Michael L. Redmond

Can someone tell me what we have done to the guy that does "CONSIDER THIS" that makes him want to run one negative piece after another against the streetcar and only highlights empty buildings and completely ignores any and all progress here in OTR? He needs to be hit with a barrage of counter arguments and the news room should be copied. Channel 19 is downtown here and should know better.

I agree that this would help attract some of the most enthusiastic OTR supporters to be our ambassadors. I have been giving some thought to the structure of the program and we can go two ways. One, we could follow the Citizens on Patrol model and put together teams of three or more to go out on specific days for a specific amount of time, say 2-3 hours. Or second, we could simply get shirts out to anyone who will wear them while they are out in OTR and just approach anyone who may need help or directions. I am leaning more towards the unstructured version as I hope we could get greater participation. What are your thoughts. That is the 1132 Bar and it has been the topic of many conversations here lately. Places like this, and Jordans that just moved into the Circle Mart location plus the new Cricket Store on Main all pose a challenge to us but as the surrounding buildings become developed and occupied it becomes harder and harder for all of them to operate, so if we can't shut them down sooner, they will be closed later but it is inevitable. Martins Bar on McMicken has also just been challenged on their liquor lic. so watch that one in the near term to possibly shut down.

We are working very hard to get the SID up and running but we are probably still about 18 months out. In the mean time it may be possible to morph our Citizen's on Patrol group, or the creation of a whole new group, into a volunteer OTR Ambassador program until we can get the funds to pay for Brantley Services which is many thousands of dollars. What are your thoughts on a volunteer amb. program?

We have looked at best practices as it relates to panhandling, which like you said, is similar to panhandling as they to loiter in one place to panhandle. Columbus Special Improvement Districts, Capital City and the Discovery SID both use their ambassadors to help disrupt loitering, panhandling, and even some of the criminal activity that is associated with this. There are two types of ambassadors, clean amb. and safe amb. (we primarily use the clean here in Cinti.) but the safe ambassadors will do things such as simply walk with a group of females or a single female (guys to if need be) through an area where they may feal unsafe. (Main St could be posted in places like Sycamore near parking lots and escort to and from rest., bars and stores) Another thing that they do is stand close to panhandlers and pass out literature that directs those who may feel intimidated into giving an aggressive panhandler money to give to organizations that help the poor through food and shelter and then tries to put that panhandler in touch with a on staff social worker that gets them the help they truly need. The ambassadors vs only more police also gives a different perception to an area. If you drive down a street and it looks like a police state, you have to wonder why. If you see a bunch of people in OTR Ambassador shirts then the perception changes yet you get many of the same results as we will try and do the same as DCI and get them police radios so that they have a direct line of communication for added enforcement if needed. The loitering problem is both the cause and affect of much of the litter that you see on the streets also. If added attention can be paid to making sure that areas look better kept then this really goes a long way in discouraging people from doing a lot of the activities like we are talking about. If OTR, or anywhere, looks like no one cares about the community, then those who are seeking anonymity in their activities will also believe that no one will care what they are doing.

Perceptions are reality in those that hold the perception. That means that this is a problem if anyone feels unsafe when walking into any store here in OTR. It is a problem that needs to be tackled as many of our businesses like Kaldis fights for every dollar they get and can not afford to have anyone scared to walk through their front doors because of 10 or 15 people just parked outside. That being said, it is imperative that we who do not feel intimidated by this visit these stores, Kroger included, and that store will do what it takes to keep us as a customer. If we are not customers in the first place, why would a store want to drive away the loiterers as they are at least potential customers We need to become actual customers and the store will respond accordingly. The other problem is that some of these people are not customers of the store they are in front of but of an adjacent store. There should be accountability for any business that negatively affects another.

She sure was quick to discount my professional experience in Downtown and OTR.

^That is part of KCB so if you would like some more info on the cleanup, it will be posted on the site.

Call Keep Cincinnati Beautiful. They probably need a lot of help right now. Ask for Robin or Linda and drop my name if you want. Linda Holterhoff, Executive Director — 352-4382 Manages day-to-day operations of Keep Cincinnati Beautiful, spearheads new programs and handles fundraising opportunities, graffiti prevention, and corporate involvement. Robin Henderson, Program Manager/Community Improvement — 352-4388 Manages the Community Improvement Program (formerly Project 180).

I've got nothing. People come, people go....hell, I am still wondering what ever happened to Nick Spenser.

The greatest change occurs at the edge of chaos and chaos was where we were at the beginning of the decade. To that extent, even the riots helped wake people up to the fact that something had to be done with "downtown" less it become the next Detroit. The bankruptcy of Denhart, the exodus of people with the HUD changes and the political will to enact change all came together to create the perfect storm. OTR is turning around and will continue to at a faster and faster pace. It takes a special person to pioneer an area and be the first, but we are moving beyond the pioneer stage now and moving towards a tipping point where OTR and CBD does not get a gasp when a new resident says they just purchased a home there. The more people that do move here, the more that will move here. As for the Banks project not helping OTR I disagree. First, OTR can only advance so fast otherwise our supply/demand curve be reversed. Second, one of the biggest issues for us is perception and to the average suburbanite there isn't a lick of difference between OTR and the CBD (some do not even know what those letters stand for) and when either of the two have positive development news, both benefit. We are joined at the hip and Central Pkwy. isn't enough to distinguish the difference in the two communities to the average person. If OTR fails, so does the CBD and the inverse is also true. We can have a successful Fountain Square, Gateway Quarter, Banks Project and even streetcar as each lends itself to the success of the other and none can succesfully act exclusive of the others.

^Well stated The problem that they had lies right there in the above statement, "somehow". They had no plan beyond just saving the structure, I give you Kaufman Brewery but on a massive scale. Todays redevelopment focus more on the use than the structure. A plan needed to be in place first that would have allowed for more than just avoiding the razing of a building and then keeping it vacant for years until someone could find a use. This lent to 500 vacant buildings as when you have one vacant building, it hurts the others around it as it attracts blight, crime, and a sense of a community on the way down. Today there is a plan and the results will be realized long before the 20 years as the year over year gains will be exponential. 3 years ago, would you have thought we would have Jean Robert? A crime rate that has in some quarters dipped below all other Dist? A residential project that is outselling almost every other project in the city? If you did not think we would have any of this 3 years ago, wait till three years from now.

Not that it matters.... "CNN.com has published an Associated Press article, Lunar enthusiasts promote moon as first step to Mars, which reports on the Foundation's Return to the ..." Bad timing on shooting down the moon analogy yet isn't the mars analogy even worse as we have never even set foot on it even after 40 years of space exploration?

I will let chance speak to his belief here but lets assume you are correct then why spend more on something that you believe will fail, or not achieve the desired outcome? that would be throwing good money after bad. This is one of the reasons you phase a project in the first place is to limit risk. If anything, the moon/mars analogy helps clarify this.

One more round and I will let it go. If JFk would have gotten in front of the American people and said lets go to Mars or lets say the stars then we would still be working on the project here on earth to this very day. He set a high, yet attainable goal, and by accomplishing this goal inspired people to reach further. Unless you think that the OTR/CBD route will be a failure, then we to will be inspired to achieve the next step and not stop until we do. Success of phase I is the guarantee and the impetuous for phase II. And the limitation of phase I is the hedge against a possible larger failure.

But the point is we went to the moon first, not straight to Mars. Lets do something that is obtainable in the near term.

chance, I am not sure I am following you as you stop short of analyzing the entire risk. Cost sure, but what of the risk of time or worse yet having the entire project turn into a no go? Sometimes you have to get to the moon before you go to mars.

Well I agree. First, you are absolutely correct about the mental health issue facing most of our homeless. The drug issue, as it relates to the homeless, I believe is a way of self medicating some of these mental issues and then begins a downward spiral. In many cases, not all, but many, the social services help enable this to some extent. Whether it is dismissing the problems, both of and associated to the homeless population it in some ways creates an environment where this behavior is accepted and allowed to go on year after year until they just drop off the radar entirely and simply replaced by the next generation of the chronic homeless. "Just one of the neighborhood's multiple homeless shelters anticipates serving 4,200 people (unduplicated visits) in 2008, and it projects finding homes for only 137 of them". Your last point is one that has been debated for a very long time. Should each community bare the burden of supporting some portion of our social ills. Well that depends on the perspective of the one who is responding. From our perspective here in OTR or the West End who shoulder almost all social services, 108 in OTR alone, we should have a broader distribution of these agencies. I personally believe this as well as I feel it is our responsibility as a society to help those who can not otherwise take care of themselves and that includes us all, not just one or two communities. (there went my political future) "Somewhere between 60 percent and 80 percent of people experiencing homelessness in Hamilton County are filtered through OTR - a neighborhood that only constitutes 0.5 percent of the county". That being said, I understand the reluctance of communities such as Oakley, Amberly, Indian Hill etc to locate such facilities in their communities yet they are the first ones to say that we here in OTR or the West End are the NIMBY's. The argument that they simply place these facilities in an area where the homeless populations are is a ridiculous one as the homeless populations reside where the facilities are. By definition, these are not people who have transportation to take them further than a mile or so radius from the facility that they stay at every night. At the same time they place them in areas that allows for easy access to drugs that enables them to perpetuate an addiction that when mixed with mental issues creates a recipe for disaster and at very least a poor environment for rehabilitation. "The [CityLink] coalition consists of 5 ministries and 5 churches, all from outside of the neighborhood. Described as "a mall for the poor", CityLink Center would include a homeless shelter, temporary housing, a soup kitchen, substance abuse center and a transition area for inmates being released back into society. The main issue is that this will be placed close to 3 schools (Bloom, Heberle and King Academy) and a residential district". Why not take them out of that environment? Why not give them the real help they need that will help make them a functioning member of society or if that is not possible, get them the institutional help they need to cope with debilitating mental disease? My personal feeling is that many of these social services are less about the recipients and more for the providers of the service. I have no doubt that many of the people who provide the 100 plus services here or those who dump their outdated wardrobes in Washington Park or at the front door of the Freestore feel in their hearts they are doing the right thing. Unfortunately, this is a problem that requires more thought than feeling at this point to solve the problem. Feeling has done more to perpetuate it, thought can help solve it. "Ribbon Cutting at "Nannie Hinkston House" on East McMicken Street. The transitional housing project will create a new home for a dozen people who graduate from the substance abuse program at the Drop Inn Center". WCPO Channel 9 3/27 Thought did not go into placing a homeless/drug rehab center within a block of drug corners. Thought did not go into placing a homeless/drug rehab center within a block of a school. Thought did not go into placing a homeless/drug rehab center into a community that has served as a revolving door for those people who are trying to get help to break a drug dependency or a chronic mental illness. This took no thought and when you see the same people here year after year, it took little heart, only a blind eye.

If they do have a website up, I would imagine there would be a link off the Q site. If not, and there is indeed a site, I will speak to the powers that be to see if we can get some links from there.

Outside is also listed on the map I posted above.

Update on the Doug Spitz project on Mulberry. After several years of asking for assistance with the development of our > neighborhood, the Department of Community Development is going to make an > immediate impact into the health of our neighborhood. They are clearing > the development site, which I plan on building houses, between Mulberry > Street and Schiller Alley. This will immediately change the entrance into > our neighborhood from Main Street and Mulberry Street, as well as change > the aesthetics from Mulberry Street looking from the East and West. > > This change that will immediately impact our neighborhood's astectics, > safety, and give notice to the rest of the developers in the downtown > area, as well as people considering living downtown that we are open for > business. > > This is a clear demonstration that our representatives in Community > Development listen to our needs and answer with their support. Ultimately, > a special thanks from our neighborhood is needed for Mrs.Jennifer Walke. I > have spent the last year communicating the best way to help us be > proactive and build a healthy environment for development. She has made > the effort to listen and respond with action. It is very clear that she is > very passionate about her job and making a difference in our City. Her > action will make the single biggest and clearest impact on our > neighborhood in the last 12 years that I've patiently invested in this > neighborhood. It's a job well done and benefits all of us that live, work, > and invest in this neighborhood. > > If you would like more details, I'll be happy to share them with you as > they are made to me. > Kindest, Doug Spitz

Incoming aristocrats are easily spotted by their distinctive dress and taste for chamber music. There is a Melody Richardson joke in here somewhere. This proves that everything is relative.

The sale at that amount is a sign that the building is doing well. And I have no doubt that it is. Any property can be listed for any amount and that alone proves nothing that is why I say that this stage is hardly newsworthy. The article talks about Brian Hubert purchasing only 3 weeks ago but I spoke with Brian about his purchasing in the building 6 or 8 months ago (his office is next to mine). I wonder if they mean he just closed on it 3 weeks ago but it has been under contract for much longer meaning that he got in before price increases. And did you notice the rest of my point. I say you say So if I am an owner, especially one who is selling, it is most newsworthy indeed.

Holly said it went well and was very well attended. I don't know if any pics are floating around of this tour but I know there are some on here of Trideca from the Blogger Tour a few weeks ago. And David, I was thinking the Burj DuVine.

It happens all the time and for a variety of reasons. First, some may have purchased early before any price increases and much of the percentage increase reflects the finished value of the unit. Second, they may have done that plus not had many things installed by the dev. but installed on their own-floors, fixtures etc. Third, it could be both of those plus it is a unique unit, of which there are many so demand may be high for a finished building now but supply low on features like a view, a balcony or something else. Fourth, they may be caught in a circumstance that they were unable to move into the unit and price it above as they need to recapture both their purchase price, Realtor fee, and need the cushion for negotiations. This is hardly newsworthy but it gets people talking about the building again and gives the impression of it being of great investment to those who may be on the fence about buying a condo there.

The Courier was speaking more of the City as a whole, and when they link Indian Hill and Downtown, they are speaking of the higher price point condos, which represents a minority percentage of the total. I read it that way, however I believe it was poorly worded to indicate that downtown sales as a whole are hurting. I wish they would just go to the MLS and just post the facts. "With 19 and 27 months of inventory, [all of MLS] sellers in Indian Hill and downtown must either be aggressive on price or willing to wait for the housing market to turn around, said local Realtors." This represents only a price point that is at or about the 400,000 and up price point. Even the 300's are moving right now and that is the top end of OTR.