Cygnus

Former Bengals player partners to develop Tower Place Mall: EXCLUSIVE Tom Demeropolis - Reporter - Cincinnati Business Courier Former Cincinnati Bengals safety Chinedum Ndukwe has a new real estate development and investment firm that is partnering to redevelop downtown’s Cincinnati Tower Place Mall. Ndukwe started Kingsley Wells Enterprises LLC last year, and this will be his first major project. “I hope this is the first of many,” Ndukwe said. The Notre Dame graduate is bringing a “handful” of current Bengals as well as other professional athletes and a couple retired players as equity investors in the project. Cont

There is one at St. Andrews in the East End.

It needs to held over four days so we can get an Untappd badge (as requested by ryanlammi) :-D

Per the Enquirer, this place has closed.

Except you record in landscape, not portrait.

A Triumph for Transit in Cincinnati Could Mark Major Policy Shift BY KEITH BARRY - WIRED After much deliberation, a controversial streetcar project will move forward in Cincinnati. It’s a major step for the city, and for advocates of expanded urban public transit. Despite electing a mayor whose platform included canceling the Cincinnati Streetcar, Cincinnati’s City Council voted 6-3 to restart construction on the project. So far, $34 million had already been spent on building the line, and audits showed that canceling it may have cost almost as much as completing it. “We’re going to have a streetcar,” Mayor John Cranley announced at a press conference yesterday, just a little more than a month after he made a declaration that the streetcar project would be scrapped in favor of funding other city services. Supporters of both sides in the streetcar debate made public statements saying that it was time for the city to move past the debate and accept the City Council’s vote. Cont

Update! STREETCAR PROGRESS UPDATE: DEC. 20, 2013 Happy Holidays from the Cincinnati Streetcar Project Team! Here’s what’s coming up over the next two weeks: Thursday, Dec. 26 Rail delivery on Elm Street (Findlay to McMicken). Elm Street will be closed from 11am-4pm. Friday, Dec. 27 & Saturday, Dec. 28 Rail installation resumes north of Findlay Market Monday, Dec. 30 Rebar installation resumes on Elm Street, north of Findlay Market. Building wood forms for trackwork resumes north of Findlay Market, with concrete placement expected Jan. 2-3. Work resumes on traffic signals and poles for overhead power. Water main work resumes on Walnut & Main streets. Thursday, Jan. 2 Excavation for trackwork resumes at Findlay & Elm streets. This intersection will be closed for several days. Also, please be aware that utility work along the route will be gearing back up. Traffic Alerts As noted above, Elm Street will be closed between Findlay Street and McMicken Avenue from 11am-4pm on Thursday. Dec. 26 for a rail delivery. Prus will be excavating for trackwork at Findlay and Elm streets. The intersection will be closed for several days -- but detours will be clearly posted!

^ :clap:

From the Tower Place Mall thread, construction fence is up around the mall.

Tower Place Mall is now closed. Construction fencing is up on 4th St. and Race St.

My understanding is the vote will come on Thursday, December 19th. When the FTA said the deadline was midnight on the 19th, they actually meant 11:59:59 PM, or midnight of December 20th if you prefer.

Cranley among new mayors meeting with Obama Friday ... His chief of staff, Jay Kincaid, said that while Cranley is in Washington, he will also be meeting with the Cincinnati-area congressional delegation, including Sens. Rob Portman, R, and Sherrod Brown, D. And he’ll be meeting with several Obama administration officials, including the Deputy Secretary of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administrator. Topic A will of course be the streetcar. “The main goal here is to meet with folks on the streetcar,” Kincaid said.

Nippert Construction Cam

Speaking of COAST, as with the Hyatt Town Hall meeting, Mr. Miller was in attendance tonight.

Mayor’s office: Work has started on streetcar analysis Two KPMG employees started work on the streetcar cost analysis Tuesday at City Hall, Mayor John Cranley‘s chief of staff just clarified, and several more are on planes headed to Cincinnati. “Terms have been reached — it’s just signing the paper work” that hasn’t officially taken place, Jay Kincaid said. Olberding, quoted below, said the company is bringing in construction experts from other offices for the work.

Kearney resigns as Democratic Lt. Gov. candidate North Avondale’s Eric Kearney has resigned as Democrat Ed FitzGerald’s running mate in the 2014 gubernatorial race, after news reports by The Enquirer and other Ohio newspapers revealed that he, his wife and his business owe up to $826,000 in unpaid taxes. “It’s undeniable that this has come to be a distraction from a discussion of the vital issues facing Ohio, and the choice voters must make in this election,” Kearney said Tuesday in a statement. “I have discussed this with Ed FitzGerald, and while I will always be grateful for him selecting me to be his running mate, we agree that the best course of action is for me to step aside from the campaign.” The campaign has yet to choose a new candidate for lieutenant governor, but plans to do so in January, if not sooner, FitzGerald told The Enquirer. Cont

John Cranley: We must change John Cranley is mayor of Cincinnati. Change is difficult. Real change is really difficult. I ran for the office of mayor of Cincinnati with one overriding pledge: To reverse the reckless direction of the past few years, a direction that threatened the very solvency of the city. Our bond rating has been reduced, and may be again. We have spent one-time resources to balance the budget and the prior administration even tried to mortgage our parking system for some quick cash. It simply cannot continue. Cont

Council members: Mayor's first week was divisive Yvette Simpson, Chris Seelbach and Wendell Young were re-elected in November to Cincinnati City Council. Cincinnati’s progress and momentum are undeniable. As elected leaders, we want to be part of continuing our success, to ensure we continue to grow, create good-paying jobs and foster a welcoming, inclusive environment. That’s why we are very disappointed in Mayor Cranley’s first week in office, causing us great concern about the direction of the city for the next four years under his leadership. On Nov. 27, The Cincinnati Enquirer said it was concerned Mayor Cranley was not reigning in his “dictatorial tendencies” in order to be “diplomatic, respectful and collaborative.” We agree. Cont

The Banks selects new project executive Philip Beck has been selected as The Banks’ new project executive, filling a position John Deatrick vacated earlier this year to lead the Cincinnati streetcar project. Beck’s first day in the position was Nov. 1. He will be responsible for coordinating the multiple projects associated with the riverfront area on behalf of the city and Hamilton County. Beck, a Symmes Township trustee and chief executive of Beck Infrastructure LLC, has worked on projects such as Great American Ball Park, Smale Riverfront Park and the first phase of The Banks development in his 27 years of experience. Cont

I caught the Brian Thomas interview with Mayor Cranely yesterday morning (Podcast) and I believe both said that the expected ROI (2.7-1) was dependent on the streetcar going to the zoo. Also, just noticed Thomas has a "COUNTDOWN TO THE STREET CAR" widget on the left hand side of his blog page.

The Enquirer's Carl Weiser is keeping up with the Twitterverse - Los Angeles can’t believe what Cincinnati did: Metro, the transit agency for Los Angeles County, has taken note of Cincinnati City Council’s vote to pause the streetcar, calling it “amazing. They tweeted four times on the subject: Metro Los Angeles: Pretty amazing transpo story I'm Cincy: new mayor and council vote 5-4 to stop @CincyStreetcar project that is under construction.... Metro Los Angeles: In response, @FTA_DOT freezes $45-million grant for project until Council can make its up mind. Again, some rails are already in the ground! Metro Los Angeles: This is so typically Cincy, btw. At least the @Bengals are doing well! Metro Los Angeles: From the Department of I Can't Type: should have been "story in Cincy" not "story I'm Cincy" and "make up its mind" not "make its up mind."

I counted about 30 on the job during my lunch walk. Significantly less than I’m used to seeing. However, rail tie down and welding continues. My concern with the pause is that we now need both Flynn and Mann to agree to restart construction. With only one of them, Cranley can veto.

Should be available in the next week or so.

Thanks!

CitiCable feed: http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/noncms/media//