CincyIntheKnow

Don't forget 5th and Race/ Nordstrom and Main Street/ race riots. An uphill battle for any urban project, and not neccessarily a fair one.

I agree with you regarding the nearly impossible timeline. Unfortunately many of the uninformed will consider it yet another unfulfilled promise. Considering there were bid sets out far before Great American became the name tenant, I will disagree with you there. Design and CDs of some form, although they may not represent the exact final building, were there for quite some time.

Last I had heard Hixson did the new masterplan. It was to mixed use what Rookwood Commons across the street is to lifestyle centers. Take that to mean as you like.

For what it's worth, I don't believe Chris Bortz has a position with Towne. His family does, but I believe he stopped being directly invovled some time ago due to the conflict of interest concerns. The streetcar should happen for many reasons, most of which are eloquently expressed in this thread. Saying it shouldn't because a developer's son sees value in the project and is pushing it along even though it minimally affects his family's developments is hogwash.

The scale and layout of this project last time I saw it left a lot to be desired. Hopefully with the economy slowing developer "progress" down, things change for the better.

The schedule supplied for all phases for the Banks RFQ were borderline ridiculous, and I am sure all the firms that interviewed told the developers that. While there is an ideal timeline that all will try to adhere to, I believe it is being kept hush hush so that when things do go wrong or get delayed (inevitably) the project doesnt get MORE bad press. That being said, when the platforms do get poured, most of the buildings will shoot right up. My suspicion is that the low buildings will be stick built, which means faster build time, lighter weight, and more flexibility. The high rises (office, hotel and residential) will be slower to progress, and be more carefuly planned. I would not doubt the concrete supports poured now take this into account...

Considering QCS has been designed for decades, and the Banks needed to be designed, engineered, and drawn all AFTER QCS was groundbroken, people need to get their heads out of their !@#$. While HGTV and the like have been great in raising design awareness, people seem to have lost all patience and respect for the profession of late. All projects seem to be rush projects where the "silly architect" and his "silly ideas" need to get compromised due to poor scheduling and leed times. [/rant] That being said, I was at the Banks site yesterday and the concrete and rebar is starting to creep up to second street level. Not a building or a platform yet, but exciting nevertheless.

Local presence = Jeff Ruby's to me. Could also be Montgomery Inn, although highly unlikely with the boathouse not far away. Would love if Boca opened a location there though. As much as I despise the idea, a Cheesecake Factory would do amazing business there.

I am concerned about redundancy leading to the failure of the Ohio train system. How do 3-C and Ohio hub differ? Would they eventually be part of the same network? Does 2010 seem ridiculously optimistic to anyone else? The study has not concluded, land would need to be ED and stations/Park-n-rides need to be designed and constructed. Perhaps a little too ambitious, or are my Cincinnati roots interfering?

If this premium spot gets a Cheesecake Factory, color me DISAPPOINTED.

Get NBBJ Sport to move out there too, and then you might have something going. But color me relieved that Trahan is not the architect of record for this project. Great for jazz and conceptual, but there are some serious logistics problems involved with nippert expansion that makes employing an experienced firm much much wiser. Yet another in a sries of good decisions by Mike Thomas.

Poorly planned retail space- no chases for any restaurants/ kitchens, High rent/ sale price demand, and divided awkwardly. Starbucks pulled out due to an organizational shift towards decreased location density, adjacent well established competition, and neighborhood backlash.

I believe the funding plan was to investigate grants and possible federal money for the clifton circulator. While I am sure that coming up with such money for Phase 1(A) would be met with praise, I do not think it is a necessity for the bid.

Randy, Not to pick nits but the streetcar increase is 126%. Also, out of curiosity, how did you derive the number of companies that downloaded the RFQ? I wonder if this number reflects qualified bidders. If it is just from total number of downloads off the website, a plethora of factors might skew the number. I would imagine many are curious just to see the RFQ without being able to satisfy the requirements. Still, good news and thanks for the update.

It has changed a lot from those preliminary renderings. Much more traditional in appearance, the scale is smaller, and much less exposed parking. Also the grocery is gone. I personally seriously question whether it is economically feasible in this market.