The Nati Life

What am I looking at? Wasn't the "Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame" always there?

Any renderings from yesterday? Neither the Enquirer or Biz Courier has them on the article. One would think that would be a given in an article reporting on the presentation of renderings...

All - we need some backup here. Every comment except one is anti-streetcar. Please help sway these people. If you're not a member of linkedin, sign up and join the CincinnatiUSA Regional Chamber page, and scroll down to the 5th thread under "discussions". http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestionAndAnswers=&gid=149230&discussionID=4780270&sik=1246810397302&trk=ug_qa_q&goback=%2Eana_149230_1246810397302_3_1

So, that's a temporary office? Or a permanent one? With more and more cities planning streetcar projects, this could be a huge development if it is permanent. Could be wrong, but I understood it to be that it was going to be the Midwest HQ, that they anticipate doing more Midwest cities after Cincy, and run them out of this office (obviously with satellite offices in the project cities). I also heard that the president of SWI (name?) was moving here as well. Again, this was just my understanding.

I feel the opposite. I would actually like to see more new construction with more modern architecture like Gateway I (hopefully not at the expense of salvagable historical buildings). I think it adds value when there's a mix of architectural styles. Obviously, I would like to see them all be complementary, but I would support a variation of styles.

I agree. They could've just as easily lopped off the "tiara" (geez, I hate that term!), left it a flat top and it would've still passed the UDRB, and we would've had a flatter skyline.

As long as it's on the West Side, I say go for it! :wink:

Question: why is 3CDC behind this concept? I can see them helping social services in general so that they can point to helping alleviate displacement (a whole other topic), but to see them back a wet shelter in this location... not sure how they think this is helping their agenda...

Sounds like that's the idea. If they're not going to quit drinking, at least give them a place where they can drink... aside from the $30M soon-to-be-made-over park...

Oh the Dean's a tool, alright. Couldn't resist. Does he still post on here? I haven't seen him in awhile. I imagine he's too busy defending himself on his own site, which magically saw a huge uptick in traffic ever since he's been so outspoken about his position on the streetcar issue. Coincidence?

I'm a little dissappointed that the Cincy/Dayton dealer is not located in the city. With Rookwood's obvious dedication to the urban core, it would be nice to see a dealer that's actually in the city. Perhaps there wasn't anyone that could really handle it in the city, which then I can understand. On the other hand, perhaps they envision that in a couple of years, they'll be selling directly from their facility/showroom. If that's the strategy, I think it makes sense.

From what I hear, details are to come very soon.

Here's the real question: would you like to see Montgomery Inn or a City BBQ??? This reminds me of awhile ago when I was listening to Sports Talk (mods please don't axe me), and Paul Daugherty received an email from an out-of-towner coming in for a Bengals game asking for some dining recommendations. People called in and were recommending places like City BBQ, Chili's etc. (You could hear the frustration in Doc's voice as he continued to harp on these people for a local establishment). Unfortunately, I think this makes up a large part of the demographic that the powers that be are catering to. Those who live there will be upper-scale IMO, but those who go down there for entertainment will do so for City BBQ, a TGI Friday's, etc. I think Carter/Dawson "gets it" more so than other developers and would like to see a bunch of local anchors, but also lives in the real world of real estate development: you can't get by without those staple tenants that will (sadly) bring in the most customers.

I've been screaming this for years now. It's not a hard concept to mimic. Just take ESPN Zone, rename it something to do with Cincinnati, decorate it with a bunch of Cincinnati sports stuff, and you're off to the races. It's a gold mine right by the ball park and would add some local flavor to what is sure to be a bunch of chains down there.

^ not too thrilled about this. I totally agree with atlas. It sounds commercial, contrived and not like a genuine neighborhood.

What??? The military is going to take it over? Sorry, couldn't resist the grammar :-D I don't get it? I believe the term is "occupancy"... just messing around

What??? The military is going to take it over? Sorry, couldn't resist the grammar :-D

Great point. I think too often we get caught up in rebutting the "three pillars" rather than addressing the absurdity of the argument in the first place. I'm curious if the Banks meet the requirements of the three pillars. Let's see: 1) Economic: I think we all agree there will be a positive return and increased tax revenue. 2) Environmental: Probably not. It will be adding new, inefficient buildings (all of which use coal power! They're coal powered buildings!), increased traffic, additional litter from pre-game activities, etc. 3) Social: Last I heard, they're ditching the subsidized housing component. It seems as if this development only caters to the middle and upper-middle classes. Doesn't sound socially sustainable to me. So, the Dean must hate the Banks as much as he hates the streetcar!

Not sure if this has been posted already, but the new renderings are up on the Banks site. http://www.carterdawson.com/ If I'm late on this, sorry. I still don't like that office building. It's good to hear in the article that they want this to be a "landmark" building and are amenable to design changes. It sounds like the current design is more of a placeholder. If this is true, then this is a good thing: Latest Banks designs seek to create 'great streets' Soapbox, 4/14/2009 Representatives from the development team of Carter Real Estate and Dawson Company presented their latest designs for The Banks project to Cincinnati's Urban Design Review Board on Thursday evening. In its meeting on March 25, the board had asked designers to address issues they had with some of the building façades, architectural styles, and massing of the buildings that will house the 300 apartments and 70,000 square feet of retail of the project's first phase... Writer: Kevin LeMaster http://soapboxmedia.com/devnews/thebanks0414.aspx

I just posted on the Beacon comments: So if this is such a great idea, then how is this more "socially sustainable" than the streetcar? To me, the only difference here is technology and cost. But how does this meet your "third pillar" requirement? If nothing else, the model shown above is much smaller than the proposed streetcar. It seems to me this would be less "socially sustainable" due to the reduced social interaction and could promote exclusion (or am I missing what this means, because I don't think I've ever had a clear explanation). Also, the fact that the tracks can be moved defeats the whole purpose. This is not a difficult concept to understand, and it's been brought up many times as it is a fundamental argument for the streetcar. And it is one which is hard to argue against.

Or soy burgers

Listening to podcast now. This guy from Portland seems crazy. Does anyone find it ironic that COAST is going to be hosting its tea party on Fountain Square... the previous boondoggle? I imagine they're holding it there because it's a popular destination and a great gathering place. Has anyone brought this up to them?

I reeeeally hope they don't consider that Kenwood-esque glass block to be the "center piece" I totally agree. I just want something with decent architectural integrity. I'm not asking for the world here.

I think the renderings are much better than those in round 1. Did anyone bring up the fact that it was a lame first attempt to slap a glass box in the middle of the Banks? I'm all for making it look organic and varied, but please... I echo the concern for that corner at 2nd and Main. That's a corner that needs to be celebrated and complement the angle of the opening to the Ballpark.

Gotcha. That's what I'm talking about, not something that is simply reflective paneling. There's some decent architectural value there.