Tag: Politics

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Up To Speed

Cincinnati’s form-based code moment in time

Cincinnati’s form-based code moment in time.

Cincinnati officials continue to push forward with a new effort that would bring a form-based zoning code to the Queen City. The move wouldn’t be the first in the nation, nor would it be the first in the region, but it would be one of the biggest and most noteworthy. More from Better! Cities & Towns:

Choosing and refining a form-based organizing principle for a city the size of Cincinnati with such a diverse range of pre-1940s urban patterns and a rich urban morphology is one of the most challenging, but underappreciated aspects of creating a form-based code. For Cincinnati, the urban-to-rural Transect was selected as the organizing principle and was up to the task. The calibration of the Transect allowed the team to create a framework that would reinforce the fine-grain fabric and rich palette of building types that are an important part of defining the community character of the city’s urban neighborhoods.

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Business News

UrbanCincy launches new monthly networking event for urban professionals

On Tuesday, July 3, UrbanCincy will host the first of what will become a monthly networking event for urban professionals. The event, called URBANexchange, will take place from 5:30pm to 7:30pm on the first Tuesday of every month at the Moerlein Lager House.

URBANexchange is meant to not only engage active urban professionals, but also those who have a general interest in urbanism and want to exchange thoughts and ideas with others with similar passions. The event will be casual in nature and is meant to serve as a place to exchange ideas and build personal networks.


The Moerlein Lager House along Cincinnati’s central riverfront. Photograph by Cory Klein.

UrbanCincy has partnered with The Urbanists, who previously helped foster iRhine, to activate the region’s network of individuals interested in continuing the urban renaissance taking place in Cincinnati.

“In previous years the collection of engaged urbanists in Cincinnati has grown, but it has largely been focused in center city neighborhoods,” explained UrbanCincy owner, Randy Simes. “This event is meant to serve as a gathering place for urbanists throughout the region in an effort to grow that base of individuals advocating for better public policy.”

The inaugural event will take place at the Moerlein Lager House’s second-floor bar overlooking the new Smale Riverfront Park and historic Roebling Suspension Bridge. Thanks to Metro, those who sign-in will have a chance at winning four tickets to the World Choir Games’ Champions Concert on Saturday, July 14.

Future URBANexchange dates will be announced on UrbanCincy.com and through Facebook. URBANexchange is free and open to the public, and those attending are encouraged to use Metro bus service to get to the Moerlein Lager House and the World Choir Games should you be the lucky winner of the free tickets.

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Up To Speed

What if mayors ruled the world?

What if mayors ruled the world?.

It can be argued that government structures are set up in a way that under-represent cities, but some argue that mayors are actually the ones taking care of business. And one renowned political scientist is speaking out about the idea to shake up the world’s political bodies in a new book. More from The Atlantic:

The question raised in Jihad vs. McWorld was whether there were inter-state and global institutions that could mediate the tensions between modernity and its aggressive materialism (McWorld) and the reactionary forces of “Jihad” that opposed it. It was increasingly apparent to me that traditional state-based organizations like the U.N. and the Bretton Woods institutions were paralyzed by sovereignty and distorted by private market relations and could not do much to further the interests of global democracy in the space between Jihad and McWorld.

As a result, I began to look at alternative building blocks for global governance — at which point the city appeared as a natural candidate; and one, it turned out, that was already deeply engaged in networking and transnational cooperation. The city was the solution to the hard question of whether there was a global form of democracy.

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Development News Politics

City officials hoping for surge of resident input on final day of community planning survey

Plan; Build; Live; these three words represent the process of developing and implementing a future vision. Cincinnati recently embarked on an endeavor to reform its land development codes and streamline the process of applying for a building permit.

The initiative which is aptly named, PlanBuildLive aims to achieve comprehensive reforms including the development of the city’s first form-based code.


PLAN Cincinnati Open House. Image provided.

Last month, the city hosted a four-day,city-wide Urban Design Workshop to engage residents in building a better community. One of the exercises from the workshop included a six question survey about city priorities.

The survey, called, What Would You Tell Her?, starts by stating that a friend has recently been elected to City Council, and then lists some options of advice the participant would give to their council friend on certain issues. Participants are also encouraged to come up with their own solutions to the hypothetical problems.

According to Della Rucker, who is working on the PlanBuildLive initiative, the survey “asks people imaginary but pretty real-world-relevant questions about urban development and maintenance regulation issues.”

Rucker went on to say that the survey has received a lot of responses thus far. Those interested in taking the online survey can do so through today. Results will then be released in-person and online after June 20.

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Up To Speed

Is Over-the-Rhine one of America’s fastest gentrifying neighborhoods?

Is Over-the-Rhine one of America’s fastest gentrifying neighborhoods?.

Local news outlets and engaged individuals have been asking about the impact Over-the-Rhine’s transformation has had on its existing residents and businesses. The question is about gentrification and the displacement it can cause. But where are the fastest gentrifying neighborhoods in America? More from The Atlantic:

They’re pretty much all located in the hearts of their cities’ downtowns. These are parts of cities that have seen increased attention from housing developers and both renters and buyers in recent years. With more housing now available in downtowns, their populations are increasing.