February 23, 201510 yr More about the potential sale of Hamilton County buildings. I would like to see any services that serve a lot of clients stay downtown due to transit and accessibility concerns. Some of the other functions could definitely be moved to another location. These buildings could be sold under a plan to overhaul Hamilton County facilities Oct 13, 2014, 4:38pm EDT Chris Wetterich Staff reporter- Cincinnati Business Courier Hamilton County could save nearly $70 million over the next two decades if it sells some of its current buildings, renovates Mercy Health’s shuttered Mount Airy Hospital and moves some of the county government’s services there. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2014/10/13/these-buildings-could-be-sold-under-a-plan-to.html?page=all No morgue in Mt. Airy - county giving up free land The plan to move Hamilton County's morgue to Mount Airy is dead. So are proposals to move the crime lab, board of elections and several other government offices. County commissioners killed the ideas Monday after months of increasingly pessimistic talk about the costs of turning Mount Airy's old Mercy Hospital site into a sprawling office complex. "We are at a point where I think we need to pull the plug," said Commissioner Todd Portune. Cont "It's just fate, as usual, keeping its bargain and screwing us in the fine print..." - John Crichton
February 23, 201510 yr ^I can see where you're coming from, but I look at it as just adding another 'finger' street off Grandin. Hill and Hollow, Ambleside, Weebetook, Corbin, and Grandingate all traverse down the hill a bit on the south side of Grandin, and all probably were created in a similar fashion to how this street will be. I doubt the new homes will be cheap- far from it, actually. I think with proper architecture, landscaping, and yes, time, this street will look little different than the others in this area. I have/had many friends who lived back off these streets, and into the Rookwood neighborhood, and there is actually a pretty decent mix of old and new homes. I'm all for adding density to desirable areas, where people already want to be and will pay top dollar to live, and I think this development will fit that bill. The old house might look a bit strange with new neighbors, but a 10 acre estate in the city limits just isn't very feasible...this is Hyde Park, not Indian Hill. According to the auditor's site 2501 Grandin pays $36,000/yr in property tax. That's insane. That's not only $360,000 down the toilet every decade, it's $360,000 that could have been invested.
February 23, 201510 yr I measured the existing home at 2510 for a project that never happened and it's a gorgeous piece of property. That home needs someone that can properly take care of it. Getting developer house neighbors is just going to deter the type of person necessary to put the millions into that home necessary to restore it. Do you mean the Corbett House at 2501 Grandin?? 2510 is an unremarkable 1950's ranch-style house on the north side of Grandin. 2501 Grandin is the Corbett House on the south side of Grandin. It was recently sold on Feb 12, 2015 for 2.3 million to "2501 Grandin LLC".
February 23, 201510 yr I understand that's how those streets were created. A huge portion of the work I do as an architect is in this section of Hyde Park. The problem is they are claiming they're going to be 1/2 acre sites and be around $500k. That's just nowhere near enough to build a quality home. Look at the cost of neighboring homes. All well into the millions, with this piece of property being the most expensive at over 7 million (when you include all the parcels involved, not just the 3 million dollar main house). The home I mentioned by Camden Homes cost a million dollars and it is a pile of junk. If they're actually aiming at half that cost, expect poor design choices, terrible massing, and cheap materials. The difference between this and, say, Corbin or Weebetook and the like is that this is a developer building this street, not just a series of lots being sold off individually. That's a massive issue in an area that features quality architecture. You just won't get that from a developer street. You might be right, I guess we'll just have to see. When I read "Planning officials expect the homes could cost at least $500,000, which would fit with the values of nearby homes.", I took that to just mean that the homes would be in line with the neighborhood, and not a guarantee that the houses would be selling for 500k. I also took "custom built homes" to mean not cookie cutter developer McMansions, but I could be wrong about that, or not really understand industry jargon. As I'm sure you know from working in the neighborhood, this area is home to a lot of wealthy, powerful, and connected people. One would think that if any community had the ability or wherewithal to take on a development that they didn't want, this would be it. The last thing the people and institutions want in this area is to lessen their property values with bad development, so I'd imagine they wouldn't hesitate to vocalize opposition to this project if they feel it's going to adversely affect them.
February 23, 201510 yr More about the potential sale of Hamilton County buildings. I would like to see any services that serve a lot of clients stay downtown due to transit and accessibility concerns. Some of the other functions could definitely be moved to another location. These buildings could be sold under a plan to overhaul Hamilton County facilities Oct 13, 2014, 4:38pm EDT Chris Wetterich Staff reporter- Cincinnati Business Courier Hamilton County could save nearly $70 million over the next two decades if it sells some of its current buildings, renovates Mercy Health’s shuttered Mount Airy Hospital and moves some of the county government’s services there. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2014/10/13/these-buildings-could-be-sold-under-a-plan-to.html?page=all No morgue in Mt. Airy - county giving up free land The plan to move Hamilton County's morgue to Mount Airy is dead. So are proposals to move the crime lab, board of elections and several other government offices. County commissioners killed the ideas Monday after months of increasingly pessimistic talk about the costs of turning Mount Airy's old Mercy Hospital site into a sprawling office complex. "We are at a point where I think we need to pull the plug," said Commissioner Todd Portune. Cont I'm glad the Mt. Airy plan is dead, but curious to see what comes next. Many of the county-owned buildings are in need of repairs. Many of the iconic ones like 800 Broadway (Times-Star Building) and the Alms and Doepke Building could be sold off if the county could consolidate into other buildings downtown.
February 23, 201510 yr Does everything need to be downtown though? The morgue and crime lab could be better suited elsewhere. The site is just so huge - and much of it will never be needed.
February 23, 201510 yr Does everything need to be downtown though? The morgue and crime lab could be better suited elsewhere. The site is just so huge - and much of it will never be needed. The morgue isn't downtown currently. It's on UC's medical campus. Why not build a better morgue and crime lab somewhere in Uptown and keep all of the office workers, BOE, DMV, etc. Downtown?
February 23, 201510 yr I measured the existing home at 2510 for a project that never happened and it's a gorgeous piece of property. That home needs someone that can properly take care of it. Getting developer house neighbors is just going to deter the type of person necessary to put the millions into that home necessary to restore it. Do you mean the Corbett House at 2501 Grandin?? 2510 is an unremarkable 1950's ranch-style house on the north side of Grandin. 2501 Grandin is the Corbett House on the south side of Grandin. It was recently sold on Feb 12, 2015 for 2.3 million to "2501 Grandin LLC". Whoops. I mixed up addresses. I meant the property this article is talking about. The old stone mansion which is having its property parceled out. And made a typo. I'm a mess basically. I really hope these are up to par with the architecture surrounding it, but I have huge doubts about that. There is some significant Cincinnati architectural history in the immediate vicinity. The existing home was one of the first reinforced concrete structures in the country and was designed by the same guy who did the Ingalls Building. The Corbett House is obviously down the road. Ohio's first LEED platinum home is next door, etc. This stretch deserves only top notch architecture. Nothing that you build from a set of plans you get online.
February 23, 201510 yr Does everything need to be downtown though? The morgue and crime lab could be better suited elsewhere. The site is just so huge - and much of it will never be needed. The morgue isn't downtown currently. It's on UC's medical campus. Why not build a better morgue and crime lab somewhere in Uptown and keep all of the office workers, BOE, DMV, etc. Downtown? Maybe a new morgue/crime lab could be one of the new MLK interchange developments (along with the NIOSH facility which there has been articles about today as well.) www.cincinnatiideas.com
February 23, 201510 yr Here's the news on the NIOSH facility... which has secured ~$110 million for a new facility: http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2015/02/23/110-million-allocated-to-build-new-niosh-facility/23838781/ NIOSH would be a great fit for the Reading/MLK intersection, with nearby EPA, UC, and the hospitals.
February 24, 201510 yr EXCLUSIVE: $17 million hospital coming to Norwood Feb 23, 2015, 3:45pm EST Tom Demeropolis Senior Staff Reporter- Cincinnati Business Courier One of the last available parcels of land along the Norwood Lateral will become home to a $17 million inpatient rehabilitation hospital. Sanders Trust, a developer of medical office buildings, inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and specialty hospitals, is developing a 40-bed facility for Reliant Hospital Partners, which will lease the building and provide the inpatient rehab services. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2015/02/23/exclusive-17-million-hospital-coming-to-norwood.html
February 25, 201510 yr Here's the news on the NIOSH facility... which has secured ~$110 million for a new facility: http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2015/02/23/110-million-allocated-to-build-new-niosh-facility/23838781/ NIOSH would be a great fit for the Reading/MLK intersection, with nearby EPA, UC, and the hospitals. It's good that they are planning on all of that stuff being close together near the university but the lab on Ridge is going to add to the ocean of vacant buildings there. Hopefully there will be a plan for that location or something.
February 25, 201510 yr The most interesting part of this development is who bought the building... Downtown’s former Scientology building to be converted to apartments The building, located at 211 W. Fourth St., will be completely renovated into 39 apartments and two store-front retail spaces. Walnut Street Parking Inc. purchased the building for $650,000 in September. Karen Blatt, one of the owners of Walnut Street Parking, said this will be this company's first rehab project, but Blatt and her family have been involved in redeveloping Cincinnati real estate for years.
February 25, 201510 yr Greats news, just frustrating that seemingly all of these rehab projects are contingent upon winning state historic tax credits which is far from a guarantee.
February 25, 201510 yr Hm. Not being super familiar with them, do they own any other structures? Or are they currently just a parking owner?
February 25, 201510 yr Hm. Not being super familiar with them, do they own any other structures? Or are they currently just a parking owner? Appears to be mostly surface lots scattered around Downtown. You know things are turning around when the people who own surface lots start seeing value in owning apartments...
February 25, 201510 yr Karen Blatt has renovated many buildings, including the former Clyde Hotel aka Symphony Hotel at 210 W 14th
February 25, 201510 yr According to the article, they already own/manage 275 apartments... so their company name is a bit of a misnomer.
February 25, 201510 yr In the late 90s just about the only thing open in DT Cincinnati at night was the Scientology Center.
February 25, 201510 yr Ugh...I hate Karen Blatt. I lived in one of her slum properties and she made my life a living hell. I ended up suing WMC Group, which is one of the many shady property management companies she owns, and won because she never bothered to show up to court. The less she owns, the better.
March 18, 201510 yr P&G to build massive R&D center in Mason Mar 17, 2015, 3:52pm EDT Updated: Mar 17, 2015, 4:21pm EDT Barrett J. Brunsman Staff reporter- Cincinnati Business Courier Procter & Gamble Co. revealed today it will spend at least $300 million to build a massive research and development center at its Mason campus. Cincinnati-based P&G intends to move 1,150 employees to the new Beauty Innovation Center from its R&D operations in Blue Ash. Construction will begin this summer on a 500,000-square-foot facility at 8700 Mason-Montgomery Road. Plans are still being finalized, but preliminary work is expected to start in April. P&G's current facility in Mason is 1.5 million square feet. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2015/03/17/p-g-to-build-massive-r-d-center-in-mason.html
March 21, 201510 yr Mason tried to pull a fast one. Had an illegal meeting to pass an incentive for P & G. Offer this stuff to someone outside the region and legally.
March 23, 201510 yr 630 Main St, a five story concrete building, is before the Historic Conservation Board for preliminary design review to discuss a potential proposal to convert the bottom floors to a 130-space garage, add 4-5 new stories on top and develop 64 residential units. Streetcar line development. Whoda thunk it? http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/planning/historic-conservation/historic-conservation-board/mar-23-2015-packet/
March 23, 201510 yr That's fantastic news about the 630 Main St project. 64 units is a big project and it doesn't look like they're asking for any public dollars (yet). I'm glad to see that the layout for the ground level retain retail, though I'm a bit concerned they're calling it "optional" retail. It's interesting they're preserving some of the Main St limestone facade, but replacing most of it with brick. It's hard to know how that'll work out in reality... could be nice, or could be ugly. At least the Main St facade has plenty of windows and a nice storefront at the sidewalk, so it won't look like a garage. And the garage facade will blend seamlessly with the residential units (floors 4 and above), unlike some other nearby projects... cough*seven*cough*broadway*.
March 23, 201510 yr Though I'm really glad to see this type of thing happening, those elevations leave a lot to be desired. I really REALLY hope the design improves from there. Though the existing building is...terrible, the post-modern massing and styling in those elevations immediately makes me think of the two Towne Properties buildings on the west end of Piatt Park. Not the worst, but severely lacking in quality and proper design sense.
March 23, 201510 yr Very good. That is a nice amount of units right on the line for future ridership and money multiplier in the downtown. Also should note, this looks like a large project which could spur even more development around it, like across the street.
March 23, 201510 yr That's a big improvement over what is currently there (http://goo.gl/maps/bzKje).
March 23, 201510 yr And next to it. The lot nextdoor is quite large and could easily fit a skyscraper if someone desired. I've said it before in a handful of threads, but I think the streetcar's stretch along Main in Downtown is where we'll see the highest ROI for the whole first phase. There is so much potential for redevelopment and new construction at super high densities right there and a block or so away on Sycamore up basically its entire length.
March 23, 201510 yr That lot is owned by the same folks that own the building. Chris Wetterich wrote a quick article about this: http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2015/03/23/apartments-coming-to-main-st-building-along.html
March 23, 201510 yr I wonder if the reasoning for the larger parking garage is to then later develop the lot.
March 23, 201510 yr That lot is owned by the same folks that own the building. I don't think that's true. The "parking lot" mentioned in Wetterich's article could be the driveway with parking spaces on the side of the building and the parking spaces behind. The Central Parking lot next to the building has a different owner according to the Auditor's site.
March 23, 201510 yr Well there go all my hopes and dreams... I really wish parking lots weren't such massive profit-makers. It's going to be difficult to convince companies like Central Parking to sell their lots.
March 23, 201510 yr ^Surface parking lots are profitable...but structured parking can be profitable as well. So can office space. And apartments. There are only 44 "official spots" in that surface lot, but they pack 'em in like sardines. I'd be curious how many parking attendants they have to hire to shuffle those cars around throughout the day.
March 23, 201510 yr That lot is owned by the same folks that own the building. I don't think that's true. The "parking lot" mentioned in Wetterich's article could be the driveway with parking spaces on the side of the building and the parking spaces behind. The Central Parking lot next to the building has a different owner according to the Auditor's site. It looks like you're right. The auditor's parcel pictures make it pretty confusing.
March 23, 201510 yr In the 1910s and 1920s when they first appeared, parking lots were actually called "taxpayers". Previously there was no way for a property owner to generate revenue with an empty lot. Then out of nowhere cars appeared by the millions and needed somewhere to park. So in the 1800s a building was rarely allowed to deteriorate to the point where it couldn't generate rent. Suddenly property owners could defer maintenance, watch a building go downhill for 10-15 years, then tear it down and still make money off the lot while waiting for the perfect redevelopment opportunity to arise.
March 25, 201510 yr The building located at 601 main ( http://goo.gl/maps/uSNz9 ) was just sold to a Gwynne Building Limited for about $1.23M... pretty neat building that seems underutilized at this point. And I have heard the club/bar that is in the retail space now has caused problems with police before.
March 25, 201510 yr There has been a constant rotation of short-lived nightclubs in that building. It's such a unique building; hopefully it can be put to a better use.
March 25, 201510 yr This was the longtime HQ's for Home State Savings, a sketchy bank run by Marvin Warner. Home State crashed in the 1980's and took some other small Ohio community banks down with it. Home State had invested depositors' money in a lot of worthless bonds sold by a couple of hucksters from Memphis. Warner, who very connected politically and served as Jimmy Carter's ambassador to Switzerland, went to jail for several years and died soon after at his Florida horse farm. He was Jerry Springer's principal backer when he first started his political career.
March 25, 201510 yr That was big news in the 80s, along with the Keating scandal, which I think was all part of the same scheme.
March 25, 201510 yr My brother who works for a consulting company inspecting for mold, asbestos, etc was in the night club portion a few weeks ago. He said that Richter & Philips Jewelers was either interested in leasing the space, moving, or adding offices there of some sort. He didn't go into too much detail, but that's what he had said. He also said the floor plate height are insanely tall.
March 25, 201510 yr Thats another building that should have 3-5 floors added with apartments to match the height of the building across the street.
March 26, 201510 yr EXCLUSIVE: Northside church to become brewery, performance space SLIDESHOW Jan 22, 2015, 2:20pm EST Andy Brownfield Reporter- Cincinnati Business Courier A group of entrepreneurs is renovating a church complex in Northside into a brewery and event space that will house concerts and performing arts events. Urban Artifact – formerly Grayscale Cincinnati – purchased the old Queen City Cookies complex, formerly St. Pius X, at 1662 Blue Rock St. and is in the process of renovating the three buildings. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2015/01/22/exclusive-northside-church-to-become-brewery.html I got to tour their complex in mid-February. Here's the main area of the church which will be the big theatrical performance space: The church's basement will house the tap room and a smaller stage for music: Beer will be brewed in the former rec center building behind the church: Here are Urban Artifact's four partners: The adjacent rectory will eventually be turned into a restaurant:
March 27, 201510 yr Graybach just purchased 2406, 2408, 2410, and 2416 Central Parkway under the subsidiary 2416 Central Parkway LLC. Chris Reckman purchased 2250 Vine St, a vacant parcel halfway up the hill to Clifton. Urban Sites just purchased 19 E Fifteenth St, a 4-6 unit residential building.
March 27, 201510 yr Good news, that street needs a lot of work. Of course everything will change once 3CDC redevelops the SE and NE Corner buildings on 15th and Vine. I wonder when they will push up north to Liberty Street on Vine?
March 27, 201510 yr I think that's still a year or more away that we'll hear about those properties. 3CDC seems to be focusing on properties directly along the streetcar line at the moment. But I agree, that intersection needs a lot of work. The 15th and Vine office building, the old Smitty's building (13 condos by a private developer), the group of building just north of Kroger, and that gorgeous limestone building just north of 15th on Vine will make a great cluster of buildings. And when someone tears down that hideous abomination at Vine and Liberty and buildings something large there then Vine will feel far more connected crossing Liberty.
March 27, 201510 yr I think that's still a year or more away that we'll hear about those properties. 3CDC seems to be focusing on properties directly along the streetcar line at the moment. But I agree, that intersection needs a lot of work. The 15th and Vine office building, the old Smitty's building (13 condos by a private developer), the group of building just north of Kroger, and that gorgeous limestone building just north of 15th on Vine will make a great cluster of buildings. And when someone tears down that hideous abomination at Vine and Liberty and buildings something large there then Vine will feel far more connected crossing Liberty. What is the status and timeline of the Smitty's building conversion? / Who is redeveloping it?
March 27, 201510 yr I honestly forget the guy's businesses' name. But he said he planned on a summer start. For awhile, during the period he was looking into buying, I could see contractors doing various things on the roof, through the windows, etc. He said they'd be fairly large units, whatever that means to him. It's a sizable building so I'm assuming they'll probably be a series of 2 bedrooms, but that's all conjecture at this point.
March 27, 201510 yr Graybach just purchased 2406, 2408, 2410, and 2416 Central Parkway under the subsidiary 2416 Central Parkway LLC. They're moving their office from Stark Street to there to get some more space.
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