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Accomplishments
With a small office, one full-time employee, and a groundswell of dedicated volunteer activity, FutureHeights provides quality programming to engage citizens in building a better place. We rely on community support to maintain these programs. Please donate today.
Awards and Recognition
Cedar-Fairmount Merchant's Association Certificate of Appreciation
City of Cleveland Heights Community Improvement Award
Heritage Ohio and Downtown, Ohio Inc “Best Website” Award of Merit
Heights Community Congress Community Vision Award
2010
- Taking Charge of Our Community With Local Currency, Greg Coleridge, Facilitator
- FutureHeights celebrates 10th anniversary
- Strength In Numbers Workshop and presentation with Jeff Milchen, American Independent Business Alliance-attended by 75
- Sustainable Heights Open Green Map
- Heights Observer celebrates 2nd birthday
- Beyond Block Parties: Community Organizing in the 21st Century, Kirk Noden, MVOC, and Trevelle Harp, NOAH, presenters, attended by 100
- Audio Journalism Workshop with Mark Kreiger, JCU, Director 88.7 WJCU
- Technical assistance to and key partner of the formation of the Heights Independent Business Alliance (HIBA)
2009
- State of the City Address
- The Heights Observer celebrates 1st birthday
- FutureHeights advocates for Walk And Roll event in Cleveland Heights
- Citizen Journalism Forum at First Unitarian Church
- Heights Observer volunteer base increases: over 300 registered writers, 20 editors, 20 newsies. Circulation 9000 monthly
- Historic Preservation Month co-sponsored city tours
- Partnerships increase: League of Women Voters, Heights Youth Club, WJCU Radio, COSE, Home Repair Resource Center, Cleveland Bridge Builders, CHUH Public Library
- FutureHeights co-sponsors a public forum on intergovernmental cooperation with panelists CH Council Member Mark Tumeo, UH Councilman Kevin Patrick Murphy and South Euclid Mayor Georgine Welo
- Citizen journalism workshop given by Bob Rosenbaum at the Noble Branch of the CHUH Library, attended by 15 citizens, and again at the Lee Road Library, attended by another 15 citizens
- Best of the Heights 2009 held at Nighttown, 343 businesses recognized
- Citizen journalism workshop given by Journalist John Ettore, attended by 40 aspiring Heights Observer citizen reporters
- Co-sponsor with CHUH League of Women Voters the 2009 City Council/School Board Candidate's Forum
- Shop Around the Heights on November 22, promoting buy local during the holiday season
- 5th Annual FutureHeights Online Auction - "Be Local. Shop Local."
- Citizen Photojournalism Workshop given by photographer and Cleveland Hts. resident Greg Donley
2008
- Deanna Bremer Fisher becomes Executive Director
- Launched Heights Observatory Online Forum in February
- Co-sponsored with the League of Women Voters: Public forum on Cleveland Heights tax levies
- Launched www.heightsobserver.org, a community news web site produced by citizen journalists and volunteers, serving the 65,000 residents of Cleveland Heights and University Heights, Ohio, in March
- Launched the Heights Observer print edition in April
- Sponsored 2 citizen journalism workshops
- Cleveland Montessori High School Tour
- Historic Heights High School Tour
- East Derbyshire Condo Project Tour with City Housing Manager Rick Wagner
- 4th Annual Best of Cleveland Heights Survey and Awards
- IBUYNEO community awards consumer card in partnership with COSE
- Deanna Bremer Fisher appears on WCPN's The Sound of Ideas to promote shopping locally
- Participated in Coventry, Cedar-Lee, Noble-Nela, and Cedar Fairmount commercial district street festivals
2007
- Board of Directors completes FutureHeights Strategic Plan 2007-2010
- FutureHeights eNews monthly email has over 3000 subscribers
- Provided volunteer assistance to Noble-Nela Merchants Association and Cleveland Heights Special Improvement Districts
- "Making Sense of Place: Cleveland, Confronting Decline in an American City" film and community discussion
- Cynthia Nikitin of Project for Public Spaces: Commerical District Placemaking
- Community Forum: New Home on the Heights-Revisited
- Participated in Coventry, Cedar-Lee, Noble-Nela, and Cedar Fairmount commercial district street festivals
- National Historic Preservation Month sponsor: Tour of Historic Heights High
- 3d Annual Best of Cleveland Heights Awards-over 700 ballots cast
- Historic Inglewood Neighborhood walking tour
- Online opinion polling continues
- State of the City Address
- Co-Sponsor candidate’s night with League of Women Voters
- FutureHeights receives Community Vision Award 2007 from Heights Community Congress
- League of Women Voters honors FutureHeights for community advocacy work
2006
- “Independent America” film and community discussion with filmmakers Heather Hughes & Hanson Hosein
- Cedar Hill cleanup days (2)
- Historic Preservation Month lecture series (4)
- Provided volunteer and technical assistance to Noble-Nela Merchants Association and Cleveland Heights Special Improvement Districts
- FutureHeights News “Historic Preservation”
- Chris Ronayne “University Circle’s Future and Its Relationship to Cleveland Heights”
- 2nd Annual Best of Cleveland Heights Awards-over 500 ballots cast
- State of the City Address
- Recognized by City of Cleveland Heights for contribution to city
- Revisiting the Vision of 2001 Community Forum
- FH News quarterly publication
- Members walking tour of “Historic Mayfield Heights”
- Internet opinion polling on quality of life issues
- Participated in Coventry, Cedar-Lee, Noble-Nela, and Cedar Fairmount commercial district street festivals
2005
- Sponsored national expert Donovan Rypkema, speaking on the Importance of Historic Neighborhood Commercial Districts to over 100 at annual meeting
- Hosted workshop led by Donovan Rypkema on neighborhood commercial district revitalization. Attended by City Council member, SID representatives, business owners
- Provided technical assistance in the creation of the Cedar-Lee SID website
- Continued Lee Road Streetscape planning committee assistance
- Heritage Ohio and Downtown, Ohio Inc. present “Best Website” Award of Merit to FutureHeights
- Local speaker, Phil Star, on The Continuing Significance of Neighborhoods
- Merchant workshop: Storefront and Signage Design
- Executive Director attends LISC Urban Forum
- Sponsored walking tour of Euclid Golf” neighborhood to support National Preservation Month
- Sponsored ten volunteer clean-ups at Cain Park, Cumberland Park, Cedar Hill, Euclid Hts/Derbyshire park, Cedar-Lee minipark
- Conducted The Noble-Monticello Picture Project, a citizen-participation photography exhibit to focus on neighborhood assets
- Conducted The Best of Cleveland Heights survey to over 400 respondents, resulting in “The Best of Cleveland Heights” Awards event held in October
- Began promotion of “Shop Local First” campaign
- Sponsored City Council Candidate’s Night Community Forum on planning, preservation, and development
- Contracted for services with the Cedar Lee Special Improvement District: Upkeep and maintenance of the cedarlee.org website
- Published four issues of the FutureHeights News
- Internet opinion polling on development issues
- Participated in Coventry, Cedar-Lee, Noble-Nela, and Cedar Fairmount commercial district street festivals
2004
- Continued development of commercial district revitalization program: HeightsShops, with special emphasis on the Lee Road commercial corridor
- Hosted Considering Lee Road, a 5-day exhibition and citizen participatory exercise attended by 500 citizens
- Produced citizen’s planning vision document for Lee Road
- Expanded email newsletter outreach to 475
- Endorsed rezoning of the Lee Road corridor
- Speaker series: Lou Tisler on First Suburbs Development Council, Pat Carey on GreaterOhio; Stacy Mitchell on The Importance of Local Economies
- Published special issue of FH News: Lee Road Report
- Hosted merchants workshop led by Stacy Mitchell on creating local, independent business alliances
- Clean and Green held four volunteer clean-up events
- Garden Angel Program raised $300 for bulbs to plant on Lee Road
- 2nd Annual Big Dig Perennial Exchange
- Enlarged the FH Gift Certificate Program, designed to keep dollars circulating longer in the community
- Provided technical assistance to the Cedar-Lee SID: spearheaded streetscape planning committee; helped create a district website; assisted in special event planning and execution; obtained pro bono design services for district graphics needs
- Convened and facilitated district representatives to discuss issues of mutual interest and challenges
- Participated in special event planning and execution in Cedar-Fairmount district
- Increased membership by 20%
- Hosted members event: Sneak preview of Beechwood Road rehab project
- Developed Cleveland Heights screensaver to promote living in Cleveland Heights \Participated in Coventry, Cedar-Lee, Noble-Nela, and Cedar Fairmount commercial district street festivals
2002-2003
- In 2002, FutureHeights became a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with paid staff.
- Presentations to City Council: Public Participation in the Planning Process and Historic Preservation Week (2002-2003)
- Hosted the New Home on the Heights Community Forum, a discussion of new residential development in Cleveland Heights (2003) featuring local experts.
- Created a scholarship program for commercial district administrators to attend the 2003 National Conference on Main Street
- Ongoing neighborhood cleanups of public spaces (Clean and Green program) (2003)
- Participated in ongoing advocacy and education promoting high quality architecture, citizen participation in planning, historic preservation, and successful public space design (2003)
- Produced architectural tours and historic photo exhibits (2002 and 2003)
- Sponsored lecture by nationally recognized urbanist, William Hudnut III. (2003)
- Became a nonprofit organization (2003)
- Hired Julie V. Langan, Executive Director
- Conducted city-wide business district survey (2003)
- Created ongoing gift certificate program in support of local, independent businesses(2003)
- Created www.futureheights.org website (2003)
- Awarded Community Improvement Award from the City of Cleveland Heights for beautification of Cedar Lee Minipark
2000-2002
- As an all volunteer, grassroots movement, FutureHeights
- Sponsored Town Meeting on the Russo Expansion at Cedar Fairmount (2000)
- Publish quarterly informational newsletters: The FutureHeights News (circulation 2000)
- Brought together Zagara’s Grocery and Habitat for Humanity for the salvaging of houses to be demolished as part of the new Zagara’s grocery (2001)
- Participated in City Hall conference on developer friendliness
- Sponsored neighborhood design workshops: the Lee Road Charrette (2001) and the Cedar-Fairmount Charrette (2002)
- Design review participation in the Lee Road repaving project; Zagara’s grocery store; Severance outbuildings review; Noble-Nela McDonald’s site review; CHUH Library expansion project (2001-2003)
- Sponsored public lecture on the National Main Street program (2001) with Sandra Hull of Main Street Wooster
- Presented National Main Street Program information to Cedar-Lee Merchants Association, the Coventry SID, the Cedar Fairmount Business Association, and the City of Cleveland Heights
- Sponsored a Save the Civic Town Meeting to discuss the future of a Cleveland Heights “white elephant” (2002)
- Commissioned and raised funding for a feasibility study by Sandvick Architects of Cleveland of the Rockefeller Square commercial district (2002)
- Received Certificate of Appreciation from the Cedar-Fairmount Merchant's Association
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