MissinOhio

Better than Fargo, eh? The only state out in the middle of the mid section that I have an interest in (not treating it like flyover country) is Nebraska. Lincoln and Omaha seem to offer a lot.

I figured the comments would be bad. I started reading, and within 10 seconds saw that word and just closed the article...

I haven't been on here in forever especially with school and work, but I do check in every now and then. You're still going at it? All you still do is bash Columbus? All you do is still up Minneapolis while bashing Columbus on an urban OHIO website? Stop! Who cares what your opinion is of Columbus? It is the constant negativity that gets old. You ruin threads about how much you hate Columbus. I don't care about Minneapolis or anything in Minnesota, and I certainly don't care for your pessimistic attitude towards Columbus. We ALL already know how much you hate Columbus, but yet you still type on here how much of a failure it is. If you hate it so bad, stop talking about it. I really don't understand that about you. Columbus doesn't care about you either. I went back to Florida twice this past summer, and I am still not looking to join any site talking about the cities there. Why? Because I don't care about Florida. Nor do I care to talk about why I think their cities fail at just about everything they do. Get over yourself, and stay in Minneapolis. It is one thing if it was why Columbus doesn't do a certain thing right, but with you it is EVERYTHING. I still can't believe you are on here putting down Columbus. GET OVER Columbus! It's in your post, leave it there.

Hey everyone, it's been a while since I have been on UO due to summer classes and work. I guess I am waiting until the last minute here, but I am headed to Cincinnati this weekend for the Reds/Cardinals series on Saturday and Sunday. I have a few questions, and was hoping to get some answers on how to go about my trip in Ohio's best city :wink:: 1. Getting a hotel was hell. I refuse to stay in Kentucky because after going to school in Gainesville, FL and taking I-75 to get back to NE Ohio, Kentucky was my least favorite part of the trip and had some not-so-nice experiences there. Getting a hotel in downtown or anywhere close to the city was harder because of all the events going on. So I got myself a room up in Blue Ash. Where should I park when I get to downtown for the game on Saturday? I know Cincinnati has surface lots over to P&G's headquarters, and unlike Cleveland, downtown Cincinnati isn't dotted with massive surface lots in every corner of the city. I have been contemplating possibly getting a spot in The Bank's garage (I have heard parking can be incredibly expensive during events) or parking in the new Washington Park garage. I know there are other underground garages over by Fountain Square. Where is a good place to park which will let me walk through a good portion of the city experiencing some of the good stuff going on with the World Choir Games, etc? 2. Where should I eat after the game? The Banks is an awesome neighborhood, and on my trips back up to Ohio I would always stop in Cincinnati just to do some urban exploring. The thing is, some of The Banks restaurants have little to be desired in my opinion, and I do not feel like waiting to get into Moerlein. I know Cincinnati a little due to a few trips there. Whereas in Cleveland, I would know what areas downtown to go to and would have a list of which restaurants I would be considering. Is there anything in The Banks worth visiting? I am not too big on chains (not throwing them out), and could go for anything from hamburgers to sushi. I have certainly kept the idea open of a restaurant in Fountain Square or OTR open (and honestly would prefer those areas). 3. Finally, I want to do a little exploring on Sunday before I head back north. Any places in the immediate area worth visiting? I really want to check out The Banks some more because so much has been finished since I was last there. I want to check out Washington Park as well. Any suggestions in Mount Adams? Any other neighborhoods in the immediate area? In sum, I wish I had more time. Cincinnati is fantastic in just about every way from architecture, development, and city neighborhoods. I wish time would allow for more exploring, but do plan to make another trip down soon when my schedule opens up. So my three big questions revolve around parking, where to eat, and what to explore on Sunday. Thanks for any responses. They would be extremely helpful.

Apparently they didn't visit the Cleveland casino. They were making mention of the fact that a lot of people from West Virginia and Pennsylvania were visiting Cleveland's casino just to try it out. That might explain the clothing issue. :-)

JRC, do you know what is happening with a 7 story building on Commerce street west of Wick Avenue? I was driving home from class today and I was at a light and look over and there was a huge banner on the building talking about "living downtown". Looks like there is significant work happening to the building.

The condos on Gay Street in downtown Columbus (albeit brick) seem very similar in design to what is going on here at Cleveland State. They are really nice and have a great street presence.

Yep, pretty much.

Bill Cunningham looks like a douchebag.

Was that the one-story brick building that sat up to the street?

I was with friends from Michigan who were from the Lansing area and went to both OU and OSU. Lets just say I was really not impressed with much of Oklahoma (not to bash it in anyway). This was right after high school and I was looking to go to school down there. We will just put it this way, Oklahoma was completely different from what I was use to growing up back east, and I didn't like it. OKC is certainly doing some great things, but there is a lot of voids to fill in not just in the downtown area, but within surrounding neighborhoods. I guess it has a very southern city vibe to it with the rundown office style warehouse deal, if you catch what I'm trying to say. Either way, they are making progress, but from what I have seen outside of Devon Tower, I haven't been too ecstatic. About Toby Keith, that's fine because downtown Cleveland certainly makes up for it in the restaurant scene elsewhere in downtown from Playhouse Square, East Fourth, Gateway, Warehouse Districts, etc. Toby's is just going to be a part of a brand new mixed use development that will offer more than some chain. I can see it being a big hit in OKC, don't they have one though? Well, bear in mind OKC was a sh!thole in the 90s and earlier 2000s. I remember it well. It used to seem like only bad things happen here, ie., dust bowl, then bank crashes, oil bust, tornadoes, the bombing - OKC literally was the south's Detroit for a long time. In the last five years I think the state per capita income (which obviously is higher in OKC/Tulsa than elsewhere) went from #49 to #36, and OKC was the fastest growing city in the country in 2011, has had lowest unemployment for the last 4 years, etc etc.. some of it is obviously due to the oil and gas boom, but more of it is due to OKC investing in QoL - a lot of smart prognosticators have deemed OKC a sort of unsuspecting Portland on the Prairie. I can honestly say the rundown city I grew up in is no more. So I think there are some parallels to Cleveland in many ways, although honestly I despise BRT and anyone who's stupid enough to substitute that for proven rail-based transit. OKC's modern streetcar project (MAPS 3), which is already funded and breaks ground in a year, will really take the evolution to another level. The cool thing about OKC is right now every single week there are new downtown development deals announced. So that's what I mean when I say you're a little harsh on OKC, and naturally, anyone who hasn't visited in the last 2 years won't fully grasp just how extensive our rapid public makeover has been. It makes our first makeover in the 90s (MAPS 1) pale in comparison to what all is going on now. I think it's particularly telling that Bricktown, which in the early 2000's had the entire downtown spotlight to itself, is now the red-headed step child and has totally been overshadowed by Midtown (with its beautiful traffic circles), Automobile Alley (North Broadway), and particularly Deep Deuce which is the go-to area for major mixed-use infill. Devon Tower has spurred a ton of development on the west side of downtown (CBD, Arts District, and the new Film Row area which sprung up from nowhere). So I don't know how extensive and rapid-paced Cleveland's makeover has been, but as far as I know, OKC's is pretty unrivaled. Other cities that have thrived on similar makeovers, like Kansas City, Pittsburgh, possibly Chicago, definitely Milwaukee, and others come to mind. I think Cleveland's makeover is at least as drastic as KC's, and while I wouldn't put it up with Pittsburgh just yet, I also think it was overblown to an extent just how far Cleveland had fallen. Prognosticators may have been mixing racial indicators for prosperity indicators. Ie., Cleveland's east side is overwhelmingly African American, including some nice areas, which tends to suggest an African American upper class that has to be accounted for. Minority upper classes also tend to be very indicative of just how progressive/advanced a city really is, but I must admit I'm really interested in learning more about the racial cleavages in urban Cleveland, which is why I'm enrolled in Cleveland: The African American Experience at CSU. OK, that last paragraph was mostly extraneous, I just hate making a whole post solely about OKC when I already know everything there is to know here lol, and Cleveland is what I'm interested in now! I think the parallels are certainly there. I also think you guys would be surprised, among most of my civic friends and connections up here, Cleveland actually has a pretty positive reputation. Despite BRT :whip: I'm not being harsh on OKC, being harsh would be calling it East St. Louis and saying it has failed to do anything positive in the urban environment. How is my last paragraph irrelevant when all you have been talking about is OKC and its revival? This post I quoted you in is a perfect example of that lol. Also, Cleveland isn't relying completely on its BRT (Euclid Avenue). It has a very extensive rail system that links all areas of the city and inner ring suburbs. It's hard to explain to people who don't know Cleveland and look at google streetview and think they know the answers, but Cleveland is NOT Pittsburgh and I can't stand when people say it needs to or hasn't followed Pittsburgh's revival. I'm from the Mahoning Valley, another thing which is very hard for people to understand Cleveland vs. Pittsburgh. I have family from every corner of Pittsburgh and Western PA. I can leave my house (and depending on traffic on the parkway west) and be in downtown Pittsburgh in 45 mins. Cleveland is nothing like Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, or Milwaukee. So what Cleveland is doing, is great. Just like what Milwaukee is doing is great. Completely different cities going after what is best for them. I'm not surprised either about the positive Cleveland reputation. I lived down south and heard plenty of positives about it. I'm sure plenty here in NE Ohio would be surprised to hear that OKC is not some cow town in the middle of the Great Plains. I have defended Oklahoma a lot since having stayed there for 5 months and visiting friends in Norman. I just don't think I could ever live there, and that's why I left. Get use to coming east. Things are greener ( a lot greener), you don't see farms that are 20,000 acres and no trees ANYWHERE lol where it is just flat and barren. Also, get use to density.

Charleston, SC is pretty badass as well. Besides that, not much really. Atlanta has its spots, as does Charlotte. But if Applebees is your thing, you're set down south.

Good post. When you mentioned in your last paragraph about its relative proximity to Detroit; I think Toledo takes on more Michigan aspects than Ohio. It is very auto oriented, and seems to have problems finding itself in the 21st century. Leadership seems lost at best and no hope of turning the city around in that department. Toledo also seems to turn to autos to be the revival and end all be all of economic development just like Detroit. Toledo needs help, and it doesn't seem to be getting it anytime soon.

I read that in the Plain Dealer's section of around Ohio. Toledo sounds like a really sad city. The Marina District is still sitting empty, nothing is moving forward, etc.

I'm curious how DT Cincinnati is doing better than DT Cleveland? DT Columbus is a no brainer due to the fact Columbus really offers nothing outside of the Arena District. I have been to both DT Cincinnati and DT Cleveland recently, and in my opinion activity is more spread out in DT Cleveland giving it a more lively vibe. From Playhouse Square to the Warehouse District and points in between like East Fourth, etc. This is a serious question, throw out bias, what is Cincinnati doing differently than Cleveland?

$42 million expansion at Salem Community Hospital. According to my mom who works in the ER at Salem and is a nurse at the Heart Center of NE Ohio, local hospitals are ramping up construction to provide private rooms for patients which will be mandatory in the next few years. http://www.wytv.com/content/news/local/story/Salem-Hospital-Plans-42-Million-Expansion/G9XjyEiUdEWeUhn7I5taTQ.cspx

$203 million expansion at St. Elizabeth's campus in Youngstown, Boardman, and St. Joe's in Warren: http://www.wytv.com/content/news/local/story/Hospital-System-Plans-203-Million-Expansion/fsq8eCtZv0yJs9Ih2JyiXw.cspx

I believe it does.

I was with friends from Michigan who were from the Lansing area and went to both OU and OSU. Lets just say I was really not impressed with much of Oklahoma (not to bash it in anyway). This was right after high school and I was looking to go to school down there. We will just put it this way, Oklahoma was completely different from what I was use to growing up back east, and I didn't like it. OKC is certainly doing some great things, but there is a lot of voids to fill in not just in the downtown area, but within surrounding neighborhoods. I guess it has a very southern city vibe to it with the rundown office style warehouse deal, if you catch what I'm trying to say. Either way, they are making progress, but from what I have seen outside of Devon Tower, I haven't been too ecstatic. About Toby Keith, that's fine because downtown Cleveland certainly makes up for it in the restaurant scene elsewhere in downtown from Playhouse Square, East Fourth, Gateway, Warehouse Districts, etc. Toby's is just going to be a part of a brand new mixed use development that will offer more than some chain. I can see it being a big hit in OKC, don't they have one though?

Richard Florida talking about Cleveland?! That's it, we're saved.

Went by last Friday and it didn't seem like much was going on. Some stuff on the bottom floor windows, and looks like they are getting ready to with cables to hoist stuff to the top, but not much besides that. Not that I am rushing it or anything, just not much to write about.

I just now noticed you are from Stillwater. I have friends from Michigan that go to OU down in Norman. I actually spent 5 months in Edmond. Seriously, OKC and Cleveland are two different worlds. OKC sprawls for 600 miles, a downtown that could fit within Cleveland's Public Square it seems.... Bricktown was ok. lol they should just be in different countries. Obviously OKC never grew to what Cleveland did, never had the money or companies that call Cleveland home, as well as the diversity in its people. I easily can see why you would be pissed with urban development in OKC. If you're coming from Oklahoma, I'm pretty sure you will find what you're looking for in Cleveland.

No the 55 Public Square Building is 22 stories, and the Ernst & Young Tower is 18 stories plus a mechanical floor and roof terrace. The number of floors doesn't matter. The floor to floor heights vary a lot from one building to the next. 55 PS is 300ft and I believe this tower is higher than that at around 350ft? I am pretty sure it is actually shorter than 55 PS. I certainly got that vibe walking past it compared to the 55 building. This building is going to look nice, but just like the Cleveland skyline it can look deceiving from angles. It looks kind of short and stubby from west 6th, but from Edgewater had a really nice impact on the skyline.

Reading through your posts, you sound a lot like myself. I did a year as an urban studies major at CSU. I loved it. When I read your opinion on urban studies and architecture sharing the same core requirements, I couldn't agree more and immediately had to post on here. Anyway, I left Cleveland for the south after my freshmen year for the University of Florida in Gainesville. I hated the south, the cities had no character, and their idea of a great new restaurant opening up in downtown Jacksonville or Orlando was an Outback, I couldn't believe it all. So I decided to head back north where I am now a cultural/urban geography major. The best thing about Cleveland is it offers world class amenities at a fraction of the cost of New York and Chicago. You are literally within a days drive of 60% of the nation's population. Cleveland has awesome neighborhoods, the best food, people from all over, and the friendliest people in a major city. Every time I go to Cleveland I can easily put on 5 lbs. I was in downtown on Friday without calling up all my friends from CSU just to explore the city by myself (I am a huge urban geek). I walked Little Italy, University Circle, downtown, Edgewater, and Ohio City. There is a great vibe in Cleveland. It's being in a major city with friendly people, walking in Little Italy and smelling the food, walking down the steps at Wade Lagoon and seeing the art museum on the other side... looking up at Severance Hall where one of the world's best orchestras play. The lights of Playhouse Square. The tree-lined streets with outdoor eating in the Warehouse District. Or walking past the crowds of people on East Fourth. It is so hard to explain all of what Cleveland brings to the table in one post. I destroyed my brand new pair of Aldos I paid a ridiculous price for at Beachwood walking around Cleveland on Friday. But I wouldn't take it back. Cleveland has history, amazing architecture, awesome parks and neighborhoods, the best people around, extensive public transit, food from every corner of the globe, you name it. Coming from a small town on the Ohio/Pennsylvania border, going to Asia Town and seeing the frogs jump around in their tanks at the Asian grocery stores was an interesting sight. Cleveland is the reason I fell in love with cities. On that note, you will like Cleveland State University. Not only is Cleveland booming right now, CSU's campus is changing drastically. I can't believe how much has changed in the two years I have been gone. So many corners of campus looks completely different. Living options: Downtown is extremely hard to get into right now because there are waiting lists. Lots of great apartment options by CSU's campus. A lot of rehabs over that way. Check out surrounding neighborhoods by downtown. There are a lot of options in these areas, you have to look though. I wish you the best of luck. Your story sounds very similar to mine. Come to Ohio, you will love it here. We have a plethora of cities, each with its own unique character, and we are within in few hours drive of some of America's great cities and you can live in a very good price range in Ohio. Like I stated before, Cleveland offers the larger city amenities i.e. Chicago, New York at a much cheaper cost of living. I plan on finishing up my last year as undergraduate and looking to move to Cincinnati to go to University of Cincinnati (my dream school). Cincinnati is another amazing city completely different from Cleveland, but that's another post. Cleveland won't let you down, I promise.

That's news to me as well.