GCP/COSE Makes Their Move to PlayhouseSquare

New Huron Road office to spur economic development, feature conference center for members, community

CLEVELAND, July 14, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP) and the Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE) are moving their 100+ employees this weekend from Public Square to 1240 Huron Road at PlayhouseSquare. The organizations are relocating from the Higbee Building's second floor to make way for the new Horseshoe Casino, scheduled to open in Spring 2012.

GCP/COSE will occupy approximately 50,000 square feet on the first four floors at 1240 Huron Road, which will include a state-of-the-art conference center. The office relocation will help enhance PlayhouseSquare's ongoing efforts to diversify by attracting more office tenants.  

"This move is doubly exciting for us," says GCP President and CEO Joe Roman. "The GCP supported a casino for downtown Cleveland because of its potential to spur investment in the Central Business District. That is clearly happening. We're also pleased to bring more than 100 jobs to the area. This helps PlayhouseSquare move forward with its goal to become a center for both entertainment and business."

"Our Playhouse Square location will give us additional space to provide additional resources to our members," says COSE President and Executive Director Steve Millard. "We'll have more accessible space for members to use to do business with each other, host meetings, and access member resources we're building into the space."

GCP/COSE is seeking one or more tenants to occupy the balance of the Huron Road building, which is about 20,000 square feet. "This 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," says Roman.

"We are seeing an evolution taking place in PlayhouseSquare, which further solidifies the area as a creative hub," says Art Falco, president of PlayhouseSquare Foundation. "We are excited to have GCP/COSE moving into the PlayhouseSquare district. It is a reaffirmation that PlayhouseSquare is a good place to do business, in addition to all of the entertainment options that we have here."

Diversity and inclusion

The organization set and exceeded diversity and inclusion goals for minority business enterprises (MBE) and women-owned enterprises (WBE) in connection with the $3.1 million rehab of the new office space. The MBE goal was 15 percent; participation is at 21 percent. The goal for women-owned businesses was 5 percent with actual participation at 37 percent.

Projects include carpentry labor (MBE); carpet/resilient/tile flooring (MBE/WBE); drywall and acoustical ceilings (MBE); electrical/teledata(MBE/WBE); fire protection (MBE/WBE); HVAC (MBE/WBE) ; millwork and casework(WBE); miscellaneous and structural steel (WBE); painting and wall covering (MBE); and plumbing (MBE/WBE).

GCP/COSE office will close at Noon Friday, July 15 and reopen at 8:30 a.m. Monday, July 18.

The 1240 Huron building is owned and managed by the Slyman Group, a partner in the collaboration.

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 COSE

COSE is one of Ohio's largest small business support organization, striving to help small businesses grow and maintain their independence. Comprised of more than 15,000 member companies, COSE has a long history of fighting for the rights of all small business owners, whether it's through group purchasing programs for health care, workers' compensation, or energy, advocating for specific changes in legislation or regulation to benefit small business, or providing a forum and resource for small businesses to connect with and learn from each other.  www.cose.org  

Available Topic Expert(s): For information on the listed expert(s), click appropriate link.
Joe Roman
http://www.profnetconnect.com/joe_roman

SOURCE Greater Cleveland Partnership / Council of Smaller Enterprises