mcadrenaline

Does Hyde Park have a kind of Cleveland Heights-y feel? Are the homes pretty spread out like that...or how does one maximize what they can see in the neighborhood just by walking around?

Bicycle shop to open in OTR http://cincinnati.com/blogs/newintown/2012/05/17/bicycle-shop-to-open-in-otr/ "Reser Bicycle Outfitters, a specialty bike shop on Newport’s Monmouth Street, will open a second store in Over-the-Rhine next month."

Quan Hapa, new on Vine St from Pho Lang Thang guys http://cincinnati.com/blogs/dining/2012/05/17/quan-hapa-new-on-vine-st-from-pho-lang-thang-guys/ "It’s going to be daring and eccentric, says David Le about the new Asian restaurant he and his partners at Pho Lang Thang are opening in the Gateway Quarter. He, Duy and Bao Nguyen and chef Matt Cranert are opening Quan Hapa (pronounced Wang Ha Pa”) at 1335 Vine St.

Found myself in Chicago last weekend with pretty crappy weather, but I did make it to Tank Noodle and Little Saigon which was FANTASTIC. Great ethnic neighborhood, rough around the edges, but not gentrified and lots of character. Great suggestion TBideon! Anyways, I will explore the other suggestions on here on my next trips. They all look solid! Thanks guys! BTW, I stayed at theWit on State St. which was just okay in my opinion...one of those boutique hotels that try a little too hard to be different and trendy. And too many drunk people in the lobby/elevators at night. Nice rooms though and convenient location.

Hello fellow UO'ers, I'll be making the trek up to Columbus for Pride weekend to meet some friends from Cleveland. It also happens to be one of the guys birthdays that weekend as well. Just wanting some thoughts here on places to go for a nice reunion dinner on Friday night. We're staying downtown by the Capitol for Pride on Saturday, but will cab it or drive for dinner if need be. We like trendier, upscale restaurants. Places with good people watching and a cool, energetic atmosphere. Open to any/all types of food. We'd like to be able to make rezzies since it will likely be a larger group of people. I'd prefer to avoid places that are trendy for the sake of being trendy but have unremarkable food if you know what I mean. We're all kind of foodies... So fire away! Let me know your suggestions and thanks in advance! :-)

I don't see a book store coming in ...we all know they are hurting these days with amazon and Barnes already has a Newport location.

why do all the comments from the clueless always have terrible grammar?

My thoughts exactly, but hey...their money is as good as anybody else. But c'mon retail!!!! and especially grocery!!!!

That's exactly what I told my friends...my understanding is that it's all, for the most part, premeditated drug/gang/etc. The reality is that regardless of its nature, it still is a burden on the neighborhood.

There was a shooting on 13th between Vine and Walnut tonight around 8. I was having a drink at Lackman with some friends when we heard the gunshots and then a massive flurry of police into the area. Nothing up on any of the usual news outlets yet but there are still police on scene and 13th is taped off. Not good news. Just a subtle reminder I guess that while this area has come so far, but there's still plenty of work to be done....

Just to reiterate how ridiculous of a store Charmz is... They currently have knockoff Louis Vuittion bags in their front window...not in a back room or in a a drawer inside, not even out of view to the street...right in the window as you walk by. these along with lime green hooker pants and some other things that generally belong in the trash. Don't their owners know they they can get in serious trouble for selling knockoff goods?

haha what's funny about these pictures is that many of those design elements and pieces of furniture would be right at home in a trendy, upscale hotel in a large city today great pics!!!!

I may be making 1-2 weekend trips up to Chicago in the near future and wanted to poll the audience on off the beaten path things to do there. I have been many times and find myself there even now probably once every 2 or 3 months. So, what are some insiders tips and tricks for a weekend of something other than Michigan Ave, Lincoln Park and Boystown? FYI -- I'm a price-conscious foodie, will only walk and use public transit, like minimalist architecture, contemporary art and boutique shopping. Any cool weekend markets for clothing or art? What are the best areas for a morning jog along the lake?

Hey, nobody said increasing residential downtown was going to come without sacrifices. And being completely honest here, I think many of us can agree that many of these social service agencies can have their needs better met outside of downtown/OTR where they are housed in aging, functionally obsolete buildings.

I hope so. I also think that lack of businesses that are a draw or destination make the area kind of stagnant. On a weekday, most other streets downtown are bustiling with downtown workers on lunch, running errands etc. Turn down Main and it's eeriely quiet. Check cashing, comvenience stores, and mobile phone shops do nothing good for this street.

I love downtown and even call it home, but I must say -- this area of Main seems completely out of touch with the rest of downtown and hasn't had nearly as much TLC as the CBD it borders....and it's painfully obvious. Are there any streetscape plans or anything else in the pipeline to send some new energy over here?

All very valid points MyTwoSense. The icing on the cake for this being really poor journalism is the fact that it was over Easter. Any experienced travel writer knows that holidays restrict inventory and force fares up spratically, so this isn't a particularly fair view of this situation also. Of course, this fact is conveniently not mentioned. I'm sure fares to dozens of other airports around the country were abnormally high that weekend also (AND how conveniently they choose not to mention what the passenger ACTUALLY paid! Nor do they mention the additional cost of renting a car and gas to get to Cincinnati!) A sample r/t itinerary in July MOB-CLT-CVG or MOB-IAH-CMH shows a difference of just $10 between flying into CMH or CVG and travel times of less than 3.5 hrs each way including layovers available to either destination. Myth? Busted. Also, did the passenger consider driving west of his hometown for 2 hours to MSY, an airport that has several direct flights a day to Cincinnati? If you think I'm being too criticial, head over to http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/general_aviation/read.main/5455994/, an aviation experts forum -- they're all over this article too.

Yes, but the title of the article is complete sensationalism. It should read "When Flying 720 Miles Takes 12 Hours by being cheap and flying to an airport in a completely different city than where you're actually trying to go" I understand the point that they are trying to make about routes and frequencies being reduced, but the fact of the matter is that one stop service is still available from most place to cities like Cincinnati or Louisville, for example. Whether or not a person chooses to utilize these faster and sometimes more expensive options is a completely different story.

that NYT article "When Flying 720 Miles Takes 12 Hours" is total b.s. -- of course the passenger could have taken a more direct route! He chose the cheapest fare which is NOT necessarily the fastest route. And he ended his flight itinerary in Columbus in order to drive to Cincinnati! WTF! You did not even fly all the way there.

^^^ what makes you think that? No where in the article does it state that they will demolish existing properties for this next phase. There is a vacant lot at Eden and Rochelle on the south side of Rochelle. I have to imagine this is what will be developed....

Great news! There is SO much action going on around the east side of campus right now, it's crazy. It's almost like the construction switch was flipped overnight or something. It's going to get even better once they start work on the Kroger/Walgreens. I'm curious though as to what they plan on doing with the MLK parcel that is the last piece of open space. It's kind of an eye sore in a sense because it makes the whole Stetson project look unfinished.

As I was jogging by WSP yesterday (which looks pretty f'ing fantastic) in the 88 degree weather, I couldn't help but think how much I'd enjoy a cold beer during hot summer day/night event there. Will this park have the same designation as, say, Fountain Square, which allows alcohol consumption as long as it's purchased on the square? And to that point, does anyone know what the concessions/food truck situation will be here? Seems like this could be the perfect candidate for a food truck parking lane.

and by residents, you mean dogs and cats of the Gateway District :-P

Looking for ideas here -- I'm a YP, UC College of Business grad who moved to OTR after upon taking a F/T job with one of the big Cincinnati companies downtown. I've taught myself alot about the neighborhood and it's history and have learned quite a bit from my urban planner friends in DAAP up the road. I'm extremely passionate about the renaissance that is happening in my neighborhood right now and find it extremely exciting and interesting that this amount of growth has happened in a relatively short amount of time. OTR was still largely in shambles when I moved here about 5 years ago and now we have this thriving new business district where the restaurants, bars and shops can't open fast enough. The momentum is truly remarkable. So my question is this -- how can I get more involved in my neighborhood, other than patronizing the businesses, following the news on UO and elsewhere? Are there any volunteer opportunities within the Chamber or 3CDC or something like this? Any opportunities to help plan events? Just looking for any/all ideas or opportunities out there. Hope this makes sense! Thanks guys. Feel free to PM me if need be as well.

^^ saw that yesterday. looks SO much better. I never actually noticed all the great detail on the facade until it was all white yesterday...go figure.