seangray

I really don't feel that parking is a problem for residents here. I live on Vine and never have trouble parking (everything built by 3CDC has a guarnateed spot, Parvis are the first where you might not get one). Either way, I have friends over and they never have trouble finding street parking. I visit my friends in other parts of OTR (main and liberty, walnut and 15th) and parking is never a problem at their places. For retail, I understand the importance, and this is the one area I may agree with you. But when these neighborhoods were designed, walkability was key (which is why we love living here!). Hopefully with the streetcar, they don't need to keep paving over every bit of free space. Plenty of neighborhoods in chicago don't offer parking to residents- but they also have a transit system that supports that. Hopefully we get there soon- Cuz I hate seeing asphalt from building to building. Cincinnati, even with the streetcar, is a long way from becoming a place where you can easily get by without a car. Additional developments will need parking and space for that is running low. And of course, it would be much nicer to get some newer infill than see every vacant lot paved for parking. I live on Vine as well and have a dedicated space in the gated lot next to my building. I would not have bought this place without access to such a space and I think most people see it the same way. Commercial parking isn't a problem, the Gateway garage is huge and basically empty on evenings and weekends.

Parking is going to continue to be a problem in the gateway quarter. Underground parking isn't possible with the small footprints of the buildings and surface lots just take up too much space. It is going to be interesting to see how this can be addressed as more buildings are re-habbed. The Mercer garage won't solve all of this problem and additional garages are $$$ plus there is no space. Realistically, each unit built needs one parking space. Hmmm.....

They are just taking out a few for the fountain and garage entrance. It looks like all of the ones the are marked in the fence area with red tape stay, and the rest go. My estimate is that they are taking about 1/2 of the trees north of the bandstand. On one of the OTR workgroup presentations this year they showed a tree plan-- many more will be replanted than are being removed. Since this park is going to last for many years (I hope), I think having the best design for the long term is more important than saving a few of the trees however stately they may be. Sad to watch, but I think its for the best in the end. This thread is really interesting, I went back and read a few of the first pages... this has come a long way and turned out awesome since the days of ripping down all the buildings at Mercer for the new Washington Park school and the huge above ground garage next to music hall. It has been a long time coming but I think it would be hard to have a better outcome than what we are getting now.

The trees are coming down right now. It is really something to see this space now with the pool house gone and the fence setup, it really is an expansive space. The hole they are about to dig will be massive, I wonder how many dump trucks it will take to haul it all out? And where it's all going?

looks pretty cool to see a crane looming over OTR. It looks like pile driving and excavation are about to get going.

There was a rare "good"' demolition going on in the other side of OTR today (coincidentally both being done by Turner) -- the pool building was gone and they were looking about ready to start on the pool itself. They were also transplanting some trees that are quite large. There a quite a few big trees that look like they will have to come out, which is sad but it will all be for the best I guess.

Where will all the residents who were displaced go???? there were so many people living in that boarded up vacant building..... (more sarcasm) It's all posted on gatewayquarter.com

I think this is awesome... Picture from OTR Wikipedia page: Recent picture from citykin.com blog

I'm guessing it's parking and a staging area for the Washington Park work and temp parking for saengerhalle until the garage is done. They will be bringing in a lot of workers and equipment that need need parking. I was by there yesterday and it looks like it is just going to be a gravel lot.

They're trying to raise money to move the church to the former Jewish Community Center site in Roselawn. I doubt they are about to invest in rehabbing property, who knows, they might even trying selling the buildings to raise money for their new facility.

Good to hear someone is working on something for this place (putting this altogether...) I remember 3CDC was asking for ideas earlier this year. Can you give us a teaser?

This building: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=13th+and+walnut,+cincinnati,+oh&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=43.172547,93.076172&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Walnut+St+%26+E+13th+St,+Cincinnati,+Hamilton,+Ohio+45202&ll=39.109682,-84.513445&spn=0.001297,0.00284&t=h&z=19&layer=c&cbll=39.109763,-84.513465&panoid=l5w777z6yqXBM3RAVS9YMQ&cbp=12,220.14,,0,-9.79

I noticed some construction work being done to the building on the SW corner of 13th and Walnut and did some digging. It was transferred to OTR Holdings earlier this month (3CDCs land bank) and a project sign points to www.urbaninnovation.net, which based on the contact info is Bill Baum's development company. This and Mercer should really give Walnut a boost. Anyone know anything more?

If you want to see where 3CDC projects are going to be in OTR, all you need to do is follow the property they control. They have maps showing what properties are 3CDC controlled, one is included in the October OTR work group presentation. There could be more if 3CDC works with properties owned by others but they are probably done land banking for the most part. Also, the Taste of Belgium is going into the old sales center at the corner of 12th and Vine.

Yes

OTR Work Group for October has been posted to 3CDC's site: http://www.3cdc.org/images/editor/OTR%20Workgroup%20-%20October%2019%202010.pdf Some interesting stuff -- new projects are listed, Mercer is considered a "development in progress" and Taste of Belgium is opening a new store (where??? and woohoo!).

The entire west side of the 1400 block in front of Parvis is all torn up for the new streetscape!

Obviously not going to be affordable. Papa Johns, Donato's, LaRosas, Lucy Blue around the corner... there are others. What are you looking for? More of the same? There is too much retail in the Gateway for residents to support, so what comes in needs to be a draw. I hear these are going to be personal sized wood fired pizzas. I'm sure it will end up being a wonderful addition to the area.

It's the long awaited pizza place. :clap: I think it is going to be called A Tavola.

I guess the Smitty's deal is done, old news now: http://www.wlwt.com/news/24523283/detail.html The Lackman Bar was all lit up last night and is looking great!

A bunch of properties were transferred to OTR Predevelopment LLC on 7/31. It appears to be a 3CDC subsidiary and the transfer was from the land-banking subsidiary OTR Holdings. The color building is part of this, as well as the cool green building just to the north, and interestingly, some property at 13th and Republic. Does this mean some construction activity is imminent? I have not seen this subsidiary listed on the property tax records before.

The aesthetic difference is night and day, we can see it on Vine St and St. Gregory here in Cincy. It makes a big difference in neighborhoods too. I've only lived in Cincy for a couple years, and when I first came here it really stood out. I work for a California based company and when people come here, they comment on it too. I've lived in quite a few places and it is only here that the power lines and poles have really bothered me. In Cincinnati, above lines are everywhere, they are often sloppily strung all over the place, the wood poles lean, and the city makes use by hanging stoplights, street lights, and street signs from them. We get used to it living here, but it really detracts from the area. It's not just neighborhood commercial districts either (although those are a logical first place to start). I really think people come to Cincinnati and judge it "gritty" based on the abundance of overhead lines, be is conscious or unconscious. Utilities in neighborhood: Beautiful tree canopy in older neighborhood with no utilities: That's the kicker right there, people in this country want it done cheaply, aesthetics be damned. It is a bit oxymoronic when all the effort is put into designing great streetscaping while leaving the overhead utilities though. Lots of cities have comprehensive plans to bury utilities. I hope we can get Cincinnati to care too. I wish I had a picture, but Minneapolis put up some temporary wood poles for a city wide wi-fi network that actually had an apology note attached that admitted it was unsightly, and assured people it was only temporary as if they expected the complaints in advance. Curbs in Cincinnati are another issue altogether to me. Cincinnati does not build "curb and gutter" and the thin little walls of concrete fall apart because water flows along asphalt, seeps into the cracks, and washes out the underlayment, wearing it out, instead of flowing to the sewer grates in concrete gutters. Good discussion. I would like to Cincinnati come up with a plan to focus on burying lines where possible. Lots of cities are doing it and I truly believe we have a lot to gain from it.

Well I think this article shows a "real" groundbreaking in August unlikely, but it is pretty cool nonetheless that they are getting close to picking a general contractor. Hopefully earth is being moved by September: http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100728/BIZ01/7290369/Contractors-vie-for-park-work Get ready for a year of complaints about how 3CDC is "unfair" from losing bidders. Also, I'm not sure this was posted yet but a very detailed powerpoint is on 3CDC's site, with a lot of interesting information about past projects and spending: http://www.3cdc.org/images/editor/WP%20-%20Council%20Finance%20-%20June%2028%202010.pdf

I really think taking advantage of opportunities to bury utility lines would greatly beautify the city and give it a much cleaner look. Burying utilities on Vine in the Gateway and in Mt. Adams made a huge difference. So what are the challenges? I would think it should be relatively simple so long as the road and sidewalk are torn up anyway, and the suburbs seem pretty good at getting their utilities buried. There was an article in the Enquirer a few months ago talking about what a challenge it was in Mt Adams (100% property owner agreement I think??). What makes it difficult, and what could be done to make it easier? I would think in the long run it is even cheaper when you factor in tree trimming, maintenance, and outages (08 hurricane anyone?). This is something I would like to look into more so I would appreciate any info. To install these nice new lights and have them obscured by wood poles and then to have to trim back the new trees in the future is such a shame I took this picture in the bohemian shacktown of Punta del Diablo, Uruguay because as soon as I saw this it reminded me of Cincinnati While we're at it I think Cincinnati should adopt a clean looking standardized mast arm traffic signal... can you tell I hate overhead wires??

I just moved into Trideca and second that!