Gordon Bombay

^ Wait, what? The "Work Link" runs six days a week, but connects to the Meijer Park and Ride which features Metro's (BCRTA funded) Rt 42/42X. That route only runs five days a week and only at peak morning and evening times with a reverse (non express) commute being slow. If I'm reading this schedule correctly - I can board in Hamilton, OH at 2:30 P.M. and arrive at the Meijer Park and Ride at 4:59 P.M (two and a half hours!). Then, my only option (assuming the bus is on time) is to catch a 5:07 Rt. 42 Job Connection trip to Downtown Cincinnati that snakes through West Chester first and then doesn't return to the next day? No one is going to use this to move between Cincinnati and Dayton.

Not sure if this counts, but I often run these steps/route in my neighborhood. An almost hidden set of stairs/sidewalk connects Oakley and Hyde Park via Celeron Ave., Oak Park Pl., and Ferdinand Place. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Oakley,+Cincinnati,+OH+45209/@39.1486398,-84.4299649,193m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x8841ad71a25b4a85:0x91d58858848f1e56!8m2!3d39.1511025!4d-84.4225186 Doesn't seem to have a name.

^That's nuts. I literally got back to the house and told my girlfriend: we should go try that on the next visit.

I went once or twice. This place had a very corporate feel. Soulless. Then again I remember seeing it fairly crowded whenever I drove past. I think this retail area is cursed and/or rent is just too high. So, randomly, I was in Lakewood this past weekend. On Friday night around 10 p.m., I got lost looking for my family's house and passed by this place. Had a decent crowd and I was intrigued by how prominently they advertised free parking. Which day did it close? I went for a jog through there yesterday and it seemed open too.

And both could be rectified if the thing just had people on it. To get people on it, it needs to run better. But the city has no interest in running it relatively well and SORTA is under the dubious assumption that if they maintain a distance from it, they'll avoid the negativity and draw goodwill for a levy (that they can't seem to ever put together). SORTA should develop a new operating plan (tweaked hours, better frequency, and highlighting of key uses/connections with existing buses), but they won't. They are having a two year anniversary party, though, and there's a coloring contest! So what's the plan? It seems some of the most ardent supporters of the project have gone quiet or been overshadowed by those who's voices aren't the best for speaking on the issue. Are people worried that there's just no political will? Where's Landsmann, PG, and especially Seelbach?

Was planning to take a half hour lunch the other day. Tracked the Streetcar via Metro's bus tracker webpage (since you still can't reliably do it on an app) and went to the nearest station at the appropriate time. Waited for them to change drivers a block before the station. Got on at Findlay Market. Departed at Washington Park. Walked to pick up a food order and then went to 12/Main where the reader said "12 minutes." Took about 18 minutes before the train actually showed up. Got delayed on the way back due to the movie filming in OTR. All in all, took way too long.

Even for the Regional Chamber, transit is a talking point rather than a true goal it seems.

It is, the Ferris wheel is a traveling one and stopped there. It was also at Cincinnati's Coney Island for a little while.

$6 isn't too bad for the occasional visitor/tourist, but definitely see your point Ram23[/member]. When I worked near there I used to do the same on lunch or when Just needed a break. They don't really market the deck or advertise it and to be fair, it's nothing like the Uber-touristy ones in Chicago and NYC. Glad that we have it, though. Was always surprised Great American Tower never got one.

By the time all of those lots are filled in, will the Bengals still be around/still interested in using Paul Brown Stadium? I've always wondered about this. I feel as if The Banks was supposed to be built out and filled in shortly after PBS was done and it's taken years, now well over a decade. Should The Bengals relocate to another city, what do you do with PBS/the space it sits on especially now that FC Cincinnati is building its own stadium. I always thought it could be repurposed as an outdoor music venue with a demolished section getting an indoor music venue. But now...

I'm listening to ACES Radio right now and like you, hope their optimism is well founded. The STC folks have a way about them, though, and I doubt they'd not sound positive if they didn't know something was up. I just wish we had some insight into what "saving" the team looks like. The silence from the league, not just regarding the Crew, but the Austin deal as well, is deafening. In the end, if they let Precourt go to Austin, but also keep The Crew in Columbus as a new franchise assuming the old club's history with new owners, that's going to change the narrative on the whole expansion process. Does Sacramento get left out again? How does San Antonio factor into this? It still blows my mind that they're willing to screw over San Antonio's massive ownership group (and their plans) to keep Anthony Precourt around and let him go to Austin. Brutus_buckeye[/member], I don't think anyone believes that the Model Law will hold, but rather, it's what it could do in court that creates the issue. During a case, certain things could come out that MLS probably wouldn't want the rest of the world to know. Not to mention, the other leagues are certainly taking a keen interest in this.

Something to keep in mind is that several teams currently in Division 2 USL will likely jump down to the new USL Division 3. The league is quickly moving towards franchises at the D2 level who play in relatively good facilities (although a lot of them will be using minor league baseball stadia for the foreseeable future). Louisville City is about to make waves with their new stadium and Colorado Springs seem to have also firmed up a rather good 10,000 seat stadium plan. The nice thing at the USL level is you can pull off a relatively cheap modular stadium. Phoenix Rising FC is currently doing this. I would love to see a USL team come to Cleveland, that market and Baltimore still surprise me as being vacant for pro soccer. As for MLS, it would seem to be tough to justify three Ohio teams on the outset, but people often said Ohio could never have two and here we are (assuming the Crew are saved, which I believe they will be). However, it'll have to be way down the line depending on how MLS shakes out and grows. Still, the Crew, FCC, and a Cleveland USL side battling it out in the Open Cup would be fantastic. If memory serves, wasn't the Cleveland MLS team that fell through headed to a stadium in Macedonia?

I'm sure someone will propose partnering with uber's autonomous vehicles as the way of the future, tho...

Not to mention: it's so late in the game now, was the effort really heartfelt in the first place?

#SaveTheCrew now represented in Nippert at FC Cincinnati matches.

So what's the best case scenario for #SaveTheCrew here? Item 60 passing and item 64 not passing?

ColDayMan[/member] thanks for sharing these! It's interesting that the first 1975 poster features a Cincinnati Stingers (former WHA almost NHL hockey team) player. There's also an Arby's balloon in the upper left corner. Was Arby's a really big deal in 75? If I recall correctly, one of the people involved with the Cincinnati Stiners (who also financed the Riverfront Coliseum) was also the first person to bring Arby's franchises to the city. Apparently fast food roast beef was a hit?

Hell, our political leadership can't even get the portion we do have running with a good operation.

I wouldn't say "things are not looking well," if anything his comments are fairly vague and ambiguous. There is this key quote, though: This seems to be one of the Crew's main stumbling blocks/areas where "business metrics" could be improved. The Jackets, OSU, and even the Clippers enjoy strong corporate support and sponsorship throughout their stadiums and marketing efforts. Hutnington, Value City, etc. Meanwhile, over at Crew Stadium, you can see that the corporate support is a bit lacking or driven from smaller businesses. I've heard speculation that a lot of this ties back to Hunt's efforts to lure an NHL team with John H. McConnel. When McConnel and Hunt had a falling out and Hunt established the Crew as another project (while JHM went on to secure the Blue Jackets himself), supposedly corporate bridges were burned and very minimally repaired over the Hunt family's ownership. When J. Anthony Precourt entered the scene, there was a chance to do more. Yet, it's been clear he was never really interested in making an effort. Hopefully the STC movement shows that there isn't just great and vocal fan support, but that business community can step up too. I think the more pressing thing to watch for now is Austin and how/if they approve a stadium site. So far, PSV's overtures have been less than stellar and not very well received.

A year ago I think people said that about a soccer stadium. These people are able to play sim city. The tennis center is much larger than a soccer stadium. Nevermind that the Mason facility has had millions of dollars poured into it in recent years, and is now one of the premier tennis facilities in the world, having such a large use downtown or in the basin would be a huge waste of land. The Tennis Center also has very select events that are destinations in and of themselves. When you have multiple baseball/soccer games throughout a season, it helps to have nearby draws and attractions. The tennis center seems to really only go full out one week a year with a pretty "rare" event. For a Reds fan, being able to grab a bite to eat or hang out at the bar after probably makes the trip to the ballpark a little more appealing. When you want to see the best tennis players in the world and only have select opportunities to do so, location and nearby amenities probably don't factor in as much.

I have to admit, even as a longtime advocate and someone who was so happy to see it get built, I was guilty of this mentality early on. On days when I wouldn't take the bus into Downtown for work, I'd drive and park at The Banks to ride the SC up to my office. Eventually, it became far easier/reliable/time efficient to just park in a garage closer to work for the same or a similar price. However, in that time, I've found myself constantly thinking about the streetcar for any random trip. If I want to run to lunch, grab a drink, hit a store, etc., it really comes in handy. Especially with OTR having so much stuff now, it's really a good way to get from the CBD to up that way when I don't want to deal with heat, cold, etc. Often, it truly saves me time when running errands. Now, to Brutus' point: if it was more reliable/frequent it'd be nice. There are certainly times where I walk out of the office, see the wait times, and elect to walk (depending on destination/how much time I have). However, both of my parents (two Suburban Hamilton County Republican voters) have found the SC to be a tool that opens up the city to them. They're Reds' partial season ticket holders and now that the SC exists, they've seen it as a tool to get around. They now make a point to make a day out of ballgames. They specifically park in OTR, ride to the stadium, visit their games, and visit Findlay Market/other shops or grab food before and after via the streetcar. They're definitely not as familiar with the city or up for walking as much as I am (they like the idea of Redbike, but are wary of riding in the street), so they don't mind waiting for a train usually. They truly enjoy it and never seemed to have a view of "if it can't get me everywhere, what's the point?" For them, it has opened up Downtown as more than just a place to go see a ballgame. They constantly bemoan that it doesn't go to Uptown for FCC matches. Working on introducing them to Metro+

It seems to be functioning well, but I opted to walk this past Saturday from Central Parkway to The Banks simply because the headways were 20 minutes plus according to the sign. Apparently lots of crowding and traffic up near the Asian Food Festival. During the week it's been pretty good, but because the frequency isn't great you need to rely on tracking the location to time it right. You could track it on the EZRide app, but that doesn't have real time. You could track it on the Transit app, but that's unreliable. You can track it on the Metro website, but that doesn't work on iPhone it seems. You wouldn't need to track it at all if the frequency was reliable/good.

MLS forcing Precourt to sell to a local investor group. Been trying to follow #SaveTheCrew as best I can, but is there a local investor group truly interested that has the realistic funds?

Each match, I spend far more at Mecklenburg Gardens, a neighborhood establishment, than I do in the stadium itself. When the hundred or so people leave with us from that bar, we pick up even more on the walk to the venue. All those people have been spending money at other establishments on Short Vine and along the way. I think you'll continue to see people patronizing local businesses with the WE stadium, especially with the streetcar connecting to it.

I'm all for a CBA and for the team being good neighbors/contributing positively to the community, but some of this is just ridiculous. Certain parts of the traffic and noise concerns make sense, but it's not like FCC is going to gobble up the area's internet bandwidth... ...how would that even work and why, out of all the benefits and tangible things the club could provide, would this be one of them? Last I heard, the church was becoming a rock climbing place? Did that fall through? Also, why would FCC have to be on the hook for redeveloping these properties?