Usually, it takes no more than a half-hour's drive, no matter where you begin, to reach rural countryside or pristine green space. Hard to believe? It's the same location that's within 600 miles or a day's drive (or easy flight) from two-thirds of the leading marketplaces in the United States.

Robert Swenson relocated from Denver in 1996 when he became general manager of the Renaissance Quail Hollow Resort in Painesville. "In the last 20 years, we've lived in Milwaukee, Cleveland, Boston, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Denver," he says. And he's turned down offers to relocate in New York City, Dallas, or back in Chicago since he and his family arrived in Cleveland about six years ago. He prefers Northeastern Ohio on several fronts.

Similar to what to Denver offered, he and his family can enjoy the arts, museums, and pro sports, like they did in Colorado. Cleveland's pro teams are the NFL Cleveland Browns, NBA Cavaliers and WNBA Rockers playing at Gund Arena, and Cleveland Indians baseball at Jacobs Field. The AHL Barons and the Cleveland Force for indoor soccer round out the list.

As for the museums, University Circle, an area four miles east of downtown, encompasses more museums and educational institutions in a square mile than anywhere else in the United States. That's where you'll find the Cleveland Museum of Art and beautifully restored Severance Hall, home to the renowned Cleveland Orchestra. Newer ones like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and the Great Lakes Science Center are right downtown. The Butler Institute of American Art in Youngstown, Kent State University's Museum, and the Allen Memorial Art Museum, part of Oberlin College in Oberlin, all rank nationally as well.

Cleveland's array of cultural outlets - like Playhouse Square Center where theatergoers choose among five different historic venues for live performances - is touted as the nation's largest performing arts center outside New York City.

Concord Hospitality, based in Mentor, manages 32 hotel properties including the Renaissance Quail Hollow and five others in the region. According to Swenson, Renaissance Quail Hollow Resort is a long-term investment with its recent $18 million facelift. It could be one of the area's best-kept secrets. It offers rustic lodge-style ambiance, surrounded by 400 woodland acres in the midst of rural Lake County some 30 miles east of Cleveland, hosts two 18-hole championship golf courses.Other popular destinations that are unique to this corner of Ohio include Lake Farmpark, a gem in the string of Lake Metroparks' facilities. Within minutes of the city, it takes youngsters and adults alike "down on the farm." Except for milking a cow the old-fashioned way, it's not your grandfather's farm. This one boasts state-of-the-art technology like hydroponics techniques and solar alternatives to usual energy sources. Interactive exhibits make learning about food production and farm science seem like a walk in the park, which it is.

Nearby, the Mentor Lagoons soothe those yearning to keep lake views in sight year-round with homes overlooking Lake Erie and the lagoons leading into it. The easiest way to see them is aboard the Navy launch, BB64. It's a 24-foot whaleboat that saw service from the USS Wisconsin during the Gulf War. Soon after its decommission in 1991, the city of Mentor acquired it as a workboat, but local residents and visitors enjoy cruising the lagoons in it.

Holden Arboretum, the largest arboretum in the United States, Lawnfield (the home and grounds of former President James A. Garfield), Headlands State Beach Park (Ohio's longest beach), and some 15,000 acres of preserved parks for bird watching are all within a stone's throw. Lake County boasts (as do other counties along the lake) that it's atop the list for the best perch, walleye, and steelhead trout fishing. It's popular for tournaments and holds an annual PerchFest to prove it.

Ashtabula County borders Lake Erie and Pennsylvania. It provides open spaces connected by county roads - home to 16 covered bridges and a dozen more wineries. There's an annual covered bridge festival celebrating Northeastern Ohio's past, as well as a pizzeria housed under a covered bridge.

Geauga County is the maple syrup county. Not only do those in metro areas show up to buy their pancake topping come early spring, they're out at the sugar shack watching

its production.

Northeastern Ohio lures another type of green space enthusiast: golfers - not just for championships, but to the 300 courses located here. In Akron and its environs, there are 25 public courses and 9 private courses, including Firestone Country Club, which hosts the Senior PGA and World Golf Championship NEC Invitational.

Off the greens and into the green takes residents to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park (a 2000 Congressional act gave the former Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area a shorter and more recognizable name). It extends south from Cleveland into Akron and beyond. "With the new title, visitors can appreciate the diversity of nature and the history we preserve. Being in the top 20 of most visited National Parks is pretty significant," says Jennie Vasarhelyi, chief of interpretations for the linear park just south of Cleveland proper.

Further south, it connects with the Ohio & Erie National Heritage Corridor, completing an 87-mile journey. Bicyclists and skaters can bring their own or rent, and then take to the park trail - interrupted by beaver marshes, canal locks, and historic buildings like the "Boston Store" for behind-the-scenes canal lessons along the way. And when the day's events take their toll, the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad line runs parallel to the path for an easy ride back.

Just as the park leads south, so do other destinations with a livability level that attracts business and residents. Akron, now known for its contributions to technology and polymers, is just one stop along the Cleveland-Akron-Canton corridor, or the north/south I-77 interstate. Each city is about a half-hour from each other.

The connection makes it easy for commercial transit and leisurely sightseeing, say, to take in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Inventure Place and the Inventor's Hall of Fame in Akron, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton.

Following Lake Erie to the west, communities near the water, like Vermilion, Huron, Lorain, and Sandusky, maintain traditional lifestyles and portside opportunities that led to their original founding. Recent years have seen more prosperity in these towns -- refurbishment and redevelopment to meet the needs of locals and visitors bent on enjoying the outdoors. Cedar Point Amusement Park keeps Sandusky on the map, at least among roller coaster enthusiasts, with 15 at last count. Vermilion's Inland Seas Maritime Museum displays memorabilia and interesting factoids about Lake Erie.

"Micropolitan" areas, loosely defined as larger cities with a small-town feel, attract the in-between set. Ashland, where thousands gather for the annual balloon festival, and Medina with its historic town square are but two examples. The University of Ashland provides college-town ambiance like you'll also find in Wooster - home to Wooster College, the Ohio Light Opera, and, just beyond its boundaries, the beginning of Ohio's Amish country. Miles of rural farmland, hilly roads, and cottage industries (furniture, quilts, and bakeries) encompass the world's largest Amish population.

Back in Cleveland, one-time newcomer Sue Allen came here "kicking and screaming." She's been here for 12 years now and works as Cleveland Metropark Zoo's marketing and public relations manager. "I thought my world had come to an end," she remembers. Now, she's the quintessential cheerleader for all Cleveland offers its residents. "After seeing the growth, spirit, and vibrancy of the past 10 years, I can't imagine living anywhere else," the Chicago native says.

Nor could the Skalls. David Skall is a second- generation Clevelander. His father Richard has lived here all his life. For the younger Skall, 31, a graduate of Case Western Reserve University's School of Law in practice at Janik & Dorman, LLP, the decision to stay was easy. "I have many friends who have gone elsewhere as young professionals only to come back here to raise their family," he said.

Recent U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics back up his views. His lifestyle would cost one-third more in Chicago or more than twice as much had he chosen San Francisco, two of his favorite cities to visit.

The city is among the top cities for healthcare, according to U.S. News & World Report's annual surveys. The Cleveland Clinic is Ohio's only hospital consistently listed on the periodical's prestigious "Best Hospitals in America" list. And it continually earns the magazine's ranking as one of the "top six hospitals in the nation." Rainbow Babies' and Children's Hospital, with roots dating to the late 1800s, rates No. 1 in the Midwest in pediatrics in the same magazine. Family Magazine ranks MacDonald's Women Hospital one of the 10 best maternity hospitals in America.

Cleveland residents are eager to brag about their city even though most haven't tallied up the nearly 40 national accolades it has won in recent years.

"Cleveland is one of the new glamour kids. They represent the comeback on the lake, but it took 20 years of hard work. That's what people don't realize," says Robert McNulty, president of Partners for Livable Communities, which watches cities and presents its awards every decade.

Along that journey, Cleveland has taken its share of honors, like the October 2001 gold medal award going to parks and recreation and Newsweek's (March 13, 2000) placement of three schools on their list of the top 100 high schools in the country. Cleveland's also one of the Top Ten Cities for Black Women, according to Ebony (March 2000), and the list goes on - for pages.

Clevelanders continue to brag, but so do those throughout Northeastern Ohio. They're all enjoying the view.

Marcia Schonberg, a freelance writer, author, and photographer, lives in Lexington in Richland County. She is the author of B is for Buckeye: An Ohio Alphabet, Cardinal Numbers: An Ohio Counting Book, Quick Escapes: Cleveland and Ohio Travel Smart. She can be reached at 419-884-3232 or msviews@aol.com.

Helpful Web Sites

Akron

www.visitakron-summit.org

Ashland

www.ashlandoh.com

Ashtabula

www.accvb.org

Cleveland

www.travelcleveland.com

www.cleveland.com

For additional information, please contact these convention and

visitors' bureaus:

Youngstown

www.youngstowncvb.com

Geauga county

www.tourgeauga.com

Huron county

www.huron.net

Mansfield

www.mansfieldtourism.org

Sandusky

www.sanduskyohiocedarpoint.com

Trumbull county

www.trumbullcountycvb.org

Wooster

www.wooster-wayne.com

CITY OF SANDUSKY

The city of Sandusky is the Midwest's vacationland. Every year over 6.5 million people visit our area to ride roller coasters, boat on Lake Erie, tour the Lake Erie Islands, swim on our beaches, and much, much more. As a result, we embrace tourism as an industry and we welcome it along with other industrial growth and expansion. Come and see for yourself.

www.ci.sandusky.oh.us

Michael J. Will, Economic Development Specialist

(419) 627-5849