kendall

sparke, Glad to hear you're enjoying City West. How well (or poorly) does sound travel from building to building, floor to floor in the townhomes? Any compliments or complaints regarding the build quality?

As recently as May 2004 the Turret Building was rental. I looked at 3 different units in the building. At that time they were large, open, uninspired spaces. About 1500 sq ft as I recall. I also believe the movie Artworks actually used one of the building's units for many scenes.

The concept looks nice. I'm no horticulturist, but it would seem difficult to get trees as large as those pictured with only two feet of soil to work with.

Unfortunately I've scheduled myself for another obligation that night and can't make it. I wonder what's planned for the median? I don't think it looks bad. Just give the trees a few more years to fill in. If anyone makes it to the presentation, please post information afterward. Thanks.

Aaron: Great city house! Thanks for sharing the pics!

Eighth & State: The developers that have been fixing up old buildings in OTR have generally congregated their projects together, beginning around Main St. between 13th to Liberty. Rehabs are now starting to branch out a little, down 12th street and over to the Broadway/Reading Rd. area and Spring St. in Pendleton, for example. And there are property owners who have really bucked the trend and fixed up places on Washington Park, and around Findlay Market. I'm assuming the volume of abandoned buildings to which you refer are those scattered throughout OTR, not the central business district (south of Central Pkwy., what I consider 'downtown'). Relatively speaking, there aren't many abandoned buildings downtown. There are parts of OTR that look like hell, with trash, decay, and abandonment. But there are areas that look pretty darn good in my opinion. I think the buildings that are available and have vacancies will sell given time. With the exception of a few poorly-executed remodels (the Collins Lofts are stuck in 1990), most of the units for sale haven't been out there for more than a few months. I think that Spring and the OTR Tour of Homes will help sell out the rest of them. As for downtown, it's a completely different picture there. I think developers, such as those behind the McAlpin lofts, have been aiming a little too high with their price points. Once there's a stock of units available in the $175-225 range, you'll really start to see more people downtown. Remember that most of the downtown owner-occupied residential projects are just coming online (like the Graydon Lofts by the CAC, and 18 E. 4th) or are still in progress, such as Park Place at Lytle, Fort Washington building, McAlpin).

Grasscat, Thanks for putting the thread together. I recently had the chance to go to a party in the Ahrens-Fox lofts and they are very nice, with a lot of unique touches. Unfortunately, only 2/8 are sold so far. Much more fortified than your average OTR residential units. I believe the apartments in the 1411 Main building are ready for rental, there's a large sign with photos in the window of the currently-vacant retail storefront. 2004 was a good year for OTR, and although I'm not aware of too many new projects (it's still early), I will be glad when the units in the available buildings are sold/rented.

Don't know much about Cleveland, but this looks like a good plan.

The expectation that railroads can make a profit on their own is antiquated... They did make a profit before the invention of the automobile and the airplane, but these days, they need and deserve a subsidy just like the automobile and airplane do. I don't think trains are good for long hauls (although, the Empire Builder does serve a lot of intermediate-length trips), because the airplane has been invented and is better for that sort of thing. And the auto is good for many short hops. But I can say from personal experience that once the trip gets much above 150 miles, trains are an enjoyable, comfortable alternative, provided they run on time and are frequently scheduled.

I'm personally acquainted with a sculptor who's working on the diaramas for the museum. Personally, I think she's embarrassed about it. But how much steady work can there be for a sculptor in this town?

I think one aspect of city living that has been lost upon the generations that have grown up in the burbs (incl. myself) is the social aspect that a couple posters have mentioned above. Actually knowing your neighbors, because you don't have a half acre to retreat into so you have to walk your dog, walk to the park, etc. and see your fellow human beings along the way. Stopping to talk... Getting to know them and hanging out at their place and meeting their friends. It doesn't happen in the burbs. The spontaneity, the excitement just isn't there.

Since shooting this tour I have learned that Prospect Hill is actually in Mt. Auburn. I guess you could call it a sub-neighborhood. I've heard it alternately referred to as Liberty Hill (the name of one of the major streets that runs through it). As for Milton's, it is of course a cornerstone of the neighborhood, and if I ever take more photos of the 'hood it will be included.

Craptacular. I wonder how it's going to affect Provident's presence downtown.

Why even bother with streets at all? Let's go all-highway, with individual offramps to each garage.

This is a really great idea. The riverfront around the Purple People Bridge is already quite walkable, this just makes a good situation better. I hope they can find a way to make the bridge happen.

I live on the top (4th) floor of an 1886 Italianate in Over-the-Rhine. There are six residential and 2 commercial units (design company, bakery) in the building. Nowhere near KJP's laundry list of amenities, but not too shabby either.

well the metro is much much larger than when the first highways was first built. And this one is in a high growth area. And to tell you the truth I think highways bring growth. Unless a region is very underserved by highways, I'm skeptical that they create much growth in the region. I doubt a little connector is going to sway a company's decision to expand in or relocate to the region. You're definitely correct that the Mason area is growing quickly, but it's not really growth, only redistribution, because it is in excess of the region's population growth. It's creating duplicative public roads, schools, sewers, etc. A connector highway like this would further the wasteful redistribution of the region's population and investment to greenspace. The added costs of building and maintaining public services in newly-settled areas around the highway (as well as the cost of building the highway itself) is likely to outweigh any gains.

Cincymls.com still works for me...

It's wasteful to build more highways in the region when the region population is only growing marginally.

Mine is a 125-year-old Buttonwood in the bonsai collection at Krohn Conservatory.

WCKY 1530 am (Cincinnati) for political talk

Here's what I read in the first couple lines: Note to commuters in traffic jams along Interstate 75: Ohio plans to pump another $107 million into upgrading the region's most crucial highway, which is not a long term solution to you being stuck in traffic jams. In fact, the project may never save you the amount of time you spend stuck in years of construction delays for it.

It's encouraging to see these beautiful historical pieces renewed and on display. I'll have to go check them out this week! I didn't know that The Old Spaghetti factory used to be downtown!

Here's an article from today's Enquirer: Abercrombie closing Rookwood stores Lisa Biank Fasig Enquirer Staff Reporter Abercrombie & Fitch is closing its two stores at Rookwood Commons, after the owner of the center suggested the retailer vacate to make way for more suitable tenants. The Abercrombie Kids store closed last week, and Abercrombie & Fitch will close Jan. 21, said Mark Fallon, director of leasing at Jeffrey R. Anderson Real Estate. New York & Co., a contemporary women's fashion chain, will replace the kids store, and an unidentified better women's fashion store will replace Fitch. www.enquirer.com

The people who work in the 5/3 building add a lot of liveliness to the square, especially during the summer. I think the building is too large for residential development, especially when there is a slew of smaller buildings with more character that would make great residential conversions.