Cygnus

2011 This Place Matters Community Challenge UPDATE: Announcement expected by Monday, July 18. This year, the Community Challenge generated over 150,000 votes – the largest number of votes in This Place Matters history. As you know, an important part of the contest process is to validate the votes according to the contest rules, and unfortunately, our vote validation process is taking much longer than expected. As of Wednesday, July 6th, we have successfully validated 30% of the votes and are steadily working toward 100% validation. We know that you are anxiously awaiting the final results (as is the entire Trust family!), but because of the prize money involved, we ask for your patience as we complete the validation process.

Dayton-area GM plant sold, 2,000 jobs planned Business Courier - by Ginger Christ, Dayton Business Journal Date: Wednesday, July 6, 2011, 3:39pm EDT The former General Motors site in Moraine has been sold to California-based Industrial Realty Group by The RACER Trust. IRG, which plans to redevelop the site into a five-building, multi-use complex called Progress Park, initially hoped to close on the property in April, but the purchase was delayed by paperwork and due diligence. IRG’s plans for the site could bring in as many as 2,000 jobs, according to the company. “The city is delighted the sale is complete. IRG is a well-known company with a strong history of success in redeveloping sites, and we expect they will be equally successful here. We are looking forward to the re-use of this property,” said Moraine city manager Dave Hicks, in a news release. Cont

It's a ArtWorks mural.

Construction going on inside 309 Sycamore. The property was transferred to the In Between Tavern owners (307 SYCAMORE HOLDING COMPANY LLC) on 03/30/2011. You can see they are constructing a bar on the south side of the building and what could be a dinning room on the north side. Not sure anything is happening on the floors above.

Fairly generic... Terms and Conditions During the one month period from June 1st, 2011 (8:00 AM Eastern Standard Time) through June 30th, 2011 (4:59 PM EST) (“Voting Period”) participants are able to support one of the participating organizations. The participating organization that obtains the most number of votes will win $25,000 - the second and third place prizes of $10,000 and $5,000 will be awarded according to the second and third amount of total votes. The winners will be notified by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. All standings will be posted on www.preservationnation.org/communitychallenge by July 1st at 12:00 pm (noon EST). All voters must register in order to support a Challenge Participant. Registration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s website creates a username and password in our system. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your username and password and for any actions taken by you or anyone that uses your account. You agree to safeguard your information. You further agree to indemnify and hold NTHP harmless for any losses incurred by NTHP or another party due to someone else using your account. It is strictly against National Trust for Historic Preservation privacy policy to share your email address with other organizations; however the organization that you support in the Community Challenge will receive your name and contact information. According to the CAN-SPAM Act, you may opt-out of email communication from either organization at any time. Additional terms and conditions are described in the Terms of Use for PreservationNation.org.

Unofficial as of 5PM:

Cincinnati, Little Rock, and Newport are hammering their servers! We're under 100 votes from 1st but they've got their people working almost as hard.

Current tally: Dreamland Ballroom = 22678 OTR = 22001 Closed the gap to 678. The Fountain Square voting set-up seems to be helping!

We're on Cincinnati.com again: OTR Foundation vying for votes The Over-the-Rhine Foundation is neck-in-neck for a first place finish in the 2011 This Place Matters Community Challenge, an online competition hosted by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The non-profit is vying to win $25,000 to save at-risk historic buildings in Over-the-Rhine. But to do so, it still needs votes. The online voting competition ends at 5 p.m. Thursday. To help its cause, the foundation will be at Fountain Square Wednesday from 11:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. to help register online voters.

Or rename to SouthShore Complex?

Don't forget Marriott's SpringHill Suites on Eden Park Dr. that opened in 2009... Downtown proper lost 256 rooms when the Terrace Hotel closed in 2008. If everything pans out, it'll have gained only 238 rooms by 2012. Residence Inn added back another 134 21c will have 160 rooms Holiday Inn is planning 200 rooms

lol, thanks for the email addresses - I've been using the disposable email option in gmail. Current tally: OTR - 13,342 Newport County - 13,039 Dreamland Ballroom - 12,272 Everyone else is under 10,000 votes... Cleveland Bridge Project has fallen to 9th with 3,086 votes.

- There are plans to cover it with the same type of stone used around the event lawn I believe. - That is the bike center being built next to it. - I took a tour a couple months ago that was lead by Trent Germano. He explaind that the hotel portion at the corner of Freedom and Main would be the same height or smaller than the apartment buildings (ideally containing a shop or restaurant) and that the actual tower would be in the area you described on Main. And then there is the area for the town homes that will face the Event Lawn.

I don't believe they are finished. I've seen work being done on multiple occupied balconies. I hope I'm right as they do look terrible.

Will Metropole be incorporated into the hotel name? Maybe: 21c at the Metropole

Thanks for the update! No mention of this on their website...

If we can get the Cleveland folks to switch their vote on the final day, we should be able to do this.

Ugh... the Small Riverfront Park. New name for Cincinnati Riverfront Park City leaders are changing the name of Cincinnati Riverfront Park to the Phyllis W. Smale Riverfront Park — following a $20 million gift from John G. Smale, former chairman of Procter & Gamble Co. , for the park’s construction.

News and tragedy on the bridge this week... Falling debris closes Brent Spence lanes Lawmakers learn firsthand of bridge issues COVINGTON - Lawmakers from across Kentucky got a crash course in the Brent Spence Bridge Tuesday: dozens of them got stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic caused by emergency repairs to the bridge. The situation is rich with irony: the lawmakers were in town for an event where community leaders lobby them to fund the region’s needs. At the top of the list? Replacing the 48-year-old Brent Spence Bridge, a $2.5 billion project that will require both federal and state funding. “I think we made some converts,” said Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce President Steve Stevens. Car knocks man off Brent Spence Bridge into Ohio River COVINGTON - A motorist standing outside his broken-down car on the Brent Spence Bridge was struck by another vehicle and knocked into the Ohio River this morning, according to Covington police. Covington officers were called to the I-75/71 bridge at 6:50 a.m. for a broken-down car, said Covington Police Capt. Teal Nally. Officers do not know the man's name, Nally said. Covington traffic investigators, crime lab, Cincinnati Police, Covington Fire Department, Boone County Water Rescue and the Coast Guard are all working to "find out exactly what happened," Nally said.

Five (really six as Dixie Terminal consists of two buildings)

Anyone know Matthew Lafkas or anyone else on the OTR 5K Leadership Team? I'd think they could use their distribution list to email those who ran/participated in the OTR 5K...

Sears looking for 1M square feet, maybe in Ohio Sears Holdings Corp.bizWatch is circulating a request for proposals for more than 1 million square feet as it explores moving its corporate headquarters out of Chicago, according to sources familiar with the company’s search. The Washington Business Journal reports that Sears (NASDAQ:SHLD) is eyeing a move to Ohio, North or South Carolina, New Jersey, Texas, Georgia or the Washington, D.C., area as tax breaks in Illinois expire. A company spokeswoman cautioned that the process is in its early stages and Sears has made no decisions, the paper reported. cont

It's a goofy voting system... I could put anyone's email address in and vote. It creates an account and emails you a password but you aren't required to verify the account. Most people would probably mark it as spam. Few will go to the site to find out what it's all about. I doubt anyone will change the vote made for them. Not sure what happens if you were to use an invalid email address. You'd vote but not sure what the organization does when they receive a email failure notice. And then you could always just create a disposable addresses with Google or Yahoo. You'd seemingly be able to vote an infinite amount of times.

First Financial announces location for downtown headquarters CINCINNATI – June 19, 2011 – First Financial officially announced the site of the company’s new corporate headquarters today. Located at 255 East Fifth Street, this prominent building is in the heart of the downtown central business district and is currently known as Chemed Center. “This is an exciting day for all of us at First Financial. We’re proud to expand our presence in Cincinnati,” said Claude Davis, First Financial president and CEO. “As we continue to execute our strategic growth and expansion plans, the new corporate headquarters provides us with the opportunity to rename the building and establish the First Financial Center. We also look forward to opening our first downtown retail banking center.” First Financial entered a long-term lease agreement and will be establishing approximately 150 jobs in the central business district. Downtown clients, residents and visitors will enjoy a full complement of personal banking, business banking and wealth management solutions at a new banking center on the first floor of the building. The company will also add the First Financial name to the Cincinnati skyline with branded signage at the top of the building. Cont

When you vote, it tells you how many votes the organization has received. Using the cancel vote option allows you to scan the front runners to determine the actual vote count.