a California
nonprofit electric-vehicle advocate
that grew out of a network of electric-vehicle drivers and enthusiasts,
said several companies are working
on a variety of charging technologies.
One in particular, Coulomb Technologies Inc. of Campbell, Calif.,
has several dozen ChargePoint
branded recharging stations in
operation, mostly in the West and
the Chicago area.
The Recharge Power technology
that links drivers to charging
stations through a GPS system
intrigued Ms. Trombly, who said
the recharger market still was wide
open.
“It’s hard to tell where the technology will shake out,” she said.
But, Ms. Trombly added, the
winners likely will be decided by
shopping mall and parking lot owners,
not by consumers.
■
“What you’ll see is organizations that want to be ahead
of the curve starting to put these charging stations in so
there is a basic infrastructure in place before the
vehicles arrive.”
– Nathaniel Smith, president, Recharge Power
4/1/2010
1:32 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
9
Banks: American National hurt by niche, limited footprint
they were.”
The only question, Mr. O’Donnell
said, is the FDIC. He wondered how
patient it would be going forward
and what its posture would be toward
working with troubled institutions.
Thus far, he said, the agency has
been more than patient.
‘It had to happen’
Dick Wise, the former president
and CEO of American National, was
not at the bank when it was taken
over by regulators March 19. He said
by mid-March, the bank had almost
no capital left and had been unsuccessful in its efforts to raise $7 million.
“I knew the end had to be coming,”
he said. “I pretty much had resigned
myself. I knew it had to happen.”
In November, Mr. Wise said he
thought regulators would be flexible
if the bank was unable to meet higher
capital levels by year’s end, as required.
American National was able to sell
some of the mortgage servicing
rights that got it into trouble in the
first place, but in the end, it was its
inability to raise enough capital that
led to its demise.
Cleveland for Stifel Nicolaus & Co.,
said the inability to raise capital is
becoming a problem for fewer
banks.
Park View Federal Savings Bank
and its parent company, PVF
Capital Corp., recently raised $30
million to increase capital levels, as
regulators demanded. Ohio Legacy
Bank in Wooster also was able to
put together a capital infusion of
$17.5 million that Mr. Crowley said
was likely a savior for the bank.
“Their days were numbered,” he
said.
Mr. Crowley said with so many
troubled institutions, he would not
be surprised to hear of another failure
as banks continue to deal with nonperforming assets and other issues.
“It’s a function of how long it
takes to go through the financial
process,” he said of banks’ continuing
problems. “It would appear that
while there are still trouble spots in
the economy, the banks are on
better standing.”
Mr. Van Buskirk, of the Ohio
Bankers League, said banks are
always a lagging indicator. But he
said American National’s failure
was likely an anomaly, as it was a
niche bank lending to small businesses that didn’t have consumer
deposit accounts to fall back on. On
top of its other challenges, it also had
to contend with Mr. Null’s death.
American National was also hurt
by its narrow geography, he said.
Mr. Van Buskirk noted that
compared to the number of failures
in states such as California, Florida
and Georgia — which saw a
combined total of 80 failures since
2008, as of last Thursday — Ohio
has little to worry about.
“Relatively speaking, the banks
here are doing pretty well,” he said. ■
“While there are still
trouble spots in the
economy, the banks are
on better standing.”
– Charlie Crowley, managing
director of investment banking,
Stifel Nicolaus & Co.
“We got part of it, but we couldn’t
get it all. We couldn’t get close,” Mr.
Wise said. “We talked to so many
people, different groups. It’s almost
impossible to raise capital. It’s a very
bad time to do that.”
American National’s new owner
is The National Bank and Trust Co.
in Wilmington, Ohio. As of Dec. 31,
2009, American National Bank had
about $70.3 million in total assets
and $66.8 million in total deposits.
Mr. Wise, 77, took lead of the bank
out of retirement last October
following the death of president
David Null in August 2009. An FDIC
spokesman said American National
came onto the troubled bank list
that month. Mr. Wise previously had
been a member of the bank’s board
until 2007 and served as its president
from 1988 until 2003.
The bank had been on the edge
before; two embezzlement schemes
in the 1980s by a former vice chairman
of the board and a former bookkeeper
left American National with estimated
losses of more than $8 million,
according to news reports at the
time. However, the bank was able to
raise from local investors the money
it needed to stay solvent.
Bucky Kopf, a local homebuilder
who was chairman of American
National’s board at the time of its
closure, did not return a phone call
seeking comment about the bank.
Dean DeBuck, a spokesman at
the Office of the Comptroller of the
Currency — American National
Bank’s regulator — said for American
National, the core issues were in
commercial lending and its mortgage servicing rights.
“Basically, you got to the point
where the bank needed to have
additional capital to cover its losses,”
Mr. DeBuck said. “That just was not
happening.”
Getting past ‘trouble spots’
But Charlie Crowley, managing
director of investment banking in
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20100405-NEWS--10-NAT-CCI-CL_--
10
4/1/2010
4:24 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
PUBLISHER/EDITORIAL DIRECTOR:
Brian D. Tucker (btucker@crain.com)
EDITOR:
Mark Dodosh (mdodosh@crain.com)
MANAGING EDITOR:
Scott Suttell (ssuttell@crain.com)
OPINION
Big zero
H
eads up, Gov. Strickland and Ohio legislators who haven’t shown a whole lotta love
to charter schools. You could cost the
state a whole lotta money from the federal
government if you don’t start embracing the role
charter schools can play in educating Ohio’s young
people.
We issue the warning in light of the first round of
grants that were awarded last week by the Obama
administration under its Race to the Top program,
which is intended to reward states for progressive
approaches to education. Only two states out of 16
finalists received money in Phase One of the $4
billion program, with Tennessee snatching a
healthy $500 million and Delaware snaring $100
million. Ohio was among the states shut out.
The message Obama education officials sent in
giving a single state such a fat share of the pot is that
modest attempts at change won’t cut it, nor will
reform initiatives that lack buy-in from teachers’
unions and school leaders. It’s going to take a sharp
departure from the status quo to gain a piece of the
prize in this race.
The model of education reform that the Obama
administration has set before the other states is
Tennessee. And a key part of Tennessee’s reform
effort was the decision by its lawmakers to lift the
ceiling on the number of new charter schools
allowed in the state.
These independently run schools that receive
public support haven’t found much favor with Gov.
Strickland, who used the occasion of last year’s state
budget crunch to push for a 20% cut in state
support for charter schools. The governor’s lack of
enthusiasm for charter schools seems tied to the
support he covets from the Ohio Federation of
Teachers, which has opposed charter school
expansion in the state.
The union’s dislike of charter schools is so strong
that its president, Sue Taylor, last May sent a letter
to President Barack Obama — a supporter of charter
schools — “to educate him about the vastly failing
charter school program in the Buckeye State,”
according to a federation news release.
“We need him and his staff to understand that
when he talks about expanding charter schools,
Ohio parents, teachers and taxpayers bristle
because of their experience with our state’s failed
charter schools,” Ms. Taylor said at the time.
Perhaps what Ms. Taylor, Gov. Strickland and
various lawmakers need to understand is that this
president sees well-run charter schools as a valuable alternative to traditional urban education, and
that they better learn to dance to his tune, rather
than the other way around.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg gets it.
Last week, he took New York lawmakers to task for
failing to pass certain laws — including a measure
raising the limit on charter schools — that would
have improved their state’s chances of winning
Race to the Top money.
“We are not going to qualify unless the state
understands this,” Mayor Bloomberg said.
Officials in Ohio better gain a similar understanding
if they hope to cash in on this program in a big way.
FROM THE PUBLISHER
Tentacles of stimulus reach NE Ohio
T
significant financial support in our
here has been plenty to criticize
efforts to fortify our technological infraabout the federal stimulus prostructure,” Mr. Moore said. “RJE was
gram, which was launched to avert
able to purchase and implement an intewhat could have been a global
grated construction management and
economic meltdown last year. However,
accounting software program, thanks to
there have been success stories, and one of
the accelerator’s generous funding.”
them was here in Northeast Ohio, where
Andrew Jackson, executive director of
Raymond Jackson Enterprises (RJE), a
GCP’s Council on Economic
member company of the Greater
Inclusion, said this was a great
Cleveland Partnership’s Minority BRIAN
example of a regional success:
Business Accelerator, won a TUCKER
financing a minority-owned,
$400,000 project from the Stark
Akron company that then wins a
Metropolitan Housing Authority.
nice contract in Stark County.
RJE will make interior and
“A ‘win’ in Stark County
exterior improvements to housing
ultimately benefits the entire
units as a subcontractor; the
region,” Mr. Jackson said.
project probably would not
The accelerator, along with
have been done, at least this
programs like those from the
soon, without funds from the
Presidents’ Council (an organizaAmerican Recovery and Reintion that supports business development
vestment Act. And in this case, GCP’s
in the African-American community), are
Minority Business Accelerator is doing
having tangible effects on advancing the
exactly what it was created to do: help
interests of minority entrepreneurs and
grow minority-owned businesses. It was
business owners in the region.
instrumental to RJE in gaining access to
“Three years ago, we had one office in
other GCP companies, according to comAkron, with a 90-mile service area,” RJE’s
pany president and CEO Phillip Moore.
Mr. Moore said. “Today, we have offices
“The accelerator also has provided
in Akron, Dayton and Indianapolis, with
executed contracts for projects in Toledo
and Louisville, Ky., in addition to active
pursuits in both North Carolina and
Tennessee.”
Now, I hope Mr. Moore becomes a
proselytizer for the Minority Business
Accelerator and helps support other
minority businesses that are on the cusp of
sustainable economic growth. It will be
through such efforts that we make an
impact on economic growth that cuts
across all boundaries, real and imagined,
in our region.
Wouldn’t it be terrific if within a few
years we had economic development officials coming to Northeast Ohio from
across the country to learn about the
Minority Business Accelerator, the Cleveland Foundation-sponsored cooperative
laundry and solar-energy company, and all
the other innovations being created here?
And wouldn’t it be good if we started
believing in ourselves? How many more
times do we need to hear from newcomers
that we are our own worst enemy when it
comes to appreciating what we have rather
than whine about what’s wrong?
■
AND COUNTING ...
What is the most significant new company or organization to come out of Northeast Ohio
over the last 30 years?
Crain’s Cleveland Business
is celebrating its 30th year
as Northeast Ohio’s premier
source of business news with
a special double issue, which
will feature profiles of the 30
most influential Clevelanders.
As part of the celebration,
we also are reflecting on the
most memorable events of
the past three decades with
weekly polls — some of which
can be found in this space
— trivia questions, online
content and video interviews.
You can get in on the fun
by visiting CrainsCleveland
.com/30thanniversary.
SHERYL BENFORD
TRACEY TOMASZEWSKI
JACK LANDSKRONER
Shaker Heights
Lorain
“I was going to say Cleveland
State University. It’s a little older
than that, but it has made a
tremendous impact on this
region. … I went to law school at
night (at Cleveland-Marshall
College of Law) and I’m so glad
it was there.”
“Progressive Insurance (founded
in 1937, but grew a lot in recent
decades). It’s provided a lot of
jobs for Cleveland. … They also
did the check — like if you
check their insurance rates, then
they check everyone else’s. It
made everyone else more
competitive.”
Moreland Hills
(Indians season ticket holder
and former tenant of a
building owned by Jacobs)
“Dick Jacobs (individually and
through the Richard E. Jacobs
Group LLC) has probably had
one of the most significant
impacts on Cleveland.”
20100405-NEWS--11-NAT-CCI-CL_--
4/1/2010
2:26 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Vacant Elyria store gets new owner
By BILL BREGAR
Plastics News
Another vacant superstore in
Northeast Ohio has found new life,
thanks to plastics.
Quality Blow Molding Inc. plans
to move its warehouse and shipping operations to a Value City
department store in Elyria that has
been closed for about a year. The
store is about a quarter-mile from
Quality Blow Molding.
The industrial blow molding
company runs 16 machines that
make parts for the automotive, lawn
and garden, and appliance markets.
Once the company relocates shipping to the Value City store, president
and owner Ron Matcham said, he
will use the extra room in his factory
to expand blow molding.
“I needed more space for manufacturing, and my lot was pretty
much maxed out here. So it was
easier and cheaper for me to buy that
building than it was to add onto the
factory for shipping,” he said.
It would be too expensive to relocate the blow molding factory to the
Value City building, which would
need a major investment for plastics
manufacturing, Mr. Matcham said.
But the building is well-suited for
warehouse space. A rail line runs by
the Value City building, so a rail spur
to the warehouse is possible, he said.
Mr. Matcham said Quality Blow
Molding will use about 20,000 square
feet of the total 110,000-square-foot
Value City for warehouse and shipping. He plans to market the rest of
the building for lease as retail space.
An operating grocery store and a gas
station are included in the property.
Value City Department Stores
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in
2008 and liquidated its stores.
The recession has left big retail
stores sitting empty in many towns.
In Ashland, Hedstrom Plastics is
moving its rotational molding factory into a closed Walmart, a 129,000square-foot building left vacant in
2006 when a Walmart Supercenter
opened across town.
Hedstrom is moving its headquarters into a smaller, unused JCPenney
store in the same strip mall.
■
(Bill Bregar is senior reporter with
Plastics News, a sister publication
of Crain’s Cleveland Business.)
LETTERS
Equalize pay in public, private sectors
■ Your March 29 editorial, “Get the
ax,” states pretty clearly that state
and local governments have not
stepped up to the plate to reduce
expenses. In your issue before that,
plus a Plain Dealer article last
month, we learned that a $7 billion
to $8 billion budget deficit is looming
for the state.
A good first step would be to
harmonize pay between public and
private sector jobs. Although I don’t
have data for Ohio, in the U.S. overall,
public employees are now paid 42%
higher than their private sector
counterparts. Next, the retirement
age should be made 65, not “30 and
out.”
Why pay people in their early 50s
to sit around and do nothing and
then have to pay others to replace
them? That would include police
officers. If they’re too old to chase
crooks, they could direct traffic or
answer phones or enter data.
Finally, eliminate defined benefit
pension plans, as most of industry
has done. Let them have Social Security
or the equivalent plus whatever they
choose to contribute to a 401(k) type
of plan.
The unions would likely balk at
this. The March 31 issue of The Wall
Street Journal relates how the city of
Toledo, whose police union refused
to agree to cuts, had its city council
declare “exigent circumstances,”
under which the city can decree
unilateral cuts.
Bob Fritz
Brecksville
Vote ‘yes’ for Issue 15
■ The League of Women Voters
strongly supports Issue 15, the Cuyahoga County health and human
services levy on the May 4 ballot.
This is a renewal of the current 2.9
mill levy, with no tax increase. The
levy amounts to 29 cents for every
one hundred dollars of valuation,
and will be in place for four years,
commencing in 2010, first due in
calendar year 2011.
Issue 15 will generate funds for the
vital care and protection of more
than 200,000 people every year in
every community of Cuyahoga
County.
It will ensure the continuation of
critically important services, including
emergency services at MetroHealth
Medical Center, Life Flight, the
Severe Burn Treatment Center and
Northeast Ohio’s only Level 1 trauma
center.
Services funded by the levy
include health and social service
programs that benefit children,
senior citizens, the disabled and the
poor. It is a much-needed helping
hand in these difficult times.
For these reasons, the Leagues of
Women Voters of the Cleveland
Area, Cuyahoga Area and Shaker
Heights recommend a “yes” vote for
Issue 15 on May 4.
Susan Jankite
Co-president
League of Women Voters
Cuyahoga Area
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20100405-NEWS--12-NAT-CCI-CL_--
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4/1/2010
2:25 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Medical histories more accessible
through Ravenna outfit’s software
By SHANNON MORTLAND
smortland@crain.com
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When a medical emergency
happens, people often can’t provide adequate information to first
responders to help them provide
the right care quickly.
A new Ravenna company, My
LifePlan Inc., hopes to remedy that
situation with a software program
called MyChoice, which enables
individuals to gather their health
information in one place and make
it available to first responders and
health care professionals when
needed, said Ruth Skocic, CEO of
My LifePlan.
Under MyChoice, an individual
pays $29.95 a year to input as much
or as little medical information
as he or she wants on his or her
MyChoice account, Ms. Skocic said.
Customers are given items such
as magnets, window decals, driver’s
license stickers and a wallet identification card to alert medical
personnel that they can find the
patient’s medical information and
wishes through MyChoice.
Medical personnel either can
scan the patient’s thumb print with
a portable thumb print reader that
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anybody passing through. Emergency squads located at all three
fire stations in Stow are now
equipped with the thumb print
readers, she said.
MyChoice is ideal for senior
citizens because they often aren’t
able
to
provide
emergency
responders with their medical
information or don’t know what pills
they are taking, Ms. Metz said.
“The weakest link in patient care
for the EMS most times is getting
the information,” Ms. Metz said.
“We are hoping to get a majority of
our population to sign up for it.”
My LifePlan has signed a deal
with Panasonic Computer Solutions Co. to become a vendor of its
Toughbook products, which are
durable notebook computers.
However, organizations that want
to adopt the MyChoice technology
can use any computer or thumb
print reader on the market, so they
do not need to buy equipment from
My LifePlan, Ms. Skocic said.
The cost to implement the MyChoice technology can vary, she said.
Because Stow already had computers
in its ambulances, Ms. Metz said it
cost the fire department about $2,000
to add the thumb print readers.
■
Arena: Postseason uncertainty poses challenge
April 7
can be plugged into many computers
already installed in emergency
squads, or they can call My LifePlan
for the patient’s information, which
is updated every three months, Ms.
Skocic said.
Fire departments that already
have signed on with My LifePlan
are Aurora, Ravenna and Windham
in Portage County, Stow in Summit
County and Windsor in Ashtabula
County. They have included thumb
print readers in their ambulances,
and My LifePlan is in negotiations
with other local fire departments to
adopt the technology, Ms. Skocic said.
Akron General Health System has
introduced thumb print readers in
its emergency departments at Akron
General Medical Center and in
Stow and is considering them at all
its locations.
“Knowing what the patient’s
DNR (do not resuscitate) wishes are
and what their allergies are up front
has the ability to provide safer and
more quality care,” said Dr. Jack
Mitstifer, president of inpatient
services at Akron General.
Lou Ann Metz, Stow’s division
fire chief, said her department
signed on with My LifePlan to
better care for local residents and
consultancy in Providence, R.I., and
the former manager of arenas such
as the Providence Civic Center. Mr.
Esckilsen said arena officials ‘are
charged with maximizing revenue,
but they also have to juggle two or
three main tenants while maintaining
flexibility for other events that pop
up.”
In The Q’s case, that means sending
both the NBA and the American
Hockey League available dates,
minus already-booked events such
as the circus, Disney on Ice and, for
2010-11, the first and second
rounds of the NCAA men’s basketball
tournament.
Cavs and Monsters officials,
meanwhile, must balance each
team’s needs in developing potential schedules. For instance, giving
the Cavs all the arena’s available
Friday and Saturday nights might
be good for the Cavs, but the Monsters
would suffer.
Indeed, 24 of the Monsters’ first
38 home games were played on
Friday or Saturday. The Monsters
are sixth in the 29-team AHL in
attendance at 6,298 a game, but
that number jumps to 7,466 for
Friday and Saturday games.
“When you’re looking at making
these schedules, that’s a consideration,” said Hallie Yavitch, senior
director of events for the Cavaliers.
“The Monsters are part of a league,
too; we have to make sure they have
good nights.”
Then, there are other considerations for the respective leagues. The
NBA must satisfy ABC, ESPN and
TNT, all looking for prime teams
(the Cavs certainly fit the bill) for
their Wednesday and Friday night
and Sunday afternoon telecasts.
NBA senior vice president of
basketball and game operations
Matt Winick said teams submitted
dates to the league by March 12 this
year; the league typically releases its
schedule in early August.
That practice allows for last-minute
alterations based on the summer’s
free-agent and trade activity, about
which Clevelanders have heard
plenty. As for a minor-league hockey
league such as the AHL, Mr. Esckilsen said, it must weigh heavily
travel limitations. In the case of the
Monsters, the team travels by bus
to opponents such as Hamilton
(Ontario), Rochester (N.Y.), Toronto
and Grand Rapids (Mich.).
Playoffs?! No sweat here
Despite all the potential for conflict, don’t expect to see a Denverlike flap here this playoff season.
Thanks to the Cavs’ success,
Quicken Loans Arena officials have
gained a scheduling advantage.
NBA teams were sent playoff dates
in August, Mr. Winick said, and
because the Cavs almost were
guaranteed at midseason of being
one of the Eastern Conference’s top
four seeds, they potentially could
book The Q for Games 3 and 4 of
the Eastern Conference’s first-round
series.
Armed with that knowledge, the
Cavs then were freed to book The Q
during what many hope to be a long
playoff run. So, Smucker’s On Ice
will play on April 30, rock band
Pearl Jam on May 9 and soul stars
Maxwell and Jill Scott on May 21.
“The playoffs can throw a
monkey wrench into things,” Ms.
Yavitch said. “If we didn’t have
homecourt advantage, we wouldn’t
know until April 15 when we’d be
playing. Fortunately, they’re doing
so well, it’s allowed us to have some
leeway.”
By contrast, the Western Conference’s seven playoff teams behind
the Los Angeles Lakers as of last
Wednesday were separated by 4.5
games, meaning they didn’t have
the luxury the Cavs did of knowing
when they’d be hosting games. (Mr.
Winick said of the Nuggets-WWE
flap: “It wasn’t a miscommunication. It was a mistake.”)
The same process goes for the
NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets and
Nationwide Arena.
The Blue Jackets are a .500 team
and in the bottom half of the
league’s Western Conference, and
thus never really have threatened to
earn a top playoff seed. Arena
officials, then, scheduled events for
dates when the lower-seeded teams
likely would be on the road. So,
Nationwide Arena will play host to
Tim McGraw on April 23, a women’s
conference on April 30-May 1, comedian Tyler Perry on May 4 and Pearl
Jam on May 6. This may be moot,
though, as Columbus currently
stands out of the playoff picture.
Also working in the venues’ favor
is a concert business where schedules
are set — at least tentatively —
further in advance than ever before,
said Eric Granger, general manager
of Nationwide Arena. Nationwide,
like Cleveland State University’s
Wolstein Center, is run by SMG, an
arena management company that
controls more than 1.5 million seats
in 76 arenas.
That connection also helps CSU,
which, with only one permanent
tenant, books as much concert
traffic as it can.
General manager Ron Willner —
an 18-year Wolstein Center vet —
also benefits from the Horizon
League men’s and women’s basketball schedule being set two to three
years in advance, he said. In turn,
he works with the CSU athletic
department to set the teams’ nonconference home games. (The CSU
men played seven such games in
the just-finished season, while the
women played four.)
“It was a lot more hectic when
the (professional indoor soccer teams)
Crunch and Force were here” from
1992-2005, Mr. Willner said.
■
20100405-NEWS--13-NAT-CCI-CL_--
4/1/2010
2:54 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Ms. Kittredge said.
Others were reluctant to be more
specific about development opportunities for fear of stirring up land
speculation.
Corridor:
Jackson says
road priority
for region
No quick fix
One reason the project likely will
continue to move slowly is that
there is little interest among
investors for development land in a
slow economy.
Joseph Martanovic, a senior
vice president with Colliers Ostendorf-Morris who specializes in
industrial property, said there
would be little interest in the land
for several years.
“It’s not attractive industrial land
now,” Mr. Martanovic said. “It’s
going to take minimally 10 years (for
for construction of the corridor, which
has been the subject of on-again,
off-again financing commitments.
That wait and the long timeline for
construction frustrates some of the
roadway’s strongest backers, who
would like to see the project put on a
faster track for completion.
“We don’t think the project can
come soon enough,” said Chris
Ronayne, president of University
Circle Inc., one of the project’s
biggest boosters. “University Circle
is growing out of land.”
Mr. Ronayne said he already
is envisioning what he calls a
“Medical Mile” along the corridor’s
eastern end that would give University Circle health care and medical
institutions room to grow. It could
include office space for the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals,
both of which already have backoffice workers in buildings in the
eastern suburbs.
Mr. Ronayne noted the Clinic had
to push its boundaries south toward
the corridor site to build its Global
Cardiovascular Innovation Center,
and that Cleveland developer MRN
Ltd. is transforming the former
Tudor Arms Hotel into a $22 million
Doubletree Hotel at East 105th
Street and Carnegie Avenue, where
the corridor would meet University
Circle.
Catalyst needed
The Opportunity Corridor is
planned as a divided and landscaped
boulevard with limited intersections
that would link to Interstate 490 at
East 55th Street, follow rail tracks
to East 105th and then become
East 105th until it reaches University
Circle.
The road is a priority for Cleveland
Mayor Frank Jackson because it
would open for redevelopment 200
acres of largely abandoned land —
much of it already zoned for commercial and industrial uses — in a
section of the city’s impoverished
southeast side that is called the
“Forgotten Triangle.”
To push the project, the city,
ODOT and the Greater Cleveland
Partnership created the Opportunity
Corridor steering committee chaired
by Ms. Brown to oversee the project
and hold public meetings in
the neighborhoods touching the
corridor.
Paul Volpe, president and founding
principal of City Architecture,
already is working with the steering
committee on design concepts for
developments along the road as well
as site plans for key areas.
“This neighborhood is very
depressed,” said Robert Brown,
Cleveland’s planning director.
“Unless we do something different,
like this roadway, the chances of a
dramatic turnaround (in that area)
are not great.”
Project planners estimate that
2,200 of 5,500 parcels of land in the
target area are already vacant or
abandoned.
and-development buildings, while
other space could be used for light
manufacturing. Parking lots would
be hidden from view, behind the
buildings.
At the west end of the corridor,
Slavic Village Development, a
community development nonprofit,
is looking at the potential for
residential and other development.
Marie Kittredge, executive director
of Slavic Village Development,
said there are some businesses to
the west of East 55th Street, “but
there’s a lot of land that is underutilized.”
“That’s where we would look for
development, also along East 55th,”
interest to blossom) and assembling
the land will take time. Way down
the road there is going to be development there, but the road has to
be done (first).”
Minimizing dislocation is another
reason for a slow pace.
Avoiding as much residential
disruption as possible will be a key
factor in the choice of a roadway
alignment.
Cleveland City Councilwoman
Mamie Mitchell, whose Ward 5
covers a large portion of the corridor,
said she hasn’t been swamped with
objections to the concept, but
knows backs will stiffen when a final
route is chosen.
“The best route will be the one
that displaces the fewest people,”
she said.
■
After an urban feel
The idea is that while ODOT
designs and builds the roadway, the
city and community development
groups would assemble adjacent
land into developable tracts.
“I imagine as we begin our market
assessment we will begin to talk to
developers, not with the purpose of
selling them anything but gaining
their insight to help shape our plan,”
Ms. Brown said.
Mr. Brown, the planning director,
imagines an urban feel to the corridor,
with buildings separated from a treelined roadway by only a sidewalk,
what he is calling “linear, urban
office parks.” Some of the boulevard
could be home to office or research-
93 Acquisitions and Counting
Achieve.
BILL JULKA
13
LINSALATA CAPITAL PARTNERS
in partnership with
management has acquired
in partnership with
in partnership with
a leading manufacturer of branded
pizza crusts, frozen pizza and pancakes.
a leading provider of
women’s swimwear and beachwear.
a leading developer and
manufacturer of high quality food
ingredients and flavor systems.
December 15, 2009
January 15, 2010
February 1, 2010
PRESIDENT/FOUNDER,
SMART SOLUTIONS, INC.
CLASS OF ‘74
Learn how our alumni engage at:
www.csuohio.edu/alumni
L I N S A L ATA C A P I TA L PA RT N E R S
Landerbrook Corporate Center One U Suite 280 U 5900 Landerbrook Drive U Mayfield Heights, Ohio 44124
440/684-1400 U fax 440/684-0984 U www.linsalatacapital.com
20100405-NEWS--14-NAT-CCI-CL_--
14
4/2/2010
1:39 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
GOING PLACES
LEGAL
NONPROFIT
JOB CHANGES
HAHN LOESER & PARKS LLP:
Douglas S. Morgan and W. Eric
Baisden to partners.
CLEVELAND FOUNDATION: Ani
Bagdasarian to presidential liaison
for special initiatives; Judy Salm to
donor relations officer; Jim Nichols
to senior communications editor.
EDUCATION
LAKE ERIE COLEGE: Alison
Mearns Benders to vice president
for academic affairs and chief academic
officer.
FINANCIAL SERVICE
AKRON GENERAL: Dr. Ross
Marchetta to director of robotic
gynecological surgery.
OHIO CLINIC FOR AESTHETIC
AND PLASTIC SURGERY: Dr.
James Scarcella to medical staff.
INSURANCE
ANCORA ADVISORS LLC: Robert
Brady to institutional marketing.
THE HOFFMAN GROUP: Bryan
Shamp and Jake Pease to account
executives.
RETIREMENT SOLUTIONS: Rachel
Snyderburn to senior administrative
assistant.
MCMANAMON INSURANCE:
Walter L. Voyzey to account
executive.
HEALTH CARE
AKRON CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL:
Michael Trainer to chief financial
officer and treasurer.
MEDICAL MUTUAL OF OHIO:
Ezell Underdown to director,
legal affairs; Karen Williams to
director of financial analysis and cost
and budget.
TUCKER ELLIS & WEST LLP:
Clifford S. Mendelsohn to counsel.
MANUFACTURING
DVUV LLC: David P. Wanner to
sales representative.
FABER-CASTELL USA: Cathy
Blankenship to director of sales,
children’s brands.
KEN-TOOL: Rockford Tyson to vice
president of sales and marketing.
LIBRA INDUSTRIES: James Sabo
to chief operating officer.
TRANSTAR INDUSTRIES INC.:
Nancy Parker to vice president of
corporate human resources.
ELIZA JENNINGS SENIOR CARE
NETWORK: Greg Lonsway to
executive director, The Renaissance.
Benders
Marchetta
Underdown
Williams
Sabo
Bagdasarian
Salm
Nichols
Jones
NORTECH: Karen Allport to vice
president, strategic outreach; Byron
Clayton to vice president.
THE VILLAGE AT MARYMOUNT:
Max A. Becker to executive chef
and director of culinary services.
REAL ESTATE
ERIE TITLE AGENCY INC.: Dave
Iammarino to account executive;
Ted Bush to senior vice president,
general counsel.
DEVELOPERS DIVERSIFIED REALTY
CORP.: John S. Kokinchak to senior
executive vice president, property
management; R. Christopher Salata
to assistant general counsel, corporate.
JONES LANG LASALLE AMERICAS
INC.: Brian Conroy and Scott
Pick to senior vice presidents; Jon
Vanderplough to vice president.
TRANSACTION REALTY: Joan Brilla
and Vicki Lehigh to sales associates.
SERVICE
SS&G HEALTHCARE SERVICES
LLC: Kristine Woodcock to billing
specialist.
UTILITY
FIRSTENERGY CORP.: Charles E.
Jones to senior vice president and
president, FirstEnergy Utilities.
BOARDS
CUYAHOGA VALLEY CHAMBER OF
COMMERCE: Eileen Hawking to
executive director; Charlene Paparizos
(CMP Communications LLC) to president; Traci Davis to past president;
Leesa Jacubenta to vice president;
Susan Amoroso to treasurer; Nancy
Prucha to secretary.
NORTHEAST OHIO NEIGHBORHOOD
HEALTH SERVICES INC.: Matthew T.
Fitzsimmons (Nicola, Gudbranson &
Cooper LLC) to chairman; Willie
Starkey to first vice president.
OHIO AND ERIE CANALWAY
ASSOCIATION: Jon Elsasser to
chairman; Tom Yablonsky to vice
chairman; Pat Campbell to secretary;
Tim Novotny to treasurer.
AWARDS
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF
WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS,
CLEVELAND CHAPTER: Mary Biacsi,
Zoller/Biacsi Co.; Barbara Cagley,
SCK Design Inc.; Jennie Chiccola,
Jennie Chiccola Realty; Rachel DanielTalton, Synergy Marketing Strategy and
Research Inc.; Karen Fike, Let’s Entertain Inc.; Ingrid Halpert, Weiss Movers
Inc.; Laura Jacobs, Embellish Accessories LLC; Kristina O’Brien, Majestic
Title Services LLC; Holly Rhoads, The
Ruby Group LLC; Victoria Tifft, Clinical
Research Management Inc.
RETIREMENT
FIRSTENERGY CORP.: Richard R.
Grigg, after 40 years of service.
Send information for Going Places to
dhillyer@crain.com.
20100405-NEWS--15-NAT-CCI-CL_--
3/31/2010
2:02 PM
Page 1
Northeast Ohio is home to
scores of successful family
owned businesses, both those
well known and some well-kept
secrets.
Over the following pages, we
take a snapshot, from fatherson duos to four, five and seven
generations of hardware, candles
and furniture.
Astro Manufacturing
and Design Inc.
eastlake
second generation
By DAN SHINGLER
dshingler@crain.com
L
ots of fathers and sons
build models together —
but not many turn them
into multimillion-dollar
businesses the way Mike Watts Sr.
and his son Mike Watts Jr. did with
Eastlake-based Astro Manufacturing
and Design Inc.
Mike Watts Sr. started the
company in 1977, after running a
Cleveland-based model shop that
made mock-ups of parts and
components before they were
manufactured in larger volumes.
The operation eventually was shut
down, leaving Mr. Watts and his
staff of 12 out of work, but with
marketable skills.
“We took our severance pay,
pitched it together and bought the
equipment — we bought 80% of
the shop,” Mr. Watts said. “There
wasn’t much of a job market.”
But if you ask the senior Mr.
Watts if he was scared at the time,
he gives the quizzical look of a
man who only now, more than 30
years later, is considering the
question for the first time.
“Scared? I guess I wasn’t,” he
said. “I just thought we could do it.”
And so they did.
Luckily for Mr. Watts, the model
shop wasn’t the only part of his
former operation to be shut down.
Soon, the same internal clients for
whom Mr. Watts previously built
models were scattered and working
at numerous other Northeast Ohio
companies.
In their new jobs, they wanted
someone to build models for them
the way Mr. Watts had done — and
lo and behold Mr. Watts’ new
company, Astro, was one of the
few shops able to do it and the first
one to which they turned.
Astro took off. What once was 12
people in 5,000 square feet of
Mike Watts Jr.
(left), joined
Astro Manufacturing and
Design Inc. in
1983 after his
father, Mike
Sr., started the
company in
1977.
JANET CENTURY
space in Eastlake is today a
company with 250 employees and
300,000 square feet of space. And
it’s not just model-making any
more. Today, Astro produces final
parts, components and assemblies
for a slew of products, from military torpedoes to CT scanners.
For nearly all of the journey,
Mike Watts Jr. has been either at
his father’s side or at his beck and
call. Though he did not join the
company until 1983, the younger
Mr. Watts spent much of his youth
in and around machine tools.
“He would come in here at night
with his friends and use the
machines,” the father recalled.
Great Lakes
Cheese Co.
hiram
second generation
By JUDY STRINGER
clbfreelancer@crain.com
S
MARC GOLUB
Kurt Epprecht (left, vice president of procurement and risk management) and his brother John
(executive vice president) in part run Great Lakes Cheese Co., which their father, Hans, founded.
ince its inception at the Northern
Ohio Food Terminal in 1958 to its
prominence today as a national
cheese supplier with seven U.S.
plants, Hiram-based Great Lakes Cheese has
seen much of its success rooted in its
willingness to seize opportunities.
The company’s history is rife with examples
of risk-taking and the identification of new
concepts and markets. Founder Hans
Epprecht, for example, was one of the first to
encourage grocers to buy prepacked shredded
and sliced cheese at a time when cheese
loaves were carved up in back rooms. He
So when his son went to college,
Mr. Watts also put him to work.
Mike Watts Jr. set up a small machine
shop in the house that he and his
friends shared at school, and he
taught his friends to run the equipment. Together, they all did piecework for Mike’s dad and Astro.
See ASTRO Page 20
also offered profit-sharing to his employees
long before such plans were popular.
In the early ’80s, the company galvanized
its expansion into New York by responding
quickly when a private label cheese supplier
announced its exit from that market. Great
Lakes Cheese also snatched the chance to
establish a presence deep in the heart of the
dairyland by purchasing the equipment and
taking on the employees of a food supplier in
Plymouth, Wis.
In recent days, Great Lakes Cheese’s
concentration on store-brand cheese lines —
traditionally priced lower than national
brands — has delivered some of its highest
returns as many manufacturers experienced
declines.
“The desire to find new opportunities and
seize them is part of our history and culture,”
said Mr. Epprecht’s daughter, Heidi Eller.
“And it continues to be an important aspect
of the company today.”
A director at Great Lakes Cheese, Ms. Eller
is one of a trio of second-generation
See CHEESE Page 19
20100405-NEWS--16-NAT-CCI-CL_--
16
3/31/2010
2:02 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
National
Enterprise
Systems
Heinen’s Fine Foods
warrensville heights
third generation
By KATHY AMES CARR
kcarr@crain.com
solon
second generation
G
By ARIELLE KASS
akass@crain.com
O
n the weekends, Ernie
Pollak and his sons may go
on a picnic or play a round
of golf. He plays with the
grandkids. They relax at family
parties.
During the work week, though,
the family is all business.
The three sons and their father are
all executives at National Enterprise
Systems in Solon, a collection agency
that Ernie, 65, started in 1987 after
rising through the ranks at another
firm. When he started the business
with the boys’ stepmother that June,
she did bookkeeping while he
managed the company.
After just six months, it was a
full-fledged family affair.
Scott Pollak, 43, is the oldest son.
He joined National Enterprise in
December 1987 as a collection
agent, when there were just a
handful of other workers at the
company that now employs 420.
But just being Ernie’s progeny
didn’t guarantee him the job he
now holds, vice president of sales.
Indeed, it was six or seven years
before he was promoted to a sales
position.
For Jeff Pollak, 39, the wait was
even longer. He was twice passed
over for a management position he
applied for within the company.
“He was pretty mad,” Ernie said,
recalling a time he and Jeff were
painting a wall together when Jeff
RUGGERO FATICA
Chris Pollak (from left) and brothers Scott and Jeff each work at National Enterprise Systems, the company their father, Ernie, started in 1987.
asked what it was going to take to
get the promotion. Ernie said he
told his son, “You have to keep
working hard, do the things I tell
you to do, when I tell you to do
them, and follow your work ethic
and it won’t be long.”
Nine months later, Jeff got a
promotion. He is now vice president of collections.
“It was good he pushed it,” Ernie
said. “Aggressiveness is a thing you
look for.”
Jeff said he never considered
looking for other work, where he
didn’t have to impress his father. All
three of the boys — Chris Pollak, 29,
is general manager of collections —
said as president, Ernie was less
patient with them than with other
employees, but that they wanted to
stay with the business, which they
described as more than just a job.
“I felt like the opportunity was
here,” Jeff said. “Sooner or later, I
was going to impress him.”
Ernie said he doesn’t believe in
family businesses where a next
generation rises in the rank just
because of their last name. Kids can
take advantage of that situation, he
said, and it can harm the company.
And Ernie still has big plans for the
company, which he would like to see
more than double in size to fit the
capacity of the campus’s two
buildings.
“You’re not going to get anywhere
coddling them,” he said. “They’ve
earned everything they’ve had,
believe me.”
Ernie said he’s proud of his sons,
who often work 14-hour days. He
praised their work ethic, saying he
leaves a lot of the decision-making
to them and is confident in their
skills.
It will still be some years before
retirement, he said, but when the
time comes, he knows the boys
have what it takes to succeed.
“I couldn’t ask for three better
employees, no matter where I would
look,” he said.
◆
rocery shopping can be a
chore, a get-in and get-out
errand on a hurried
customer’s unpleasant
to-do list.
But at Heinen’s, shoppers loiter
in the showroom for food. It’s not
just because of the fresh, colorful
fruits and vegetables, natural
meats, tasting kiosks and the
variety of unique local products on
the shelves, but also because of the
relationships the grocer’s associates
foster with customers.
Heinen’s has grown organically,
mostly from word-of-mouth
advertising and brand loyalty, from
the Shaker Heights store that
founder Joe Heinen opened in 1929
to 17 Northeast Ohio stores with
about 2,500 employees and $400
million in annual sales. And even
though the economy has impacted
the higher-end grocery operation,
revenue still has been marginally
rising over the last couple years.
The third-generation business
currently is run by twin brothers
Tom and Jeff Heinen, whom
employees describe as humble and
modest — more like friends than
bosses.
“We’re happy being the ice cubes
in the drink,” Jeff Heinen said.
The brothers still run the operation as their grandfather envisioned
by emphasizing family and food.
“We visit most of the places
where we buy from,” Tom Heinen
said. “People want to know where
their food comes from, and how
the animals are treated. Even in
the ’70s, my grandfather handselected quarters of beef in Akron.”
Heinen’s also has expanded its
offerings to meet the needs of its
consumers, who have become
more educated about nutrition.
For example, the company
offers chef-prepared foods, and
about three years ago, Heinen’s
partnered with the Cleveland
Clinic to develop the Healthy
Appetite line of prepared foods
with the Go! food product label.
The business’ private label
brands — Heinen’s and Two
Brothers — also have been
successful. Some of the labels have
been around for decades, but
Heinen’s two years ago expanded
its natural and organic lines.
The business also donates more
than $2 million annually to local
food banks and about $200,000 to
area schools.
To accommodate the “families
comes first” motto, Heinen’s is
open from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and
is closed on six national holidays
and Easter, while some of their
retail counterparts stay open later,
or even 24 hours a day.
Many of Heinen’s employees
have become more like extended
members of the Heinen’s family.
“There are a lot of families here
who have more family members
working with Heinen’s than we
do,” Jeff Heinen said.
Mary Smeltzer, for example, has
been an employee for 32 years,
and her husband, Robert “Bob”
Smeltzer, whom she met at the
Aurora store 18 years ago, has been
with the business for 33 years.
Their high school son, Trevor, is
a grocery stocker.
“I really can’t think of a time
when an associate has been
disgruntled,” said Ms. Smeltzer,
right before she greeted a customer
by her first name.
Tom and Jeff Heinen both
have high school or college-age
children, but stopped short of
confirming a fourth-generation
takeover. That’s because the
children, like their dads, plan to or
are pursuing college degrees.
“We are managing the business
toward a fourth-generation
operation,” Jeff Heinen said.
“We still want to grow,” Tom
Heinen added.
◆
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RUGGERO FATICA
Heinen’s Fine Foods, which opened its first store in 1929, now is run by twin
brothers Tom (left) and Jeff Heinen.
20100405-NEWS--17-NAT-CCI-CL_--
4/1/2010
4:43 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Kichler
Lighting
independence
third generation
By JOEL HAMMOND
jmhammond@crain.com
J
oe Sullivan says Kichler Lighting’s
decorative lighting fixtures and
other products are some of the
most popular he sells.
Mr. Sullivan, showroom manager
at the Mentor lighting showroom of
Mars Electric, an electrical supplier
with eight Northeast Ohio locations,
has a simple way of knowing; it’s
based on how often he reorders
Kichler’s catalogs.
“Their catalog gets beat up pretty
fast,” Mr. Sullivan said.
Its products may go fast, but
Kichler’s rise in the decorative
lighting business wasn’t quite as
easy or quick. It started with Sam
Minoff buying the company from
L.D. Kichler in 1954 — promising
Mr. Kichler he’d never change the
name — and selling products by
day while making them at night.
From those humble beginnings,
when Mr. Minoff had one employee
and his wife, Clare, kept the books,
to today, with over 6,000 products,
Kichler has prided itself on “being
easy to do business with,” said Roy
Minoff, Sam’s son and the company’s
current chief administrative officer
and general counsel.
“You have to have good
supply chains and be
ready for everything. It’s
about choosing good
suppliers and rewarding
them; we’re big believers
in pleasing others.”
– Roy Minoff, chief administrative
officer and general counsel,
Kichler Lighting
“They’re exceptional,” Mr. Sullivan
said. “The products are quality, and
their customer service is very good.
We make one call, and they solve
any issue we might have.”
Sam Minoff grew the company
little by little through the 1960s
until he finally convinced a bank to
provide a long-term loan, for 10
years and $125,000. Under Mr.
Minoff’s direction, the company
went from 3,000 square feet on
Ontario Street in Cleveland, to one
rented floor on East 21st Street, to
East 38th Street and finally to its current location, a 640,000-square-foot
building on East Pleasant
Valley Road in Independence, off
Interstate 77.
Sam’s oldest son, Barry, joined
Kichler in 1972, and today serves as
chairman of the board; Barry’s son,
Dave, is the company’s e-commerce manager. Roy Minoff joined
Kichler after working as a hospital
aide supervisor, and his son, Drew,
a student at John Carroll, has done
summer research, among other
things, at Kichler. In addition, Mike
Southard, who married Barry and
Roy’s sister, Amy, in 1987, is the
company’s national sales manager
for landscape lighting.
Each Minoff, and Mr. Southard,
said the family members’ unique
responsibilities have limited any
intense squabbling that some other
family-owned businesses may
encounter.
“I think it’s different here because
we all have our own areas,” said
Mr. Southard, who also said the
landscape lighting division has been
a growth sector for the company.
“There isn’t a ton of interaction;
each of us is focused on our own
thing and we try to do that well.”
But there is one point of contention, it seems: Who gets most of
the credit for the company still
humming along.
Sam Minoff, in a conversation
from Florida, said while he’s still
plenty active in the company,
his family deserves the credit.
Meanwhile, Roy Minoff said Sam’s
passion for the products and knack
for finding talented people spurred
the company’s growth; Sam, Roy
said, walks into a room and calls
out product numbers of light
fixtures, despite the aforementioned thousands of products.
“Since I was a little kid, I’ve
wanted to work here,” said Dave
Minoff, who worked in sales in
Orlando for a few years after
graduating from Vanderbilt
University before joining the
company. “There’s a sense of pride
involved with all the blood, sweat
and tears my grandpa, dad and
uncles put into this.”
The drastic dropoff in home
starts — according to Census
figures, housing starts nationwide
fell to 445,000 in 2009 from 1.05
million two years prior and 1.6
million in 2004 — have hurt, as new
homes require new lighting fixtures
and other accents. But carrying
little debt puts Kichler in an opportunistic position, Roy Minoff said.
“You have to have good supply
chains and be ready for everything.
It’s about choosing good suppliers
and rewarding them; we’re big
believers in pleasing others.”
◆
MARC GOLUB
Sam Minoff (center) bought Kichler Lighting in 1954, and now he’s joined by son
Roy (left, chief administrative officer and general counsel), son-in-law Mike
Southard (national sales manager for landscape lighting), son Barry (chairman
of the board) and grandson Dave (e-commerce manager).
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17
20100405-NEWS--18-NAT-CCI-CL_--
18
3/31/2010
2:03 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Malley’s Chocolates
cleveland
third generation
By KATHY AMES CARR
kcarr@crain.com
D
Bill (left), Dan,
Adele and
Packy Malley
run things
these days at
the 300employee, 18store Malley’s
Chocolates.
JESSE KRAMER
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Jesuit educational excellence since 1886
uring an economic
meltdown, you need the
basics for survival —
food, water, shelter and
chocolate.
At least that’s what Clevelandbased Malley’s Chocolates has
discovered since it was founded by
Mike Malley in 1935 during the
Great Depression. It continues to
thrive today during the Great
Recession.
“I was fortunate enough to work
side by side with the guy who started
this business when I was a kid,”
said Dan Malley, grandson of the
founder and the operation’s
chocolate czar. “Growing up, the
dinner conversations were always
centered around business, and
(my siblings and I) were like
sponges, soaking it in.”
Mr. Malley said he remembers at
a young age stuffing Easter grass
into cellophane bags in the basement
of the North Olmsted retail store
for 2 cents each.
“I thought I made a fortune,” he
said.
Suffice to say, Malley’s also has
made a fortune since that time.
The third-generation family
operation that began as a single
store in Lakewood has grown to 18
Northeast Ohio locations, five of
which sell homemade ice cream.
The newest store opened last
August in Highland Heights.
Malley’s employs about 300
full-time and mostly part-time
employees, with Dan, Adele
(“Sis”), Bill (“Bee”) and Packy, all
of the Malley family, running the
operation.
While the company does not
disclose annual sales, Dan Malley
said the company’s revenue was
up about 6% in 2009 from 2008,
and he hopes to maintain that
trajectory this year.
Community contributions also
have been a key ingredient to the
Malley’s operation. The company
just finished raising $10,000 for
Haiti relief efforts. Each year, the
company donates about 25 to 30
food baskets to benefit families in
need and also buys gift cards for
the hungry.
Brook Park Mayor Mark Elliott
said the city is fortunate to have
the chocolate factory — which he
refers to as a “tourist destination”
— based there.
“We have traffic jams on Brookpark Road during the peak holiday
seasons, and that’s a great problem
to have,” Mayor Elliott said.
“They’ve been an outstanding
business, and they get a lot of people
to come into our community.”
Adele Malley, chief operating
officer and Dan’s sister, said she
enjoys working at the family business because she and her siblings
— like many families spearheading
their businesses — wear many hats
to ensure they are proficient at
running the business from different
angles. On this particular day,
Adele Malley wore a hair net, as
she was out in the factory learning
how to run the machines that
make the chocolate candy.
“I love working here,” she said.
“It’s fun and relaxed, but it’s still
business. It’s nice to know we’re
following in our grandparents’
footsteps.”
While some of the third-generation
Malley family members have
children, Dan Malley said it’s
premature to tell whether the
chocolate business will spill into a
fourth generation.
For now, “we’re going to grow,
but continue to focus on what we
do well,” he said.
For Northeast Ohio chocolate
lovers, that plan sounds pretty
sweet.
◆
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20100405-NEWS--19-NAT-CCI-CL_--
3/31/2010
2:03 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
Botzum Bros. Hardware
akron
fourth generation
By JOHN BOOTH
clbfreelancer@crain.com
O
dds are you’ve come in
contact with some of the
work of Akron-based
Botzum Bros. Hardware
whether you know it or not.
The 118-year-old company’s
legacy ranges from the cement in
the city’s landmark Y Bridge to
doors and hardware in Akron
Public School buildings and in
commercial buildings across the
region.
“It’s great to be a part of something like that,” said Al Hilkert,
Botzum’s fourth-generation owner.
“I never felt pressure to go into the
business, but when you come into
it, you certainly want it to do well.
You feel a special responsibility for
it.”
Pictures in Mr. Hilkert’s office at
Botzum’s North Arlington Street
headquarters show a parade of
Botzum Bros. delivery wagons in
the early 1900s representing the
branches of the family business.
Al’s father Bill Hilkert remembers
those years when the Botzum
name was on everything from sand
and gravel sales to a feed business
and four movie theaters in Akron
and Canton. Though many of
those businesses fell victim to the
Great Depression, the building
materials operation carried the
Botzum name for several decades
to come.
Bill Hilkert began running the
company in the 1960s, gradually
buying out his seven siblings’
interest and narrowing the Botzum
focus. In the late 1980s, the
company sold the last of its concrete
operations to concentrate mainly
on commercial doors and frames,
which remain its core business
almost a quarter-century later.
“Careful financial management
was probably the biggest lesson I
learned,” Bill Hilkert said from his
winter home in Florida. “It’s very
important in the construction
business not to be a wild speculator.”
Al, the great-grandson of
founder Lewis Botzum, worked on
and off at the company as a young
man — he remembers testing the
concrete used in Akron’s Y Bridge —
and he bought the company from
his father in early 2001.
“His No. 1 goal wasn’t growth,”
Al Hilkert said of the lessons he
learned from his father. “He was
somebody who would work
through and figure out problems
(for customers), and that’s what
we do. I hope people look at us and
say, ‘That’s a company we can
trust.’ That goes a long way in the
construction business.”
Bob Baker, hardware foreman
for the maintenance department
of Akron Public Schools, has been
dealing with Botzum for decades
and in three different jobs — with
Forest City Dillon, Allen Keith
Construction and in his current
position. Mr. Baker recalls Botzum
Bros. was hands-on in meeting
contractors’ needs.
“They worked with us on drawings
and specs ... and they would build
the frames to those specs,” he said.
And when he joined the school
system, he turned to the company
for its experience and proximity.
“Being in maintenance in the
schools, you get a lot of stuff you need
to get repaired right away,” Mr.
Baker said. “Botzum is local and they
carry the products we need to use.”
Still, even as Al Hilkert points
with pride to yellowed Botzum
stock certificates from 1914 and
framed photographs illustrating the
company’s history, he said you
can’t lean on longevity itself.
“You can end up talking about
the past ... but you’re not going to
stay in business unless you think
about the future,” he said. “Business
is constantly changing, and you
need to change with the industry.”
Wireless locks and copy-proof
keys are examples of the technological advances Botzum has had to
keep up with, as is the interest in
sustainability and the U.S. Green
Building Council’s Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design
certification process.
It’s no longer enough, in many
cases, to just know your hardware:
Botzum recently earned its “Chain
of Custody Certificate,” which permits it to sell LEED-certified doors
based on knowledge of their source
materials and recycled content.
“You’ve got to be willing to
evolve,” Al Hilkert said. “We’re going
to be different in five years because
the industry will be different.”
That may be so, but given
Botzum Bros.’s long history, its
involvement in projects across the
region seems likely to continue. ◆
JANINE BENTIVEGNA
Al Hilkert is the fourth-generation owner of the 118-year-old Botzum Bros. Hardware, which now mainly focuses on commercial doors and frames.
Cheese
Epprechts overseeing the family
business. John Epprecht, the oldest
of Hans’ three children, was the
first to join the company full time,
working his way from the production
line to executive vice president.
Kurt Epprecht, the youngest, is vice
president of procurement and risk
management.
The elder Epprecht emigrated
from Switzerland in 1948 when a
cheesemaker from Brewster, in
Stark County, traveled abroad in
search of laborers.
He learned every facet of
cheesemaking while in Brewster,
but his budding vocation was cut
short by the draft. After serving in
the Army for two years and a brief
stint as a milk truck driver, he
responded to an advertisement in
the newspaper to buy a modest
cheese supplier in Cleveland’s
Northern Ohio Food Terminal.
That was 1958. Four years later,
he took out a loan and built a 6,000square-foot cheese manufacturing
and packing plant in Newbury.
Mr. Epprecht grew his company
over the years by acquiring existing
plants and adding new products
and customers. In 1998, Great
Lakes Cheese moved its Newbury
plant and headquarters to a new
site on the edge of Geauga County
in Hiram. In 1999, he decided to
retire and the family looked
outside for a new leader.
“At the time it was a $500
million company, and we wanted
someone with the business expertise to take it to the next level,”
John Epprecht said.
Great Lakes Cheese found that
19
JASON MILLER
A.I. Root Co. president Brad Root, now in charge at the 141-year-old company,
said he updates the family tree to keep tabs on relatives.
A.I. Root Co.
n the early days of the A.I. Root
Co., employees would play
softball in the middle of the
street that now runs between
the company’s downtown Medina
offices and the sprawling brick
plant where it makes candles.
They could pull it off back then
because horses and buggies still
ruled the roads, said president Brad
Root.
“Then the automobile came,” he
said with a laugh.
The A.I. Root Co., which does
business as Root Candles, was
founded in 1869. That’s four years
after the end of the Civil War, and
seven years before Alexander
Graham Bell invented the telephone. Since then, the company
has evolved from making equipment for beekeepers — which
inspired the Medina City School
District to adopt its “Battling Bees”
nickname — to producing candles
for churches and consumers.
The whole time, descendants of
founder Amos Ives Root have
owned a majority stake in the company, which today employs 140 in
Medina and about 165 nationwide.
Brad Root knows his roots well.
He regularly updates the Root family
tree to keep track of both relatives
and shareholders, which include
second and third cousins. Many of
them aren’t interested in selling
their shares because they like
feeling connected to their ancestors,
he said.
So does Mr. Root. Like his siblings,
he spent summers during high
school working for the company,
but it wasn’t until he saw the miniseries “Roots” in the late 1970s that
his legacy took hold of his life.
“I developed a keen interest in
the history of the family, which
created an interest in the business,”
he said.
Mr. Root in 2008 became the
sixth family member to serve as
company president, following in
the steps of his great-great grandfather, who had owned a jewelry
manufacturing shop on Medina’s
town square before becoming infatuated with bees and bee keeping.
The company started making
beeswax candles for churches in
the 1930s, and it expanded to make
consumer candles a few decades
later. All the while, demand for
beekeeping equipment declined,
driving A.I. Root Co. to shut down
its saw mill in 1994.
It was a hard decision, but Mr.
Root said the company is more
interested in developing new
products than re-creating old ones.
Mr. Root said the company sells
about $25 million in products
annually. Brad Root’s father, John,
who retired as president in 2008 but
remains chairman, said he enjoys
knowing that the money the family’s
company brings in has helped
countless people make a living.
John’s brother Stuart Root today
is corporate secretary and safety
manager, but he’s held positions in
product development and quality
control since joining A.I. Root Co.
48 years ago. Even then, he figured
he’d still be working for the company today.
“I really enjoyed everything I did
here,” he said.
It’s too early to say whether the
company’s next president will be a
Root. After all, Brad Root’s kids are
just 11, 9 and 7. He won’t pressure
them to join the business, but he
surely wouldn’t mind if they did.
“I’d be tickled pink,” he said. ◆
business savvy in Gary Vanic, an 18year veteran of Land O’ Lakes Inc.
of Arden Hills, Minn. Mr. Vanic has
been instrumental in Great Lakes
Cheese’s expansion in private-label
cheese — a market it now leads.
Kurt Epprecht cited the company’s
devoted employees as another
catalyst behind its ascent to
$2 billion in annual sales. Great
Lakes Cheese employs more than
500 at its Hiram site and nearly
2,000 nationwide.
Administrative assistant Laura
Valvoda said employees like her
value the company’s stability,
especially when so many Northeast
Ohio companies are letting workers
go. Watching her retirement savings
blossom via the firm’s employee
stock ownership plan and its 35year-old profit-sharing structure is
not so bad, either.
“Great Lakes Cheese is one of the
companies that truly recognizes it is
only as strong as its employees,”
said Raymond James & Associates’
Dennis Schwartz, a longtime
financial adviser for Great Lakes
Cheese. “The family really cares
about the employees and that goes
both ways.”
◆
medina
fifth generation
By CHUCK SODER
csoder@crain.com
I
20100405-NEWS--20-NAT-CCI-CL_--
20
3/31/2010
2:04 PM
Page 1
The Taylor
Cos.
bedford
seventh generation
By STAN BULLARD
sbullard@crain.com
T
he Taylor Cos., the Bedford
chair and desk manufacturer,
traces its business and
family ownership lineage to
Benjamin Franklin Fitch, the Cleveland suburb’s first settler in 1813.
Mr. Fitch had a way with wood:
He knew how to season timber, use
the grain and handle the knots. For
his cabin, he made slat-backed and
splint-bottomed chairs.
Since so many neighbors sought
them, he set up shop in a nearby
cabin. A multigenerational family
business was born by 1816, one
whose historic exhibit at its headquarters reeks of Americana nearly
as much as the Smithsonian.
With roots like that, Taylor has
learned how to manage business
cycles, social transitions and the
vagaries of fate, which shape and
test a family enterprise.
Take the industrial revolution.
Originally, Taylor made chairs for
homes and schools in the agrarianera U.S. After the industrial
revolution, demand for chairs for
businesses developed and the
company focused on the business
and institutional market. Taylor
went from rocking chairs common
at late 19th-century business desks
to chairs that roll, swivel and, in
some models, still rock.
Today, Taylor’s staff totals 65,
with just over half the staff here at
the chair factory and the remainder
at a Los Angeles plant. Brett N.
Meals, the seventh generation of
Mr. Fitch’s family to own the
company, is Taylor’s sole shareholder, and he carries the title of
executive vice president.
In 2006, Taylor moved into a
new $6 million factory on a
reclaimed brownfield in Bedford
— its predecessor plant dated from
1892 — and the last few years
developed a name for itself as a
leader in sustainability in manufacturing.
One way Taylor manages change
is to focus on current needs with
an eye on tomorrow.
APRIL 5-11, 2010
“Our focus is getting through
this time. It’s a very challenging
economy,” Mr. Meals said. “Brett
and Jeff (Baldassari, Taylor president
and CEO) are focused on getting
through. We also focus on sustainability because it is more than the
product we make — it’s how we
make the product.” Another sign of
their focus comes from copies of
Taylor’s original stock certificates
that Messrs. Meals and Baldassari
have hanging on the walls of their
adjoining offices: they date from
1885, when Ohio began organizing
corporations for legal purposes.
Mr. Meals declined to discuss
succession plans for Taylor.
However, it’s clear the focus is on
keeping the company alive by
focusing on what Mr. Baldassari
calls “the Taylor family.” He argues
the key to any family company’s
longevity is prizing contributions
by employees at all levels.
Taylor’s sustainability kudos
reflects that approach. “We gave it
to our operational team. They
figured out how to do it,” Mr.
Baldassari said of its sustainability
practices. “You don’t want Jeff or
Brett making your chair,” but Taylor’s
skilled union workers on the job.
MARC GOLUB
Jeffrey Baldassari, president and CEO of the nearly 200-year-old Taylor Cos.,
with Brett Meals, the company’s executive vice president and owner.
Likewise, Taylor operations
people found a key to sustainability
was saving materials and not having
them get in the way or require costgobbling moves in the shop. Taylor
diverts materials that used to go to
landfills, annually recycling 2.5 tons
of leather straps as high-end purses
and donating 76,000 pounds of
sawdust to area farms.
Taylor, which prides itself on
buying locally, also hopes its
sustainability seeds reap increased
sales. A key requirement for
building and office certification in
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design prized by some
corporations, contractors and
architects is sourcing products
locally, which could be magical for
a local chairs and desk outfit that
competes globally.
Holly Harlan, president of Cleveland-based Entrepreneurs for Sustainability, said Taylor gets the idea
that sustainability is about legacy,
including what this generation adds
to those that came before it and
saves for those coming later. The
59% reduction in utilities costs
Taylor achieved with its new plant
will be a legacy for the future, she
said.
◆
Astro
Looks like a job for COSE.
April Smith
Salon Glow
Mentor
6 employees
Small business owners like you have a lot of needs. But unlike
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That’s why there’s COSE. We can help cut your costs on energy
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Put us to work for you. Call COSE at 216-245-4613
or visit cose.org/helpwanted
Quality health plans provided by
“He’d get a quarter (per piece),
I’d get 20 cents and I’d give my
friends 15 cents,” Mike Watts Jr. said.
Today, Mike Watts Jr. no longer
gets paid in dimes or for one piece
of work at a time; he’s Astro’s
president.
His father spends most of his
time at home — no relaxing, but
tending to a 120-acre farm near
Chardon. But the two talk constantly,
and Mr. Watts Sr. still watches the
business closely and comes into the
office a few times each month.
“When you retire, you buy a
home in Florida or a boat, right?”
said Mr. Watts Jr., in an obvious
joke meant for those who did not
know his father as well as he did.
Mr. Watts Sr., now 74, has a
different image of retirement.
“The day I retired, I bought
myself a bulldozer, a track-hoe and
a loader,” the elder Mr. Watts said.
“Then I dug a three-acre lake.”
A self-described “hands-on
manager” who never hesitated to
do work himself if no one else was
willing or able, Mr. Watts Sr. said
it’s actually been easier to let go of
his day job than some might have
guessed. But then, he’d been
grooming his son to take the reins
for a long time.
“That was always the plan,” the
father said.
It’s worked out well not only for
the Watts, but also for the company
and its employees, said Astro vice
president Rich Peterson.
“Lucky for us, they’re both great
people to work for,” Mr. Peterson
said.
◆
20100405-NEWS--21-NAT-CCI-CL_--
4/2/2010
11:14 AM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
More 401(k) participants
stay course, studies show
By TIMOTHY INKLEBARGER
Pensions & Investments
Separate studies of participants in
401(k) plans served by the Vanguard
and Charles Schwab investment
firms showed that participants held
firm on their investments in 2009,
while more plans provided investment advice for their workers.
The Vanguard study of 3.2 million
participants showed that 13% traded
in their retirement accounts in
2009, down three percentage points
from a year earlier. Employee
contributions dipped slightly to an
average 2.9% of pay in 2009, down
from 3.1% in 2008.
However, the percentage of loans
outstanding increased to 18% in
2009 from 16% in 2008. Hardship
withdrawals were also up slightly, to
9% from 8%.
Steve P. Utkus, director of the
Vanguard Center for Retirement
Research and co-author of the report,
said in an interview the results show
that participants largely are staying
the course with their 401(k) plans.
The sustained commitment to
401(k) plans could be a result of
employers’ decisions to institute
automatic enrollment, automatic
savings increases and other methods
of ensuring increased employee
retirement savings. Mr. Utkus said
plan sponsors should educate those
who have abandoned their plans
that “the market collapse has ended,
that they overreacted and need to
get back into the plan.”
In the Schwab study of 1.5 million
401(k) plan participants, 70% made
investment advice available to
participants last year, up from 62%
a year earlier.
Sixty-eight percent offered targetdate funds in 2009, compared
with 65% in 2008; and 35% of
employers automatically enrolled
new employees into their plans, up
from 33% in 2008. Of the plans
automatically enrolling employees,
34% were automatically increasing
savings rates in 2009, up from 30%
in 2008.
“Of all the features provided in a
401(k) plan, access to advice can be
one of the most powerful resources
for helping people meet their
savings goals,” said Dean Kohmann,
vice president of 401(k) plan services
for Charles Schwab Retirement
Services, in a statement.
“For example, among the retirement plans we serve at Schwab,
approximately 70% of participants
that receive and implement 401(k)
advice make a change to their deferral
rates, and we see those savings rates
nearly double on average as a result,
jumping from 5% to 10% of pay,”
Mr. Kohmann said.
■
(Timothy Inklebarger is a reporter
with Pensions & Investments, a
sister publication of Crain’s Cleveland Business.)
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20100405-NEWS--22-NAT-CCI-CL_--
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4/1/2010
1:38 PM
Page 1
Contact:
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APRIL 5-11, 2010
REAL ESTATE
Genny Donley
(216) 771-5172
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AUCTIONS
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20100405-NEWS--23-NAT-CCI-CL_--
4/2/2010
2:39 PM
Page 1
APRIL 5-11, 2010
23
THEINSIDER
THEWEEK
MARCH 29 - APRIL 4
The big story: About 375 employees of Hugo
Boss’ Cleveland plant — all of them slated to
lose their jobs if the suit plant closes as planned
this month — were given a ray of hope by the
National Labor Relations Board. Workers
United, the union representing the employees,
announced that it and the company are headed
back to the bargaining table. The union said the
NLRB found Hugo Boss did not bargain with its
employees in good faith. Hugo Boss responded
to the development by saying it now hopes the
union will accept its own proposal to keep the
plant open, which involves significant wage cuts
that workers had previously not accepted.
If it seems too good to be true …: A
Cuyahoga Falls man was charged with one count
of wire fraud in an alleged Ponzi scheme the federal
government says defrauded 26 investors of $29.7
million. The government alleges that Enrique F.
Villalba portrayed himself as an “investment manager” who used a method called “Money Market
Plus” to invest in the futures market in a way that
could produce long-term gains of 8% to 12%. Mr.
Villalba allegedly told investors his knowledge of
physics, when combined with what he called a
“momentum filter,” allowed him to predict with
“an uncanny degree of certainty” how the futures
market would trend at various times.
Bio a bright spot: Employment in Ohio’s
bioscience sector is on the rise across the state,
according to a report released by BioOhio, a
nonprofit organization supported by the
state’s Thomas Edison
Program. Despite a
stagnant economy,
total
employment
in Ohio’s bioscience
sector in 2008 was
55,465. That was up
1,520 jobs, or 2.8%, from 2007. Since 2000, the
bioscience sector in Ohio added over 8,400 jobs,
BioOhio said.
More cuts coming?: The Greater Cleveland
Regional Transit Authority said the rejection by
its union employees of a fact finder’s recommendations could lead to more service cuts.
Without a reduction in union labor costs, as
called for by the independent fact finder from
the State Employee Relations Board, the transit
agency is forecasting a $10 million deficit in 2011,
said Joe Calabrese, CEO and general manager of
RTA. RTA currently is reducing service by 12% and
laying off 130 of its 2,300 employees. RTA’s
nonunion employees already have taken wage cuts
and furlough days. RTA sought similar concessions
from its 1,870 employees who are members of
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 268.
Market crash:
Downtown Cleveland will
lose the grocery at Reserve Square Apartments
when building owner K&D Group of Willoughby
closes the market in about 60 days. Doug Price,
CEO of K&D, said the Reserve Square Market
had been unprofitable for several years.
This and that: Eaton Corp. plans to expand its
operations in China by investing in a new engine
valve plant in Jining City, Shandong Province. …
JumpStart Ventures, a nonprofit that invests in
early stage companies in Northeast Ohio, said it’s
investing $250,000 in Thermalin Diabetes Inc., a
young biopharmaceutical company that is developing insulin treatments for patients with diabetes.
… Dr. Alan M. Hirsh was named chief medical
officer of the University Hospitals Ahuja Medical
Center, which is scheduled to open in early 2011 at
Chagrin Highlands in Beachwood.
To keep up with local business news as it
happens, visit www.CrainsCleveland.com.
REPORTERS’ NOTEBOOK
BEHIND THE NEWS WITH CRAIN’S WRITERS
Here’s an idea
that’s going to pot
Such seems to be the case with the former
East Ohio Building, known now by its 1717
East Ninth St. address. A March 3 sealed-bid
■ Cleveland, at least a few people in Portauction for the vacant structure drew no bids
land, Ore., believe, is “the nation’s leading
high enough to meet the owner’s reserve,
city in green development.”
according to a source familiar with the auction
The blog Portland Food and Drink.com
staged by the Jones Lang LaSalle real estate
is reporting (http://tiny.cc/vwd9o) that
company and the REDCC auction firm.
the Portland Development Commission is
None of the parties promoting the
seeking to turn a vacant
auction publicized the
downtown shopping center
reserve; the source also reand a former department
fused to comment. A
store building into greenproperty owner’s reserve
houses.
is the minimum price it
The model the developwill entertain for selling a
ment commission is using,
building at auction.
the blog reports, is the
The source said Jones
Cleveland Galleria, which
Lang LaSalle and the
PHOTO PROVIDED
introduced its “Gardens
building’s owner, an East
Under Glass” project earlier The Galleria at Erieview
Coast investor group affilthis year. That project is
iated with Sovereign Proptaking advantage of the downtown shopping
erties Ltd., is exploring other options to sell it.
mall’s greenhouse roof to grow and offer for
James Postweiler, the Jones Lang LaSalle
sale tomatoes, lettuce and other vegetables
managing director overseeing the marketing
(see Crain’s Nov. 30, 2009, issue).
of the building, did not return two calls and an
The Oregon folks, though, may be taking
e-mail to discuss the auction by 10 a.m. last
the Cleveland concept a step further. They
Friday, April 2.
have their eyes on an effort to put on the
At least one bidder from Northeast Ohio
November ballot an issue that would legalize
remains in the hunt for the building, according
marijuana — and that would allow the greento other sources familiar with the situation.
houses to grow marijuana for medical use.
— Stan Bullard
— Jay Miller
The price wasn’t
right, apparently
The last days
of National City
■ Sometimes, even a potential bargain may be
too costly when it comes to a downtown
Cleveland skyscraper, especially if it’s empty.
■ The envelope still has National City
Bank’s logo, but inside the envelope, there’s
no green to be seen.
National City customers in Northeast Ohio
WHAT’S NEW
BEST OF THE BLOGS
COMPANY: Tharo Systems Inc.,
Brunswick
PRODUCT: RFID Wizard for EasyLabel software
Excerpts from blog entries
on CrainsCleveland.com.
Tharo Systems says its RFID Wizard allows
users to easily create Electronic Product
Code (EPC) and Department of Defense
smart labels.
The product gives users the option of
importing parts or all of their RFID (radio
frequency identification) data from
sources including
databases, serial
files, user input,
existing bar code
or text fields,
and external text
files.
Users also
may choose to
print the RFID
data, encoded
in the RFID tags,
on their smart
labels as a text or bar code field, Tharo
Systems says.
The product also gives users the ability to
write and print a report that includes the data
used to program printed smart labels. The
report then can be used as part of an ASN
(advanced shipping notice) or to keep a
record of labeled items.
A free trial edition of the product is available for download at www.tharo.com
Send information about new products to
managing editor Scott Suttell at
ssuttell@crain.com.
Rep. Kucinich offers praise
for the philosopher in chief
■ Dennis Kucinich has spent a lot of quality
time lately with President Barack Obama.
And as a leader, the president most reminds
the Cleveland congressman of … philosopher Martin Buber.
New York magazine ran a quirky look at
the president’s leadership style in the wake
of the hard-fought victory in passing health
care reform.
Rep. Kucinich, whose late change of heart
was critical to securing liberal support for the
legislation, told the magazine, “Obama had an
approach unlike anything I’ve ever seen any
other president use. Honestly, if I were to try to
characterize it, I’d say it was a dialogue along
the lines of Martin Buber’s ‘I and Thou.’”
And that means what, exactly, for those of
us not familiar with Mr. Buber? “He goes
very deep into looking at an issue from the
side of the person to whom he’s speaking,”
Rep. Kucinich says.
The observation “may
seem like the sort of kooky
mysticism that Kucinich
made famous on the campaign trail,” New York says.
“But his point is that people
can either talk at you or to
you. Most politicians are
monologists. Obama isn’t.”
Not exactly the LBJ model
of presidential leadership, Kevin Busta
but in the end, it worked.
Investment bank lauds
progress at Progressive
■ FBR Capital Markets has an upbeat view
about the prospects of Mayfield Villagebased insurer Progressive Corp.
and other areas received letters late last month
— on PNC letterhead — giving them information about the mid-April conversion of bank
branches in their areas to PNC Bank.
Customers should get new ATM cards
and other account materials in early April,
the letter stated, and can begin using the
materials April 9. The banks will close as
National City at 4 p.m. that day; when they
reopen April 12, they will be PNC.
National City’s online banking will not be
available after 3 p.m. this Friday, April 9, the
letter stated. It will come online as PNC at 7
a.m. on April 12.
The letter also included information about
converting to PNC’s web sites and details
about changes to individuals’ accounts. —
Arielle Kass
Hardly a
moot point
■ The University of Akron School of Law won
a national moot court competition on child
welfare.
The school beat Loyola University
Chicago School of Law in the final round of
the Fifth Annual National Moot Court
Competition in Child Welfare and Adoption
Law in Columbus. In all, 17 schools argued
on the topic of “Assisted Reproduction and
Same Sex Relationships” throughout the
competition.
Students from the University of Cincinnati
College of Law and Capital University Law
School in Columbus also competed.
Akron students Maria Klutinoty and Emily
Trettel won the competition. Ms. Trettel also
was named Best Oralist. — Arielle Kass
In a March 29 piece in Barron’s, FBR
said it’s upgrading shares of Progressive to
“outperform” from “market perform” and is
raising its price target on the stock to $23
from $18.
“We are excited about the dynamic of the
auto-insurance business and we are particularly thrilled about the company’s growth and
profit margin opportunities,” FBR said. “As
many competitors are pushing for rate
increases, Progressive is gaining market share
while maintaining underwriting margins.”
The agency channel “is posting growth
for the first time in years,” according to FBR,
and the direct sales channel “is accelerating
rapidly with double-digit premium growth
year-to-date.” The firm says customer
retention is increasing at a 3% clip, and it
expects demand to improve as the economy
recovers and new cars sales revive.
He knows how to Busta move
that gets artists’ attention
■ The New York Times gave some nice
attention to Cleveland furniture maker
Kevin Busta in a March 24 story.
Mr. Busta has released
a striking, limited-edition
series of photos printed on
old industrial blueprints.
The work pictured in the
Times story, “Birds on A
Wire,” is a 30-by-84-inch
photograph printed on an
original blueprint for a locomotive engine. It sells for
PHOTO PROVIDED
$5,200.
“When I was growing up,
there was a big factory in
Medina that did a lot of casting that went out of
business,” Mr. Busta, 31, told The Times. “They
did pieces for power plants, turbine engines.
They filled the Dumpster with everything.
There was a big windstorm, and I gathered up
a bunch of the blueprints to use it for art.”
20100405-NEWS--24-NAT-CCI-CL_--
3/31/2010
2:05 PM
Page 1
Pay early or defer payment –
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- Thomas Tranguch, T&F Tire Supply Inc., Member Since 2008
The Plum Card ® from American Express OPEN offers flexible payment terms.
If your established business pays your bill early, you get a 1.5% discount that
can add up to thousands of dollars that go right back to the bottom line. Or
your business can defer payment if cash flow is ever less than steady.
This kind of flexibility gives you the option to choose, each month, which way
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Is the Plum Card right for you?
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from new activity on your billing statement plus the entire amount of any previously deferred payment or amounts past due by the “Please Pay By Date” on that statement and you can extend payment on the rest until the closing date of
your next billing cycle without penalty. Visit plumcard.com for details. ©2010 American Express Bank, FSB. All rights reserved. P04

ShoreBank scales back lending

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