Tag: urban design

Categories
Business Development News Opinion

Land swap could provide Port Authority immediate economic development opportunity

Hamilton County Commissioner Chris Monzel (R) has repeatedly stated that the county should not be in the parking business. In doing so, Monzel has suggested that Hamilton County sell off its parking assets at The Banks and elsewhere in downtown Cincinnati.

An exclusive UrbanCincy analysis shows that Hamilton County currently has approximately $38.7 million worth of parking assets at The Banks sitting on land valued by the Hamilton County Auditor at $10.4 million.

At the same time, Hamilton County and leaders from the City of Cincinnati keep working to find ways to work together. One of those strategies has led to the increased investment, by both the city and county, in the Cincinnati Port Authority. The idea, officials say, is that the Port Authority could become a Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) equivalent at the county level.

As leaders work with the Port Authority’s new CEO, Laura Brunner, they should explore selling or trading these parking assets to parking management companies that control potentially developable land elsewhere. Five unique locations come to mind throughout downtown Cincinnati.

4th & Plum:
This lot has long sat vacant, and had been speculated for a mid-rise condominium tower within the past decade. Nothing has happened, but UrbanCincy has previously opined that this collection of two parcels would be ideal for a small dog park and residential mid-rise, or even a small park designed to accommodate public debate. The 1.71-acre piece of land is valued at $6.1 million.


View Hamilton County Land Bank Proposal in a larger map.

7th & Vine:
Two small parking lots occupy this eastern portion of Vine Street at the edge of Piatt Park, and just north of Fountain Square. The property sits within a stretch of several blocks that include restaurants, nightclubs, bars and local shops.

A residential high-rise with street-level retail would seem to be an ideal candidate for this .6-acre plot of land in the heart of the city center. Previously, UrbanCincy has suggested that this street-level space might be a perfect, and centrally located, spot for a small urban grocery store. In total, the land and its improvements are valued at approximately $2.8 million.

Central & Walnut:
This particular site is chopped up into eight different parcels with various owners, but it is also located adjacent to the Hamilton County Administrative Offices, Hamilton County Courthouse, and sits immediately on the phase one route of the Cincinnati Streetcar.

In total, the .8-acre piece of land is valued at $2.3 million and would make an ideal site for an 8-10 story structure housing either offices or residences.

Court & Walnut:
Located immediately south of the previous site, this .9-acre location is valued at $2.3 million and will also be a prime location along the new modern streetcar line connecting the central riverfront with the northern reaches of historic Over-the-Rhine.

Similar to the 9th & Walnut site, this location includes seven different parcels owned by more than one entity, and would be well-suited for the same type of development.

9th & Main:
This .28-acre site is the smallest of all those identified, but has a total value of $904,000. While the site is relatively small, it also sits right on phase one of the Cincinnati Streetcar route, and would serve as an attractive residential infill site.

In total all of the sites would account for just over one-third of the total appraised value of Hamilton County’s parking assets at The Banks. UrbanCincy proposes that the county either sell off those assets at The Banks, and use the proceeds to purchase these non-county-owned sites, or trade those assets to parking management companies for their property downtown.

This endeavor would rid the county of the parking facilities it does not wish to maintain, while also seeding the Cincinnati Port Authority with new capital and resources to use for economic development activities. The end result would also create more tax generating properties on the region’s most valuable real estate.

Categories
Business Development News

Construction to begin on $78M mixed-use development uptown

After lengthy delays, U Square at The Loop, a new mixed-use development planned for Calhoun and West McMillan streets just south of the University of Cincinnati’s campus, is finally set to begin construction in January.

For Clifton Heights, it means the largest development since University Park Apartments (UPA) was completed in the fall of 2005. But for residents, it will mean construction and traffic detours through much of 2012 that will transform a long-vacant piece of real estate into $78 million development.

The site once housed a smattering of drive-thru restaurants and a small collection of historic building stock, but was cleared in 2003 to make way for the development. The project then became entangled in a messy eminent domain case with Acropolis Chili and Inn the Wood restaurants which did not end until 2005 when UPA was completed across the street.


The $78M U Square at The Loop development is set to break ground in January 2012.

“While there is undoubtedly a lot of work converging at once, we have phased a lot of other work in prior years,” explained Clifton Heights Urban Redevelopment Corporation (CHCURC) director Matt Bourgeois in reference to various streetscaping projects, renovation of Classen Park in 2010, and construction of 65 West Apartments in 2011.

Developers anticipate groundbreaking on U Square at The Loop to take place in January 2012 on more than 150 apartments, two parking garages totaling 750 spaces, office and retail space. The final hurdle has been financing, and was finally cleared when the University of Cincinnati (UC) signed a lease on 40,000 square feet of office space for its Campus Services Department.

The lease signed by UC then triggered the signing of several retailers which had signed letters of intent on approximately nine-percent of the development’s total street-level retail space. Those retailers include DiBella’s Old Fashioned Submarines, Great Clips and Firehouse Subs.

Growing Pains
Final drawings and permit acquisition for the project are currently underway, with site excavation set to begin soon. Developers say that the project’s two blocks—one primarily office and one primarily residential—will undergo construction simultaneously, with the residential component set to begin in late February and the office component to begin in mid-April.

Though the smaller office block is expected to be complete by the end of 2012, developers do not expect the site’s residential component to be finished until July 2013. At the same time, city officials will continue streetscape improvements throughout Clifton Heights which will include two phases of work in the spring of 2012.

“Both projects are a part of the original urban renewal plan from 10-plus years ago and they are finally coming to fruition,” Bourgeois stated. “I wouldn’t discount the “growing pains” that are part of that, but I think that was to be expected and it becomes simply a matter of planning and managing a difficult scenario with the construction and maintaining good communication.”

A future phase of the development at U Square at The Loop includes the vacant “Gateway” site at Vine Street and Calhoun Street. There, a mid-rise office building is envisioned at what would become the junction between Uptown and Downtown streetcar lines.

“Our goals [set forth in the urban renewal plan] are being met and that is certainly something to celebrate,” concluded Bourgeois. “This is a continuation of that work, and another hugely positive step towards the rejuvenation of the Clifton Heights business district.”

Categories
Development News Transportation

Cincinnati selects final streetcar station design

The City of Cincinnati has chosen a final design for 18 station shelters along phase one of the Cincinnati Streetcar route. Designed by Cincinnati-based DNK Architects, the stations are described as clean, minimal and are compliant with the US Department of Transportation “Buy America” guidelines. The firm researched station designs in other cities, and developed a design that would be easily recognized and protect riders from the elements for the short time they will be waiting at stops.

“The streetcar project is a series of smaller pieces that must come together before construction of the track begins. The shelter design is another milestone in that list of items,” said Chris Eilerman, the City’s Streetcar Project Manager. “This design combines a modern look, while at the same time, fits in with the historic architecture served by the streetcar.”


The stations along the Cincinnati Streetcar route will have a clean, contemporary design like this one shown outside the Main Library.

Project officials say that the modular design ensures various elements will be easy to maintain and replace. The materials themselves are thin, light, and durable – allowing natural light to come in while protecting waiting riders from the elements. Each station will include a route map, information about the streetcar system and an electronic sign displaying the arrival time of the next car, as well as other important messages for riders.

“We designed the station structures to call to mind what the streetcar will bring to Cincinnati — a public transportation system that everyone can use to connect to neighborhoods,” said David Kirk, founder and principle architect, DNK Architects, and lead architect for the streetcar station design. “We want people to look at the stations and see how easy, safe, and comfortable it is to explore all that Cincinnati has to offer.”

Selection of the station design was the final step in reaching a complete design on the first segment of the Cincinnati Streetcar. In order to reach final design, the streetcar team completed a number of other critical steps, including surveys of the entire route, inspections of basements near the route that lie under sidewalks, coordination of vehicle options, completion of an independent peer review of the project and performance of a quality control review of the entire project.

Next steps for the project are continued negotiations to reach agreements with utility companies. The shelters will be built as part of the construction contract, which is scheduled to be bid in the first quarter of 2012.

Categories
Business Development News

Historic Schiel School to make way for $20M development in Corryville

Demolition work has begun on the 100-year-old Schiel School in Corryville. The school has long served as a landmark for the Short Vine business district, but was closed by Cincinnati Public Schools in 2010.

To preservationists the demolition of the school marks yet another dramatic loss to the historic fabric of Uptown, but to many urbanists the $20 million development to take its place marks a turning point for the long-troubled business district on the east side of the University of Cincinnati’s main campus.

“Greater residential density will support the existing and incoming merchants and add the kind of vitality that helps to enrich and secure a neighborhood,” says Kathleen Norris who is the vice president of Brandt Retail Group’s Urban Focus division. “Housing of this quality is likely to attract not only undergraduates but also grad students and even area professionals from the educational and medical communities.”


The historic Schiel School is prepared for demolition in Corryville.

Project officials say that the five-story, mixed-use development will include 102 apartments geared towards students, and several street-level retail spaces. Fifth Third Bank has already signed on as one of the retail tenants, and will serve as the retail anchor for the project.

The development is part of a larger wave of multi-story residential development sweeping through historic uptown neighborhoods like Clifton Heights, Corryville, Clifton, University Heights, Avondale and Mt. Auburn. The developer of this project, Uptown Rentals, now has three developments within the immediate vicinity of Short Vine that are bringing hundreds of new housing units to Corryville.


A new $20M mixed-use development will rise where one of Short Vine’s most prominent historic structures once stood.

Visitors to the area will also notice other residential developments nearby including one such project sits almost immediately across the street from the Schiel School site on Short Vine. There, older structures have already been cleared, and the new development is now rising from the ground.

Community leaders in Corryville do expect the redevelopment of the Schiel School site (map) to transform the Short Vine business district, and it also seems certain that the addition of hundreds of new residents to the neighborhood will change the area’s demographics and urban form.

“Business at Dive Bar is great and has been steadily growing,” said Joe Pedro, owner of the recently opened establishment. “We see the new residential units being constructed in the neighborhood as an excellent driver for the business district, and ultimately we are excited to see new tenants coming to the street and feel it will positively impact all of the businesses in the area.”

Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story included an incorrect rendering for the $20 million redevelopment of the historic Schiel School site in Corryville.

Categories
Business Development News

Architectural Foundation of Cincinnati kicks off 2012 DIY Urbanism Competition

The Architectural Foundation of Cincinnati (AFC) and the University of Cincinnati Niehoff Urban Studio have launched the DIY Urbanism Competition 2012 for the city of Cincinnati. Organizers say that the competition is looking for entrants to identify the most creative visions for temporary installations that could enhance the use, perception, and enjoyment of public space in urban areas throughout Cincinnati.

Entries for the DIY Urbanism Competition 2012 are open to individuals or groups associated with architecture, planning, art, or design disciplines that reside or operate within the Cincinnati region. Students must be currently enrolled.

Organizers state that proposals may vary in content from architectural, fine art, or programming concepts, but must be illustrated for a site specific context. A $10 entry fee paid upon delivery, and competition work must be submitted to the AFC by January 18.

The Exhibit Opening Reception and announcement of winners will take place on Tuesday, February 7. Winners for ‘Best in Show’ and ‘Best Student Work’ will be awarded $500 and $200 respectively from the AFC.

More information about registration, design submissions and the competition is available through the University of Cincinnati Community Design Center website. Questions may be addressed by email only to design.center@uc.edu. All questions and answers will then be compiled and posted on the competition web site.