Cleveland's indie hotel alternative

For many, Cleveland is still stuck in the 1970s, when it was a city so fetid that its river was swirling with flames. Nowadays, the city is on fire, but in a good way. Last summer, the so-called "Mistake by the Lake" pulled off a flawless, apocalypse-free Republican National Convention, and on the sports front, its basketball team, the Cavaliers, won the NBA championship and its baseball team, the Indians, made it to the World Series. The former steel town also boasts two strong fine arts museums and an orchestra rated among the world's best. Capitalizing on the city's cultural and athletic renaissance, the owners of the Schofield spent $50-million (U.S.) converting a 1902 Victorian brick building into an appealing, 14-storey hotel/residence combo whose entrance is steps away from the downtown's main drag, Euclid Avenue.

LOCATION, LOCATION

Of the city's higher-end hotels, the Schofield is maybe the most central. Progressive Field, where the Indians play, is 10 minutes by foot, tops. So is Quicken Loans Arena, where King James and the Cavaliers defend their NBA crown. About 20 minutes' walk straight down 9th Street is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (For this rock snob, however, it has all the intrigue of a Hard Rock Cafe on steroids.) For refugees from Ontario's Victorian liquor laws, there is the glory that is the wine section at Heinen's Grocery Store, just across the street from the Schofield. Go to the second floor, pick up a wine debit card and choose from 40 different kinds of automated, self-serve wine dispensers, then chill for an hour with a book.

DESIGN

The Schofield positions itself as the quirky, indie player in town, the boutique alternative to the larger, more formal properties like the Hyatt or the Drury Plaza, a new, stately hotel off the beaten track. The modern-casual tone imbues the small lobby with an intimate, Scandinavian-style warmth, and the alt-music soundtrack rounds it out.

Leonard Cohen's So Long, Marianne was the first song we heard, but lest that be too gloomy, a rocking Arcade Fire track came on shortly after. "Best elevator music I've ever heard," my son said.

The eclecticism does follow you into your suite. There are antique posters of Matchbox cars, butterflies and a photo of a gleeful pug (or at least she looked happy), and a movie-like marquee lamp with the hotel's name on it. As a notable touch, there was local craft beer in the minibar, but the most welcome feature were the beds, which were both resistant and plush.

Still, the hotel could have used even more indie touches, if only to distinguish itself from its more conventional competitors.

IF I COULD CHANGE ONE THING

The $36 overnight valet charge is steep.

EAT IN OR OUT

There is only one restaurant on the premises, the Parker's Grille which, when we were there last August, was not affiliated to the hotel.

Outside of the Schofield, however, there are restaurants. For breakfast, Pour Cleveland on Euclid Avenue serves rich blends of coffee and thick, delicious bagels. Just down the road is East 4th Street, which is the city core's eating epicentre. Celebrity chief Michael Symon has a tasty barbecue place, Mabel's BBQ, as well as his signature restaurant, Lola.

BEST AMENITY

The on-loan guitars are pretty cool, much in keeping with the city's rock-and-roll theme and a nod to a perk pioneered by the Ace Hotel. More nerdily, however, I was geared up for the free bike rentals, which also come equipped with helmets and locks. (My son, on the other hand, didn't like their colour, somewhere between mauve and purple – the same angry hue of an adolescent male's face forced to ride a unisex bike downtown. "This is public humiliation, Dad," he said.) We rode through the stunning industrial graveyards to Lucky's Cafe in the Tremont area, where he demolished strawberry and rhubarb waffles in contented teenage silence.

The Kimpton Schofield Hotel, 2000 E. 9th Street, Cleveland, theschofieldhotel.com. 122 rooms from $159 (U.S.)

The writer was a guest of the hotel.