The view from the Idea Center

The Iowa caucuses nearly came to Cleveland last night.

Close to 200 citizens crowded into an Ohio City room on a cold winter’s evening to hear arguments for and against a new management model for the famous West Side Market.

Cleveland Chief Operating Officer Darnell Brown was there, telling attendees of The Sound of Ideas’ Community Tour event that the city should continue operating the market. The city has made $5.4 million in capital repairs in the last six years and more are on the way.

And there was vendor Amanda Czuchraj of Czuchraj Meats, saying the city’s management has been lousy and a new operator is needed.

“The city is not capable of running this place anymore and the only people who probably disagree are the people who work for the city,” she said. Some people proposed handing the market over to Cleveland Metroparks. Many want a new nonprofit to take control.

If a vote had been held Iowa caucus-style, with Brown in one designated corner of the room and vendors like Czuchraj convening in another, Brown would have been pretty lonely.

Most of the folks packed into Market Garden Brewery would have been standing with the vendors. They cheered Czuchraj and booed Brown. They sighed with empathy when local restauranteur Rocco Whalen told them city inspectors would shut him down if he had the kind of electrical problems that have plagued the market.

It was a lively night. Thanks for coming out. If you missed the event, ideastream will air The Sound of Ideas conversation at 9 a.m. Monday, Feb. 3.

That’s caucus day in Iowa.

See you bright and early tomorrow morning on the radio,
Amy Eddings

Need to KnOH

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Your ideas

At last night's The Sound of Ideas Community Tour on the future of the West Side Market, participants suggested options for managing the iconic market. Who do you think should operate the 107-year-old facility?

* Cleveland Metroparks
* A nonprofit
* The City of Cleveland
* Restaurateur Rocco Whalen

Call us at  (216) 916-6476, comment on  our Facebook page or join the conversation in Public Square. We'll feature some of your thoughts and comments here in Noon(ish) and on Morning Edition.