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Want to know what is on our minds? Find blog posts written here, by the City Club staff, members, and partners. Every week you can find a new edition of #FreeSpeech in the News — a collection of related stories, commentary, and opinions on free speech in the 21st century that’s making the news. You’ll also find takes on current events, past forums, and issues surrounding Northeast Ohio. Read on for all things City Club.

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Wednesday, June 13, 2018

#CITYCLUB IN THE NEWS

Bliss Davis, Content and Programming Coordinator, The City Club of Cleveland

#CITYCLUB IN THE NEWS

On Friday, June 8, the City Club welcomed Jon J. Pinney, Managing Partner at Kohrman Jackson & Krantz, to share his thoughts on the region's lagging economy. His forum caused quite a stir; watch or listen to the forum here - and check out all the news stories and op-eds below.

1 Jon Pinney talks Cleveland's future, signals a changing of the guard: Brent Larkin

“Pinney and his loyal enthusiasts, a group that includes some of the region's impressive leaders, believe that -- despite lots of good things happening here -- Greater Cleveland is on the ropes.”

Pinney’s visit to The City Club of Cleveland is described as a breath of fresh air for Cleveland, not because of any specific plans, but because the city is in need of people willing to embrace change. Pinney, along with the men mentioned in his talk, as called “disrupters” who aren’t going away and refuse to stay silent.

2 Business, civic reps say Northeast Ohio has a leadership 'vacuum'

“In all, a dozen people from the business and civic sectors were asked about the state of the local economy and the efforts to grow it. None was optimistic. Those with whom Crain's spoke were granted anonymity so they could speak more freely on the subject.”

Several businesses and organizations in Cleveland had strong opinions about Cleveland’s economic outlook. Pinney’s forum at the City Club highlighted the struggles northeast Ohio has had in keeping up with other cities in terms of economic development. Along with falling behind, people in the business and civic sectors are taking notice that Cleveland hasn’t even been able to keep up with peer cities such as Indianapolis, Milwaukee and Pittsburgh. This inability to keep up with even with these cities is concerning.

3 Cleveland leaders need to embrace disrupters to fix economic failures: Mark Naymik

“In the weeks leading up to the speech, civic and business leaders were diving for cover. Some reached out to Pinney, asking him to tone down his rhetoric and be more circumspect.”

Local reporter Mark Naymik found that Pinney’s speech lacked nuance by not recognizing that not embracing diversity is a large part of Cleveland economic woes. Pinney called out eight people who could lead the way, however, all were men and all were white. This was seen as a major hindrance to economic development, and several members of the audience during the forum took note.

4 'We're getting our butts kicked'

“He ticked off measures of population decline, higher unemployment rates, significant misalignment between the jobs employer were seeking to fill and the skills of existing job seekers, all of which have resulted in sluggish economic growth.”

Overall, Cleveland is failing on the economic front in ways that aren’t necessarily difficult to pinpoint, but are so numerous that it is difficult to find a clear path to fixing them and growing.

5 Convene a Cleveland summit to hear from a new generation of leaders focused on the future: Akram Boutros (Opinion)

“I add my voice to the growing chorus of local leaders who seek to convene an economic and community development summit. It's time for us to get together, check our self-interests at the door and craft a mold-shattering, broad-based approach to lifting our region to greatness.”

In his op-ed, Dr. Akram Boutros, CEO of The MetroHealth System, emphasized cooperation and trust as the key to spurring economic growth in Cleveland again. He’s created an award to encourage community leaders to collaborate and contribute to this cause.

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