Tag: walnut hills

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News Transportation

Designs Released for Two-Way Street Conversions in East Walnut Hills

Following an open house held in late November, officials from Cincinnati’s Department of Transportation & Engineering (DOTE) have released preliminary drawings that illustrate how portions of E. McMillan Street and William Howard Taft Road will be converted from one-way to two-way streets.

The two-way street conversion is under consideration now and will take into account public comments submitted through December 1. This particular project is a continuation of earlier two-way conversions on these same streets in 2012.

At the time residents in East Walnut Hills resisted the two-way street conversion, which then instead progressed only within Walnut Hills. Due to the success of that traffic pattern conversion, City officials say, neighborhood residents and leaders in East Walnut Hills have asked for the full project to continue as originally planned.

This second segment would convert E. McMillan Street between Victory Parkway and Woodburn Avenue, and Woodburn Avenue between E. McMillan Street and Taft Road. Once completed, the total project will have converted both streets from Woodburn Avenue on the east to May Street on the west near I-71.

The potentially biggest change will come at the intersection of Woodburn Avenue and William Howard Taft Road. According to the drawings, the existing center island at the three-way intersection would be substantially reduced in size in order to accommodate the new traffic patterns. A smaller version of the existing island would remain after the conversion.

The project is supported by the Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation, and is located in an area that is experiencing an influx of new businesses and private investment.

Categories
Month in Review News

Month in Review – November 2014

Corryville

Wasson Corridor Walk

In November, UrbanCincy readers enjoyed a collection of beautiful aerial photos of Cincinnati taken by Brian Spitzig. Two articles about the redevelopment of the Northern Liberties area of Over-the-Rhine were also quite popular. Our top five most popular posts, in descending order, were:

  1. Take a Look at These 20 Breathtaking Photos of Cincinnati’s Center City
    Brian Spitzig, an occasional contributor to UrbanCincy, recently took a flight around the inner city to take what turned out to be some incredible aerial photography. In part one of a two-part series, we share 20 of his photographs of Downtown and Over-the-Rhine.
  2. Check Out These 14 Amazing Images of Cincinnati’s Inner City Neighborhoods
    These 14 photographs capture views of the West End, Queensgate, Corryville, Mt. Auburn, Mt. Adams, Clifton Heights, Walnut Hills and University Heights.
  3. Findlay Market Ready to Work With Developers Poised to Transform Area Around It
    “The Corporation for Findlay Market expects to be heavily involved in all the new retail, working with property owners on product mix,” said Joe Hansbauer, President and CEO of Findlay Market. “We will be careful to make sure that competition exists, without diluting.”
  4. Film Center Renovation to be First Project in Northern Liberties for Urban Sites
    Over the next 18 months, Urban Sites will put together a development plan for the property. The company is considering office space or residential as potential uses for the building.
  5. An Indie Guide to Cincinnati During the Holidays
    Black Friday is over, but shoppers still have plenty of opportunities to support local businesses and find unique gifts.

 

Categories
Development News

St. James Pocket Park To Clean Up Eye Sore, Crime Hot Spot in Walnut Hills

St. James Pocket Park [Provided]

The St. James cut through in Walnut Hills has been the focus of a significant amount of attention in recent months. It is a pedestrianized walkway between McMillan Street and Curtis Street that has been a crime hot spot.

As the City’s NEP program – a targeted 90-day sweep of code enforcement, law enforcement and beautification – moved into Walnut Hills, Curtis Street and the St. James cut through became focal points of the program.

The cut through is street-width with an adjacent parking lot to the west. It is a high traffic pedestrian path due to the presence of Kroger and a CVS across McMillan Street at the cut-through terminus. It currently contains post-modern design elements with existing, neglected raised cement beds for landscaping.

In order to improve the aesthetics and safety of the space, neighborhood leaders have begun raising funds to improve it. The rejuvenation of the space will not require an entire overhaul, but rather a reimagining, which has been led by MKSK Design, an architectural firm with offices in Covington.

“We hope to facilitate the activation of a vibrant, positive urban space through design,” said the lead designer of the project, Julianna Silveira of MKSK. “The design now is harsh, with a lot of concrete – the design will make it greener, with bright colors, and an ideal location for arts and cultural events.”

The parking lot portion of the park will be “depaved”, a process whereby parking lots are dismantled, and re-designed using naturalized elements and pervious surfaces. The kiosk in the middle of the park will be repurposed into a book-share station.

Over the past month, volunteers have been picking up garbage, painting, planting and have otherwise been active in the space’s incremental transformation. The St. James cut-through is affectionately being called the St. James Pocket Park within the neighborhood, as it is now looking more like a place one might stop and enjoy, rather than just, well, cut-through.

Although there is still work to be done, the park was chosen as the wrap-up location for the NEP on November 14. The event was attended by Mayor John Cranley (D), numerous city and neighborhood leaders, as well as the Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation and The Model Group, who unveiled renderings for the Trevarren Flats, a mixed-use apartment project that will utilize a historic structure a stone’s throw away from the park.

Later that night, a jazz concert was held in what is now the parking lot portion – event organizers were pleased to discover that the acoustics in the space were ideal for concerts, and provided encouragement for future events that could be held there.

So far the idea for the pocket park has been well-received, and the community’s ideas for how to improve it even earned it a spot in the finals of The Orbit Challenge, which could mean a $5,000 grant to help further the progress.

If any members of the public seek to be involved in any part of the park’s transformation, either through submitting ideas or volunteering, information can be found at the kiosk in the center of the park or on the St. James Pocket Park Facebook Page.

Categories
Arts & Entertainment News

Check Out These 14 Amazing Images of Cincinnati’s Inner City Neighborhoods

University of Cincinnati [Brian Spitzig]

The first part of this two-part series proved to be very popular. While last week’s edition focused on aerial photographs of the center city, this week’s collection looks at neighborhoods just outside the city center.

As previously noted, Brian Spitzig is studying urban planning at the University of Cincinnati and is an occasional contributor to UrbanCincy. He recently took a flight over the city to capture these photographs.

We went through hundreds of photographs that he took and selected some of the best for you. The following 14 photographs capture views of the West End, Queensgate, Corryville, Mt. Auburn, Mt. Adams, Clifton Heights, Walnut Hills and University Heights.

If you like what you see here, you can follow Brian Spitzig on Instagram.

Categories
Development News

Green Man Park to Transform Formerly Vacant Lot in Peeble’s Corner

If all goes according to plan, and Mother Nature plays nice this winter, Walnut Hills may have a brand new park in spring of 2015.

An empty lot at the corner of Stanton and McMillan (almost across from the new Fireside Pizza) is in the process of being turned into Green Man Park. Fred Orth, Walnut Hills Area Council member and neighborhood supporter extraordinaire, is spearheading the effort to not only make the lot into a public green space, but also to install a seven-foot tall sculpted stone “green man” for which the park is named.

The enormous sculpture was carved by David Hummel in 1890 for a Walnut Hills building, and ultimately watched over the area until that building was demolished in 1991. Prior to the demolition, the sculpture was rescued by a concerned citizen and has been sitting in pieces in the East End ever since.

Then, last weekend, neighborhood volunteers helped lay pavers for the new paths in the park. They used materials donated by the City of Cincinnati and equipment provided by HGC Construction. With a bit more work the park will contain several more trees, areas for seating, possibly a small performance spot, and one very large Green Man.

An ancient symbol of rebirth and the rejuvenation of spring, the Green Man seems an appropriate symbol for Walnut Hills’ fast-improving business district. Hopefully the sculpture will be there to witness another 100 years in the life of this great neighborhood.

Those who wish the support the community’s efforts to build out the rest of the park, which was previously a vacant lot, can do so by donating through the Greater Cincinnati Foundation.