ekalb

Received this email today: THE BANKS: Opening of our Pre-Leasing office this week! We are scheduling personal information sessions by appointment only so if you'd like to learn more, call us at (888)715-2678 or send us an email. Once again, the space is located in the Scripps Center, 312 Walnut Street and appointments are required and available 5 days a week. Our appointment hours are Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays 9-6 PM and Saturdays from 10-5 PM. Here are the floorplans to the apartments that will be available at the banks: http://www.villagegreen.com/the-banks/floorplans-at-the-banks

I have organized the place a bit. Stuffed what I could into storage so I could take a few photos of my new place at Parker Flats. I wish I could describe the light in this space. It changes throughout the day. I look forward to watching rush hour traffic to see the rush of lights. The city is lit up differently each evening. Apparently they do not always light Carew Tower completely. The contractor at MED has fixed every issue I have had so far. I did not purchase any upgrades. So I will be making plenty of changes. But right now I am enjoying this space. The perfect Christmas gift! Here are a few photos so far: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ekalb/sets/72157611576042281/show/

I am in the process of moving into my Unit at Parker Flats. So far it is better than I expected considering all the construction still going on. My unit looks incredible. I picked the perfect time to close. My first full day moving has been fantastic weather. All the better to open the huge glass garage door in the living room and enjoy the outdoors.

I thought I read somewhere that grilling on multi-family building balconies was now illegal in Ohio.

I remember my architect cousin upset with the design of the WEBN offices in Mt. Adams. "How ridiculous it was to have a glass office building on top of traditional store fronts". Turns out it works. I have been to the developers Atlantic Station complex several times. It has a nice mix of urban and suburban appeal. I am not a fan of the "The Banks" recent design preview. But at this point I really do not care what they put there. As long as it is not black top parking lots. No matter how amazing or cheap the design. It will never live up to standards of Cincinnatians that live in drywall boxes.

All the units have two fairly standard size full bathrooms as shown previously in this thread. No half baths. The only difference between them is the Master bath upgrade offered granite tile for shower or jacuzzi tub upgrades. As well as a cabinet vanity. No double sinks. The lower bathroom upgrade was bowl style sinks and shower enclosure upgrades if it was not standard in the unit design. Nothing in the upgrades caught my interest. I plan on upgrading them myself after I move in.

Parker Flats should have used the same toilets that the Mt. Adams, Alta Vista townhouses used in their bathrooms. More appropriate match for a modern bathroom upgrade.

And here I thought that 302 W 3rd offices would be the only ones able to watch me eat breakfast naked. Now there will be neighbors from 312 McFarland looking directly into my condo at Parker Flats. Hopefully I will find some method to cover that glass garage door in the living room so I do not scare anyone.

The short purple townhouses on Boal Street are actually four stories tall in the back. Boal Street like several Cincinnati streets are built like land bridges that run along the edges of the hillside. If you go to the park between Milton Street and Boal you can see the stone arches that support it below the sidewalk of Boal Street.

I owned the second floor condo of the White Italianate building with the wrought iron balcony. The condo association had just replaced all the windows in the building. But the windows in my unit were installed upside down. Note the smaller sash is at the bottom instead of the top of the window. Grrr! Sold the condo in 2005 and moved into an incredible apartment on Corporation Alley. Milton Street is one of the finest streets to live on in the city. I have lived in the neighborhood more than 16 years now. There is a great eclectic mix of people. You can walk up the street and hear Opera singers practicing. Several professional artists live in the neighborhood. As well as several bands take up apartments on Milton. There are college students, executives, families, rich, and still a few poor. The neighborhood has become so popular now that I could not afford to buy anything nicer than the condo I owned. Tours happen in the neighborhood every Spring which I highly recommend. There are some serious surprises beyond the doors and alleys of these homes. European gardens, huge atriums, spectacular rooftop views, wine cellar grottoes and more. I have a flickr thread of some of my favorite homes: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ekalb/sets/1253194/