Delegation from French sister city visits Cleveland
By JAY MILLER
1:24 pm, July 2, 2009
A delegation from Rouen, France, arrived in Cleveland today and will spend the Fourth of July weekend here learning about the city and building what the mayors of both cities hope is a fruitful economic, educational and cultural relationship between two industrial centers. At a news conference this morning hosted by Mayor Frank Jackson at Cleveland City Hall, Rouen Mayor Valarie Fourneyron described her city as a major French port on the Seine River that is a center for the shipment of cereal grains and petrochemicals. She said she hopes this trip will open trade opportunities between the Rouen and Cleveland. “Our two cities share common interests,” she said. “They are places where industrial activity played an important and historic role.” Mayor Fourneyron said Rouen is a center for auto and petrochemical production. The two cities have been sister cities since 2008. Mayor Jackson made an initial visit to Rouen in June 2008 as part of his trip on Continental Airlines’ inaugural Cleveland-to-Paris service. The mayor hopes to position Cleveland as a gateway to the Midwest for international firms.
The 13-person Rouen group includes business and hospital leaders from the city of 533,000, which is the capital of the Upper Normandy region of France.
The delegation from Rouen will stay until July 7. Its itinerary includes visits to the Greater Cleveland Partnership, the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority, the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals, as well as Case Western Reserve, Cleveland State and John Carroll universities. The group also will visit the headquarters of Lubrizol Corp. in Wickliffe.
Lubrizol, as well as Lincoln Electric Co. of Euclid, base their French operations in the Rouen area.
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