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The defunct High Class Boutique on the corner of Fairview and Ravine, which advertised "High-Waisted Jeans, Bodysuits, and Rompers", was recently replaced by University Mattresses, complete with a creepy mannequin laying down on a mattress in the front window. Just in case you weren't sure what a mattress was for.

I hope this Target sells vaping supplies, hookahs, and used mattresses so the bulk of CUF's other businesses are forced to upgrade.

CityBeat posted an interview with Yvette Simpson where she mentions some of her views on the streetcar and the wider question of regional transit: http://www.citybeat.com/news/blog/20830673/why-councilwoman-yvette-simpson-wants-to-be-mayor

I was just down there the other day and was thinking about how effective it is. It's definitely a beautiful park-like environment, but it feels exclusive and corporate, not public. Unlike actual city parks, I never see many people just hanging out in it besides what I assume are P&G employees. It's nice to have a green space in that part of downtown, but I wish it was an actual public space and not a P&G-managed pseudo-park. Might make the beautiful Taft theater feel like it's in less of a dead zone.

I believe the Macy's building on Fountain Square was originally going to be much taller, but was downsized. However, they built it with the ability to add on to the top as an option down the road.

I haven't walked up the hill after a night of drinking, but I have biked from CUF for drinks via Ravine and the Central Parkway bike lane, and coming home there were a few other people doing the same. It's about 10 minutes from Washington Park up to the top of Fairview, and it's a great way to burn off the beer calories :) And when we do our Saturday/Sunday walk down Ravine/McMicken to Findlay there are always a few other people making a similar trek. It's definitely not bustling like lower OTR, but that's partially due to the big abandoned stretches that currently lie between CUF and OTR. Also, CUF has its own walkable amenities (albeit a bit college-y). OTR is just a nice secondary option. Can't speak to Mt. Auburn's state as a walkable neighborhood in its own right.

Agreed, we bought the house because it was right for us and not as an investment. But if OTR does get saturated prices in the area may rise, especially as development moves closer to Brighton/Mohawk, which is literally just down the hill from CUF. I keep waiting for that historic McMicken business district to pick up...hell, there are nice corner business buildings all along Warner that are vacant or misused. It always amazes me when I walk down Klotter (either branch), one of the best streets in the entire city, that it's still about 1/3 taken up by cheap junky student rental properties.

Definitely off-topic, but we just bought our first home in Fairview and love it. The quality of the housing stock is pretty great if you don't mind the 19th-century sized lots. I don't really understand why Fairview/CUF is always off people's radar for buying a house - maybe people assume the college parties are a nuisance? But given the fact that you can buy an Italianate for well under $200k and be quite close to downtown more than makes up for the odd house party. It's a 17 minute walk to Findlay (5 mins on bike), a 15 minute walk to Nippert for FCC games, 10 minutes to cheap Indian/Asian food on McMillan, and 5 minutes to the park with the best view of the city.

Anyone have any news on the status of the Dennison? Who's the best person to contact to voice opposition to demolition? I don't see any real contact info for the HCB on the City's website (http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/buildings/historic-conservation/historic-conservation-board/), but I'm not able to attend meetings in person.

I like the design and scale of Mercer IV a lot. It will be nice to have such a large construction on such a narrow street like 14th, as opposed to the wider thoroughfares of Walnut and Vine. Should make that area feel much denser than it currently does.

Interesting to note in that photo of Music Hall is the tall turret (now gone), and how much taller those "chimneys" used to be. Also interesting is that it looks that even in 1920, most of those windows were bricked/boarded up.

Just came across this image showing Laurel Street behind Music Hall from 1920. Looks like something out of industrial Birmingham or Manchester! If anyone has watched the show Peaky Blinders you'll know what I'm talking about.

Awesome photos. You really captured the charm of the city, along with the grit.

Have you ever visited Philadelphia? You can go on day-long walks there through virtually 100% intact historic urban fabric. It always surprises me how little attention Philly gets for what they have - all you hear about is how they throw batteries at Santa during hockey games, etc. Here are Google street views of some areas I'm talking about, covering different parts of the city: Quince St in Washington Square West: http://tinyurl.com/orxc9tk Waverly St in Rittenhouse: http://tinyurl.com/ox6h8yy Italian Market: http://tinyurl.com/onb7tcf 3rd St in Old City: http://tinyurl.com/qdhy3wt Callowhill (aka the Eraserhood, where David Lynch lived. He evidently was not a fan of the city): http://tinyurl.com/qf4omuw

Man, that PDF showing the 4-lane option with 30' of development is really appealing. It would totally change the feel of the neighborhood down that corridor.

Glad to see Cranley is paying attention to this. I have been thinking about this issue a lot recently, and wondering why Cincinnati doesn't do more to attract immigrants and accept refugees. For example there was some press a few weeks back about how St. Louis benefited a lot from accepting thousands of Bosnian refugees in the 90s, and how they're trying to get more Syrian refugees now. Here's a Guardian article on it: theguardian.com/us-news/2015/sep/14/st-louis-missouri-syrian-refugees According to the Migration Policy Institute, the Cincinnati MSA immigrant population is 4.2% of the total population. That puts us in 252nd place. As a comparison, Columbus is 6.8% and Cleveland 5.7%. Not great numbers, but both do better than Cincinnati. Here's the interactive map if you want to see other cities: migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/us-immigrant-population-metropolitan-area It just seems to me such a no brainer for shrinking Rust Belt cities to want immigrants. We have so many vacant houses and storefronts, especially in the West End (Linn St should be a bustling corridor) and real estate is relatively cheap (outside of the OTR bubble). The energy of new arrivals could be such an economic boon. Another article: citylab.com/work/2015/09/where-syrian-refugees-are-likely-to-settle-in-the-us/404698/ (Sorry, still can't post actual links)

I'm not sure how analogous it is to OTR given the population discrepancy, but Center City Philadelphia is comprised almost entirely of one way streets, including South Philly which is highly residential, and I found it much nicer to deal with as a pedestrian than areas with two-way streets. One-way streets can be narrower and allow pedestrians to just check one direction when crossing. Not saying it's exactly what OTR needs, but in principle one-way streets can be highly pedestrian-friendly and don't need to just convenience through traffic.

One solution (politically impossible, of course) would be to raise taxes on surface lots. It won't let me post an external link, but check this out: streetsblog.net/2012/12/10/want-to-end-the-scourge-of-surface-parking-tax-land-not-buildings

Just gonna throw this out in case anyone else gets incredibly depressed like I do when they think of what was lost. Sorry if it's all been said before. #1, Cincinnati may no longer be on par with Boston, Baltimore, or Philly (where I lived for several years and adore), but at the same time, I couldn't dream of affording a house anywhere near the center of those cities. In Cincinnati I can. #2, we have to look at the vacant lots as opportunities for the future. Room for new things. Spaces for future forms of urban development. And #3, while buildings may be gone, the compact layout and streetscape of Cincinnati is pretty well intact, making it inherently much more pleasing to navigate than somewhere like Chicago (where I currently live). I took it for granted before moving to the Windy City how nice the narrower streets of Cincinnati are. Of course there's room for improvement there as well (I'm looking at you, Liberty. And what the hell, Bank St??).