Little Italy has always been core to my REAL NEO experience. From earliest childhood memories,  my family has always had many meals at various Little Italy restaurants, each year, as well as picking-up an occasional pizza (where else in NEO but Mama Santas or Valentino's... well, do try the Gelatoria at Fairhill). I also love getting Lemon Ice and other goodies at Corbos. with their unusual greeting of "Leave the gun, take the cannoli"... as authentic as life gets, in NEO. Last night, I noticed Corbos moved next door to their old home, to a remodeled new space (much as Prestis did, a few years ago) Little Italy has always been a great hyper-local neighborhood, where people live, work, eat and socialize together within, and interact well with the world without. There's always lots of private rehab and strong entrepreneurial business activity here, off the Med-O-Mart grid. Which makes me ask you, what matters to the hyper-local economy in your neighborhood, and how is that doing.

In my hyper-local economy, in my Star Neighborhood, and in every good neighborhood I've ever known, big industry and MedMarts are bad - big polluters and high taxes are bad. Good economy is driven by Palestinian convenient store owners, Mississippian BBQeurs, and other small entrepreneurs. And my hyper-local economy is on fire. We are not looking to Advance North East Ohio and regionalism for solutions - we create the new economy each day, for survival.

How about for you. Do you believe all the "Regional" intervention in the economy by big industry and big foundations is of value to your hyperlocal community, or is your economy fueled by small entrepreneurs doing their own thing without and often to combat the industrial approaches of the "Establishment". And how is your hyperlocal community doing these days, either way.

I believe Little Italy is doing quite well, as a real neighborhood. We'll see what happens as more industrial policy and outsiders merge with that, on one point of The Triangle... more new-urbanism on the way...