Cleveland – East 9th Street (Photo)

Here’s a photo of Cleveland’s East 9th Street, taken near dusk, heading north (the Galleria at Erieview is on the left).

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Cleveland’s Galleria Reborn As A “Garden Under Glass”

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View of Galleria Glass Roof from the Tower At Erieview

Part of Cleveland’s Tower at Erieview complex includes The Galleria, a large, two-story, glass covered shopping and dining arcade, opened in 1987. Years later, as The Tower City complex drew shopping closer to the core of downtown Cleveland, many retail tenants left The Galleria. After many comings and goings, all that remain are a few niche businesses, one large bank office, and the food court – and empty spaces. I used to work in the Tower at Erieview and it was very sad to see such a beautiful space as The Galleria go to waste.

But now The Galleria has a new purpose in life, and it’s surprising no one thought of it sooner. As the Galleria looks like a giant greenhouse, it was only a matter of time before someone thought of using the space as just that - a greenhouse. And that person was Vicky Poole, head of marketing for The Galleria, who, along with Jack Hamilton (manager of Artist Review Today magazine and gallery in the Galleria) won a grant from Cleveland's Civic Innovation Lab to set up the greenhouse project in The Galleria. The project is called ”Gardens Under Glass” which their website describes as “a sustainable urban Eco Village.” It goes on to say that

“At the project’s root is an urban farm that will use a system called re-circulating greenhouse hydroponics to grow produce such as; tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, herbs, peppers, and flowers.

From the Gardens will stem opportunities for urban-based businesses traditionally considered rural. Green-Minded opportunities will include:

•Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants
•Renewable Energy Companies
•Natural Health Food Store
•Garden Supply Store
•Retail specializing in Recycled Products
•A Year-Round Indoor/Downtown Farmers Market

This facility will also serve as an educational center to inform the public on the importance of Urban Gardening and harnessing alternative natural energy resources such as Solar, Wind power and rainwater.”

It sounds like a great use for such a wonderful space!

If you want more information, stop by the ”Gardens Under Glass” website or if you are in the area, stop by and check out the project for yourself at:

The Galleria At Erieview
1301 East Ninth Street
Cleveland, Ohio 44114

Aerial image from Google

Street image from Google

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The Tower at Erieview (aka Erieview Tower)

I remember in 1964, as a kid, the big deal that was made over a new skyscraper in Cleveland, called, at the time, Erieview Tower. It was supposed to be part of an urban renewal project. It was also a big deal when I was a kid that our parents would take us for a drive through downtown to see the Christmas lights on all the buildings. When I first laid eyes on Erieview Tower, I thought, “What an ugly building.”

And many years later, I still feel somewhat the same way, especially after having worked in the building for a few years.

The building reminds me of the black monolith that was in the movie “2001 A Space Odyssey” - like a slab of darkness. When it was first constructed, there really wasn’t much around it so it just stood there like a shiny, gray brick. Over the years, other buildings did fill in to soften its stark look. In the mid-1980s, the Richard E. Jacobs Group turned the plaza on the East 9th street side into The Galleria, an enclosed shopping area. It was a big improvement at the time, although the Galleria now seems devoid of the retail life it had when it first opened. The restaurant “The Top of the Town” was on the 38th floor of The Tower, and at one time was THE place for a great meal and fabulous downtown view. The restaurant has been closed for many years now.

As I mentioned earlier, I worked in the building for a few years. My office had a dull view of the east, although I was able to watch the construction of the WKYC Channel 3 building, and, in a distance, the Peter B. Lewis building at Case Western Reserve. It was great watching storms roll in off the lake, and the frequent ships sailing (especially when the tall ships were in town). The sounds of the car races from Burke Lakefront Airport could sometimes be heard, as would the noise from jets, practicing for the air show. It was always interesting to see one of the fighter jets zooming right towards the building, only to pull upward at what seemed like the last minute. That excitement wore off on 9/11, where many who worked in The Tower had their eyes looking eastward, watching plane after plane coming in for a landing - we hoped at Hopkins airport, and not into the building.

One annoyance with The Tower: it sways. A lot. I always dreaded the really windy days, where you could hear the building creak and groan to the rhythm of the wind, and the water in the toilets would sometimes slosh in tandem with the building’s movement. I never thought I could get motion sickness in a building but I did at the Tower, and I worked below the 15th floor.

Still, it has a great view of the city, and hopefully the new Avenue District development that is being constructed just east of The Tower will help bring life back to The Tower and to The Galleria.

The view looking east (notice the blimp), and west (March 2000)

In the center and forefront, The Tower at Erieview, from the I-90 East Shoreway

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