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Up To Speed

Clock is ticking on Music Hall renovation deal

Clock is ticking on Music Hall renovation deal.

The group tasked with overseeing the massive renovation of Music Hall has said that the time to act is now. Meanwhile, prominent arts philanthropists have said that they not only want to see the City of Cincinnati contribute $10 million to the project, but also give up ownership of the historic structure to the management group. More from the Cincinnati Business Courier:

Music Hall Revitalization Co. (MHRC) President Jack Rouse has said his group will dissolve if the deal isn’t done by June 1. The nonprofit was formed in early 2010 to jump-start the renovation project, which had been talked about for years. Devey said dissolution of MHRC would be a real loss for the effort to restore Music Hall, which has serious maintenance problems that need to be fixed no matter what.

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Arts & Entertainment Development News

Weekend events to celebrate new riverfront park, progress in Over-the-Rhine

This weekend is poised to be a busy one with a variety of unique events taking place throughout the basin. We do not often plug events nowadays, but this is a weekend where you do not want to be absent from Downtown and Over-the-Rhine.

GoOTR 5k + Summer Celebration
The next big event will take place Saturday morning in historic Over-the-Rhine. The sixth annual GoOTR 5k will begin at 10am, and will raise money for the Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce. While online registration has closed, those interested can still register in person today from 5pm to 7pm, 11am to 7:30pm on Friday, or immediately prior to the race on Saturday starting at 8:30am.


Festival-goers enjoy the 2009 OTR Summer Celebration. Photograph by Randy A. Simes for UrbanCincy.

The race is the first leg of the Cincinnati Triple Crown. The winner will receive a custom trophy from Rookwood Pottery and the rights to continue on their hunt for Triple Crown glory at the Hyde Park Blast and Downtown Dash.

The accompanying OTR Summer Celebration will take place immediately following the completion of the race along Vine Street between 12th and 13th streets. Officially starting at 4pm, the street fair will include local merchants and live music from Wussy, Josh Eagle and the Harvest City, Shiny and the Spoon, The Cincy Brass, Young Professionals Choral Collective, Pones Inc., and a special performance from the Blue Wisp’s Young Lions and their legendary jazz drummer Philip Paul.

Smale Riverfront Park Grand Opening
On Friday evening, city officials and community leaders will celebrate the grand opening of the first phase of the Smale Riverfront Park. The new park is the latest piece of Cincinnati’s central riverfront transformation. The completed first phase includes the area along Mehring Way between the Roebling Suspension Bridge and Great American Ball Park, and includes the Moerlein Lager House, an event lawn, multiple water features, monuments and the new Bike Mobility Visitors Center.

The bike center is seen another step forward for the city’s bike program after recently receiving an award from the League of American Bicyclists. The facility features bike rentals, shower stations, lockers and indoor bicycle parking, along with a knowledgeable staff at the center to perform bicycle repairs.

The grand opening celebration will begin at 6:15pm at the Schmidlapp Event Lawn, and will feature live music, free UDF ice cream, and a fireworks show at dusk. Those looking for a sneak peek of the new park can view the most recent construction progress video on YouTube.

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Business Development News

Yard House to open first Ohio restaurant along Cincinnati’s central riverfront

The Banks development team announced today that Yard House, an upscale American fusion restaurant with 100-250 taps, will open its first location in Ohio on Cincinnati’s central riverfront.

The 10,000-square-foot restaurant will be the first stand-alone commercial tenant at The Banks, and will be located immediately in front of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center at the corner of Walnut Street and Freedom Way. Project officials say that the new structure will have an urban, industrial design featuring an open floor plan, exposed pipes, warm moods and stainless steel accents.


The Banks development has exceeded expectations in its first phase of development, and may soon break ground on phase two. Photograph by Randy A. Simes for UrbanCincy.

“Yard House will be a great addition to The Banks,” stated Scott Stringer, executive vice president at Carter, in a prepared release. “We are committed to making sure The Banks becomes a destination with unique entertainment and eating options. Yard House helps us recognize that vision.”

The restaurant was originally started along Los Angeles’ famed Long Beach waterfront nearly 16 years ago and has since spread across the United States to 38 select cities. In addition to this being Yard House’s first location in Ohio, it will become only their second Midwestern location with the other being located in Chicago.

The location is one of two buildable sites in front of the NURFC intended for restaurants, and will be located across from Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse which is currently under construction.

With phase one of development almost entirely occupied, speculation will now turn to when the second phase of construction will get underway. Cincinnati Mayor Mallory has already hinted that groundbreaking could take place this summer.

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Business Development News

Latest phase of Stetson Square takes on new urban form

Developers will break ground on more housing uptown in Corryville in the near future. The project will be the second phase of the $80 million Village of Stetson Square development located immediately south of University Hospital, and will include 18 residential units.

The four new buildings will be built at Eden Avenue and E. Rochelle Street – one of two vacant pieces of land owned by developer Great Traditions Land & Development.


Village of Stetson Square phase two renderings provided by e3 design collective.

While the Village of Stetson Square has achieved great success with its existing 205 apartments, 53 townhomes, and 95,000 square feet of commercial space, the last two pieces of land have sat undeveloped since 2006.

At the time, the development team said the two sites would be developed at a later date based on market demand. With the housing market starting to settle, and the uptown housing market booming, it appears like it may finally be time to finish what was started almost a decade ago.

New renderings, provided exclusively to UrbanCincy, show that the new phase of construction about to being will take on a decidedly different urban form from the rest of the development which includes four- to five-story buildings alongside tightly built townhomes.

While apartments are at capacity throughout uptown, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the new residential offerings will be for-sale units priced in the $200,000s due to a desire by the Corryville community to boost home ownership rates in the historic neighborhood.

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Up To Speed

60-unit apartment building planned for Madison Road in Oakley

60-unit apartment building planned for Madison Road in Oakely

A new development being called Oakley Lofts would bring 60 one- and two-bedroom apartments to Madison Road at Appleton Street. More from the Cincinnati Enquirer:

The five-story building will have a commercial component on the first floor. The upper floors will be residential. Chris Bortz, a director of special projects for Towne Properties and a former Cincinnati City Council member, said the apartment complex is a good fit for the neighborhood.