seanian

I like the idea of putting a new arena west of the convention center and incorporate it into an expansion of the convention center over I75. I believe that the whole area of that section of I75 should be capped and allow downtown to flow into that area. It has the same issue that FWW did to downtown and the riverfront.

I agree that what is thought of is not big enough when it comes to a large apartment building. Downtown doesn’t have any high-rise apartment buildings and it is desperately needed. I am not talking about some mid-rise building that is compact and short for apartment living, we have that; very boring, I want a view. What we need would be not just one, but several high-rise buildings in downtown and this site can offer the start of that. I remember when I wanted to move downtown it was so disappointing because I didn’t have any options to live in a high-rise apartment. The real estate was not there. I was told that if I wanted to have something like that I would have to live on one of the hills to have a view or live in the Lytle apartments on the river. I didn’t want to live on the river, I didn’t want to live on the outskirts of downtown and I didn’t want to live in an apartment building that was only a few floors up from street level. I wanted to have a view! Actual city living. I did not even have the opportunity to even choose since there isn’t any. If the DH office portion wants to stay mid level, then I say fine, just at least do the apartment portion right and give high-rise living for us so we have an opportunity to live life like that. We are out there and want to live in the high-rises, just give it to us please.

Wow seriously? I don't know of anybody that has gotten family loans like this. Judging how you give out loans or grants based on skin color is just wrong no matter how you slice it.

This is the monorail in sydny australia and it looks like it would be so easy to setup here. This does not look like something that would take a lot of capital to get into operation. Something like this could run along existing right of ways along the interstate. The picture shows it well above street level to travel over top of traffic, but it also can run along at ground level. Start a route going to the airport first (bridge would be the largest obstacle here), then spread out going along other areas like 75 and 71. There is plenty of right-of-way space along any interstate in the metro area. Just use the new transit center as its hub.

What do you mean rent? They said loan amounts, not rent.

What's wrong with a 12 story building, other than you can't see it in the skyline? 180 residential units could be 9 stories, or it could be 18 stories. You're a planner. Whip out Sketchup and rough in the program and see what you get. I think that it does make a difference the way it could influence the skyline. You hear how people comment on how beautiful the Cincinnati skyline is, well I’m also one of those people. We wouldn’t be saying that if the buildings that make up downtown didn’t have an impact. It’s nice when a new building compliments that look rather than blends in between the other buildings. This is also why I’m hoping this isn’t some boring square or rectangular building without any character. With this being said, one of the more important issues will be the living space included into these plans; the more units the better. The city lacks high-rise living and needs high-rise apartments in the CBD.

I don't understand where you say Covington doesn't need to put that in. It's actually a very good thing for Covington to put this 28 story tower in. It's always good to see more residential going into the downtown areas of both Covington and Cincinnati. Both sides of the river should thrive to keep a vibrant area as a whole. This is why it's important that the residential portion slated for the 5th & Race site have as much residential as possible; the more the better for a healthy downtown. It makes for a thriving area when you make sure you have more residential added to the mix.

If this is the one you are referring to regarding a new tower in Covington, I have two quotes from news articles, 1st Quote: "A distinctive glass 28-story tower with hotel rooms, luxury apartments and two restaurants – one on its rooftop, one at its base." 2nd Quote: "A proposal from the Boca Hotel Group called "The Sail Project" would include a 28-story mixed use building that would include 128 hotel rooms, 136 luxury apartments and two unique restaurant concepts. The Sail Project is proposed to be situated over the Overlook at the north end of Madison Avenue. The total cost of the development is $49.5 million. Boca proposes a construction start date of early 2013 and an opening at the end of 2014."

So far it doesn't sound very impressive, at this point it sounds as if it is just going to blend in. I know it is still in the early stages and can turn out different than what information we are given at this time. It was always said that a building that had a signature, or was more impressive for that site was going to come about.

I would like to see what Covington is planning for their riverfront. Are the plans posted online anywhere?

Anything happening or any new news with a new IRS tower going up in Covington? Here is a quote from the Enquire back in September 2011: "They are remaining in Covington. They are reinvesting in Covington," said Klein, who has said Covington is pleased the IRS is looking to transform its multi-acre, single-story facility that occupies much of the city's riverfront into a tower that will occupy a smaller footprint, allowing expansion of the Northern Kentucky Convention Center while also opening up acres of other land for new development" It was also reported according to the IRS that they have to be located in Covington's downtown. They employee anywhere from 3,500 to 5000 people depending on the time of year.

Downtown will look so much better once fww is capped. Would it be possible to do the same thing over i75? It would be nice to capp any portion of the interstates next to the CBD.

Having 50-60 thousand square foot floors is huge, but if that's what they want then cool. I personally didn't like it when the company I used to work for in Florida went from an office tower into two 65 thousand square foot floors. No longer were the many departments conveniently located via a quick ride on the elevators. But I’ll say it again, let them build what works for them, they know what works for their business. I’m sure the space will be used to its fullest. I just hope that the space above the DH offices is utilized to its full potential because of this being in the heart of the city. I would think that DunnhumbyUSA would want its marquee on the top of a tower to be part of the skyline. If the building sits to low then this type of visibility will not be possible. We will eventually find out when the plans come out.

Well that gives way to a great idea. Build what they can underground, keep the entire first floor for retail and DH’s corporate headquarters lobby and a lobby area for a separate residential tower, along with more retail on the second and third floors just in case they can get another department store in there. Then they can have a drive up ramp going to the fourth floor where more parking can begin. Have about another 8 floors of parking, then build the office space and residential above that. That would mean that the office and residential wouldn’t even start until the 12 floor. It would actually be one building until the 12 floor and then it would separate into two separate towers. One residential tower and one office tower. This would definitely be a great start for the height of the building. The garages would be separate from each other, but that wouldn’t matter.

Why couldn’t they have put the parking underground underneath the casino? It could’ve freed up a lot of that huge 22 acre parcel. Such a waste of prime downtown space.

I agree that it would be nice to see something that would stand out. In terms of a tower that is architecturally dazzling and grand in height. Definitely two towers would be optimal. But with two towers and eventually the air space above Macy’s where another tower will eventually go, the planned below ground parking on that site with around 450 spaces doesn’t seem like much. I’m definitely all for keeping the parking underground, but how low can they dig when building a tower in this area? If it’s possible to go lower, then I would suggestion building as many underground levels as possible to allow for future parking for other towers. If they can go just over double and get at least 1000 spaces or maybe even more, then that would help secure the other towers going in. As it stands now, where would people park if a building goes in above Macy’s? If two towers are going in, who thinks that 450 spaces would be enough?

It's such an incredible amount of space that this one project is using up; something like 22 acres. I'm hoping that when it's done that this project comes off as an extreme wow, maybe a bit of flare. Maybe huge gorgeous fountains in all of that extra space they have. The plans that I’ve seen appear to make it look closer to a suburban project especially with the way it’s all sprawled out, even the design of the building. Maybe it will wow me after it’s done, but it just doesn’t appear to be doing that so far. When they build the hotel portion, is it being built on top of the parking? I’m assuming that maybe with a high-rise hotel, it will have a signature look to it that will add a grand look to an impressive skyline. Once it’s operational, the hotels in the downtown area will presumably start filling up and be at a high occupancy, then the construction on the hotel portion should be just around the corner after that happens. I’m sure with all of the money that they’ve put into this that they should have an idea as to what the hotel portion would look like when it is to be built. Curious to see the plans of the hotel if this is the case.