GCP/COSE move to PlayhouseSquare will enhance district's vibrancy

Thursday, February 03, 2011

Liggett Stashower to relocate within theater neighborhood

Cleveland, Ohio—The Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) and COSE are relocating their 100 employees from the Higbee Building to PlayhouseSquare.

With today’s announcement by Rock Ohio Caesars about its plans to incorporate the Higbee Building into developing the Cleveland casino, GCP/COSE is planning to leave its offices on Public Square to make way for the new project. While the casino certainly will be a new attraction to Public Square, the GCP/COSE move will give a significant boost to PlayhouseSquare’s ongoing efforts to diversify by attracting more office tenants.

Four years ago, GCP/COSE helped to re-open the Higbee Building, which had been vacant for five years after Dillard’s department store closed. That decision also led to KeyBank taking three floors of space in the building in the past year.

GCP/COSE is planning to occupy approximately 50,000 square feet on the first four floors at 1240 Huron Road. The first three floors of that building are currently occupied by Liggett Stashower (LS), which will move to a 39,000-square-foot space on the fourth floor of the nearby Hanna Building. LS plans to occupy its new space by the end of February.

GCP President and CEO Joe Roman, said the collaborative relocations are good for downtown Cleveland. “The GCP is happy to do what we can to accommodate the Cleveland casino, which is one of many new, major developments that will contribute to the escalating renaissance of Cleveland’s central business district,” Roman said. “Downtown Cleveland is going to be even more vibrant and busier within the next two to three years.

“We’ve enjoyed being on Public Square, and we’re looking forward to being in the PlayhouseSquare district. I believe our small and large members will enjoy—and take advantage of—our new location.”

Roman also said that the GCP will seek help to find one or more tenants to occupy the balance of the Huron Road building (about 20,000 square feet). “We see this as an opportunity to share our space with other civic or nonprofit organizations,” he said. “It fits in with the long-term vision of making PlayhouseSquare an ‘all-day’ district where people, work, live and shop, as well as enjoy its many entertainment venues.”

Cleveland City Councilman Joe Cimperman, whose ward includes PlayhouseSquare, commented: “The intersection of East 14th and Euclid Avenue is the creative capital of our downtown nation. More idea leaders and thought drivers are calling this geography home, and this continues with this new venture. Every time GCP moves, they leave behind more jobs, more development, more opportunity. Their presence is a very welcome sign.”

Steve Veres, managing partner of Liggett Stashower, said he was happy to relocate yet remain part of PlayhouseSquare as a gesture of civic cooperation. “Liggett Stashower’s offices have been in downtown Cleveland since the agency began in the 1930s,” Veres said. “We’re very pleased to be part of this collaborative venture enabling PlayhouseSquare and the city of Cleveland to grow. We eagerly embrace the beautiful new location in the Hanna Building and await the new casino.”

Art Falco, president of PlayhouseSquare Foundation, welcomes the moves. “We draw more than a million visitors a year to PlayhouseSquare,” he said. “But while our gorgeous theaters are an incredible attraction, we have been working toward making PlayhouseSquare a more sustainable, diverse neighborhood with more office tenants, shops and restaurants. Having GCP/COSE move to PlayhouseSquare—and having Liggett Stashower remain in the district—are big, positive steps in that direction.

“We’re seeing an evolution taking place in PlayhouseSquare, which further solidifies the area as a creative hub,” said Falco. “In addition to our theaters, we’re home to several advertising agencies, architectural firms and the Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative.”

The GCP plans to complete its relocation by late spring/early summer. The 1240 Huron building is owned and managed by the Slyman Group, a partner in the collaboration.

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About the Greater Cleveland Partnership
As an association of business members, the Greater Cleveland Partnership mobilizes private-sector leadership, expertise and resources to create jobs and leverage investment to improve the economic vitality of the region. www.gcpartnership.com

About Liggett Stashower
With its roots in advertising and public relations, Cleveland-based Liggett Stashower was established in 1989 by the merger of two agencies that began in the 1930s. Based in downtown Cleveland from its inception, it has become one of the region’s most successful communications and brand-building firms. www.liggett.com

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