Tag: economic

Categories
Business Development News

Greiwe Development to Break Ground on $35M Hyde Park Condo Building This Week

Developers are aiming to break ground on a $35 million condo building in Hyde Park this week, following a months-long demolition effort that began in late October and cleared the site of five existing buildings, some of which dated back 80 years.

Greiwe Development and North American Properties (NAP) say that the demolition work cleared the way for what will become a modern four-story building that will house 30 luxury condominiums at the corner of Observatory Avenue and Shaw Avenue in Hyde Park.

Named 2770 Observatory, the development will also include a 77-space underground parking level accessible from Shaw Avenue.

The development will boast some of the priciest new residences in the region, with units priced between $700,000 and $2 million.

“Hyde Park combines the sophisticated lifestyle of Cincinnati’s premier neighborhood with the exciting air of arts, innovative restaurants and blocks of unique shopping,” said Rick Greiwe, principal of Greiwe Development.

Not everyone is thrilled about the luxurious direction in which Hyde Park continues to head. Former residents expressed frustration to UrbanCincy, saying they were given notice to vacate their apartments “by the end of the month” so that demolition work could proceed.

Over the years, this transition has led to a migration of priced-out Hyde Park residents to seek more affordable options nearby in Oakley, East Hyde Park or Evanston.

Griewe, however, says that the vibrancy of Hyde Park Square is part of what drew his development team to this location, and that the active and engaging lifestyle of city living is what is appealing to his firm.

Both Montgomery and downtown Cincinnati are locations where Greiwe says they would like to do additional work.

The announcement of 2770 Observatory comes as a wave of residential infill projects have been sweeping across Cincinnati’s neighborhoods. Thousands of new residential units are either currently under construction or planned to get started soon in Northside, Walnut Hills, Downtown, Over-the-Rhine, College Hill, Corryville, Clifton Heights, Columbia Tusculum and Avondale.

Instead of the residences being rentals, as is the case for most other projects around the region, 2770 Observatory follows in the footsteps of 2801 Erie Avenue and Michigan Terrace, which were completed in 2009 and 2007, by injecting high-end condos into one of the city’s toniest neighborhoods.

Griewe Development has become known for high-end, urban residential projects. In Mariemont, the company has completed 106 units in the heart of the village. That overall development program has been built over four different phases including Emery Park, Nolen Park and Jordan Park.

The development team says that they are pursuing a LEED Silver certification for the Hyde Park project, and that it is being completed without any financial assistance from the City of Cincinnati.

Cincinnati-based GBBN worked as the lead architecture firm on the project, while Messer Construction has been selected to build it in conjunction with NAP. Construction work is expected to begin this week, with units becoming ready for occupancy in fall 2015.

Categories
Business News

The Littlefield to Bring Craft Bourbon Bar to Northside This June

Research & Development (Provided)

A craft bourbon bar called The Littlefield will open in Northside next month at 3930 Spring Grove Avenue. The approximately 400-square-foot establishment, which will also include a large outdoor terrace, is being opened by four neighborhood residents who say they have been working on the concept for at least four years.

Named after the family that built the house in the 1870s, The Littlefield is hoping to bring something different to the neighborhood that surrounds it, while also complimenting its history and culture. Co-owner Matt Distel says that the goal is to make The Littlefield a great neighborhood bar and kitchen, and hopes that the name grounds them in that direction.

Hoping to build on some of the history of Northside, the four co-owners conducted research in order to find the early settlers of the area, as well as the restaurants and bars that have anchored the neighborhood over the years.

“Ultimately we decided that naming our place after the people who built the actual building in the 1870s was the most direct link we could make,” Distel stated. “These other local histories will find their way into The Littlefield through our menus and artwork.”

While history was a big focus for The Littlefield, it is the food and drink about which the owners are passionate. They say that their main focus is bourbon, bourbon-based cocktails, regional beers and food that pairs well with those offerings.

“We [Cincinnati] were a bit ahead of the curve in terms of bourbon popularity and now you can find a decent bourbon selection around town,” Distel told UrbanCincy. “Fortunately our own interest in bourbon has not waned in the slightest nor does it seem that its popularity is anywhere near decline.”

That being said, the team behind The Littlefield says that they will offer a lot more than just bourbon.

Distel says that they will offer an extensive collection of regional and craft beers, and a full-service bar that will have a wide variety of cocktails and a “thoughtful” wine list.

The group has received help from Shoshannah Friedman, former chef at Honey, when it came to developing their menu. To that end, they say they will also join a growing collection of establishments in sourcing as many local products as possible.

Distel expects to welcome The Littlefield‘s first customers in June; however, no official opening date has been set. Hours of operation have also yet to be finalized.

Categories
Business Development News

Eli’s Barbeque, Maverick Chocolate First of Several New Tenants to Open at Findlay Market

Findlay Market business leaders and city officials gathered this morning on Elder Street to announce two new tenants that will soon open.

One of the new establishments will be the wildly popular Eli’s Barbeque, while the other is called Maverick Chocolate, which is a craft chocolate maker that will produce its product direct from cocoa beans at the shop.

The announcement comes following a several month-long renovation of three store fronts on the south side of the Market House. According to Findlay Market management, the City of Cincinnati’s Department of Trade & Development contributed approximately $500,000 to “whitebox” the three spaces – each of which is around 1,000 square feet in size.

“We’ve had a pretty significant amount of interest in these spaces, especially the final one of the three remaining,” Joe Hansbauer, President and CEO of Findlay Market, explained to UrbanCincy.

Findlay Market Storefronts

Hansbauer says that concept behind Maverick is similar to the craft coffee movement that emerged several years ago, and explained that this will be the first bean-to-bar chocolate manufacturer in Ohio.

Meanwhile, business leaders say that the real exciting thing about Eli’s, aside from the fact that they are returning to the place where they got their start years ago, is that they will stay open until 9pm six days a week.

“This will create an opportunity to generate a little more activity in the evening,” Hansbauer said. “We’re talking to some other tenants, mostly on the exterior of the Market House, where they may stay open later as well.”

While interest has been extremely high in the lone remaining space in between Eli’s and Maverick, Findlay Market management says that they are being selective with the eventual tenant for that space, and are hoping to fill it with something that is not already available at the market.

When asked what kinds of places they are seeking out, Hansbauer said that Findlay Market would love to add a smoked meat place that does their production on-site, a cookware store to compliment the market’s retail offerings, and a Hispanic grocer to help fill a gap in available food offerings.

A big goal, however, is to increase the amount of foot traffic and business activity on the quiet south side of the Market House, and improve visibility for existing businesses like Saigon Market and others.

Over the coming months, Findlay Market shoppers can expect even more changes as additional storefronts are built out on that side of Elder Street. Once all of this work is complete by the end of the year, Hansbauer expects all of the storefronts on the south side of the Market House to be occupied, with the exceptions of Luken’s cold storage building and Mr. Pig building.

One of the more prominent spaces he expects to fill up soon is the storefront at the corner of Race and Elder Streets, where the owners are looking for a café to set up shop.

“All of this will do a tremendous amount for creative foot traffic and creative vibrancy on that side of the market,” Hansbauer emphasized.

Since taking his post at Findlay Market last January, Hansbauer says that one of the challenges has been the growth in popularity of Ohio’s oldest public market. He says that there is constant interest in people wanting to open up stands inside the Market House, but no room for them to go since it is fully leased.

As a result, management and city leaders will be looking to expand the retail footprint out into the surrounding neighborhood.

“People are interested in buying and eating local, and that push has driven a significant increase in shoppers for us over the past couple of years,” Hansbauer concluded. “But the renaissance of Over-the-Rhine continues to benefit Findlay Market not only due to all the new residents, but also with those former shoppers who are feeling comfortable once again with coming to this neighborhood.”

Both Eli’s Barbeque and Maverick Chocolate signed three-year license agreements for their spaces. The third space included in this project is currently available and those interested in it can contact Joe Hansbauer at jhansbauer@findlaymarket.org or 513-604-7567.

Categories
News Opinion Transportation

PHOTOS: The Rebirth and Hype of Medellín Does Not Disappoint

Metro Cable Acevedo Line

It is not hard to understand why Medellín is being considered by many to be Colombia’s gem city.

From the moment I moved to Colombia, everyone I met talked about Medellín with a gleam in their eye. I half-expected to be disappointed once I finally arrived because of all the hype. Once I did arrive in the city, however, disappointment was not the reaction.

Sitting in a valley, surrounded by mountains on all sides, Medellín is an impressively modern city in the midst of a country still modernizing. Endowed with beautiful weather, clean environment and efficient work culture, it is a powerful part of the Colombian economy. For a city that a mere 20 years ago was among the most dangerous in the world, the transformation is remarkable and attests to the will of the people of Medellín.

Medellín’s transportation system consists of two grade-separated rail lines (elevated and ground-level), three metro cable lines, and two bus rapid transit lines. Maps of the metro system show a future extension of the smaller of the two rail lines.

While one of the metro cable lines is mostly for tourists, the other two have transformed commutes that used to take two hours through the winding streets of the city’s informal, working class neighborhoods into a short ride above the city that connects with the rail lines below. In addition to this, the city has a public bike share system.

While I was unable to see the extent to which the system was employed, the fact that they had it was very impressive. To go along with their bike share system, the city had a clear system of bike lanes on many of the streets. The city also has several grade-separated highways and large arterial roads, a problem in many Colombian cities.

In the first official episode of The UrbanCincy Podcast, we were joined by Natalia Gomez Rojas, a city planner from Bogotá, to discuss Colombia’s pursuit and implementation of bus rapid transit. The discussion also touched on a number of societal issues facing Colombia’s cities as they continue to develop and evolve in a post-drug cartel era. You can subscribe to The UrbanCincy Podcast on iTunes for free.

Categories
Business Development News

Townhomes Removed from Development Plan for The Banks

Townhomes at The Banks

Hamilton County leaders announced last Thursday that they had struck a deal with the Cincinnati Bengals regarding a number of issues pertaining to the county’s stadium contract with the team.

The biggest component of that new agreement is that the Bengals will waive their veto right over the heights of buildings at The Banks. This clause in the stadium deal, signed in 1997, delayed the start of construction of Phase IIA work at The Banks by more than a year, and posed a significant risk to the City of Cincinnati in its efforts to lure General Electric and its new Global Operations Center to the central riverfront.

Now that the agreement is signed, developers of The Banks have announced that they will immediately begin construction on Phase IIA project that will include 291 apartments and 19,000 square feet of retail space.

Should the city succeed in its efforts to land General Electric’s facility at The Banks, it is expected that its new office tower would either be located at the office pad within the Phase I footprint, or more likely on top of the street-level retail adjacent to the apartment midrise at Phase IIA.

The development team believes both sites could accommodate the approximately 400,000 square feet of office space desired by General Electric.

The announcement also brought with it renewed questions about the status of the hotel at Phase I, located immediately across the street from Great American Ball Park. On that note, the developers said that they are still working to sign a hotel operator for the space, and that it is unlikely it will be completed ahead of the 2015 MLB All-Star Game.

That leaves only one element of Phase I of The Banks still in question – the oft-forgotten townhomes lining the Schmidlapp Event Lawn.

When asked about the status of the townhomes, and if their delay in moving forward was related to constructability issues with the adjacent and unbuilt hotel site, Libby Korosec, spokeswoman for The Banks development team, said that there are no longer plans for townhomes at that location.

Korosec went on to say that the future of that particular site has yet to be determined, but that it is possible it could be used as part of the hotel, but that no decisions have been made.

“That site was originally planned to have six to eight townhomes, which is not really an efficient number to go in and build,” Korosec explained. “Not only was it not efficient, but it also wasn’t going to be a very good environment for townhomes with all the in and out traffic nearby.”

Korosec noted that the elimination of townhomes from the Phase I footprint does not mean that townhomes will not be built elsewhere. In fact, she said that the development team believes there are other sites at The Banks that would be better suited for such housing.

Part of the change can also be explained by the housing bubble that burst around the time construction started at the site.

“The market on condos and townhomes turned south just when we signed the MDA,” Korosec said. “However, homeownership via condos is still a strong possibility at The Banks for future phases should the market demand it.”

The development team opted to forgo building condos at $91 million Phase IA of The Banks, and instead built apartments due to the housing downturn. The decision has proved successful as apartments at The Banks fetch some of the highest prices per square foot in the region and have a waiting list of approximately 60 people.

Since that time the MDA was signed, however, the owner-occupied housing market has shown signs of life throughout the center city where there is currently little supply available. Recent developments, led by 3CDC in Over-the-Rhine, have sold quickly and, in some cases, for more than $300 per square foot.

The Banks development has drawn a significant amount of publicity since its first phase opened in 2011, but work is far from over at the massive riverfront project site. As of now, The Banks is only approximately one-third of the way built out.