JohnClevesSymmes

Everybody's could move into the Walgreens.

Le’s Pho and Sandwiches to open on Court St. 06/05/12 at 5:35pm Written by pcampbell Le’s Cafe, the little eatery in Downtown’s Main Library, is moving to Court St. Hai Bui is opening Le’s Pho and Sandwiches, named for his wife, at 3 E. Court St. http://cincinnati.com/blogs/dining/2012/06/05/les-pho-and-sandwiches-to-open-on-court-st/ This is great news. I was disapointed when I heard they were leaving the library but a storefront location on Court st. is a big step up!

^ I completely agree. My reading of the transcript shows a guy who sees what is happening in the Gateway maybe for the first time or maybe just through a new lense and is truly impressed. Anyone with the tired old perceptions has to be blown away when they come upon those couple blocks on a busy night. Just as palpable, obvious success breeds positivity when it comes to OTR, the same will be true for the streetcar. The headline can't be about the empty streetcar boondoggle if the cars are well-utilized and ridership enthusiasm matches the infectious quality of the Gateway and other recent successes in the Downtown area.

Looks like Reser Bicycle Outfitters is opening up a shop at 1419 Vine. Great news. https://www.facebook.com/reser.bicycle.outfitters

I agree if you mean there is room for more structures but I don't think the grass is more terrible than extra pavement. Hopefully something will be built on that huge lot in front on the Hamilton side, which could distract from the grass.

If you get your food pre-prepared from a central commissary and reheat it, then you are applebees. If you buy real food and assemble that food into dishes then you are not. If Banks establishments fall into the latter category then I am far less concerned. I agree with natininja that Banks being attractive to suburbanites is a good thing. However, I want the restaurants to have some integrity even if they lack creativity.

Based on what? If they are so anti-streetcar why aren't they supporting COAST?

Looks like per hour rates are lower than that. $10 an hour for a "cruiser"

Did I say road bike? I meant comfort bike.

For some types yes, but for the road bike it looks like it is $5 cheaper for a full day. Who knows how they come up with these pricing schemes. Perhaps since they expect a greater volume in Santa Monica they can charge less. Edit: I mistyped - I meant to reference the comfort bike. Gilbert is definitely superior to Reading even with the lane issues. These lane abrupt stop and starts seem to be a common problem in Cincinnati. We need better contiguous routes - hopefully the increase in downtown bike rental options will lead to more downtown biking and will wake people up to the need for downtown bike lanes and better routes leaving CBD.

Our gun problem boils down to an illegal gun-access issue. Finland has mandatory military service for every male. In Switzerland, almost every man undergoes military training and then keeps his gov't issued weapon. A major problem in the United States is that we have a powerful lobby, the NRA, that represents the interests of gun manufacturers. Those companies want to be able to make and sell as many guns as they can, and do so with minimal restrictions. With so many guns coming off of the assembly line, the tracking and oversight cannot possibly prevent every gun from ending up on the black market. As I see it, the only way to really shrink the black market is to legislate some sort of nexus between stricter rules on who can get a license and a tightening up on the distribution network. Think about how many hoops you have to jump through to own/operate a car.

Looks like Segway's new bike store/annex is open. They are renting those electric bikes that they sell, and hopefully regular bikes as well. Haven't been in yet but from walking by I noticed some cool looking hipstery bikes I assume are for sale. I love how the downtown area is getting two new places to rent bikes within a couple weeks (Smale Park being the other one). I would probably never buy one of those electric bikes but I look forward to cruising around on one sometime!

It's probably because Cincinnati is certainly more "peaceful" than Camden, an entire city I fear worse than suburbanites fear OtR.

How is Camden, NJ #14?

It's Hama, not Halama. And who knows what is what with all of the rumors flying around. I have heard Hama, Embers, and Pho Lang Thang in connection to possible Vine St. establishments. Urbancincy says Hapa is rumored to be the Pho Lang Thang enterprise but I guess we shall see. http://www.urbancincy.com/2012/04/new-asian-inspired-restaurant-will-extend-vine-streets-veritable-restaurant-scene-north/

Don't forget there is a difference between parking requirements and subsidized parking. We want to encourage the free market when it comes to parking, but don't want a system where developers take advantage of existing subsidized parking, while making it harder for current or future employers to ensure spots for their employees. A true free market for parking does not currently exist, so changes in the law should take that into account.

Like Mt. Adams? Furthermore, there doesn't seem to be a problem on Final Fridays when Main Street is packed with people. There is a plethora of convenient parking within a few blocks of Main Street. More so even than Vine st. and definitely more so than Mt. Adams. People will go wherever there is a fun time (real or perceived) to be had.

A little national coverage: Cincinnati May Scrap Parking Minimums Downtown By Matthew Yglesias | Posted Wednesday, April 18, 2012, at 11:24 AM ET Cincinnati City Councilor Roxanne Qualls is leading the charge to abolish parking minimums for developers building homes in the downtown and Over-the-Rhine neighborhoods. I'm particularly excited to learn of this development for personal reasons. Qualls was mayor of Cincinnati in the late-1990s and after leaving office did a stint at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government as an Institute of Politics Fellow. While there, she led an undergraduate study group about urban planning that I participated in. So, in a meaningful way, my present obsession with parking regulations and anti-density rules all goes back to Qualls, and now she's taking the lead on an important reform initiative. http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2012/04/18/cleveland_parking_minimums.html Edit: Just noticed the url says "cleveland parking minimums". Fools!

Really? And were all of the surface lots on Central Parkway full too? And both the Alms & Doepke and the Gateway garage? Doing away with parking minimums is a boon to developers who don't want to put in parking and developers who do. I suppose a drawback is the potential for parking rates to go up, but my hope would be that encourages more to use public transit. Businesses already choose not to locate downtown because of the parking issue so I don't think this would make things much worse on that end. Furthermore the effect of the change won't be felt for a few years, and the streetcar will be in operation at that point.

Check out the comments section if you want to see some creepiness and a man of true patience.

Bentonville is home to Walmart and other companies like P&G have set up offices down there to do business with them. I would assume 21c has done some kind of research that tells them there is a need for more hotel rooms at their price point/amenity level. When I have stayed at the Louisville hotel, during the week, I noticed many of my fellow guests were business travelers and that is probably the market they are looking to capture in Bentonville. Lexington makes sense because it is the other big city in Kentucky and it will probably be a relatively smoother expansion than going out of state. The only hotel I have ever stayed in when going to Lexington is that one huge Marriott, which is nice and all, but a brand new 21c will be much more tempting. I agree that it benefits Cincinnati if no new expansions are set for Indianapolis or Columbus. 21c is certainly a destination hotel on top of being great option for business travellers. We do compete with those cities for regional tourism. This being UrbanOhio, I hope Columbus gets an awesome new boutique hotel too, just not 21c!

I really like this analysis. I wonder if there will also be an increase in game attendance this year as more people are trained to think of that area as an entertainment destination. Of course, a wire to wire season wouldn't hurt.

I rode all over Europe, including Amsterdam and Berlin, where there are definitely tracks in the street. In Amsterdam it is barely a problem because cyclists basically have their own mini-roads all over town with stoplights and everything. I got the front tire of my bike caught in a track in Berlin when I didn't cross it at the correct angle. I didn't wipe out but i had to jump off my bike quickly and looked like a total n00b. Like someone else said, it is a manageable problem. Perhaps a nice solution would be for the city to create some bike lanes downtown on some of the many non-streetcar route streets.

Apparently DCI was annoyed that the storefront looked terrible for so long so Grammas put up the paper to appease. Hopefully construction will begin soon. Also, I hear a sports bar is going in to Black Finn.

So that's where I parked it...