Tag: Washington Park

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Arts & Entertainment Business News

Market at the Park Brings Pop-Up Shops to Washington Park Every Monday

We’ve all been there. The one day that Findlay Market is closed, we run out of fresh produce, honey, or another edible essential.

Although business hours have expanded to 6pm in recent years, some vendors remain reluctant to stay open later than that. As a result, a group of Findlay Market shoppers have started Findlay After Four – a weekly event that encourages people to shop at Findlay Market on Thursday between 4pm and 6pm.

Until those hours are further expanded at Findlay Market, be sure to get your fix at Market in the Park.

Market at the Park

Every Monday night through September, local vendors will set up pop-up shops featuring a variety of vegetables, tea, baked goods, and ready-to-eat meals in Washington Park From 4pm to 8pm, patrons can do their shopping or grab a hot sandwich, just like they would at Findlay Market.

While some of the vendors operate out of the market house during the rest of the week, others are new to the scene like condiment queens Sheila and Kathy. They will bring their special Kentucky Sauce, Hot Pepper Jelly, and zesty blends of salsa at their Chipotle Chicks booth. Hailing from Falmouth, Kentucky, the pair is excited to bring their southern flare to share with the Over-The-Rhine crowd.

Need to cool off? Try a decadent sea salt caramel gelato from Madison’s or snag an all-natural sno-cone from Chill Shaved Ice Bar, featuring syrups made from real fruit juice.

Food truck notables C’est Cheese and Red Sesame Korean BBQ will fill you up with dinner: a gooey Bee Sting grilled cheese stuffed with pepperoni, mozzarella, honey, and basil, or a kimchi beef burrito with rich Oriental seasoning. Providing that much-needed caffeinated pick me up at the end of the work day, Coffee Emporium will also be on site with iced drinks, lattes, smoothies, and hot coffee.

So whether you’re hungry for a unique happy hour or need a few pantry essentials, grab your grocery list and tell your friends, “Meet me at the Market!”

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Arts & Entertainment News Transportation

Meet OKI Executive Director Mark Policinski at this Month’s URBANexchange

In an effort to better connect you with the region’s land use and transportation decision makers, we are doing something different this month for URBANexchange.

Instead of meeting at the Moerlein Lager House for food, drinks, networking and conversation, we will be meeting at Memorial Hall for the OKI Reveal event.

At this event, the OKI Regional Council of Governments will be sharing the information they have gathered and developed thus far as part of their regional planning process. This past winter, they conducted a survey that asked participants to share their thoughts on how they want the region to grow. The results were decisive with respondents indicating that they want walkable communities that are well-connected by transit.

In addition to being able to share your comments and questions with OKI staff, those who attend OKI Reveal through URBANexchange will be treated to an exclusive meet and greet with OKI executive director Mark Policinski.

The URBANexchange meet and greet with Policinski will take place at the start of the event from about 5pm to 5:30pm. At 5:30pm, those in attendance will then be asked to join in on a group photo out on the steps leading into Memorial Hall.

Following the group photo, those in attendance will head back inside to continue learning about OKI’s regional planning process and hear from Tim Miller about the focus land use areas that have been developed thus far.

There will also be a special farewell tribute for Don Burrell, senior bike planner at OKI for 35 years who has decided to retire. Burrell, over the course of his career, has said that he has put more than 90,000 miles on his bike and is striving for 100,000.

The OKI Reveal event will last until about 7pm, and then those that are still in attendance will head across the street to Washington Park for live jazz out on the oval lawn for their fellow urbanists.

All of this is free and open to the public, but we do encourage you to RSVP online. If you want to meet with the URBANexchange group, we will meet on the sidewalk just in front of the steps leading into Memorial Hall starting at 4:45pm, and then head inside at 5pm.

Memorial Hall is accessible via several Metro bus routes and sits along the first phase of the Cincinnati Streetcar system. Those who bike to the event will be treated to a free bike valet courtesy of Queen City Bike.

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Development News

Washington Park continues construction

The 47.3 million dollar renovation currently undergoing Washington Park is progressing at a fantastic clip. Though all the general public normally sees is a green construction fence, make no mistake: improvements are happening, and it is already amazing to see what 3CDC has accomplished since closing the park last year.

UrbanCincy had the opportunity to join a private tour of the park with the ArchNATI 2011 week. The updated park includes classic elements of the original greenspace that opened in 1855 – the bandstand is being restored, the original monuments are still intact, and a majority of the old trees stand tall – two of which will be highlighted and decorated in the winter months instead of bringing in a new tree a la Fountain Square.

There are several green features incorporated into the park. “We (3CDC and the Parks Department) wanted to be cutting edge with our sustainable elements of the space,” said Jeff Martin, project manager and the tour guide for the event. “These features will save us money over time, and help the city as well.” Located in four locations of the park are “dry wells” – storage containers for excess rain water that will keep two million gallons of storm runoff out of the MSD system. The public restrooms are spacious and incorporate natural lighting with solar tubes – circular skylights that go through the roof and use reflective metal to bring sunlight into the space. All the new buildings in the park will have green roofs.

The garage at Washington Park has been designed with light and safety in mind.

The 450-space parking garage has been designed with light and safety in mind. The three exits from the garage serve as light wells into the space, and are built twice as wide as normal stairwell allowances, encased in storefront glass to bring as much sunlight into the two level garage as possible. The bays of the structure inside are designed so that cars park at the level with the supporting columns, not next to them (like the Newport Levy garage) which creates better views for drivers and passengers getting out of their cars.

New features of the park are progressing as well. The playground area has been designed specifically for the park, with play towers representing the water tower in Eden Park, and taking other cues from the historical architecture of the city. The dog park on the western end of the space incorporates special “pup-pea” gravel that will allow pups to do their business and keep the space looking and smelling fresh – there is also a small trough that runs through, allowing dogs to play and drink potable water.

The football-field sized green space will soon have specialized sod laid down. The grass initially incorporates a synthetic structure in order for the root system to grow strong and remain springy for the public to run and play. It is the same system that the Cincinnati Reds use in their outfield, according to Martin.

“It’s great to see how much detail and attention was paid to the material selection,” said John Back, local designer and co-chair of the Young Architects and Interns branch of the Cincinnati American Institute of Architects, who assembled the ArchiNATI week and subsequent tour. “When [Washington Park] is finished, it’s going to be an incredible asset to the entire community. I can’t wait.”

Check out the rest of the pictures below, and for more construction updates, you can follow the progress on the 3CDC website.

Washington Park pictures by Jenny Kessler for UrbanCincy.