NEWS
For Immediate Release

Contact:
Annie Weiss, Ingenuity Cleveland
216-589-9444
annie@ingenuitycleveland.org

Ingenuity Announces Interactive Forum on Shaker Design Competition

Cleveland, OH — (October 7, 2016) As part of their work on the Shaker Design Competition, Ingenuity will be hosting an interactive forum with residents of the Moreland district, potential buyers and local realtors familiar with the area – interested applicants are strongly recommend to attend this forum, although it is not required. The forum will be held on October 19, 2016 from 6pm-8pm at The Dealership, 3558 Lee Road, Shaker Heights.

The Forum will feature five panelists:

• Anne Williams was elected to a four-year term on Shaker Heights City Council beginning in 2014. Before moving to Cleveland, Anne worked as a litigator with an emphasis in employment law in Chicago and Atlanta and currently works for Melamed Communications on special projects and campaigns. A Chicago area native, Williams has lived in Shaker Heights and been active in the community for 23 years. As a City Council member, Anne serves in the following positions: Chair, Neighborhood Revitalization Committee, Deer Task Force; member, Climate Change Task Force, Communications and Marketing Committee, ,Recreation and Health Committee, Safety and Public Works Committee, Nature Center at Shaker Lakes Board, Heights Regional Chamber of Commerce Board.

• Mike Foley is the first Director of the Department of Sustainability for Cuyahoga County. He was appointed to lead the office in February, 2015 by Executive Armond Budish after having served in the Ohio General Assembly from 2006-2014. Foley represented the 120,000 people of the 14th House District and was active in the legislature on environmental, utility, revenue and budget issues. Prior to being in the legislature, Foley was Executive Director of the Cleveland Tenants Organization (CTO) for almost ten years and has extensive experience in affordable rental housing issues both locally and those involving national policy. Before CTO he was the Court Administrator for Cleveland Municipal Housing Court.

• Nick Fedor is the Executive Director of Shaker Heights Development Corporation (SHDC). Fedor, a resident of Shaker Heights, brings extensive leadership experience to the position. He comes from the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization, where he served as Economic Development Director. In that role, he led all economic development activities, such as retail recruitment, commercial zoning assistance, site selection, and other business support services. He also handled marketing and communications. Previously, he served as Executive Director of Washington Gateway Main Street in Boston, where he was responsible for leading the organization’s strategic direction and fulfilling its mission of creating and maintaining an economically vibrant neighborhood.

• Brad Fink, Architect at Westlake Reed Leskosky. Fink partners with Michael Christoff, an architect with Vocon, as the producers of the Cleveland Design Competition. Cleveland Design Competition is also one of the teams consulting on the production of the Shaker Design Competition.

• Liz Schorgl, Realtor at Howard Hanna. Liz has been a real estate agent since 1998. Her main focus is housing in the Shaker Heights / Cleveland Heights market. She has also been the president of the Shaker Arts Council for a total of five years. Through her real estate knowledge and her involvement in the arts, Liz is able to shed a unique perspective on the value of arts and culture in the development of strong housing programs. Through her work on this project, Liz has developed a strong understanding of newer housing in an older community as well as the importance of thoughtful building in respect to the community at large.

• The panel will be moderated by Kamla Lewis. Ms. Lewis is the Director of Neighborhood Revitalization for the City of Shaker Heights, Ohio, with responsibility for housing preservation. She has over 25 years of experience in community development, working at municipal, county, regional and international governmental agencies. She has worked in Ohio, in California and in Jamaica on issues related to housing, transportation, food banking, economic development and strengthening neighborhoods. She currently serves on the boards of Policy Matters Ohio, Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland and the Shaker Heights Development Corporation. Ms. Lewis is a graduate of Princeton University in New Jersey, and Cambridge University in England, with an academic background in both political science and development economics.

While the event is free and open to the public, advanced registration is required as seating is limited. Attendees can register at shakerdesign.eventbrite.com.

The goal of the competition is to create top-quality, sustainable and middle income housing on tax-abated land in the City of Shaker Heights. The competition, which launched on September 22 is currently seeking architect-builder teams with innovative ideas for high quality, super energy-efficient, owner-occupied housing that can serve as a catalyst to attract new residents to neighborhoods that were hard hit by the housing crisis. A request for proposals from architect-builder teams is currently available at shakerdesigncompetition.com.

The deadline for submissions is January 6, 2017 at 5:00pm.