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N.C., Miami, Las Vegas, Honolulu and other cities. It's also a vastly scaled-down version of what planners envisioned decades ago as the "Dual Hub," a light rail line connecting downtown to University Circle. Planning literature is packed with proof that streetcars and light rail inspire "transit-oriented development." So far, it seems, bus rapid transit is doing the same in Cleveland. The $4.3 billion figure cited above is based on news stories and interviews with developers. It doesn't include the $200 million Euclid Corridor project itself. Nor does it include projects such as developer Scott Wolstein's upcoming $400 million redevelopment on the east bank of the Flats, or Robert Stark's proposed $1.5 billion development in the Warehouse District. Nevertheless, the numbers are adding up quickly as momentum builds. "Every day, more projects are being planned," Goldberg said. "At a certain point, you reach a critical mass and it becomes self-sustaining." City planners and foundation officers hope the growth will spill into the surrounding Hough, Fairfax and Central neighborhoods north and south of the Euclid Avenue zone. Already, there are signs of that happening. The Finch Group of Boca Raton, Fla., and Heartland Developers of Cleveland are planning a large residential development in Hough called Upper Chester, north of the Cleveland Clinic and west of East 105th Street. The Clinic is collaborating with the nonprofit Fairfax Renaissance Development Corp. on a $28 million biomedical research facility on Cedar Avenue. "The Euclid Corridor project was always about connecting those two centers [downtown and University Circle] through Hough and Fairfax in a way that creates spinoff," said Cleveland Planning Director Robert Brown. Despite the emerging benefits, the rebirth of Euclid Avenue may have only limited impact on the city as a whole, said James Rokakis, Cuyahoga County's treasurer. Too many neighborhoods are being hollowed out by defaults on subprime mortgages. The new growth along Euclid Avenue, while laudable, won't do much in the short run to boost school tax revenues, because much of the new development is tax-exempt, he said. Caveats aside, there's a striking energy among those involved with Euclid Avenue. In a city pummeled by news about crime, population loss and decay, it's a great, shining exception -- and one solid reason to be excited about Cleveland's future. See more in Architecture, News impact