by Mark Gilson

There are two Clevelands, two Akrons, two Northeastern Ohios.  There is the proud bustling workhorse of the past and present, turning out engines and steel, pistons and paint, tires and complex chemistries for a hungry nation.  There is also the quiet Cleveland, the soil and rivers and forests of our youth, the farms, nurseries and parks that stretch from Summit and Portage to the Lake, a vast watershed of memories, legacies and possibilities.  Our vision, our challenge, is to bring together these mighty opposites in a dynamic, responsible and sustainable partnership yielding a region where we can live and play in a vibrant emerald ecosystem, profit from our conscientious industry and ethic, and grow old with the knowledge that we work and yearn within a vital nexus of grand ideas and restless energies.