mcadrenaline

Horstman is such an A-hole, he couldn't bring himself to write a wholely positive article and had to slip in this little dig! I have to admit -- I laughed. But mostly because it's so par for the course from this guy and is starting to come off as desperate.

The comments are overwhelmingly positive on this one, and it's the same several people that are arguing, incessantly replying on each post (COAST?) To pass along something more positive and thought provoking, read below....this is one of my favorites of the day. To the guy that wrote this: you are spot on and I will buy you a drink at Neons or one of the other fantastic watering holes in OTR asap "I think some suburbanites do not want to admit the success of OTR. They would rather believe the city and especially OTR are an urban armpit. The rule of the past was for happiness and prosperity you need to buy your house with the white picket fence in the suburbs. But today with the proliferation of suburban slums, declining property values, declining schools, empty strip malls, gas prices, traffic jams and more, many are beginning to see the benefits of living in the urban core, while they are stuck in the burbs. They want to hate the Streetcar, Washington Park, SCPA, The Banks, The Casino, etc, and scream about crime and getting shot because they hold on to the ideals of the past and are stuck living in them, both physically and mentally. What the naysayers in the suburbs need to understand is that there is no “sub” without the “urban”. With the success of the City and specifically the Central Business District, including OTR, the entire region will succeed and prosper which will help restore the suburbs."

^^^ they really hit the nail on the head this time. I was in 1215 last night when the posted the article and was sitting at the bar reading it....kind of a surreal moment. Maybe they are finally starting to realize that actually supporting the good things that are happening in this city could have a tremendous impact on their revenue?

Anyone know if either of those buildings are recieving any kind of exterior facelift? They are both eastern-european housing block scary.

Also, announced yesterday that Cleveland will also be getting a TKILTBAG location http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2012/04/flats_east_bank_project_lines.html

Drove by yesterday and it looks like work is finally progressing on Crave. Doors were open and plenty of equipment present.

Maybe they are in the process of remodeling then becuase I stayed there in January of this year and had a small suite that was pretty embarassing...and I'm Hilton Honors Diamond too! We're supposed to get the nice rooms! I wish I had taken a picture of the sofa that was in my room...it was actually pretty funny how late-80s it was.

The Westin only remodeled their public spaces during that time. Their rooms are probably the best downtown (aside from the brand new Residence Inn), but still have old box TVs and are quite worn. The Hilton has great public spaces that have been cared for over the years, but the rooms are a mess. Very dated furniture, old TVs, dirty carpet, poor lighting, no WiFi in the rooms (100% unacceptable for a upscale hotel catering to business travellers) I haven't stayed in the Hyatt for probably 3 years, but even back then it was not comprable to Hyatts in other major business cities that I've travelled to. Don't even get me started on the Millenium...it's owned by a Singapore-based real estate group that have literally put no money into improvements since they bought it. It's also well known that the Lindner brother who controls the Cincinnatian has no interest in investing any money into it. Again, very dated rooms (but the service and restaurants in there are solid) If you guys don't believe me, go read some reviews of these places on TripAdivsor which echo my thoughts. I also hear these comments echoed from people that come into town for my downtown employer.

^^^ Columbus is, in the Short North. Called The Joseph http://www.columbusunderground.com/short-north-boutique-hotel-to-begin-construction-this-summer Indy has a CONRAD which is far, far better than anything in Columbus or Cincinnati right now, but it still more of a business hotel rather than a true botique. Anybody else wonder if 21c will be big enough competition to force the big Cincy hotels (Westin/Hyatt/Hilton/Millenium) to consider remodeling? All 4 of those properties are extremely dated and worn. Not appropriate for a big business city like Cincinnati...

back to the Cincinnati one though -- I walked by this morning. Yesterday and today they are removing the old fire escapes in the alley between the hotel and Nicholson's. It REALLY opens that space up and I can't wait to see how to translates into outdoor dining or bar space.

seems like they are targeting second tier southern cities where there's not much of a boutique hotel presence and relatively cheap land/buildings, so I wouldn't be suprised to see Nashville, Memphis, Augusta, Birmingham, Montgomery, etc pop up in the near future... a small portfolio of 21c hotels would actually be a good thing -- better brand recognition and better utilization of resources from an operational perspective. with thier local, art-centric concept though they have to be careful they don't just turn into another boutique hotel chain a la W or Kimpton and really keep it special.

Any updates on this? There's not even any equipment on site yet...is there a hold-up or something?

so, I checked out a R/T Cincy-Chicago on the Greyhound Express for next weekend. Greyhound clearly does not know the meaning of 'express'. It would have taken me 8 hours and 2 (!) transfers in Dayton and Indy on these new Express branded busses Friday evening. Coming back? 9 hours, again with a stop in Indy. The price is right at $72, but i'd gladly pay an extra $10 to ride megabus. Who are they kidding, sheesh. Also of note, you can reguarly get $160 incl tax R/T CVG-ORD on American or United leaving Friday evening and coming back Monday, which isn't a terrible deal.

^^Add a few more smaller clothing stores to that list as well as the restaurant that was where Bar Louie is now and you're getting there. Heather's Heat + Flavor closed in January as well. A major factor in the large turnover numbers at Legacy was this: when Legacy opened, Americans were still spending freely and building new homes, etc. Retailers were eagerly bringing new concepts to the market anxious to increase sales and profits (Home Depot's EXPO & Talbot's Men's, for example). This obviously ended pretty quickly and these new concepts had to shut their doors. Also, several of the retailers at Legacy went through BK or closed lots of locations nationwide, so it wasn't anything wrong with Legacy itself (Bombay, Ritz, Galyan's acquired by Dick's, etc) Even still, it has one of the only Apple stores in NEOH and is located in a one of the wealthiest areas of the state, so it will be fine.

Suprised Viking made it through the housing crisis and closes now once people are begining to spend money on their homes again. Lots of turnover at Legacy it seems, although they do fill any vacancies fairly quickly. I would gather to say that maybe 60-75% of the original tenants have since closed or been rebranded at some point.

Was there no mention of residential or a Kroger location on this site today? Those are the portions I care most about to be honest....

Announcement coming today at 11:30AM. From Dunnhumby's Twitter account it looks like Kroger will be a part of this announcement as well *fingers crossed*

That store has a cult following. lol mostly because of their nonchalant attitude towards checking ID....but that's another story.

CVG adding service to Caribbean, Mexico vacation spots http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2012/03/29/cvg-adding-service-to-caribbean.html Vacation Express is starting seasonal nonstop flights to Caribbean and Mexico destinations from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. The seasonal service runs May 25 through Oct. 29. Service from CVG will include seven-night packages to Punta Cana, Cancun and Jamaica. Flights will be operated by Canadian carrier Sunwing -- who I bet is also behind the possible London flights...they do lots of Canada-Europe stuff.

Airing right now -- Joe Calabreeze from RTA is on as well. If you can't listen, it will be available as a podcast as well. After several years of tight budgets, service cuts and fare hikes, the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority now has its healthiest budget in years. Ridership is up all over the country and Northeast Ohio is no exception. On the next Sound of Ideas, we'll talk leadership of RTA and Akron Metro about their budget plans and efforts to meet the increased demand and compliment new developments in the region. And are fare cuts possible? Join us Thursday at 9:00. http://www.ideastream.org/soi/entry/46034 http://www.ideastream.org/

buyout deal?

I hear the Golden Lions space is now a Hookah Bar (great...) and WTF is going on with the IGA? very, very disappointing. so much lip service about the neighborhood, upgrades, community, etc etc but no results....

Hopefully they will rebrand it a Crowne Plaza. Wishful thinking. Literally zero chance of that happening imo. My money is on HI Express or Hotel Indigo if it stays within IHG. Anyone's best guess if it doesn't... What we dont need is another low-mid level hotel downtown. Although Crown Plaza is a middle of the broad brand for InterContinental/HI Hotels, it's better than an Hotel indigo. Just wishful thinking. They have a sign on their doors that are a bit misleading and honestly I can't make heads or tails of it. Basically, it states that they will be closing for 60 days and a new Holiday Inn Express will be reopening completely refurbished and rebranded. Yup, makes complete sense. Basically just bringing the property into their new standards. They should replace signage to have the new logo as well. http://www.hiexpress.com/hotels/us/en/global/exp/exp_home

Hopefully they will rebrand it a Crowne Plaza. Wishful thinking. Literally zero chance of that happening imo. My money is on HI Express or Hotel Indigo if it stays within IHG. Anyone's best guess if it doesn't...

okay because the interior of airplanes are soooo much cleaner, right.