Category: Development

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Development News Politics

Giving the ‘Soapbox District’ some teeth

W. 4th Street has seen a buzz of activity in recent months. New stores have opened, new buildings have gone up, and new residents move in. In addition to this the area has also attempted to be rebranded as the ‘Soapbox District.’

A soapbox is a raised platform on which one stands to make an impromptu speech, often about a political subject. This is one of the angle that the branders were getting at. The other was to pay tribute to Cincinnati’s soap making history and the shape of many of the buildings in the W. 4th Street area.

I find the angle of public speech and discussion to be most interesting. Fountain Square was seemingly that spot, but that public space has been converted into a hybrid public/private space where I doubt this kind of thing would be tolerated any longer. The branders also mentioned how this could be the spot, in Cincinnati, where young people make their voices heard. Great, many of the new residents in that area are indeed young so this seems to possibly have some traction.

The problem is that there seems to be no concerted effort to make this into reality. I look to London’s Hyde Park. In the park’s NE corner (aka Speaker’s Corner) people come to speak publicly about what they wish. They are allowed to continue as long as it is considered lawful. I look at this example and see a huge opportunity at 4th & Plum (GoogleMap) in Cincinnati.

That location is right in the heart of the ‘Soapbox District’ and is currently occupied by a surface parking lot. An ideal scenario would be to acquire this lot and turn it into a park. Create a much needed dog park area within it, sitting places, and lots of trees. In addition to this, make the park the epicenter for public/free speech in the newly dubbed ‘Soapbox District.’ The idea is great, now let’s give it some teeth.

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Business Development News

Gateway Quarter retail spaces filling up

The new residential units, in the Gateway Quarter, boast exposed brick walls, original support beams, hardwood floors (in some cases original), very unique floor plans, and a prime location in the heart of what will soon be Cincinnati’s premier neighborhood. Well guess what, the retail spaces have all that too, and they are filling up quite nicely right along with their residential counterparts.

The area already has 11 unique retail establishments, the most notable being Park + Vine (a ‘green’ general store) and Lavomatic (urban wine bar by Jean Robert). Many of them have been there for over a year and are now about ready to be joined by three new additions.

The Little Mahatma (513-723-1287) is relocating its jewelry, art and artifacts store from its previous location, on Main Street behind the Aronoff Center, to 1205 Vine Street and will also be celebrating its 20th year in business. The Little Mahatma will be open M-F 11am-7pm, Saturday 11am-6pm and Sunday 12pm-4pm.

Switch (513-721-8100) is opening up at 1207 Vine Street and will have lighting fixtures for your home and office highlighting current designs from North and South America, Europe and Scandinavia. Hours for Switch will be M-F 11am-7pm, Saturday 12pm-6pm and by appointment.

Incredible Creations (513-961-4111) is the third establishment that will be opening up with the other two this Fall, and will be located at 1209 Vine Street. This upscale barbershop and beauty salon will offer a host of services and will be the first service related business to the Gateway Quarter. Hours for Incredible Creations will be T-Th 9am-8pm, Friday-Saturday 8am-7pm, closed Sunday and Monday.

All three are excited about their new locations echoing similar comments of one another that the neighborhood is becoming a magnet for unique retail options and that they want to be a part of the urban renaissance that is occuring in Cincinnati.

The new shops plan to be open for the Downtown Tour of Living on September 27th where the Gateway Quarter will once again be prominently featured. Official grand openings will be coming later, after the Tour, bu t those attending the Tour will be able to go through and check out the new places.


Park + Vine (a ‘green’ general store) in the Gateway Quarter
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Arts & Entertainment Business Development News

What is a city to you? (part two)

In the first part of What is a city to you? we covered the basics and overall what is thought of when we hear the word city. In that breakdown one of the items I mentioned is that cities are places of diversity. So what exactly does that mean, diversity?

Well for one thing it goes far beyond race. Diversity in cities means diversity of streetscapes, architectural styles, building heights, activities, and most importantly people. The built environment elements are fairly easy to understand and grasp. Different building heights, architectural styles, and streetscapes all help make a place interesting and unique — exactly what a city should be.

Findlay Market in Over-the-Rhine – Photo by Randy Simes

People are the most interesting part of this equation…as their variations are limitless. It is important to have the greatest diversity of people as possible. Diversity of backgrounds, races, creeds, wealth/stature, age, and gender. The greater the variety of types of people creates a greater variety of events and encounters that might occur within a city.

No matter how great the buildings, public spaces, and venues it means nothing without the people. People are what make cities great. They make cities exciting, interesting, unique, enlightening, lively, edgy, thought provoking, and at times places of crime. But whether good or bad, these feelings are caused by the people who created the environment…and it is in cities where you get the most varied and sporadic of these feelings. What could be better than the diversity of feeling and emotion?

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Business Development News

Calhoun/McMillan development pushes forward

Over the 4th of July weekend, the last two remaining buildings came down in the long-stalled McMillan Park project. First it was the money, then it was the property holdouts, then the bad economy topped it all off. Throughout this process the project was pretty much scrapped and put on the back burner.

That is until the remaining properties were secured. That has happened…enter Towne Properties, a renewed interest from UC, a growing UC student population, and future connection point between the Uptown and Downtown streetcar lines and you have some serious momentum.

Original rendering for McMillan Park – Source Unknown

Some people have criticized the poor design of University Park (across the street), but I’m not sure anyone can complain about its impact on street activity along Calhoun Street. People can be found all over the place doing homework, eating, relaxing, and socializing. So what can be done across the street to compliment those activities and continue to expand upon them?

I think a pedestrian only Hartshorn Street (GoogleMap) would be great for large outdoor patio spaces (see Cadillac Ranch Downtown) that could also make for neat street vending opportunities for students (i.e. artwork, music, maybe even some performance type stuff).

Along with that, 8-10 story buildings would seem to work well. The first two floors should be built out to the street, and then setback for the remaining 6-8 stories…thus creating the opportunity for an amenity deck above the 2-level retail or town homes below. This would then create a new level of activity that would spill onto the street below, while also remaining semi-private for the residents above. What would you like to see?

Example amenity deck – Source, www.1010midtowncondosupdate.com
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Business Development News Politics

The retail over-saturation problem

When can you tell enough is enough? Is there any hope for our nation if there isn’t constant growth? These are the questions I find myself asking when I read stories like this.

Cincinnati Mills, one of the largest retail centers in the region, has seen store after store shutter. This comes after millions of dollars of reinvestment into a massive mall sandwiched in between two others along a mall interstate of sorts.

It really makes you wonder (at least me), do we really need all of this retail space. The same can even be said for urban environments where seemingly every new renovation project, in a mixed-use built area, seems to call for street-level retail with residential or office space above. I suggest that we return the area, where Cincinnati Mills sits, to a natural state. That is obviously an extreme proposal, but at the very least tear down that mall (said in my best Ronald Reagan voice) for some other/better use.

This region is growing much slower than our retail space is expanding…and it seems obvious that the retail locally (and nationally) can not sustain itself by the free market alone. It seems to me that the best alternative would be to let struggling retail space ride off into the sunset. This would allow for values to rise at other retail locations, and we could begin the process of ridding ourselves of our excessive retail space…and who knows, maybe even our over-consumerism.