Here is a letter to the editor that I submitted to the Cleveland Plain Dealer this morning. As you will read, I do not take issue with Mr. Larkin’s stance on Issue 3 (although I disagree with it - I will be voting for Issue 3), but his random slander against Downtown.
I would like to disagree with Brent Larkin’s editorial on Issue 3 from Sunday, November 1st.
My contention is not with his opinion on casinos (lively discussion is vital to democracy) but his out-of-place and all-too-common comment to “Consider Pittsburgh, a city with a better economy and a more vibrant downtown than Cleveland.”
I’m wondering how he made that last judgment (because that’s what it is, certainly not a fact). Last time I checked, Pittsburgh doesn’t have three major sports facilities Downtown. Nor does it have a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Museum. And although it certainly has some great neighborhoods in the city, it’s Downtown does not have the vibrancy of the Warehouse District or Gateway with East Fourth. I I don’t think it attracts the millions of visitors that come to Playhouse Square or have hundreds of housing units constantly coming online like ours does (first above The Corner Alley and now 668 Euclid). It is this pathetic editorializing by the local newspaper that continues to erode the collective opinion that this region has for Downtown. And that is another reason why I have never and have no plan to subscribe to the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
This post was written by a DCA City Advocate. To learn more about the City Advocate Program, please click here.
