mcadrenaline

What is the DT population of Portland? They have a small but higher end mall downtown, Pioneer Place, that has many of the same stores as Kenwood. I would imagine there is also a larger suburban mall with additional locations of these stores. Actually come to think of it, the design and layout of Pioneer Place reminds me alot of Tower Place. Downtown Portland's Nordstrom drives much of their retail traffic...that store is truly a destination. I won't go on about what a different retail environment downtown Cincinnati would be if they built down there vs. at Kenwood. sigh....

Delta will cease nonstop service to Washington/Dulles and Oklahoma City from CVG in March 2013.

Looks like Megabus now offers new service from Cincinnati to: Atlanta, Buffalo, Chattanooga, Knoxville Columbus & Cleveland also got several new destinations!

the old Enquirer building will be a Hilton-family hotel, not residential. Also, FWIW I believe one or more of these will never get off the ground due to financing and other constraints. I've lived in Cincinnati long enough to know how these things go -- I'll believe it when I see it.

Great news on the apartments, but not so great news on the state of retail downtown... Brooks Brothers closing their downtown store and Macy's "disappointed" in the performance of their store. These are both major red flags for me.

I had the opportunity to go check out the 21C today for their grand opening. The space exceeded my expectations. It's a great space not just for Cincinnati, but for any city, anywhere. You do not feel like you are in Cincinnati. They clearly spent generously on the design and finishes and it shows. The bathrooms are excellent. Perhaps the biggest difference between their Cincinnati and Louisville property is that the one here is clearly designed with meetings and business functions in mind. The upstairs (which is also an art gallery) houses several large meeting and breakout spaces with lots of natural light and state of the art technology. I also was able to see a suite and the rooftop. I felt the suite was on par with other boutique/luxury hotels but with unique touches like a translucent print of old-world Cincinnati against one window and 21C branded tiles. Also, Malin + Goetz products stocked in the bathroom! The rooftop is unreal. There is nothing like that anywhere in this city, even in Mount Adams. No doubt it will be THE place to drink and socialize next summer. There is a small hot tub up there, as well as a bar and plenty of seating. The views are fantastic. It will be open to the public, but I imagine hotel guests will get priority access on busy nights. It looks like they still have a few small construction issues to work out (exposed wire here and there, some additional painting, etc) but it really looks like a great hotel. Hopefully they deliver on service too.

based on my experience at their Louisville property and feedback I've been hearing so far about Cincinnati, I think I may hold off eating there for a few months and just try the bar. Inevitably, the menu (and price points) will likely get fine-tuned once they figure out what is working and what isn't. Does anyone know if they are offering any happy hour specials yet? or maybe even a lunch menu?

I would be extremely suprised if the pool makes it. The expense of reconstruction and operating it for a relatively small number of units would be quite high. Not to mention insurance costs, etc.

Great pics. I can't wait to see what they do with this building. The character and detailing looks far more intricate than the Emery and look how well that building turned out! Wonder what will become of the gyms and pool? Pool probably filled in and gyms turned into 2-story loft apartments?

Any word on when Metropole is opening? Their signage went up yesterday.

^^ heh, if that means they are in a better position with their cash flow to acquire property and invest in OTR, I guess it's a good thing

A friend told me today that CORE, who has completed several projects in OTR and DT, is relocating their HQ from Anderson to OTR. He mentioned they also just bought 3 blocks of buildings. Could this be connected with that large acquisition made by that 2414 MORGAN group? http://www.core-1.com/

A friend and I drove down to Louisville last weekend to check out this property and the restaurant, PROOF, before they open their Cincinnati location. While the hotel's public spaces are great (you really feel like you're in a boutique hotel in NYC, Berlin, Barcelona, etc), the service we recieved at PROOF was simply apalling and unacceptable. Maybe my expectations were high (as they should be, given the price tag & cachet of the place) but I had to write off the entire experience as not only disappointing but also very bizarre. Here's to hoping they get it right in Cincinnati...I think there's a huge market here for the hotel, but they have got to nail it with the restaurant as well. We have a far, far more developed culinary scene than Louisville and people here travel. If the food and service sucks, it will fail.

The Garfield Suites Hotel in Downtown Cincinnati is currently under contract for sale. https://www.cbremarketplace.com/listings/8156/default.aspx Some interesting tidbits from the listing: Solid Top Line Performance. Being operated as an independent property, the Garfield Suites Hotel has historically performed well around the 80 percent level in occupancy while achieving ADR just under $100. With the property's competitive set performing an ADR around $125, the potential exists to uplift the Garfield Suites Hotel's ADR after completion of a renovation. Continued Operations as an Independent Hotel. A new buyer has the potential to minimize renovation costs by continued operations as an independent versus a franchise-affiliated property, which may result in greater costs due to brand standard compliancy. Furthermore, a value enhancement strategy exists to convert the hotel's penthouse units to either apartments or condominiums given the asset's excellent downtown location. However, this strategy may not be brand compliant, and therefore only applicable to operations an independent hotel. Branding Opportunities. The Garfield Suites has the potential to be rebranded into a well-known franchise brand. A transfer PIP to rebrand to a Homewood Suites is available on the due diligence website. Staybridge Suites by IHG is also a possibility for branding. Wyndham has completed a PIP for a Hawthorn Suites.

^^^ THAT would be epic. And there is certainly a shortage of cheap, fast-casual food options in OTR and no shortage of unelased storefronts up near 14th/Vine area.

I have seen some photos of the inside of the Rhino's building... I think December is probably wishful thinking. It's a pretty rough shape all over, particularly the upstairs which will become apartments/studio space.

Zula will be directly across Race from The Anchor

I drove through there the other day and this thing is *REALLY* going to change the feel of Calhoun. It barely feels like the same place now.

I imagine WF can make urban stores work in second-tier locations because they pull a totally seperate kind of customer than a Kroger/bigg's and also have much higher margins than Kroger (which are literally razor thin) I bet their prepared food and beauty/health/home goods absolutely rakes it in.

If this is true (taking it with a grain of salt as I do all things urban-grocery in this city), it's wonderful news. It also makes much more business-sense than a Kroger for example: a) WF tends to be far more urban-friendly than other grocerers and has shown they are willing to do urban in second tier markets (Milwaukee and Sarasota come to mind) b) much of WF's target demographic already live/work in DT or OTR c) There is population growth and significant wealth in NKY and areas like Mt. Adams and Clifton. d) The Rookwood store is a smaller than their new stores and they do not have room on that site to expand

Sounds like a new hipster attraction ;-) Suburban Kansas Dream: Museum of Suburbia Plan for Exhibits on Bowling, Lawn Furniture Inspires Neighborhood Spat; Faux Fence. Museum officials in Johnson County, Kan., propose spending $34 million to create the National Museum of Suburbia, a faux suburb where visitors could wander through a model ranch-style home, wonder at an exhibit of lawn furniture and topple pins on a re-created bowling lane. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443493304578038920747409686.html

Can't read the full article -- what all will be in this portion?

hahaha

What type of AC are BNA and OKC being operated with? 50-seat CRJ?

awesome. how long 'til construction starts I wonder?