Wally

Yes, development of that piece of property at the foot of the purple people bridge does appear to moving forward. I'm hesitant to share too much information at this time, but I imagine there will be some sort of public announcement on this project within the next couple months. There have been several recent attempts at moving forward with development of that site, but all efforts have fallen through for financial reasons (developer was unable to get their financials to work with how much the Gregorys wanted for the land). It will be nice to finally see something constructed on this property (after sitting vacant for the last 8+ years).

Issue 22 was the first time that I have ever voted "No" on a local issue or levy. Had it not been for how it appeared this was a levy for Cranley's pet project fund, I would have been 100% in favor of it.

^^Amen to that! I've had season tickets for the past 5 seasons in the $100-$150 total price range near midcourt (upper level), and I'm already mentally preparing myself for my ticket cost to double (or even triple) once the renovated arena reopens.

Do you follow college basketball? You're probably not even aware that UC has made it into the NCAA tournament for 5 consecutive seasons.

Wowzers! I certainly didn't expect the read about this! This certainly appears to be a huge upgrade over the current state of the facility. So if UC isn't moving basketball games downtown, I wonder how they are making this work financially?

Someone probably uses it for practice (maybe the women's team and/or volleyball team)?

In looking at the renderings, it appears the 8 rows closest to the court along the sidelines are retractable to open it up to 2 practice courts.

Like many of you, for the past year or so, I've always switched back over to the Classic Google maps setting instead of the current Google Maps setup. And like many of you, I was disappointed to see the "Classic" mode discontinued last week, particularly because of the 45 degree images. Want to continue to use the "Classic" setup? I don't know how long this will continue to work, but here's a current work-around that I have discovered: Use this website: http://gmap-pedometer.com/ This is the classic Google Maps interface, and if you hover over the "satellite" button in the upper right corner, it gives you the option to view the 45 degree images. Enjoy! EDIT: this might only give you the "north" 45-degree view. Do any of you see a way to view the other South/West/East views on there?

Once again, Cranley could have taken the stance of saying "yes, this a good chance to show off the streetcar. Let's move the festivals to the Banks." But instead, he still is crying like a sore loser over this issue.

219 Wade just hit the market (I was wrong, it's $530K): http://m.cbws.com/property/details/256362/MLS-1434338/219-Wade-St-Cincinnati-City-Downtown-Area-OH-45202 Urban Sites is selling 208, 212, 214 and 215 Wade St. If it sells for that price, or even close to that price, it'd be a big statement. It isn't a condo on 12th and Vine, it's a home in a somewhat isolated spot (at least for another year or two) and the actual investment in the renovation is probably half of what the asking price is. 219 Wade is showing as "Sale Pending" with an asking price of $530,000. Wow.

I don't know how often RestorationConsultant is on these boards nowadays, but I did he apparently is selling his home here in Cincinnati? I enjoyed following his progress on his blog as he worked to restore the home several years back. I don't recall seeing many updates over the last year or two though. I had just assumed the work on the home was complete, but instead, it sounds like they may have been busy with other projects and didn't have time to fully complete this restoration. http://historicproperties.com/detail.asp?detail_key=nccin031 Hopefully he's planning on sticking around in Cincinnati (even if he won't be calling South Fairmount his home anymore). Anybody know is he is going to be sticking around the Cincinnati area? I didn't necessarily agree with all of his views on historic preservation, but I do think he is an asset to have in terms of preservation.

All upper level bleachers are $99 for a season ticket. Even those right at midcourt. http://www.gobearcats.com/sports/ucats/spec-rel/tickets-mbb.html $99 is a ridiculously good deal if you are in a low row bleacher section near midcourt.

The upper decks do have some horrible sight lines (particularly in the far upper corners of the upper deck), but there's also some seats with pretty solid views up there. I've got season tickets in the upper level bleachers very near midcourt, and I have no problem with the sight lines from where I sit. And at $99 for season tickets, you can't beat this deal. Keep in mind that for 90% of UC's home games, the seats with awful sight lines aren't even filled because attendance is well below the 13,176 capacity. However, I do agree that 5/3 Arena is long overdue for a renovation. I honestly don't think anything has changed in that place since I arrived at UC back in 1999. I hope they can keep this on schedule so that they have a state of the art renovated facility ready for use in 3 years.

Anybody have any idea how this subscriber thing is working out for WCPO? Some of their paywall stories appear to be interesting articles, but I just skip over them if I see they're a subscriber-only article.

Looks like the Hannaford designed mansion at 400 Forest Avenue in Avondale could be looking at demolition at some point. See here: http://www.wcpo.com/news/local-news/hamilton-county/cincinnati/avondale/historic-hannaford-mansion-in-avondale-could-be-demolished-to-make-way-for-new-development And here: Love the house. Rough area though. I'm not a WCPO insider, so I can only see the first part of this news story. I would love to go back in time and see Forest Avenue in its prime. There are many large beautiful homes that obviously are very run-down in their current state, but you can tell this was a beautiful street at some point in the past.

Does anyone have a good handle on the term limits for current council members? I know the term limits used to be four 2-year terms, and now the limits are two 4-year terms, but how does that work with council members who current tenure overlaps from the 2-year to 4-year terms? Current members: PG Sittenfeld - He will have served a total of 6 years at the end of the current term in 2017 (one 2-yr term and one 4-yr term) Wendell Young - He will have served a total of 6 years at the end of the current term (one 2-yr term and one 4-yr term) Charlie Winburn - He will have served a total of 16 years at the end of the current term (four 2-yr terms in the 1990s, two 2-yr terms in 2009 and 2011, and one 4-yr term) Christopher Smitherman - He will have served a total of 8 years at the end of the current term (two 2-yr terms in 2003 and 2001, and one 4-yr term) Yvette Simpson - She will have served a total of 6 years at the end of the current term (one 2-yr term and one 4-yr term) Chris Seelbach - He will have served a total of 6 years at the end of the current term (one 2-yr term and one 4-yr term) Amy Murray - She will have served a total of 4 years at the end of the current term (one 4-yr term), but also served a partial term in 2011 David Mann - He will have served (many) years at the end of the current term (1974 to 1992 and one 4-yr term) Kevin Flynn - He will have served a total of 4 years at the end of the current term (one 4-yr term) So.... -I am thinking that term limits must have re-set back in 2001 when we went with a separately elected mayor? Otherwise, it seems like Winburn and Mann would have already maxed out prior to the 2013 election. -Winburn probably is reaching his term limit by 2017? -Is Smitherman in his final term limit (he'll be up to 8 years since 2003)? -What about the members that will have 6 years in 2017 (PG, Simpson, Seelbach, Young)? Can they run for another term and serve the full 4 years? -Murray and Flynn probably wouldn't reach term limits until the end of the next term in 2021?

Yep, it's Marions that you are thinking of: https://www.google.com/search?site=&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1920&bih=956&q=marions+piazza+sausage&oq=marions+piazza+sausage&gs_l=img.3...336.4362.0.4456.22.17.0.5.0.0.74.921.16.16.0....0...1ac.1.53.img..7.15.861.-CR82O6-p4g#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=atBS7D8_u829zM%253A%3BSc9nlfRlbja1CM%3Bhttps%253A%252F%252Fanotherfoodcritic.files.wordpress.com%252F2014%252F04%252Fimg_1395.jpg%253Fw%253D440%2526h%253D240%2526crop%253D1%3Bhttps%253A%252F%252Fanotherfoodcritic.wordpress.com%252Fcategory%252Fby-food-type%252Fpizza%252F%3B440%3B240

Yep, I can just about guarantee this is what Cranley and Flynn are doing right now. Things have been going well lately with the streetcar construction (on time and on budget); therefore, this is simply a measure by them to "stir the pot".

Cranley was on with Cunningham again today and for the part of the interview that I heard, Cranley was pulling his typical negative tone on every reply about the streetcar. He basically said he was waiting for the supporters to come up with how the operating costs would be paid. Whatever happened to Cranley saying back in December that he would work to help find more private funds for the operating expenses? Why hasn't anyone called him out on this, as I am sure he has done absolutely nothing with the streetcar since that time? ------------------ Cranley did commend Flynn, saying he “has delivered for the people of Cincinnati. He’s delivered $9 million. Not many people can say that.” Cranley pledged to try to raise more money from corporations for the operating costs. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2013/12/19/last-minute-deal-making-greenlights.html?page=all -----------------

So with Clifton Hills closed to through traffic, is it possible to cut through Cincinnati State's campus from CP over to Ludlow? In looking at Google Maps aerials, I don't see any gates that would prohibit cutting through their campus.

So apparently the City closed Clifton Hills Avenue for traffic coming from Central Parkway over to Ludlow? I saw someone mention this in the streetcar thread earlier today, and I also noticed it firsthand a couple weekends ago. I'd be curious to see what the Gaslight district business owners think of this. For those folks coming from I-74, the Central Parkway exit to Clifton Hills to Ludlow route was the quickest way to the Gaslight District, and this is the route that I would take when I head toward those businesses. By blocking off Clifton Hills, it appears this would have a decrease on the traffic on Ludlow? Less traffic = few customers? I know that the CP exit from I-74 eventually goes away with the interstate reconstruction, but with so many other bars/restaurants up in the Clifton area, this seems like it would have a negative impact on the Ludlow business district.

^^Then maybe Channel 12 can do a follow-up story on how much more foot traffic and visibility these businesses will have once the project is complete compared with minor inconveniences of construction for this short period of time. Sheesh, I didn't live in Cincinnati back in the late 1990s when Fort Washington Way was rebuilt, but did we have the same outcry from the media and businessses along 3rd Street during that construction project? I understand there will be some impact during the construction work to the surrounding businesses, but at the same time, sometimes you have to take a small step backward before you can take a giant leap forward.

It's now time for the entire city to pull together and see that this project is a success. Regardless if you are for or against it, there's no point in being a detractor. And hopefully this also includes Cranley himself. And Smitherman. And Murray. And Winburn.

Cindi Andrews ‏@cindiincincy 52s BREAKING: Mann said mayor "has indicated he will be magnanimous and accept the will of council." Thinks Flynn firm as 6th vote.

Kevin Osborne ‏@kevinwcpo 29s Seelbach & Simpson are hinting there are now 6 council votes for continuing the streetcar project EDIT: Cunningham is now saying on 700 that sources are confirming to him that Flynn has flipped to continuing.