The residents of College Hill rejected a proposal for low-income senior housing near a prominent corner by a vote of 88-65 last night.
Fifty local and regional historical societies have been invited to participate in a day of networking and discussion on October 6 at the Cincinnati Museum Center.
The event will give these groups the opportunity to share knowledge and resources and to explore ways in which they can better connect with their communities.
Three years ago:
Two years ago:
The building envelope for the new Cincinnati COOKS! facility in the West End appears to be sealed, with only a few ornamental elements remaining to be installed on the exterior.
Located at the , the 16,000-square-foot Anderson Center will include between 25 and 30 offices, a boardroom, a fully-functional kitchen, and warehouse space for the Freestore Foodbank's job training program.
Cincinnati City Council has unanimously approved an emergency ordinance establishing a fund to create a future revenue stream for Cincinnati Riverfront Park.
Specifically, the new fund allows the Cincinnati Park Board to accept and to appropriate donations, program funds, event funds, lease revenues and common area maintenance income, which could then be used for operations and maintenance, programs and events, and capital replacements.
Three years ago:
Okay...a big floral display, then a million OTR pics.
The 39 photos in this slideshow have been added to the following galleries:
Single-family
DOB: 1907
Died: June 2009
Cause of death: Razed to make way for the expansion of Evanston Playground and construction of the new headquarters of the Cincinnati chapter of the American Red Cross. There were no code violations on the property at the time of demolition.
Two years ago:
Today at noon, Cincinnati City Council's Economic Development Committee will consider the creation of a new Planned Development District (PD-57) for the redevelopment of the Gray Road Landfill, which has been a dump site for the last 24 years.
The new PD-57 would rezone 86 acres at from SF-6 Single-Family Residential and MA Manufacturing Residential to allow for the development of Graystone Business Park and The Willows at Spring Grove Pet Cemetery and Crematorium.
The Graystone Business Park is envisioned as a LEED-certified mixed-use project of 12-13 business lots, on two to three acres, and one-story buildings between 20,000 and 30,000 square feet.
Approved uses include light industrial, distribution, warehouse, office/flex, and research and development.
A market study by LRS Consultants determined that was the best use for the site.
The Willows at Spring Grove Pet Cemetery and Crematorium will consist of an 1,800-square-foot office and display room building, 40,000 burial plots, a half-mile walking trail, a reflection pond, prayer garden, crematorium, and surface parking for 20 vehicles.
To achieve LEED certification, the project would include stormwater collection for irrigation, energy-efficient HVAC, the use of recyclable materials, and bio-swales to divert runoffl
The City Planning Commission recommended the zoning change on June 19.
If approved by City Council, site preparation could begin by late this year, and construction of buildings could begin by the end of 2010.
The site would be sold by Gray Road Fill Inc. to The Willows at Spring Grove, Inc., who would own and operate the property.
If approved by Council, a more detailed final development plan must be approved by the City Planning Commission before building permits can be issued.
Previous reading on BC:
Gray Road landfill rezoned (10/29/08)
EDC to consider rezoning for Gray Road landfill (10/14/08)
How will Gray Road landfill be redeveloped? (6/23/08)
A proposal to bring another fast food restaurant to in Mount Auburn has little support, but will be considered by Cincinnati City Council's Economic Development Committee today at noon.
Originally proposed for the Mount Auburn Place condominium project, JFP Group, represented by attorney Tim Burke, is seeking to rezone 2442=2450 Highland Avenue to CC-A Commercial Community Auto-Oriented District.
JFP Group demolished the buildings in 2006, trying to complement McMillan Manor on the southwest corner of the intersection,
The developer was successful in getting the Taco Bell restaurant built on the northeast corner of the intersection.
Margaret Wuerstle, chief planner for the City, advised against adding yet another drive through restaurant for the intersection.
Wuerstle said that traffic counts report 19,100 vehicles on McMillan daily, and 7,510 passing on Highland.
"Historically, the southeast and southwest corners of this intersection had multi-family mixed-use transitional zoning, and has never been an auto-oriented commercial zone," she said in a memo to Council.. "Based on the Department of Transportation and Engineering comments related to the Institute of Transportation Engineers Trip Generation Manual, this intersection cannot handle a new restaurant facility with a drive through."
She added that it would impact the existing character of the surrounding area, and no end user has been identified.
The CC-A zoning was needed for a drive through, setback from the street, and building transparency.
In a June 4 letter to Mount Auburn Community Council president Freeman McNeal, Burke says that JFP would draft a binding agreement with the council, promising to take immediate steps to clean up, seed, and straw the lot; installing a landscaped sign near the corner saying "something like 'Welcome to the Community of Mt. Auburn -- the Home of McMillan Manor'"; provide the community council with Phase I Environmental Reports; to donate to the community council, or any other non-profit entity, the lot it owns on Maplewood Avenue; and to keep construction dust and noise to a minimum.
The City Planning Commission did not approve the zoning change at its June 19 meeting, and the Mount Auburn Community Council has not formally responded to the request.
Cincinnati City Council is considering an emergency ordinance that will lead to improvements in the Peebles Corner area of Walnut Hills.
The ordinance would establish a new Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) project account with $96,760 from
Walnut Hills Parking Lot Improvement and $44,612 from Walnut Hills Peebles Corner Façade Renovation.
It would also transfer $1.5 million from two existing funds into a capital account.
The CDBG funds would be used for acquiring and demolishing dilapidated buildings between Kemper Lane and Concord and in the Southwest Quadrant (Boone, May, Kenton, etc.).
The capital funds would be used for the acquisition and the demolition of dilapidated buildings, making a maximum of $200,000 in public infrastructure improvements, and conducting a maximum of $300,000 in residential rehabilitation along McMillan.
Having exhausted all other collection remedies, Cincinnati City Council is considering an ordinance that would levy special assessments against the owners of unsecured or unsound buildings who have failed to pay the City for demolition and barricading.
If passed, the City will levy these charges, placed against the tax duplicate, at an interest rate of 9 percent, to be paid in five annual installments.
The monies owed on the 350 properties name equal nearly $1.9 million.
Monies owed by negligent property owners range from a high of $61,049.07 by Lance and Perrin Holdings – for 732 Greenwood Avenue – to several property owners who owe as little as $57.73.
Two-family
DOB: 1880
Died: March 2009
Cause of death: Fire damage from a two-alarm fire on October 24, 2008. Fifty firefighters took 45 minutes to control the blaze, which caused $150,000 damage to the building and an additional $50,000 in damage to the neighboring building at 2641 Alms Place. The roof structure, walls, and floor joists suffered heavy damage, and fire debris was falling onto Yale Avenue.
The house was condemned in December 2008 and was razed by the owner.
Two years ago:
Neon's in Over-the-Rhine – or at least a portion of it – could be open to the public in time for next year's Bockfest.
Neighborhood resident Michael Redmond is part of a group looking to revive the neighborhood staple as Neon's Unplugged, a low-key, acoustical bar.
"We want to restore not just the building, but we want to help restore the name of Neon's," Redmond says.
Not a nightclub, the new Neon's Unplugged is envisioned as an Over-the-Rhine hub – and a good neighbor.
"This is just a backyard for the people that are moving to the area," Redmond says. "And we're trying to take this back to a neighborhood bar, but really run by people from the neighborhood."
The team includes Dan McDonald, former project manager for 3CDC; and Dan Dell, founder of Rhino's and Buddakhan, among others.
"We have some real experts on how to run bars," Redmond says. "As far as the bar goes, I'm not a bar guy. I know much more about sitting on one side of the bar than standing and serving on the other side of the bar. And so we've reached out.
We're bringing in the experts from within the community that can make it happen."
Space speaks for itself
Neon's opened in 1982 in the three-story, 1880s-era building at .
Through a series of owners, the bar and nightclub lasted through 2007, when a proposal to re-open the space as wine and tapas bar Jardin failed to pan out.
The property has since attracted few serious inquiries.
"All in all, the space really speaks for itself," Redmond says. "We actually think that the fewer things we can change, the better."
What visitors will not see is the overabundance of neon, much of which former Neon's owner Terry Carter purchased at auction for Terry's Turf Club in Linwood.
"We want someone to walk in here and say, 'I remember this, and I remember that," Redmond says. "Things might be a little different now than what they were, but there's just little points of familiarity. It's saying that this is Neon's, but it's just a stripped down version of Neon's," Redmond says.
By making too many changes, Redmond says that they'd do the restoration more injustice than justice.
"We want to pay homage to some of the things that were here, but if we go overboard and we put too much of what used to be here, then people are going to...not say what is here, but what isn't here," he says. "We're never going to duplicate it. But you can walk in here and say, 'It's different, but I remember this,' or, 'It's different, but I remember that.'"
Purpose-built
Upon entering Neon's Unplugged's outdoor courtyard, one's attention is immediately drawn to the outdoor bar.
"This is a true, purpose-built outdoor bar," Redmond says.
Redmond envisions 20 stools lining the bar.
The space also features an open greenhouse, where ten four-top tables will be placed.
"We're really trying to push groups to come in here," Redmond says. "And to have this place as a place where everybody kind of knows one another."
Hanging ferns, wisteria, high palms, and an abundance of other plants will help soften the concrete and brick; "Italian wedding" styled strings of lights will provide enough lighting to create a relaxing mood.
"It'll just be a nice, soft, garden-type feel, right here in the middle of the City," Redmond says.
To Redmond, the space that his team envisions is perfect for the Over-the-Rhine lifestyle, especially for many of the new developments taking place along Main and Vine streets.
"You have all of these residential units literally right here," he says. "But if you look over at Duveneck, Trideca, anything in the [Gateway] Quarter that sells, they have individual decks. But none of them have a community deck. And so this, we're saying, is your community deck."
Drink specials
"I want to have a place here that has a very strong happy hour," Redmond says. "A place where you can drop in as often as you want to grab a drink, and it's not going to break the bank."
While he says that Neon's Unplugged will offer high-quality stuff, it won't come at a high price.
"I don't think that the margins have to be so big that I have to hit a home run every single time that you walk through the door," Redmond says. "If I can just keep you coming back, that's where I make my margin."
The bar will offer a "scratch bar" mixology, meaning that all of its juices and mixers will be freshly made.
"If you think everything summertime – light, real cool, refreshing drinks," Redmond says. "Not strong, harsh, heavy drinks.
On Sundays, we're thinking of having 'Hangover Sundays' where we open a little earlier. We'll have fresh mimosas with freshly squeezed orange juice – including the pulp. We're also looking for a good Bloody Mary mixer."
The taps have not been formally sold, and Redmond says that they'll have total flexibility on bottled beer.
He adds that there will be a large selection of white and red wines, as well.
Food available
Neon's Unplugged has no kitchen, but Redmond and his group still want to secure a food service provider to pair food with drink.
Redmond recalls many nights that he and his wife Holly have gone out to a local spot, only to leave in search of a bite.
"And then we never head back," he says. "But the bars that have the food...you can hang on to your customers."
Although a formal deal for food service has not been signed, one may be forthcoming.
"If we can contract out with people from within OTR, then once again it's just leading back to that we are a neighborhood bar," Redmond says. "We support other places and other people here within the neighborhood."
One no-frills option that the group is exploring is the placement of a massive grill at the 12th Street end of the courtyard.
A huge vent that was placed there for greenhouse purposes could carry away the smoke, filling the street with the aroma of cooking meat.
However, manning a grill and a bar at the same time could prove difficult, Redmond says, especially on nights when traffic is slow and the bar is not at full staff.
"So, instead of doing that, we could copy off of Vinoklet and some of those other places," he says. "We'll actually sell you the steak or hamburger meat or whatever it is that you want. Do it yourself!"
They're still toying with that idea, he says, due to the liability issues that such an arrangement could cause.
Unpretentious
"The conversation will never come up before you come to a place like this, 'Am I dressed well enough to go in there?'" Redmond says.
An unpretentious neighborhood spot, Redmond says that acoustic musical acts will provide a more relaxing experience where patrons can actually have a conversation.
"This isn't the type of place we expect to just pack out," Redmond says. "I hope it does. But we really don't expect it to be a club-type atmosphere, to where it's just wall-to-wall people in here."
Better yet, there will never be a cover charge.
"Collecting money at the door, to me, you're not a neighborhood bar anymore," Redmond says. "If we do small acoustical acts on a fairly regular basis, then that's going to drive you in – if that's your thing. So I'm still going to make my money at the bar, so I still have that much more that I made off of that. I don't have to worry about the door. But there has to be a consistency to be able to do that."
Fun and games
One of the most intriguing features of the courtyard will be the 60-foot bocce ball run.
Redmond says that they're already trying to line up teams for next spring, with leagues likely playing Monday through Thursday. Weekends would be held open.
He would like to see local bloggers, residents, and neighborhood businesses make up the league's 16 teams.
"We were talking about whoever wins getting naming rights to the court at the end of that season," Redmond says. "So the whole next season, there's a sign up there that says 'Building Cincinnati', or whoever happens to win at the end of that season."
Looks worse than it is
"All of our revenues are going to go toward the fixing of the inside," Redmond says.
Michael Spalding, one of the managing partners who had been working to open Jardin, had ripped out the birch bar, and building materials are scattered throughout the space.
"I really think it looks worse than what it even is," Redmond says.
But Spalding was responsible for pressure-washing years of cigar soot from the brick and wood, adding an expensive array of electric lighting, and building a "community bar", which allows patrons to sit on both sides.
"So if you want to sit and talk to somebody, especially if you show up with a group of five, six or more, you're not having to talk down the line," Redmond says.
Wine storage will remain on a back wall behind the bar, and the men's, women's, and ADA-compliant restrooms are fully intact.
Redmond estimates that restoration of the first-floor bar may have to wait until fall or winter of 2010.
The outdoor bar could even close during the winter months of 2010 so that they can focus on readying the first-floor bar, he says.
The Bourbon Room
"We're not even really thinking about up here just yet," Redmond says, standing on the building's second floor.
Although it may be a couple of years before they even touch the space, he says that the group has considered calling the room "The Bourbon Room at Neon's".
"We're going to push this more during maybe football season," Redmond says. "We're going to mount a flat-screen television up there and just put some couches up here. So if any of the guys wanted to come down here – or girls – just to watch football games, we could do like an NFL Season Pass. That way, it's really just driving our Sunday and Monday traffic, which would have been dead anyway."
Off of the main room, a small parlor built for smoking cigars sits empty and windowless.
"We'll probably just turn this into an office," Redmond says.
Redmond also says that, when the second floor is completed, the men's restroom will be moved up there.
Into the unknown
Little-known, rarely seen, and likely never photographed, the unfinished top floor shows signs of water damage, missing plaster, and holes in the exterior walls.
Bird's nests can be seen scattered along the rafters, and pieces of the old neon that weren't sold at auction line the walls.
Carter had originally planned to finish the space out to house the bands that passed through; Redmond sees an opportunity for a boutique hotel.
But he stresses that it's just an idea, not something that they're committed to.
"You have so many people that come into town, or even people who've decided they just want to stay down here, they don't have to go over to the Hilton or whatever, they can go to something really cool upstairs," he says.
For the time being, the space will remain the way it is – minus a neon sign reading "Meat Market", which Redmond plans to hang behind one of the bars.
A known presence
Online searches for Neon's reveal websites, addresses, and the old phone number – which the group has been able to keep.
And the building still receives mail from all of the mailing lists Neon's was on.
"We already have a web presence," Redmond says. "Our thought was that if you have to come in and change the name of the place and the concept of the place, you'd have to spend thousands of dollars to tell them where it is and what it is, and then there's the possibility that they might not appreciate it anyway. People appreciated Neon's. It's a proven thing."
Redmond hopes that this presence will help some of his neighbors emerge with Neon's memorabilia that they may have lying around the house.
After all, he points out, Japp's got started with a wig shop sign that was found at – of all places – Neon's.
"I'm hoping that there's someone out there who has something from Neon's, even if it's information," Redmond says. "Because one of the things that we want to do is to build that history. Even though Neon's was 1982, it still is a big part of Over-the-Rhine history. It's just modern history, and we don't want to change that. We just want to take the old concept, restore it, and renew it a little bit as well."
He's doing his own kind of informal focus groups as well.
"There's a couple of things that I'm asking," Redmond says. "One, the people who did come down here to Neon's, 'What do you remember about Neon's?' Two, going forward, what do you want to see Neon's as?"
Michael O'Bryant, an Over-the-Rhine resident, is currently researching all of the bars located in the neighborhood since the 1870s.
Ads and other memorabilia found during O'Bryant's pursuit will be used to decorate Neon's Unplugged's walls.
"We want to treat this more like a museum of bars, entertainment, and breweries that were here in Over-the-Rhine," Redmond says.
'It's only one bar'
Redmond says that they already have all of the equipment they need in storage, and may even hold a lease-signing party when the deal's done.
Then, following a brief Bockfest opening, they'll shut down until their official grand opening on Reds' Opening Day.
After all, it's being done on a very tight budget, so the group is treading carefully.
"If we can actually do this without a lot of startup money, it changes your thinking," Redmond says. "When you have all sorts of cash at your disposal, all of a sudden you start making decisions on huge amounts of cash. Right now we're making decisions on how to streamline this thing enough and make some of these outside deals where it doesn't take any cash. So why burn through it if we don't have to?"
Redmond tells everyone who asks that Neon's Unplugged is not an attempt to "bring Main Street back".
It's only one bar.
"Whether or not Main Street ever takes off again [as an entertainment destination] is irrelevant to this place," Redmond says. "Neon's was down here first, in 1982. That was before J Hall, that was before Japp's, any of those. And they were able to make it. Now all of those bars are gone again. We think we can make it again."
There are 62 photos in the following slideshow. Hover over the slideshow to bring up the controls. You may stop the slideshow by clicking on the square "stop" button, allowing you to scroll through the photos at your own leisure. To get a better view, click on each image to enlarge to 640 x 480. Photos will open in a new browser window.
A fully-completed Mill Creek Greenway Trail could create at least 445 jobs and create a more than $52 million economic impact, according to a new report by the Applied Economics Research Institute (AERI) at the University of Cincinnati.
The trail also would provide at least an additional $1.86 million in local tax revenue, said AERI director Dr. Benjamin Passty.
According to the report, the analysis "was carried out assuming that all initial investment, including the actual construction activities, purchase of necessary materials, and hiring of labor occur locally within the predefined study region, the eight principal counties of the Cincinnati Metropolitan Statistical Area".
"Should there be a reason to assume that part of the initial investment would leave the region, for instance by hiring non-regional labor, the estimated economic impacts would be accordingly smaller," the report said.
The report said that initial investment in the project would aid the specialized design services, architectural and engineering services, building materials and garden supplies, miscellaneous wood product manufacturing, other new construction, logging, and forestry support sectors.
Community benefits
Mill Creek Restoration Project (MCRP) executive director Robin Corathers said that the project would benefit some of the lowest-income communities in the region.
Additionally, Corathers said that real estate values along the trail are expected to rise, although that was outside of the scope of the study.
"In the context of local job losses, budget deficits and the economic recession, this is great news," she said. "This latest study reinforces the wisdom of public and private investments – and particularly the use of Federal Stimulus Funds – in developing the Mill Creek Greenway Trail. We know that major economic dividends and multiple social and environmental benefits will accrue."
Costly, but serves many purposes
The 13.5-mile trail, beginning at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds in Carthage and stretching through St. Bernard, Elmwood Place, and eventually to Cincinnati Riverfront Park, would cost about $24 million to complete, according to preliminary engineering estimates by M-E Companies.
Some of this estimated cost includes line items for environmental assessments and brownfield cleanup along the industrial corridor.
The multi-purpose trail will offer opportunities for bike commuting, recreation and outdoor exercise, and environmental education and training and will connect to the existing street network, crosswalks, bike lanes, and bus stops.
"Connectivity is key," Corathers said. "The trail will connect business districts, residential areas, park and recreational facilities, schools, and neighborhoods and communities together."
But it also serves the environment by restoring the Mill Creek's water quality, managing stormwater runoff, and restoring the corridor's habitat and natural resources.
Green technologies will be incorporated along the trail and at its trail heads.
J.K. Meurer Corporation has already begun construction on the 0.6-mile first phase, connecting .
This phase leveraged funding from the Greater Cincinnati Foundation and the City of Cincinnati's Mill Creek Greenway Trail Program; Cognis Corporation helped MCRP obtain a $175,000 grant from the Clean Ohio Trail Fund.
MCRP is working with local governments to secure funding through the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009 to underwrite 80 percent of the future work and is seeking state and local sources to obtain the remaining matching funds.
Project seeking votes, $20,000
Also, you have until September 18 to vote for Laughing Brook in the Cincinnati Innovates contest.
Part of the Mill Creek Greenway Program, Laughing Brook is a man-made wetland and sustainable design model featuring public art along the Mill Creek at Salway Park.
The wetland was designed to cleanse stormwater runoff from the park's ball fields and parking lot.
If it wins, the Mill Creek Restoration Project could receive a $20,000 prize.
Voting is limited to one vote per person per day.
A public meeting will be held tomorrow evening at 6 p.m. at Madisonville Recreation Center, , to discuss a proposed $3 million Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund (CORF) application for remediation work at the former NuTone site at .
The City could submit a CORF application to the Ohio Department of Development on behalf of RBM Development Company, LLC to demolish up the nine remaining buildings and to clean up soil and groundwater contamination on the 29.1-acre site.
Although a site development plan will not be finalized until financing is in place, the development is expected eventually to include 430,000 square feet of mixed-use development, 50,000 square feet of retail, between eight and ten residential townhomes, and surface parking.
Known contaminants from manufacturing
Prior to 1949, the property included several houses on nearly 30 acres of mostly undeveloped land.
That year, NuTone purchased the property and began to build its corporate headquarters, where it built products such as door chimes, range hoods, bath fans, attic ventilators, intercom systems, central vacuums, and ceiling fans.
The company eventually grew to include 2,500 employees in seven states, but, in August 2007, NuTone closed the Madisonville plant, eliminating 414 jobs and shifting manufacturing to its other plants.
A Phase II property assessment has shown significant impacts to the site's soil and groundwater, including high concentrations of trichloroethene, vinyl chloride, toluene, and xylene.
As these are known carcinogens that remain in soil and groundwater over long periods of time, future tenants could be at risk.
The site also sits within 2,000 feet of Duck Creek, is located above the sole source Great Miami Aquifer, and is in close proximity to residences, churches, and schools.
Cleanup would return the site to commercial standards and would be free of the need for environmental controls or monitoring.
End user identified
The 2008 GO Cincinnati report identified life sciences as the sector with the most growth potential of any Cincinnati industry.
Medpace Inc., a drug development firm headquartered in Norwood, has been identified as the end user of at least 132,000 square feet of Class A office space within the development.
The company would move approximately 535 employees to the new headquarters between 2010 and 2013, and could add at least 800 more employees by 2014.
Medpace would be required to occupy the facility for at least 16 years.
CORF funding is scheduled to be awarded in November, and, if selected, work at the NuTone site would begin immediately.
"NuTone" ceiling fan photo by courtesy of Flickr through Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.
Previous reading on BC:
Madisonville: NuTone redevelopment (5/29/07)
