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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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News

The great turnaround

Unlike many Cincinnatians I grew up a Bearcat fan. I remember going to football games and what occupied most of the south endzone was impromptu games up catch by kids my age, the north endzone had some bleachers set up for opposing teams bands, but were rarely filled. A smokestack cast its shadow over those bleachers and parking lots surrounded the stadium making for plenty of tailgating opportunities for the handful of people that actually showed up – most of whom were forced into buying season tickets so that they could get basketball season tickets.

A lot has changed since then. The Bearcats are now a BCS school, the stadium has been expanded slightly and cleaned up, that north endzone is now occupied by a student section at capacity, and the south endzone has a filled fan section with a eatery and massive new scoreboard atop the large rec center.

We play teams like Oklahoma, South Florida, West Virginia, Pittsburgh and other top-notch BCS schools regularly…and we’re competitive. We also have the oldest stadiums in college football with one of the most unique settings anywhere. UC Athletic Director, Mike Thomas, aptly described Nippert Stadium as the Wrigley Field of college football, but it is also one of the smallest stadiums for a BCS school.
So with all this positive change, big time opponents, and a winning team you would expect a region of over 2 million people to be able to fill a 35,000 seat stadium for 6 home games a year. This past Saturday was Homecoming. It was a beautiful Saturday with not much else going on in the region and the announced crowd was something like 32,000 and change. It was announced, on the scoreboard, as “the sixth largest crowd in Nippert history.” Embarrassing.

It was a perfect day, Homecoming, Big East conference opener, the Buckeyes didn’t play until after the Bearcats finished, and the Bengals were scheduled for a road game on Sunday (and they suck). At the same time CBS is predicting that the Bearcats will win the Big East and head to Miami to play Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

The team is 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the conference. Let’s start supporting them before it’s too late. Cincinnati has been waiting for a winner for many years now. Well we have one, and there are good tickets still available. Single game tickets can be purchased for as little as $35, and the Bearcats will be playing host to South Florida, Pittsburgh and Syracuse to finish out their home schedule.

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News

Cincinnati’s Cycling Scene

It’s no secret. Cincinnati’s cycling scene is a little lacking, and the effort put forth by the city to cater to this mode of transport is paltry at best. The City of Cincinnati states that there are 55 miles of bike routes, although 24 miles are signed. A bike route does not necessarily mean that it features a dedicated lane for cyclists or improved bicycle storage facilities, just that it is a city-preferred route. There are also only 200 bicycle racks in the city that boasts a population of over 300,000.

The city boasts that it has added six sets of bicycle lanes over the “past few years,” although if it is anything like what was added to Victory Parkway, in which the lanes only extend for 1/2 mile and connect to no other facilities or bike lanes and are entirely isolated, then this boasting may be a bit premature.

The city, though, is looking to create designated two-wheeled, motorized vehicle parking areas, and it would be nice if the city could extend that to implenting more bicycle racks throughout the study area.

For the month of September, UrbanCincy asked its readers what the city should do to cater to cyclists, and the response was pretty overwhelming:

  • 38% would like to see additional bike lanes and trails;
  • 16% wanted more bicycle facilities that include dedicated parking areas, lockers and showers;
  • 1% requested additional bike signage and striping on roadways;
  • 1% would like to see more bicycle co-ops;
  • and less than 1% wanted more driver and cyclist education programs.

Interesting enough, 50% wanted to see all five options implemented.

The demand is there for these facilities, and every day that I am out on the bike or walking the streets, I spot countless cyclists interacting in various ways with traffic. Some are commuters, others are racers, but many just don’t fall under any identifiable category. And the number of cyclists continue to increase, especially with weekly rides such as Cincinnati Mayhem and various rides from the local bicycle shops, and with the ever-popular end-of-the-month Critical Mass.

Finding information about these, though, is a bit cumbersome. Queen City Bike is a great resource and blog, where you can find up-to-date information. Although it is a new forum, CincyRides attempts to combine many of the divergent resources together into one convenient and accessible web-site.

Even though winter is fast approaching, it is still a great time to get out on the bike and become one of the many commuters who take to the streets every morning, or one of the many who bike for pleasure and health. An ever-greater bike presence will only result in ever-greater attention by the city, after all.

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News

The Seafarer at the ETC

The second show of Ensemble Theatre’s 08-09 Season is upon us. The critically acclaimed production of Connor McPherson’s The Seafarer, will kick off next Wednesday, October 15th. The production stars Dennis Parlato, Adrian Sparks, Joneal Joplin, Brian Isaac Phillips and John Librizzi, and is nominated for 4 Tony Awards including ‘Best Play’.

The Seafarer is a chilling new play about the sea, Ireland, and the power of myth. It’s Christmas Eve and Sharky has returned to Dublin to look after his irascible, aging brother who’s recently gone blind. Old drinking buddies Ivan and Nicky are holes up at the house too, hoping to play some cards. But with the arrival of an oddly familiar stranger, the stakes are raised even higher. Sharky may be playing for his very soul.

The show runs 2 hours and 20 minutes with a 15 minute intermission. Tickets can be purchased by calling the ETC box office at 513.421.3555 or via the internet. Ticket prices vary based on the day of the week and other possible discounts. You can also enter to win 2 FREE tickets as part of the ETC’s monthly drawing.

Read the NYTimes review of The Seafarer.

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News

UC Metro riders now need special card

If you’re one of the many people out there who have been taking advantage of UC/Metro fare deal that allows University of Cincinnati students, faculty and staff to ride Metro for free then you will find this of interest. The program has been so successful that they are making some changes to better track usage and prevent abuse.

All you have to do currently is flash your valid UC ID to ride. This will only work until October 19th; at that point you will have to use the special card to continue riding for free. You can get the special card by logging in to your UC account and providing some basic information (name, address, etc). Metro will then mail you your fare card within three business days and you’ll be all set to continue riding Metro for free.

The cards will function on a quarterly basis that corresponds with the UC quarter system. That means those who get their cards for this Fall Quarter will be able to use them until January 10, 2009 and then have to reapply for a Winter Quarter card. You can learn more about the program and its changes on Metro’s website.

Metro is currently working on a new fare system that will replace the 12-16 year old fare system that is currently used. Colin Groth, Community/Government Relations Manager at Metro, said the new system is still under development and will hopefully be running with the next year or so, but cautioned that funding is an issue.

The new system will feature ‘smart cards’ that will allow users to deposit funds and will automatically deduct those funds when the card is scanned for use. It is something that could be purchased at local stores and possibly linked with user’s banking accounts. It will be a proxy card system that will only require users to wave their card as they get on the bus.

Also new, Metro will be linked into GoogleTransit by the end of the year. This will allow users to go onto GoogleMaps and get directions the same way they always do. What this means is that users will have an option in addition to the walk or car options currently available on GoogleMaps for Cincinnati. Watch a quick YouTube video on how to use the map feature here.