August 14, 200618 yr is $60-$70,000 a lot for just a lot ( :lol:) in that Harrison development or is that standard for maybe an acre or 2?
August 14, 200618 yr Is that the right pic for Avondale?; it is the same one posted as Riverside. I noticed they were putting vinyl siding on the old district 4 station in Carthage, what a shame. Thanks for the update.
August 14, 200618 yr Yeah, the Hillside Avenue home looks like this: (hotlink to the auditor, so the link may go away shortly). Also, 3508 Beldare (the first Avondale place) looks like this: Personally, I'm amazed Grasscat's able to keep any of this stuff straight - Christ, how many updates did you track just this week? Thank you!!!
August 15, 200618 yr Car wash is still a 'no' THE ENQUIRER OAKLEY - A Cincinnati zoning hearing examiner declined to reconsider his rejection of a developer's proposal to build a car wash on a vacant lot at Wasson Road and Paxton Avenue. Two weeks ago, Steven Kurtz, the zoning hearing examiner, rejected the car wash proposal, saying it would create too much noise, nighttime light and traffic and would hurt property values of nearby homes. Ely Ryder, attorney for developer Kevin McClorey, filed a motion later asking him to reconsider the decision. Many residents who live on nearby streets fought the car wash proposal. MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060815/NEWS01/608150360/1056/NEWS0102
August 18, 200618 yr Why? Why must the Random Cincinnati Developments topic fall to the bottom of the sticky list? AKA BUMP!
August 19, 200618 yr Author From the 8/17/06 Enquirer: 'Branding' unites 9 neighborhoods BY STEVE KEMME | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER COLUMBIA TWP. - How do you forge a common identity and visual image for nine disconnected neighborhoods spread over southeastern Hamilton County? That's the challenge Columbia Township officials faced when they embarked on a township "branding" project. "We've struggled with identity," Trustee Steve Langenkamp said. "Who are we? Where are we? This was a big step for us."... http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060817/NEWS01/608170401/1056
August 21, 200618 yr Author Top story Uuuuggggghhhhhhhhhh!!! From the 8/18/06 Enquirer: Developers team up for plan Fischer, Drees propose 916 new homes BY SCOTT WARTMAN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER ALEXANDRIA - Alexandria's population would get a big boost if two developers get approval for a plan to build 916 housing units. The development could entice retailers and other businesses to the area, city officials say. Fischer Homes and the Drees Co. presented plans this week to the city's planning and zoning commission for the development, called Arcadia, slated for 327 acres between U.S. 27 and Tollgate Road, across from the Alexandria Village Green Shopping Center. The two developers combined forces because they owned adjacent tracts of land, Drees spokeswoman Anne Mitchell said. The developers proposed 577 condominiums or townhomes, 279 single-family homes and 60 patio homes. Drees and Fischer each will build about half the homes. Single-family homes will range between $200,000 and $350,000. MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060819/NEWS0103/608190392/1059/rss13 Also of note From the 8/17/06 Fort Thomas Recorder: Towne center dusts off welcome mat BY CHRIS MAYHEW | COMMUNITY RECORDER STAFF WRITER FORT THOMAS -- Work could begin by mid-September on a project to attract more people into the city's core. The city is planning to redevelop the Fort Thomas Towne Center at the intersection of Lumley Avenue and Miller Lane. The redevelopment would be to the northwest corner of the block. A brick-paved public plaza would be built in what is now a parking lot, and there would be a 4,000-6,000 square foot addition for a mixed-use retail and office building, possibly with parking underneath. Work could be finished by the end of November, or by the first of the year at the latest, depending on the weather, said Don Martin, Fort Thomas city administrative officer. MORE: http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060817/NEWS01/608170611/1002/RSS01 Cool. From UC News, 8/16/06: PHOTO: Susan Boatman is on the ladder, at left, working on her mural. PHOTO: Alex Jameson at work, lower left, along with Stephn Kenny, in the foreground. TUC Mural Project Stretches Students' Skills Two murals, chosen via online voting, are now being created by students in Tangeman University Center. The 35-foot-long, 9-foot-high works are literally proving a stretch for UC’s young artists. Date: 8/16/2006 By: M.B. Reilly Phone: (513) 556-1824 Photos By: Andrew Higley University of Cincinnati fine art student Susan Boatman stands at 5-foot, 4-inches tall. So, it’s a good thing she’s partnered with fellow painting student Brent Krumrei – who stands at 6-foot, 8-inches – in completing a large-scale mural in Tangeman University Center. Though even at his height, Krumrei can’t reach to the top of their 9-foot-tall, colorful mural the pair is creating in the Catskeller Game Room and Sports Lounge in TUC. “And I can’t use the ladder to reach the top,” explained Krumrei, 21, of Cleveland. “At 250 pounds, I’m too heavy for the ladder. If I have to reach to the top, I generally find a chair,” he added. The sheer size of their mural project – and a second TUC mural currently underway by fine art students Alexandra Jameson and Stephen Kenny – is providing the biggest challenge for these four students in completing their respective works in time for the opening of school on Sept. 20. The murals are sponsored by UC’s MainStreet Operations. MORE: http://www.uc.edu/news/NR.asp?id=4222 Update Walnut Hills: Cornerstone Broker Insurance Services Agency office project First update since June 5, 2006 The project at 2101 Florence Ave has some activity. Equipment is on site and some of the excavation and fill work is now taking place. On part of the site (not pictured) some foundations have been poured. The photo was taken August 9th. Update From the 8/19/06 Enquirer: Fine goes unpaid on empty rec center BY BRENNA R. KELLY | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER FLORENCE - National Football League star Shaun Alexander and his brother Durran failed to pay a city-imposed fine Friday for graffiti, high grass and other problems at the brothers' Florence community center. Because the $125 fine was not paid, the city plans to file a lien against the Main Street property, which was once the Tri-City YMCA, City Clerk Joe Christofield said. The lien will be for $143, which includes an $18 filing fee, he said. Boone County High School graduate Shaun Alexander, who was the most valuable player in the NFL last year, recently signed an eight-year, $63 million contract with the Seattle Seahawks. Alexander and his brother bought the building for $1.8 million in June 2005 with plans to renovate it and open a community center six months later. But after a symbolic groundbreaking, the center sat vacant. Vandals spray-painted the pool, broke windows and littered the center with trash. Weeds and grass grew high around the empty building. MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060819/NEWS0103/608190391/1059/rss13 Round-up: Cincinnati and inner burbs Includes the city of Cincinnati's neighborhoods, Bellevue, Covington, Dayton, Elmwood Place, Ludlow, Newport, Norwood and St. Bernard. AVONDALE The Ronald McDonald House will be constructing a parking lot along Erkenbrecher Ave. This will probably extend all the way down to 340 Erkenbrecher, which is the House owns. It appears as a patch of dirt on the Google Map. GOOGLE MAP CITY Road repair work begins Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/14/06 Prus Construction Co. will begin resurfacing streets and replacing curbs and handicap ramps in Covedale today, while the John R. Jurgensen Co. will begin repairing and resurfacing streets and replacing curbs in Corryville. The following streets in Corryville will be affected: Alcliff Lane; Beechmeadow Lane; Belvoir Lane; Cherevilla Lane; Highview Drive; Juniper Avenue; Limberlost Lane, Morado Drive, Nancy Lee Lane; Overlook Avenue; Seibel Lane; Willnet Drive; Woodbriar Lane and Woody Lane. In Corryville, Corry, Donahue, Gerard, and Short Vine streets, as well as Euclid, Glendora, Shields and University avenues may be closed at times. The projects should be finished by the end of the year. CLIFTON HEIGHTS Three new units of student rental housing will soon be created on the 2nd and 3rd floors of 345 Calhoun St. COLLEGE HILL After seven months vacant, 1151 Cedar Ave has been purchased by an investor for rental. COLLEGE HILL Aiken Spruces Up College Hill E-Newsletter, 8/17/06 Aiken is sprucing up! Both Aiken high schools teamed up to re-landscape the front areas of the campus so that arriving visitors, parents, and students will be greeted with an attractive, green welcome as the fall term begins. Local College Hill neighborhood resources were tapped as Beth McLean of the College Hill Gardeners helped brainstorm for ideas and local landscaper Mark Scheurmann completed the new installation and trim-up. COLUMBIA TUSCULUM This fancy bitch has recently been completed at 3655 Stone Arbor Ln, right off of Stanley Ave. It's listed for $1,295,000. Five and a half bathrooms. EAST END 209 Tennyson St has been razed by the owner. I believe this may have been vacant for five years. It has has a barbed-wire fence around it since 2002. Yeah...attractive. EAST PRICE HILL The owner of 421 Grand Ave is doing a major overhaul. It looks like some of the house has been demolished and an addition is being built. It was a two-family home of over 3000 square feet. It appears that the owner may intend to live in the house and convert it to a single-family. ENGLISH WOODS 2092 Baltimore Ave has been razed by the owner. The home was condemned after a fire in 2003. (no photo) HYDE PARK John Hueber Homes will be building a new single-family home at 2579 Observatory Ave. It will probably be priced in the $500,000 range. NORTHSIDE 4140 Witler St has been purchased by "Hanler & Witfield LLC", which is Talmadge Hunter, chair of the Northside Business Association. (This house is at Hanfield and Witler...get the joke? Anyway....) I believe this house is still vacant and is on a problem corner. I would assume that the aim here is to help stabilize this corner by creating a homeownership unit here. This is not the most attractive unit and is somewhat out of character with the neighborhood (built 1949). NORTHSIDE The rehab at 4215 Fergus St is complete. NORTHSIDE The owner of 1314 Boyd St is doing some structural repairs, rewiring and new plumbing. The house isn't in too bad of a shape, but it was getting there. The shotgun house was built around 1865. PLEASANT RIDGE 3116 Mapleleaf has had a renovation. PRICE HILL After eight months of being vacant and lender-owned, 1006 Kreis Ln has been bought for half of its assessed value. I really have no idea what made people stay away from this house, or why the bank would take such a hit financially. PRICE HILL Why the hell do they let a man who has several properties in foreclosure buy 1039 Seton Ave for $11,000, only to see him do absolutely nothing in the two months he's had it? This is a property with windows busted out that has been condemned and owned by some far-away entity for most of its recent life. Now the city is going to have to barricade it. It's a joke. You want to know what's wrong with Price Hill? This is Exhibit A. PRICE HILL Seton expansion nears completion Price Hill Press, 8/16/06 The transformation of Seton High School should be mostly finished when students walk through the new doors on the first day of school. After about two years of planning and construction the school's $13.5 million master facilities plan is almost completed. The building expansion includes a new gymnasium, commons area, art and science facilities and administrative offices. A new parking garage was finished last year. "It's going extremely well," said Dan Ledford, Seton president. "It's pretty impressive." WINTON PLACE Home Restore LLC has completed the rehab of 4560 Winton Rd. NEWPORT New field generates joy Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/15/06 No more mud bowls in Newport. After years of Wildcat Stadium basically being a dirt field, Newport Independent Schools now has state-of-the-art artificial turf. A grand opening at 6:30 p.m. Thursday will include a speech by U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning; ribbon-cutting ceremony; field and facilities tour; and a scrimmage between the Newport High School freshman and junior varsity football teams. "This is huge. It's beyond exciting," said Bill Shamblin, public relations director for the district. "We had, by far, the worst field in Northern Kentucky. This has been a long time coming." The district spent about $600,000 for the field, scoreboard, concession stands, bathrooms, goal posts and resurfaced track. NORWOOD Police substation opens today at community center Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/20/06 Since western Norwood lost its police substation 1½ years ago because of city budget cuts, residents say they've felt less safe and have noticed more night-time street activity. "Last summer, it was especially bad," Linda Myers said. "There were kids fighting and arguing in the street." But a sense of security will be returning to the neighborhood. A relocated police substation opens today at the Norwood Community/Senior Citizens Center at 1810 Courtland Ave. Primarily through money, time and services donated by residents and businesses, a storage room in the city-owned community center has been refurbished into a police substation and a police mini-museum that features a 100-year-old jail cell from City Hall and old police photos and record books. Norwood officially inaugurates the substation with an open house from 2 to 5 p.m. today. Round-up: Outer burbs and metro COLUMBIA TWP. Plainville project in works Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/14/06 Columbia Township has taken the first step to beautify the Plainville Road business district. Township trustees have approved hiring Bentley Koepke Inc., a landscape architectural firm in Linwood, to prepare a design for landscaping improvements on Plainville between Bramble and Murray roads. The cost of the design is $4,860. The Plainville Road area is one of three business districts the township plans to beautify. FAIRFIELD New Fairfield High weight room weak on funding Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/19/06 General contractor Wayne Huber will provide the labor to build a bigger strength training room to serve up to 1,000 athletes a year at Fairfield Senior High School. But it will take more money from boosters to complete the project, estimated to cost between $350,000 and $400,000. "We have a long road ahead of us. We have to raise some more money," Huber said. "I challenge some of the other business owners to step to the plate and be a part of this." A planned addition would create a 4,400-square-foot training center that would more than double the school's weight room commonly referred to as "The Cage." The current weight room is so small that some equipment remains in storage, and some students have had to work out in hallways and other spaces. FORT THOMAS Highlands opening doors amid construction Fort Thomas Recorder, 8/17/06 Learning to navigate through traffic and around construction will be the first lesson on Tuesday, Aug. 22 when Highlands High School opens. There is always congestion the first week of school, but changes to available parking will increase traffic, said Brian Robinson, assistant principal. "There will be construction personnel parking on the street, which will make finding a parking spot a little more difficult," Robinson said. "It will increase the congestion." Parents should give themselves an extra 10 minutes to drop off students, he said. To help ease traffic, Robinson said more students should car pool, and parents should drop students off in the parking lot rather than in the circle area in front of the school around construction. FORT WRIGHT Building goes down in flames Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/20/06 Although their lawn chairs were getting hot, 13-year-olds Jake Nienaber and Taylor Averdick had front-row seats along Dixie Highway to watch Cassidy's Bar and Grille burn to the ground Saturday. Hundreds gathered to watch the long-time neighborhood bar, which closed in May, meet its demise at the hands of Fort Wright, Park Hills and Elsmere firefighters, who set the fire for training. An office building is planned for the site. "I hate to see it go," said Peggy Nienaber, Jake's grandmother, who remembers going on dates there when the bar was a Jerry's restaurant. "That's the place you went after basketball games, football games, everything." For the last 14 years, Tom Cassidy operated the local watering hole. Cassidy and several former workers, who wore grass skirts and lays, gathered to watch the bar burn. "Honestly, I'm surprised so many people are here to watch it," Cassidy said. GLENDALE Glendale welcome sign to be unveiled Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/19/06 The first of at least five new signs welcoming people to Glendale will be unveiled Wednesday. Donated by Glendale Heritage Preservation, the signs were designed and made by village residents, approved by Village Council and installed by village workers. Five signs have been made so far, Village Manager Walter Cordes said, but there are seven spots picked out as possible entry points. GLENDALE Village tradition upheld, ancient sidewalks Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/16/06 It looks like a common sidewalk repair - workers lifting up broken pieces, leveling the surface underneath with sand and patching the cracks with cement. But what's happening this week along Greenville Avenue is the shoring up of 151 years of history. The sidewalks being fixed are sandstone, and they've been there since 1855 - the same year Glendale was incorporated as a village. Some of the squares remain smooth and level in spite of their age. Others have settled and cracked. Residents have long been interested in preserving the sidewalks, installing brass plaques in the 1970s that explain the history. GOLF MANOR 2503 Kellerman Ave has been rehabbed. HIGHLAND HEIGHTS School will turn into park Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/16/06 Highland Heights Elementary will become a 7-acre park with ball fields after this school year. The Campbell County School Board voted in July to sell the land to the city for $385,000 to help finance the first year of bond payments for the new elementary school under construction off the AA Highway in Cold Spring. Mayor Charles Roettger made the plans public Tuesday evening. The need for recreation facilities in Highland Heights' north end spurred City Council to purchase the land, Roettger said. Roettger said the city plans on leveling the 77-year-old building after the 2006-07 school year, and will build baseball diamonds, soccer fields and volleyball courts on the site. LINCOLN HEIGHTS The Lincoln Heights Community Improvement Corporation has been purchasing lots in the area near the intersection of Wayne and Van Buren avenues. This may be another area where they seek to develop new housing. GOOGLE MAP LOVELAND Council OKs $47.5K for chamber facelift Loveland Herald, 8/16/06 After 33 years, the city council chambers are finally getting a makeover. Council voted 4-to-1 last week in favor of subcontractors renovating the chambers; councilmembers Dan Daly and Vice Mayor Joe Schickel were absent. The remodeling project, which is set to begin by Aug. 22, is costing the city $47,500. City Manager Tom Carroll said the council chambers have not had a significant investment since 1973. Councilman Paul Elliot, who voted against the resolution, said even though this renovation is a wise expenditure, "I've seen us not spend money on other projects ... this just isn't necessary." MADEIRA Buckhead Homes is building a couple of teardown/infill houses at 7121 and 7123 Sanoma Ave. Prices are in the low $300s. (7121 and 7123 Sanoma) MADEIRA ARCHBISHOP DEDICATES SCHOOL Indian Hill Journal, 8/17/06 On Sunday, Aug. 20, Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk will celebrate a dedication Mass at 12:30 p.m. followed by a blessing of a new St. Gertrude School, Miami Avenue and Shawnee Run Road in Madeira. A parish picnic sponsored by JTM, Coca-Cola and Frito-Lay will follow. Parishioners will be invited to make voluntary cash donations for food/refreshments at the picnic which will be sent send schools in New Orleans that were damaged by Hurricane Katrina. MADEIRA Eagle to adorn Veterans Memorial entrance Suburban Life, 8/16/06 Choosing an eagle just seemed natural. Madeira resident Forest Atkins is currently adding details to the wings of an eagle sculpture, which will adorn the entrance pillar to the Veterans Memorial at McDonald Commons. After the clay sculpture is completed, it will be cast in bronze. "I picked the eagle because it represents the spirit of America," Atkins said. "It's swooping down and landing on this globe." The wing span of the eagle from tip to tip is 6 feet. MARIEMONT West Street parking comes to an end Eastern Hills Journal, 8/16/06 It's finalized. Parking on West Street between Wooster Pike and Madisonville Road is now obsolete. During their Aug. 15 meeting, Mariemont village council members unanimously voted for an ordinance that eliminated parking on both sides of West Street, used primarily by guardians who drop off students who attend Mariemont Elementary School. The ordinance also re-establishes two-way traffic on the street. The only exception to parking on West Street is a designated drop-off area -- about 60 feet in length, Councilman Bill Ebelhar said -- which drivers may only use to drop off passengers in a reasonable manner. It's similar to passenger drop-off areas located at airports, he said. Ebelhar said he personally doesn't like the drop-off area. MARIEMONT Mariemont awaits decision on funding for building Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/20/06 The village will find out no earlier than late September whether its proposed new administration building that would include an American Indian museum will receive federal funds. Mariemont applied for money to pay for all or part of the $5 million cost of tearing down its existing building and to build a new one on the site. Village officials had hoped to have an answer this summer, but Mayor Dan Policastro said the office of U.S. Sen. George Voinovich recently said a decision wouldn't be made before late September. Thousands of Indian artifacts have been excavated from the area since the mid-19th century. Most are at a Harvard University museum, but some have remained in Mariemont. MASON Mars Hill Academy to open Community Press Mason-Deerfield Twp, 8/16/06 The Mars Hill Academy will conduct a dedication ceremony 6 p.m. Aug. 21 to welcome residents, parents and potential students to the school's new home at 4320 Aero Drive. The event will include presentations by school officials, a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a tour of the 37,000-square-foot building. Refreshments and student entertainment also will be provided. While the first day of school in the building will be Aug. 23, the school has been open for 10 years, teaching students in various churches in and around Cincinnati. Tim McCoy, headmaster for Mars Hill, said the school was most recently at North Cincinnati Community Church in Deerfield Township. "That lease was coming due and it was time to move on," he said. MIAMI TWP. (Hamilton County) GO AROUND! Western Hills Press, 8/16/06 Zion Hill Road in Miami Township will be closed at Wesselman Road beginning Monday, Aug. 21, for bridge replacement. The work is being done by Tri-State Concrete and the Hamilton County Engineer's Office said the closure is anticipated to last until Jan. 31. Traffic will be routed over Wesselman Road to Taylor Road to Dog Trot Road to Bridgetown Road to Zion Road and vice versa. MONROE PRESBYTERIANS START RETIREMENT FACILITY Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/20/06 The nonprofit Ohio Presbyterian Retirement Services broke ground last week on the Brownstone, a 20-unit independent living facility for retirees at its Mount Pleasant Retirement Village, 225 Britton Lane. The Brownstone units range from 930 to 1,406 square feet including living-dining rooms, sunrooms, one or two bedrooms and underground parking. The two-story facility is to open summer 2007 and is about 50 percent reserved, a spokesman said. MONTGOMERY Garry Brasch Custom Homes will be building a new home at 7770 Campus Lane. The home has already been sold. The new home will replace a demolished 1949 ranch home. MONTGOMERY Neighbors oppose Twin Lakes plans Northeast Suburban Life, 8/16/06 The city will become nothing but "assisted-living homes and car dealerships," said resident Janet Phillips, who has lived here for 38 years. Phillips, 60, who lives in a home on Forestglen Drive, is opposed to property that officials from Twin Lakes at Montgomery, an assisted-living community off Montgomery Road, are planning to develop. Twin Lakes wants to develop seven or eight duplexes, she said. In a memo sent to Twin Lakes residents, executive director Monica Smith said the Twin Lakes company is reviewing "the possibility of acquiring nearly three acres of property immediately south of the city of Montgomery (Safety Center) on the east side of Montgomery Road, directly across from the Forestglen neighborhood." "Further," she said, "by potentially acquiring this property we are assuring it develops in the most positive and beneficial way as it relates to Twin Lakes and our North Campus. "Also, it is intended this addition would support itself financially and not take capital funding away from other projects." MONTGOMERY Proposed park would sit at gateway to city Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/20/06 Officials are looking over plans for a small park at the Montgomery "Triangle" retail and office development site, where Montgomery and Cooper roads and Main Street intersect. The public park would sit on about a tenth of an acre at the triangle's southernmost tip, at the city's gateway. Plans call for a large fountain, outdoor game tables, benches, wrought iron and stone fencing and landscaping. The project could cost up to $300,000, and would be paid for through tax increment financing. If approved, work could start next spring. MT. HEALTHY Mt. Healthy moving toward Nov. bond levy Hilltop Press, 8/16/06 The Mount Healthy Board of Education met Aug. 7 and planned to meet again Aug. 14 to pass the necessary resolutions to make a funding request official. The board is asking voters to support a $33 million bond issue on the November ballot that will allow the district to consolidate its buildings from eight to three. The Ohio Facilities Commission would pay $57 million of the estimated $90 million cost of the school construction and consolidation project. Superintendent David Horine said the new configuration includes two buildings for kindergarten through grade six and a grade seven through 12 campus. The project would not be complete until 2010. School officials said the consolidation could save the district about $1.5 million in annual operating costs. The total millage for the November ballot issue is estimated to be between 5.9 and 6.2 mills, but the exact millage has yet to be calculated. MT. HEALTHY Businesses moving as Speedway expands Hilltop Press, 8/16/06 Two businesses are being forced to move with the expansion of the Speedway at 7300 Hamilton Ave. Terry Betscher, owner of the Talking Heads salon at 7318 Hamilton Ave., said he's been told to be out by Sept. 30. Betscher said he was told Speedway will tear down its existing business Aug. 24. "We don't have a clue at this point where we'll go," Betscher said. "We would like to stay in this area because of our customers and the location next to Cross County." The expansion also is taking the Property Enhancers business at 7322 Hamilton Ave. According to the Hamilton County Auditor's office, Speedway paid $350,000 for each business property with the seller listed as Buckeye Electric. NEW RICHMOND Council moves to clean up New Richmond Clermont Sun, 8/17/06 The New Richmond Village Council stands united in its beautification efforts. "We have had housing codes and ordinances on the books since the 1970's," said council woman Ramona Carr during council's Aug. 8 meeting. "It is past time that we start enforcing them. Things have gotten worse, not better." Carr, leading the charge in the clean-up effort, was referring to the negligent homeowners, renters, and slumlords that do not keep their properties maintained to community standards or clean and free of debris and garbage. Council has recently taken decisive steps to improve the appearance of Front Street, but that is only the beginning. "The economic development initiative that we are working so diligently on will suffer if we do not take steps to clean up the entire Village," said council woman Ray Perszyk. "The time has come to document and attack this problem. I am talking about property on every street and every alley, top to bottom, end to end." SEAMAN Seaman to receive $355,000 ARC grant West Union People's Defender The village of Seaman recently learned that it is slated to receive a $355,000 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC). The village applied to the commission for assistance in building an access road for the new Adams County Regional Medical Center, which is currently under construction on Moores Road near state Route 32. In addition to the ARC funds, the village of Seaman will contribute $180,000 to the project, with estimated total project costs of $535,000, according to a press release from U.S. Senator George Voinovich. "We're pleased that we were able to obtain the funding," said Seaman Mayor Dan Raines. "When you start looking at a project of this magnitude, you need federal funds to make it happen." The road will be built on top of a hill, right across from the ball diamond, where there is good visibility, according to Raines. The 1,600-foot road will be a two-lane entrance to the medical center and will be sided with curbs. The ARC funds will be used for engineering services, site work and construction. SOUTHGATE Southgate development lawsuit withdrawn Campbell County Recorder, 8/17/06 A Southgate resident has voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit he filed last month challenging a zone change for a proposed housing development in the city. But Jim Ling isn't giving up his opposition. "By no means have we given up the fight. We're a long, long way from breaking ground on that development," Ling said. Ling filed the dismissal on Aug. 10 in Campbell Circuit Court. The suit alleged that recent votes to change a property's zoning designation, made by the Campbell County and Municipal Planning and Zoning Commission and the City of Southgate, were not valid. Indianapolis-based developer Herman & Kittle Properties, Inc., plans to build 230 rental units on the property. SPRINGDALE Springdale finally gets bond for Pictoria Towers Tri-County Press, 8/16/06 A five-story, 1,100-car public parking garage that was completed in 2000 by the Pictoria Towers office complex is just now being paid for. Springdale officials created a 30-year, $10 million tax increment financing district (TIF) for the new complex off of Ohio 4 in 1999 for the developer to build the garage. The garage and tower were completed in 2000. Multi Employer Pension Trust Inc., the corporation that built the garage, used its own funds to build the garage. The company has been trying to get a $10 million bond to get its investment back so it can work on other projects in other areas. The TIF district works like a large pot. Additional tax revenue generated by Pictoria Towers collects in the pot. When the pot fills to $10 million, or 30 years have passed, the TIF expires, and the city and Princeton City Schools start collecting the extra taxes that were filling up the pot. In this case, public improvements have already been made in the form of a public parking garage, and the city must pay off these improvements with bonds until the $10 million in TIF money is available. SPRINGFIELD TWP. Township zoning hearing changed Hilltop Press, 8/16/06 Residents planning to hear proposals for the former Kroger site on Winton Road will have to wait until next month. The proposed mixed-use development for the site had been on the township's zoning commission agenda for Wednesday, Aug. 23. Chris Gilbert, township development services director, aid the presentation has been postponed until Wednesday, Sept. 20. The initial proposal was for condominiums, restaurants and retail, Gilbert said. The Aug. 23 commission meeting still consider the proposed Walgreens store at the northeast corner of Winton and West Galbraith roads. SYCAMORE TWP. Builders' claims out of bounds Indian Hill Journal, 8/17/06 According to a press release, Eagle Custom Homes is building a 10-home community "in the heart of Indian Hill." Despite such a large development, City Manager Mike Burns says he isn't familiar with the project. "I don't know where that is," he said. That's because its not in Indian Hill, but in nearby Sycamore Township instead. Doug Feagles, owner of Eagle Custom Homes, said the neighborhood's only connection with the village is the Indian Hill Exempted School District, where children living in the development would attend school. SYMMES TWP. MCKINNEY ROAD CLOSED Loveland Herald, 8/16/06 McKinney Road, between Enyart and Kemper roads in Symmes Township, is closed for water main installation that is anticipated to last until Oct. 1. Any questions should be directed to David Johnson with Larry Smith Contractors at 367-0218 or to Arnold Secan with the Hamilton County engineer at 946-8430. Traffic will be routed over Kemper Road to Montgomery Road to Enyart Road and vice versa. For information on other projects, visit www.hamilton-co.org/engineer. WALTON Bridge going to scrap heap Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/16/06 They wanted it to be a pedestrian bridge, but now it won't be used for anything. The city closed High Street Bridge in late May, fearing it was too weak to hold traffic. After the closing, Mayor Phil Trzop said he hoped the bridge could remain in its location, and possibly be used as a pedestrian walkway. This week Trzop was told by the Southern Railroad, which owns the bridge, that the structure is set to be demolished Aug. 21. "We would've liked to still have had the bridge, and used it for pedestrians, but that ain't going to happen," Trzop said. WILDER Second firehouse will cover southern part of city Cincinnati Enquirer, 7/28/06 City leaders say a second firehouse at the site of a former vehicle emissions-check site will reduce response time to major accidents in the south of Wilder. The city bought the building on Gloria Terrell Road in May for $450,000 from the lab company that owned it. Wilder officials hope a second fire station will allow the city to keep its fire insurance rating, said City Administrator Terry Vance. The main fire station's 2.5-mile distance from the industrial portion of Wilder threatened the city dropping in the Insurance Service Office ratings, he said. A lower rating could mean $100,000 or more increases in property insurance premiums for industry in Wilder, Vance said. "It is one of those soft costs," Vance said. "When they get moved in, the cost would hit them. We already have an insurance premium tax. On top of that, $100,000 more in premiums they would have to pay would hurt." The site is behind the Shell gas station off the AA Highway, near industries such as produce distributor Castellini Co.
August 21, 200618 yr Hum...remembering your comment from last time, it seems apparent that window replacements can make or break a house. The house in Golf Manor looked much better before with those 30's windows and shutters.
August 21, 200618 yr Author I agree. Sometimes I think people either don't care, don't know any better, or just use what they have laying around. Or what they can get for the cheapest price.
August 21, 200618 yr Somebody is building a new house on Observatory Avenue in Hyde Park. There was no tear down; it is in the middle of a row of huge mansions, so I am sure it will be something spectacular. It is being built between homes at 2567 and 2583 Observatory, Huber Homes is the builder.
August 21, 200618 yr Author ^ HYDE PARK John Hueber Homes will be building a new single-family home at 2579 Observatory Ave. It will probably be priced in the $500,000 range. Really? :wink:
August 21, 200618 yr Author That's the dollar amount in their permit, though that's not usually a good indicator. It's almost always quite a bit more. I wouldn't be surprised if it's somewhere between that and $1M.
August 28, 200618 yr Author Top story Only because no one ever talks about Newtown! From the 8/26/06 Cincinnati Enquirer: Newtown tax breaks aim to revive village Incentives encompass homes, businesses BY STEVE KEMME / ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER NEWTOWN - In recent years, this small but growing village has tried to elevate its status and appeal by building new sidewalks, improving roads and key intersections and landscaping major arteries. Census estimates indicate the village has grown from about 2,400 six years ago to about 3,700 today. Now Newtown has a new tool to spur improvements in residential and business properties. It has established two state-certified community reinvestment areas that cover the entire village. People who improve or expand their businesses or homes will be eligible for substantial tax breaks. New business construction anywhere in Newtown and new residential construction in a small section of the town also will be able to garner tax breaks. MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060826/NEWS01/608260380/1056 Also of note This appeared in one of the Community Press newspapers on 8/23/06: New JCC two years from becoming reality BY PAULA MAXWELL | COMMUNITY PRESS CONTRIBUTOR Construction of the $38 million "state of the art" Jewish Community Center will begin this October in Amberley Village on the property formerly owned by the Rockdale Temple. Site work and demolition have begun as phase one of the project gets under way at the Ridge Road location just off Ronald Reagan Highway. Mark Rothschild, chief executive officer of the JCC, expressed enthusiasm about what the new 136,000 square foot JCC will bring to the community when it opens in the winter of 2008. JCC project director Art Paikowsky said that some $33.7 million toward the goal has already been raised through private donations and other gifts and endowments. A capital campaign enlisting the support of the public for the remaining project funding will be launched within the next few weeks. MORE: http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060823/NEWS01/608230675/1002/RSS01 Cool. From the 8/27/06 Cincinnati Enquirer: Housing authority named for design award THE ENQUIRER The Housing Authority of Newport has been named a 2006 recipient of the Project Design Merit Award by the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials for its work at the Grand Towers Apartments. The award recognizes outstanding achievement in housing and community development programs throughout the nation, and was presented to Linda Fields, deputy executive director of the authority at a conference in Denver. The Housing Authority of Newport's Project Design award is in recognition of the $8 million comprehensive renovation project on its elderly high-rise apartment building, Grand Towers. The renovation, completed in December, included combining studio apartments into large, one-bedroom units, as well as new wood cabinetry, wall-to-wall carpet, new fixtures, and a complete reconfiguration of the exterior site, including new landscaping. MORE: http://news.nky.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20060827/NEWS0103/608270387 Update Bond Hill: Millcreek Psychiatric Center redevelopment The City Planning Commission will consider a rezoning of the former Millcreek Psychiatric Center property at their meeting on September 1. The 25-acre property, at 6606 Paddock Rd, is currently vacant and owned by the city. The city acquired it from the county in December 2005. The city wishes to change its zoning from SF-6 Single-Family Residential District to ML Manufacturing Limited District to allow for commercial or light manufacturing uses. A public hearing was held in the community May 23. Though there was no opposition to the city's request, residents did fear that too much new truck traffic would too much for Paddock Rd to handle. They also were concerned about maintaining the buffer between the new development and the residential neighborhoods. The residents also discussed what they didn't want to see on the site: * Correctional facilites * Multi-family housing * Heavy industry What they did want to see: * "Rookwood" type of development * Medical clinic * Senior housing complex * Mixed-use light (clean) industry/commercial * "Super" Kroger * Offices * Single-family housing They also outlined goals of increasing the tax base and creating jobs for Bond Hill residents. The current zoning came about because of a severe need for single-family housing within the neighborhood. However, the Villages of Daybreak development has lessened that need considerably. The city sees the current zoning as an impediment to the development of that tract. The city also sees the success of nearby TechSolve and sees the demand for large commercial sites within the city limits. (There are few.) Approval, which is expected, will allow for the city to solicit RFPs for the site. The recommended development plan will then have to go to city council, so that they can sell the site to the developer. Round-up: Cincinnati and inner burbs Includes the city of Cincinnati's neighborhoods, Bellevue, Covington, Dayton, Elmwood Place, Ludlow, Newport, Norwood and St. Bernard. AVONDALE The rehab of 18 Glenwood Ave is complete and it is now on the market as affordable housing. (after only) AVONDALE Buyer purchases too much building. Building hazardous, vacated. Buyer lacks funds to repair and maintain. Building condemned. Building starts shedding bricks. The city has to raze it. 3166 Reading Rd, a building that could have housed a lot of people. f$&king senseless. (BTW...I know this happened last month. I just thought it needed to be said.) BOND HILL 1517 Yarmouth Ave has been rehabbed. COLUMBIA TUSCULUM The rehab of 406 Tusculum Ave is complete. Now the owner, if someone buys it for the $300,000 asking price, will make a 242% profit on his investment. (Well, minus the cash spent on the rehab.) COLUMBIA TUSCULUM 4367 Eastern Ave was declared a public nuisance in June 2006, after being condemned in March 2006. Apparently the owner is going to make the appropriate repairs. It appears that it will be a minimum amount of repairs that will at least qualify him to get a VBML and to keep the house standing. CORRYVILLE K&K Renovations has purchased 12 Louis Ave for a, um, renovation. EVANSTON 3054 O'Bryon St will be demolished by the city. It was damaged in a fire in July. It had been condemned before that and has had problems for years. The new owner had been gutting the building to see if it was possible to rehab it for occupancy. He stalled city action for months, so the timing of the fire was a bit fishy...er, convenient. The shotgun house was built around 1870. EVANSTON 1615 Neilson Pl has been rehabbed from a vacated mess to a unit of affordable housing. MT. WASHINGTON Tanner Custom Homes has been assembling lots along the south side of Corbly, between Trailwood and Berkshire Club drives. Right now they have a couple of acres. Tanner is the same builder who is building Kyles Lookout in Covington/Fort Wright. GOOGLE MAP MT. WASHINGTON Getting down to business Forest Hills Journal, 8/23/06 Business owners in Mount Washington will have a chance to help improve the community. This week the Community Urban Renewal Corporation for Mount Washington will mail surveys to businesses in the area. "It's a vehicle of communication," said Joann Kavanaugh, owner of Magnolia Clothing and member of the Community Urban Renewal Corp. "This is going to (provide) information that will help us when the strategic plan is put together." The city of Cincinnati and committee members from Mount Washington are preparing a strategic plan for the community. The business district is a major part of the plan, which is geared toward future growth. NORTHSIDE After being foreclosed and sitting on the market for 6 months, the mortage for 1616 Cooper St was assumed by an investor. The new landlord had a long eviction history with tenants in the late 1990s, but few recently. Probably because he only has a few properties these days. (on left) PLEASANT RIDGE This little home at 5549 Attica Ave has been rehabbed. SOUTH FAIRMOUNT After sitting vacant for 10 months, 2083 Harrison Ave has been purchased by an investor for $20,000. This is a former HUD property that is somehow not completely wrecked. SOUTH FAIRMOUNT 1788 Fairmount Ave is supposed to be razed by the city. As of a couple of weeks ago there were still household items within the home. It may have been abandoned. The house was built in 1887. UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI Construction Impacts Roadways Around Campus UC News, 8/23/06 Road construction is a factor at several locations around UC currently. Below is the latest West Campus Logistics Update from UC's Office of Construction Management: Corry Boulevard is in the midst of several crosswalk Installations. Corry Boulevard improvements include the installation of three new crosswalks, two in front of Edwards Hall and one near the soccer field. During construction of the crosswalks in front of Edwards, access to Lot 4 / Arlitt Center parking will be maintained. Access to Corry Garage and all destinations westbound will be via Dennis Street. The contractor will install signage and deputies will be on duty directing vehicles to Dennis Street. During construction of the soccer field crosswalk, one lane of traffic will be maintained. The work on the crosswalks is expected to begin on August 21st and be complete by August 25th. Another project ongoing now is a steam/manhole drain installation south of TUC. Utility work will take place on Backstage Drive south of TUC the week of August 28th. Backstage Drive will be closed to "through traffic" for the week. All entries/exits to CCM Garage will be maintained. Access to Blegen, CCM, and TC/Dyer loading docks will be via Corbett Drive only. The contractor will install all necessary warning and directional signage. The project site will be fenced. WALNUT HILLS It appears that the First Fisher Properties plan for 2220 St. James Ave is demolition, not rehab. The same goes for 2219 and 2223 Kemper Ln, which First Fisher purchased late last year. None of these properties are in good shape, but they're also not condemned. Since the company is building other townhomes in the area (see updates), I can only assume that they're clearing these out for some future project. Update 6/29/06 Update 11/12/05 (2220 St. James, then 2219 and 2223 Kemper Ln) WALNUT HILLS 2-bedroom apartments built for homeless Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/26/06 A $1.5 million housing development opened here Friday as a shelter that will provide 12 homeless families a permanent place to stay. The 103-year-old gymnasium at Assumption Church on Gilbert Avenue was converted into the Father Thomas Bokenkotter Residence, an expansion of the Tom Geiger Guest House, a homeless shelter. Each of the 12 apartments has two bedrooms, a kitchen, a sleeper sofa, and roll-in showers for wheelchair users. "It will not solve the problem of homelessness, but this helps," said John Convery, director of the Tom Geiger Guest House. "It is hard to find permanent housing if you are homeless, in a wheelchair and suffering from some kind of substance abuse." Bokenkotter for decades was pastor of Assumption Church. "This is a housing project that really touches the heart of a community," said Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory at Friday's opening ceremony. "This is government and private money reaching out to help the homeless." COVINGTON City, Wallace Woods tackling traffic woes Kentucky Post, 8/22/06 Wallace Woods Neighborhood Association President Marshall Slagle says he's encouraged by Covington City Manager Jay Fossett's interest in solving traffic problems in Wallace Woods. In the wake of another accident at the intersection of Wallace Avenue and Scott Boulevard on Friday night - after years of complaints by residents about numerous accidents at the busy, precarious crossing - Slagle met with Fossett and other city officials Monday. "I felt positive about, at least, dealing with short-term issues while we work on long-term issues," Slagle said after the meeting. "I believe strongly in Jay." Said Fossett, "We all agree that traffic needs to get out of that neighborhood. Now we've just got to figure out a solution that makes sense. "We are working on this. I don't think the neighborhood has realized that. Maybe now they will." Round-up: Outer burbs and metro ALEXANDRIA Commercial area waiting on U.S. 27 Alexandria Recorder, 8/24/06 The decision about which stores and businesses would be included in a commercial area planned across from the 189 home Summerlake subdivision will need to wait until the widening of U.S. 27 is finished. Alexandria City Council is considering ordinances to rezone two properties at the entrance to the subdivision and across U.S. 27 from residential to highway commercial zone. The property is owned by Summerlake Development, which is building the subdivision. The city's Planning and Zoning Commission recommended the change. The larger property, 17.7 acres, is across the road from the subdivision, and not in the city. Council is considering an ordinance to annex that property. The smaller property, at the entrance to the subdivision, is a little smaller than a full acre. ANDERSON TWP A new single-family home is being built on a lot split from 4 Cottage Ct. This $259,900 home will be built in a neighborhood full of homes from the mid 1920s that don't even crack $100K in valuation. ANDERSON TWP Ceremony is for synthetic turf Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/21/06 Friends of Turpin is holding a dedication ceremony of synthetic turf at 6 p.m. today during the fall Meet the Team event at Turpin's Spartan Stadium, 2650 Bartels Road. Friends of Turpin initiated the "Home Field Advantage" fund-raising campaign in fall 2005 with the goal of raising at least 80 percent of the $533,000 needed to purchase and install synthetic turf. In less than five months, Friends of Turpin secured, from almost 300 Turpin families and friends, commitments for 82 percent, which has grown to 85 percent. No district taxpayer money was used for the turf project. CLEVES Three Rivers board decides against bond issue, for now Western Hills Press, 8/23/06 The Three Rivers Local School District will not ask voters to decide the $54.5 million bond issue this November. At a special school board meeting last Tuesday, the board discussed the Aug. 8 defeat of the bond issue that would have funded the construction of two new schools, and chose not to put the issue in front of voters again for the upcoming general election. "As much as I would like to go on in November, because I think the plan we have is a good one and I think it's the right thing to do, my concern is we don't have enough time to educate the voters," said school board vice president Al Bayes. "November is not that far away and we have a lot of information to get out there." District residents voted 3,101 to 1,603 against the bond issue on the special election ballot earlier this month. The bond levy request, with an actual cost of 4.95 mills plus 0.5 mills for permanent improvement, would have cost the owner of a home with a market value of $100,000 about $166 per year. COLERAIN TWP Millcreek Valley Habitat for Humanity has purchased 8 lots on Wilson Ave in Mt. Healthy Heights. The price was $37,800. There are no current plans to build there, but it may happen in the future. GOOGLE MAP COLERAIN TWP Masterpiece Development/Schneller Homes will be building a large subdivision off of the NW corner of Kemper and Pippin roads. The name is going to be Sloneker Reserve, or something similar. They have acquired a little over 34 acres and will tear down one house. No prices have been set and no site plan available, but expect the homes to be well over $200,000. Schneller is a West Side builder which is responsible for the Eckert Woods and Rosewood subdivision, among others. GOOGLE MAP COLERAIN TWP Work is progressing on the expanded Speedway at Pippin and Springdale roads. They are currently working on the foundation. COLUMBIA TWP K&K Renovations has completed their rehab of 6738 Murray Ave. Fantastic. CRESTVIEW HILLS New city building open house Saturday Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/25/06 Nearly a year after construction began, the public can check out the new Crestview Hills city building at an open house this weekend. The open house is 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Mayor Paul Meier said. The 14,000-square-foot building consolidates police and administrative functions at one site, and the $2.57 million building includes a 2,000-square-foot room for training and city recreational activities. By 3 p.m. today,the city will unveil its newly-renovated Web site. Although public works and clerical employees will have less space in the new building, it has larger public areas, and it relieves crowded conditions for the Police Department. The building is equipped for cable, with mounted remote cameras and individual microphones for council members when city meetings are televised, city officials have said. DEERFIELD TWP Kings upgrades are 'state of the art' Community Press Mason-Deerfield Twp, 8/23/06 Superintendent Chuck Mason said Kings High School will be "state of the art in its environment." He said that at the Kings Local Schools District Board of Education meeting last week, where Business Manager Steve Waldmann announced that heating, ventilation and air-conditioning upgrades conducted at Kings High School were almost complete. The project so far has cost the district $1.7 million. Waldmann and district employees have worked all summer long through the sweltering temperatures to renovate the heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems in 45 classrooms at Kings High School. The district reported problems with carbon dioxide, mold and humidity earlier this year. DELHI TWP Delhi skate park rolling into reality Delhi Press, 8/23/06 Plans for a new skateboard park at Delhi Township Park have area teens, in a word, "psyched." "It's going to be awesome," said J. J. Berg, a 14-year-old who said his front yard is in Delhi Township and his back yard in Green Township. Berg, along with several other township and area teens, helped design what will replace one of the tennis court areas at the park. Sandy Monahan, parks and recreation director, also had help from Berg's father, Bill, and Nick Accurso, owner of Anonymous Skate Shop in Green Township. She said it just made sense to enlist the help of the people who have clamored for a skate park. DRY RIDGE Skate park construction begins Grant County News, 8/23/06 Jimmy Wells doesn't know how to ride a skateboard, but that didn't stop him from spearheading a project to give skateboarders a place other than the streets to ride. After countless meetings, phone calls, conversations and sketches, a skate park in Dry Ridge is becoming a reality. Construction is expected to begin next week on a skate park in Piddle Park. "I'm excited that we are finally doing something," Wells said. "Next week we'll actually see some dirt being moved." Suburban Rails, of Cincinnati, was awarded a contract by the city council to design and build the concrete structure, which will feature steps, rails and street elements such as a picnic table, benches and handrails. ERLANGER Condos possible for Brightleaf Blvd. Erlanger Recorder, 8/24/06 City council's administration committee gave a tentative go-ahead last week to a $3.5 million condominium development planned for Brightleaf Boulevard, amid reservations about a zone change needed for the plan to go forward. "If they can put condos in there under the current zone, go for it," said Councilman Jim Burger. "But I am absolutely against changing the zone." Burger and some fellow members of council are opposed to multi-family housing such as apartment complexes, and any zone change that could open a site up to that possibility. Shawn Egan, owner of Edgewood-based Wedgewood Homes, plans to build 18 condos on a hilltop on the left side of Brightleaf. The five-acre site is now zoned for single-family detached residential use. A zone change to R-2 (single-family attached residential) or R-3 (single-family stacked residential) is needed for the development. EVENDALE OKI Systems plans larger headquarters Cincinnati Business Courier, 8/23/06 OKI Systems Limited said Wednesday that it will move its headquarters from West Chester to a larger facility in Evendale. The company said in a news release that it is renovating and expanding an existing facility on Medallion Drive, adding 60,000 square feet for a total of 100,000 square feet. The addition will allow OKI to bring its corporate and Cincinnati branch locations under one roof. "This move has been prompted by the rapid growth in all seven of OKI Systems' locations throughout Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana," said President Dave Reder. The company said it expects to move into its new headquarters by early October. OKI Systems distributes material handling products from manufacturers like Crown Equipment, Komatsu, Interlake and Poweramp. It has locations in Hebron; Columbus; Indianapolis; Lexington; Newark, Ohio; and Evansville, Ind. FAIRFIELD Murals deliver beauty for post office Fairfield Echo, 8/16/06 For Mayor Ron D’Epifanio, seeing is truly believing. When he first heard the Fairfield 50th Anniversary Committee had commissioned an artist to paint the sides of the U.S. Post Office facing Sandy Lane and Wessel Drive, he thought it was “a waste of money.” “But now that I have seen it, boy have I changed my mind,” said D’Epifanio. Franklin artist Eric Henn has spent the past few months painting the mural which depicts memories of Fairfield’s 50-year history. Henn has completed the front of the post office facing Wessel Drive: * the U.S. Post Office name is framed with the words in dark blue; * the two panels above the door have the canal that ran through Fairfield and Milder’s Inn, which used to be near the present-day Village Green; * above the front panel is a blue version of the 50th Anniversary logo; and * the two panels to the left of the doors have the old Symmes Tavern and a 1950s-style gas station. FALMOUTH Pendleton Athletic Park to be dedicated Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/23/06 A dedication ceremony for Pendleton Athletic Park is scheduled for noon Saturday. Phase I of the park, a joint venture between the Pendleton County Fiscal Court, Pendleton County Schools and the city of Falmouth, is nearing completion. The event will highlight activities that utilize facilities available at the park, recognize the contributors and unveil the donor sign. The ceremony will include a performance by the Pendleton High School Band as well as acknowledgements by government and community leaders. FORT MITCHELL Trees to be planted citywide this fall Community Recorder, 8/24/06 The city is known for the large, shady trees that line its streets, and officials plan to add more this fall. About 90 trees will be planted across Fort Mitchell beginning in late October. It is the first citywide tree-planting since 2003, according to Public Works Director Bob Zerhusen. The cost to the city is $27,000. Zerhusen said city council has set aside funding annually for the past three years. The trees will be planted behind the public right-of-way, in residents' yards, with their permission. FORT THOMAS Optometrists set sights on expansion in Fort Thomas Plaza Fort Thomas Recorder, 8/24/06 There's a new vision for The Fort Thomas Plaza. Northern Kentucky Eye Care Center, presently at 2306 U.S. 27 in Southgate, plans to move into its new offices before the start of October, said co-owner Dr. Richard Schuck. The other co-owner is Dr. George Georgillis. Renovations are underway to turn the former Movie Gallery into new offices for the two-doctor practice. The move will enable the eventual addition of a third doctor, said Schuck, 59, of Highland Heights. The practice, which specializes in the treatment of eye disease and glaucoma, has been in Southgate since 1977. Before that it was located in Newport, Schuck said. "We're moving in there and expanding our business," he said. GEORGETOWN, OH Voters to decide on jail Georgetown News Democrat Does Brown County need a new courthouse/jail facility? The Brown County Commissioners are leaving it up to the voters to decide. To gather input from Brown County officials and concerned members of the general public, the commissioners called a special meeting Tuesday, Aug. 22 to discuss what the Steering Committee found during their feasibility study for constructing a new courthouse/jail. Approximately 20 people attended the meeting, some seeking answers on various questions and others just to hear about the progress being made on the plans for a new courthouse/ jail. Members of the Steering Committee expressed that the county is in desperate need of a new courthouse/jail facility. GEORGETOWN, OH Maysville Ledger Independent, 8/23/06 It doesn't take a masonry expert to determine that Southern Hills Career Center is in dire need of masonry repair. Contractors are working hard to remedy the problem, but some sections of the school still paint a scary picture. Southern Hills was slated to be repaired this summer after voters passed a tax levy in February. However, once contractors removed face brick from the building, it became apparent that the interior block was the culprit of major cracks throughout the building. According to reports, engineers deemed the building safe, but noted that corners of the building did not have enough block for support and that the block had been improperly laid. Southern Hills Career Center Superintendent Dr. Charles Guarino said "every exterior opening had to be re-worked." Engineers deemed the original masonry work, performed in 1975, "poor at best." GREEN TWP Oak Hills to install artificial turf at stadium Delhi Press, 8/23/06 The Oak Hills Local School District is known for excellence in the classroom, and now the Oak Hills Athletic Boosters has a plan to help students excel on the field as well. Through its Achieving Excellence Stadium Fund Drive, the boosters group is raising money to install an artificial playing surface on the football field at Oak Hills High School's Betz Memorial Stadium. "We're doing this because it's the best thing we can do for our student athletes and our community," said Oak Hills Athletic Director Jan Wilking. "The best way to do that is to let them play at our best facility." She said a committee of volunteers has been meeting since November 2004 to examine the high school's current site and determine what the best alternatives are for the land-locked school with a football field that is used only 10 times a year for varsity and junior varsity home games. GREEN TWP BEACON TO UNVEIL NEW OFFICE Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/27/06 Beacon Orthopaedics plans to unveil its new West Side facility this week. Beacon Westside, at 6480 Harrison Ave., will be an ambulatory surgery center and clinic offering digital X-ray and MRI services, physical therapy, chiropractic care and custom brace fitting. Several primary care physicians will have their offices in the building. Beacon's main facility is at 500 E-Business Way in Sharonville; the practice also has offices in Harrison, Bridgetown, Cheviot and Mount Airy. HAMILTON Habitat rekindles family's hope Hamilton JournalNews, 8/26/06 Sarah Whisman and her family took a friend's suggestion that gave them hope when there was none. "I'm still just looking forward and hoping," the mother of three said. "It's not quite real." Whisman and her husband of five years, Kenneth, applied for a Habitat house when their trailer caught fire a year ago, destroying everything in it. Today, the family will receive a home on Kahn Avenue from the Hamilton-Fairfield chapter of Habitat for Humanity. A dedication service will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday in the 1200 block of Kahn Avenue. HAMILTON Ferguson Metals unveils expanded facility, new equipment Cincinnati Business Courier, 8/21/06 Ferguson Metals is launching several upgrades of its Hamilton facility, including additional warehouse and processing space, and a new production line. The company said in a news release that it has completed a 39,000-square-foot addition, along with a state-of-the-art Red Bud cut-to-length line. "The technology represented in our new cut-to-length line will certainly provide efficiency gains, but having the space to better organize and streamline our processing and warehousing operations will also be very beneficial," said Director of Operations Bob Vogel. Ferguson Metals supplies stainless steel and high-temperature alloys to the aerospace, automotive, medical, food service and petrochemical markets, among others. INDIAN HILL Development a double-bonus Indian Hill Journal, 8/24/06 For those in the market for a home in Indian Hill without a huge yard to maintain, Twin Fences may be the place to reside. The housing development, located off of Remington Road, is one of only a handful in the village to feature one-acre lots, which City Manager Mike Burns says harkens back to the mid-1960s. Burns said much of the one-acre land in the village is undeveloped or already has a house on it. He said the smaller lots create more traditional subdivision settings and require less maintenance. "Someone who's looking for a one-acre zoned lot in Indian Hill either tears down a home or comes to Twin Fences," Linnear said. Developer Addison Lanier said he began selling lots in the subdivision last December and has already sold 12 of the 30 developed lots. LOVELAND Improved traffic flow is point of project Loveland Herald, 8/23/06 City Manager Tom Carroll said that people seem happy about the updated five-point intersection near downtown Loveland. Deemed as the Five Points Intersection Improvement project, the city eliminated stop signs at the intersection and installed new traffic signals to allow better traffic flow. According to a release, the city realigned the intersection "to improve the level of service, the replacement of aged four-inch water lines and stormwater. Approximately 18,600 existing daily users will benefit from the improvement." Carroll said the project cost an estimated $530,492, under the project's budget of $800,000. He said one resident claimed "the project was great," and that "he's getting used to going straight through" the intersection. Councilman Paul Elliott said he wishes the city would put the former stop signs back. He said that on a recent late evening he waited for traffic lights to change, which took about one minute. MADEIRA School sites to be dedicated Sunday Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/25/06 The new Madeira Elementary School, J.F. Dumont Media Center, Madeira Middle School and W.M. Sellman Media Center will be dedicated on Sunday. Madeira Elementary, 7840 Thomas Drive, will be dedicated at 1:30 p.m., followed by a ceremony to dedicate the Dumont Media Center. Tours of the elementary school will be available until 3:30 p.m. Madeira Middle School and W.M. Sellman Media Center, 6612 Miami Ave., will be dedicated at 4 p.m. with tours available until 6 p.m. MIAMI TWP (Clermont County) SCHOOL CLOSES Milford-Miami Advertiser, 8/23/06 Christian Center Academy, a school that moved from Eastgate to Milford this summer, has closed. School officials and the House of Restoration, the church were the school would be housed, approached Miami Township's Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) in May for a conditional use permit so the church could be used for the school, said Larry Fronk, township zoning administrator. "At that time, they were proposing a gymnasium and a two-story building that was basically going to be semi-attached to the back of the church," he said. The board approved this, but the plan changed later when the group came back before the BZA to say they couldn't build the school right away, said Fronk. They wanted to use "modular buildings on a temporary basis. It was a major change to the original plan." Fronk said the BZA's biggest concern was what was meant by "temporary." He originally heard the modular rooms would be needed for two years, then heard between two and five years. MONROE Brownstone living coming for seniors Middletown Journal, 8/21/06 Condo-style living reminiscent of the classic, New York brownstone is coming soon for area seniors. Mount Pleasant Retirement Village is home to about 400 Butler County seniors, and Wednesday, company leaders broke ground for its latest project — a large, brick, two-story building called The Brownstone Condominium. Scheduled to open next year and 30 percent complete, the 20-unit Brownstone is Mount Pleasant’s newest independent living concept for retirees. “The Brownstone is another niche for people who want others to be around them but still want to be very independent,” said Stan Kappers, executive director at Mount Pleasant. “It’s nice to offer a wide range of options.” Mount Pleasant offers independent and assisted living, nursing and rehabilitative care. MT. HEALTHY School officials to host 2 forums Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/23/06 Mount Healthy City Schools will host two community forums, Sept. 14 and 18, to discuss plans to consolidate its eight buildings into three new schools. The district will place a 5.45-mill bond issue and a 0.5-mill maintenance levy on the November ballot to support a $33 million bond issue. The Ohio School Facilities Commission has said it will pay $57.2 million of the $90 million construction cost. The consolidation is expected to save $1.5 million in annual operating costs, school officials said. The forums are planned for 7 p.m. Sept. 14 at Mount Healthy High School, 2046 Adams Road; and 7 p.m. Sept. 18 at North Middle School, 2170 Struble Road. Superintendent Dave Horine will give an overview of the project. NORTH COLLEGE HILL After 16 months vacant, 1823 Sterling Ave has found a buyer. The buyer is an investor who owns about a dozen mediocre properties in NCH and in some of the less-desireable neighborhoods of Colerain and Springfield townships. Oh, well...at least it will have a tenant. OXFORD Arts Center undergoes construction Middletown Journal, 8/26/06 The Oxford Community Arts Center is becoming more accessible to the public thanks to a $72,000 contribution by the Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission. Construction workers are currently tearing apart walls and floors to install an elevator shaft in the historic Oxford College building. On the arts center's first floor, workers are building a handicap-accessible bathroom. "It's a great step forward," OCAC Board President Sarah K. Michael said. "It's taken quite awhile for us to become an accessible building, but it's always been a priority so everyone can use it." The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission approved $72,000 at its August quarterly meeting for the Oxford arts center to help fund the improvements. According to Michael, the arts center will pay for the improvements and later be reimbursed by the commission. The OCFC is a state agency that provides money to help improve Ohio cultural facilities. SPRINGDALE Cost of 747 work increases Tri-County Press, 8/23/06 Repairing state Route 747's pavement around the Interstate 275 interchange is going to cost more money -- thanks to soaring asphalt prices. The project that is slated to start construction in September was originally going to cost $919,000 -- $367,600 of which was to be paid for by the city. Repairs will be made between the I-275 eastbound off-ramp going south on state Route 747 and the westbound off-ramp going north. But now, $164,837 is being tacked on to the city's share, since the price for the project went up to $1.08 million. The rest of the project is still being paid for by grants from the Ohio Public Works Commission and the Municipal Road Fund. SYCAMORE TWP Buckhead Homes is building two single-family homes at 6813 and 6853 Dearwester Dr. The one at 6813 will be a teardown of a ranch home built in 1953 and valued at around $250,000. (6813 Dearwester) SYMMES TWP BLONG MEMORIAL PARK BID Loveland Herald, 8/23/06 Symmes Township awarded the Blong Memorial Park construction bid to low bidder Jeffrey Allen Corporation with a base bid of $485,046. The price will include work on the park including some landscaping and the parking lot, according to Administrator Gerald Beckman. Some landscaping near Montgomery Road will be delayed until work on the road is complete. Beckman said the start of construction is up in the air but is anticipated to commence early next month. Most of the work is expected to be complete by Nov. 30, Beckman said, with the landscaping finished next year. TRENTON Shelter levy OK'd for Butler Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/23/06 Butler County commissioners voted in an emergency session today to place a 0.5-mill, one-year tax levy on the Nov. 7 ballot for a new, larger animal shelter. If the tax passes, it would cost the owner of a $100,000 home about $15 per year, or 4 cents a day. The tax would generate $3 million to replace the 54-year-old, 6,000-square-foot shelter that was outdated two decades ago, officials say. The overcrowded, unsanitary conditions spread disease among the animals housed there; the proposed new shelter would be at least double the current size. More than two dozen shelter volunteers, supporters and board members appeared before commissioners today and urged them to put the levy on the ballot. They described deplorable and appalling conditions at the shelter. Commissioners Mike Fox and Greg Jolivette both voted to put the measure on the ballot during an emergency meeting. Commissioner Chuck Furmon was absent. “We need an animal shelter we don’t hang our head in shame over,” Fox said. Middletown Journal: Butler to consider new tax (8/22/06) WILMINGTON A need for Field Turf and more at Wilmington Wilmington News Journal, 8/24/06 Visions for the Future is a phrase being repeated optimistically around the Wilmington school district these days. The words are a reminder of why a $2.59 million academic/athletic enhancement campaign is underway. A major area in the planning is an update of outdoor athletic facilities. It is time. When it was built, Alumni Field was near state of the art. But that was nearly 70 years ago. The field was dedicated in October 1937. It was used for high school football games, halftime band shows and track meets. The six lane oval surrounding the field accommodated dual and invitational meets. WYOMING Stadium ready for opener Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/22/06 Wyoming High School will dedicate its renovated, $2.5 million athletic complex Friday evening. The complex was developed in two stages and was completed over the summer. Phase 1 included renovating a baseball field, softball field and visitors bleachers, adding new lighting, and improving the sound system and scoreboard. The final phase included a synthetic turf field, six-lane track, field event areas, expanded press box and new home bleachers. Funding came from a permanent improvement levy voters passed in 2005 and from private donors during the Wyoming School Foundation capital campaign from 1998 to 2000. The Cowboys face Mount Healthy on Friday in the home opener of the football season. Announcement Beginning next week, I won't be holding on to so many news stories. Instead, I'll post them the day they come out. Less important stories will still be here. This thing is getting pretty long and it's a lot to read, especially with the long news stories tacked on to the front end. Plus this topic is pretty much dead between Mondays.
August 28, 200618 yr Beginning next week, I won't be holding on to so many news stories. Instead, I'll post them the day they come out. Less important stories will still be here. This thing is getting pretty long and it's a lot to read, especially with the long news stories tacked on to the front end. Plus this topic is pretty much dead between Mondays. I think that's a great idea...I know sometimes I almost approach this thread with trepidation, because if it's a Monday, I know I need to have at least a half hour to invest in it...god only knows how long it takes you to put it together for us!
August 28, 200618 yr ^Councilman Paul Elliott said he wishes the city would put the former stop signs back. He said that on a recent late evening he waited for traffic lights to change, which took about one minute. Boo Hoo, the stop signs should be put back so you don't have to wait for lite late at nite?
August 31, 200618 yr Wasn't sure where to put this.... Freedom Center, stadium priorities Area leaders ask state for $27M for 15 projects BY KIMBALL PERRY AND JON CRAIG | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITERS Area leaders have submitted a $27 million wish list to Columbus - and the funding priority is getting money for the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, a key state lawmaker said Wednesday. "The number one priority in my mind would be the funding for the Freedom Center," said State Rep. Tyrone K. Yates, D-Evanston/East Walnut Hills. Yates was referring to the local list of requested money from the 2006 State Capital Bill, which provides money for local building projects. The Cincinnati-area requests will be sent in a letter from local officials and the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce. It seeks $27.25 million for 15 projects - nearly twice as much as all of Hamilton County got for state-funded projects in its last capital budget. Local requests $9.65 million - Hamilton County stadium funding; $2.85 million - National Underground Railroad Freedom Center; $2 million - Riverfront Park on The Banks; $1.5 million - Music Hall garage; $1 million - Ensemble Theatre; $750,000 - Turner Place; $1.25 million - Cincinnati Museum Center; $1 million -- Riverbend Boutique Theater; $3 million - Barrett Cancer Center; $1.5 million - FreeStore/FoodBank; $1 million - Cincinnati Zoo; $750,000 - Jewish Community Center; $500,000 - Art Academy; $250,000 - Sharonville Convention Center; $250,000 - Walnut Hills/Evanston Community Center. MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060831/NEWS01/608310335/1077
August 31, 200618 yr Some Cincy randomness.... Hospital Construction in Clifton The office portion of Stetson Square Some Vine Street rehabs The Bank Cafe building looks complete from the outside Two new homes on Eastern Ave. next to Verdin Clockworks Two other new ones a little further east
September 1, 200618 yr Author From the 8/30/06 Enquirer: PHOTO: Madeira officials are making plans to buy Song Han's shoe-repair shop as part of a plan to add downtown parking. The Enquirer / Leigh Patton Lose some sole, add to heart of downtown Madeira officials seeking ways to add parking to business district BY FEOSHIA HENDERSON | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER MADEIRA - The city is working to add more downtown parking, the latest of several small but steady steps to redevelop its business district. Meanwhile, two businesses - one currently in Sycamore Township's Kenwood Towne Centre - plan to move into the district off Miami Avenue, City Manager Tom Moeller said. The city is hammering out final details of a deal to buy a small shoe repair shop at Miami and Laurel avenues. The shop would be torn down to make way for eight to 10 public parking places, Moeller said. The shoe shop sits on less than a quarter-acre of land in heart of the downtown business district off Miami between Laurel and Railroad avenues. The city is also near an agreement with the Arthritis Foundation, 7124 Miami Ave., to reconfigure its parking lot to add about a dozen more spaces for Madeira businesses. MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060830/NEWS01/608300365/1056 From same: PHOTO: Woodlawn Elementary Title I reading teacher Lynn Jones arranges the school's Resource Room on Friday. School starts Thursday. The Enquirer / Carrie Cochran PHOTO: Robert Holland of Services Unlimited installs a security camera Thursday at Lincoln Heights Elementary. THE ENQUIRER/CARRIE COCHRAN PHOTO: Toby Griffis of Perry Interiors touches up a railing Thursday at Lincoln Heights Elementary. The new school includes an art gallery. THE ENQUIRER/CARRIE COCHRAN 'Dream' schools ready for debut Princeton plan takes shape BY DENISE SMITH AMOS / ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER The first day of school will be the first time hundreds of students and parents see inside the new schools, which are part of Princeton's $85 million construction and renovation project to transform its eight elementary schools. About the schools Lincoln Heights Elementary: 1113 Adams St. Principal: Deborah L. Jackson Built for: 420 students Cost: $10.1 million Grades: PreK-5 What's special: Art gallery can be seen from main entrance and reception area; windows with views of the Mill Creek Valley (all the way to University of Cincinnati); floor-to-ceiling windows in library. Woodlawn Elementary: 31 Riddle Road Principal: Sherry Myers Built for: 280 students Cost: $9.55 million Grades: PreK-5 What's special: Two communal areas for grades PreK-2 and grades 3-5 for character education programs, special events and projects; main entrance leads to open space, stage, cafeteria and gym. Sharonville Elementary: 11150 Maple St. Principal: Gary Tyler Built for: 420 students Cost: $10.16 million Grades: PreK-5 What's special: Terra-cotta eagle from original school building; interior bridge overlooks main entrance and cafetorium, linking administrative offices with second-floor classrooms. Springdale Elementary: 350 W. Kemper Road Principal: Susan Wells Built for: 420 students Cost: $10.95 million Grades: PreK-5 What's special: Arches, four columns outside main entrance; design and color tie in with nearby buildings. Stewart Elementary: 11850 Conrey Road Principal: David M. Schmitz Built for: 420 students Cost: $10 million Grades: PreK-5 What's special: Interior courtyard with gardens; color-coded grade-level wings; art room incorporates grade-level colors. All new schools feature: -Science lab classrooms -Full-service media center libraries -Community multipurpose rooms -Flexible stage, cafeteria and gym space -State-of-the-art security systems -New computers, flat-screen TV monitors MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060830/NEWS0102/608300350/1058/NEWS01
September 2, 200618 yr The new Springdale school is TERRIBLE, nothing special about it. I like how the district changed their mind just at the last moment to tear down the original building, probably the last building of history in Springdale.
September 3, 200618 yr Fort Thomas to get a new subdivision BY JAMES MCNAIR | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER FORT THOMAS - One of the unlikeliest Northern Kentucky cities for a new subdivision is about to get one. With its many cul-de-sacs ending where hilltops turn into drop-offs, Fort Thomas sits in sharp contrast to the subdivision-blooming farmland of Alexandria and Independence. But one company, Fischer Homes, was able to assemble enough raw land for a 106-house development. With site work now under way, Villa Grande is taking shape between Chesapeake Avenue and Waterworks Road next to Woodlawn. It won't be for the minimum-wage set. Designs will come from the company's Masterpiece Collection. Prices will range from the $400,000s to the $600,000s. In a city where a new restaurant generates excitement, Fischer's ability to squeeze in an entire subdivision is quite a feat. MORE: http://news.nky.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20060903/BIZ01/609030342
September 4, 200618 yr Author East Price Hill: Let's just bulldoze the whole goddamn block Because that's practically what's happening anyway. Let's just save a lot of time and money and get it overwith now! What's going on over there is totally senseless. For starters, 921 Grand Ave will be torn down. It was vacated in September 2005 and, shortly after the owners went bankrupt and the property sold at a sheriff's sale to a bank, it was condemned. The bank has done nothing since. It was declared a public nuisance in May 2006. Intent to Raze came in July 2006. The bank decided to go ahead and let the city raze the house. Right now they are doing asbestos removal. This was a neat, huge old house from the 1880s. What a senseless loss. Act II: 925 Grand Ave, goodbye. The two-family home from the early 1880s was vacated in November 2005 and condemned in February 2006. Declared a public nuisance in May 2006. The Intent to Raze followed in July. This all is the result of a foreclosure. Currently, they are also doing asbestos removal on this one. Again, senseless. Act III: 929 Grand Ave is toast. This two-family was condemned in January 2006, and declared a public nuisance in March 2006. The Intent to Raze came in late July 2006. It appears that this property was simply abandoned. Again, asbestos removal. Again, senseless. This house is a beauty and probably my favorite of the three. These three were once proud mansions in their heyday, well over 2000 square feet each. No developer is clamoring to redevelop that land, because the surrounding homes are in pretty much the same state--owned by absentee landlords who don't give a damn, divided up into multiple units to squeeze out as much profit as possible, inhabited by renters who don't give a damn either, and then when they get condemned they are left to rot and become the city's problem. I'll try to visit in September 2016 and post some pics of the half acre of weeds that I'm sure will be there. Columbia Tusculum: 3207-3211 Golden Ave Here are renderings of the Boulevard Custom Homes project at 3207-3211 Golden Ave that I mentioned July 17, 2006. 3207 and 3211 Golden Ave is $649,900. The other is probably similar. (3211, 3209 and 3207 Golden) From the 9/2/06 Cincinnati Enquirer: Group helps kick-start three local projects BY GREGORY KORTE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER The Cincinnati Empowerment Corp. will help boost projects to build an extended-stay hotel in Mount Auburn, convert an old church into a recording studio in Walnut Hills, and rehab an old warehouse in Over-the-Rhine. The projects were approved by the Empowerment Corp.'s board July 11. The projects are: * $60,000 for an engineering analysis and market studies for a proposed $10.6 million, 60-room extended-stay hotel at Jackson Hill Park. Most of the $60,000 will go for a geological assessment of the hillside and to Merusi Partners for a $17,000 market study. * $60,000 to help rehabilitate the former New Sardis Primitive Baptist Church on Stanton Avenue into the Mersey Beat Recording Studio. Building owner Richard Hordinski hopes to make it a place for local and national artists to record music, emphasizing on gospel and folk. * $40,000 for preliminary work converting a warehouse on West McMicken Street in Over-the-Rhine for use as a landscaping business, coffee shop, bicycle shop, consignment shop, car wash and loft apartments. The warehouse is owned by Walter Reinhaus, president of the Over-the-Rhine Community Council, which submitted the project to the Empowerment Corp. * $11,600 for façade improvements to a building at 13th and Vine streets in Over-the-Rhine. The building will be the home of Venice Pizza, which is run by the nonprofit Power Inspires Progress Inc. to provide job training. The group is run by a board of Catholic nuns. E-mail [email protected] http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060902/NEWS01/609020361/1056/rss02 Cool. From the 8/30/06 Price Hill Press: PHOTO: The Beltsos family is putting an addition on their Price Hill Chili restaurant and Sam's Golden Fleece Lounge, and construction is moving along quite well. KURT BACKSCHEIDER/COMMUNITY PRESS STAFF Chili parlor's addition almost done BY KURT BACKSCHEIDER | COMMUNITY PRESS STAFF WRITER PRICE HILL -- The newest addition to a Cincinnati landmark is nearing completion. The Beltsos family, owners of Price Hill Chili, 4290 Glenway Ave., is adding on to the restaurant that began nearly four and half decades ago as a small chili parlor with 12 stools and four tables. Throughout the years the restaurant has expanded to include seating for 300, a refurbished lobby and a local watering hole -- Sam's Golden Fleece Lounge. Chris Beltsos, Sam's son and co-owner, said the newest addition should hopefully be completed within the month. The family is adding onto the bar, which is on the south side of the restaurant closest to the intersection of Glenway Avenue and Cleves Warsaw. MORE: http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060830/NEWS01/608300559/1086/Local Round-up: Cincinnati and inner burbs Includes the city of Cincinnati's neighborhoods, Bellevue, Covington, Dayton, Elmwood Place, Ludlow, Newport, Norwood and St. Bernard. AVONDALE 4227 Kessler Ave was recently repaired and removed from the condemned list. CAMP WASHINGTON Restoration begins on Doughboy statue Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/29/06 Open wide, Doughboy. Tom Podnar rubbed his fingers against a set of 86-year-old bronze incisors. "Poor guy," Ponder said with a shake of his head Monday. "Someone smeared something on his teeth." Standing on scaffolding 16 feet off the ground at Camp Washington's Valley Park, he was eyeball to eyeball with a statue of a World War I soldier, known to history as a Doughboy. The 1920 statue is known to locals - from carvings in its granite base - as the memorial to soldiers in both world wars as well as Korea and Vietnam. CLIFTON HEIGHTS 262 Klotter Ave is still waiting to be demolished. I first mentioned this property June 23, 2005. The city had declared the building a public nuisance and the owner applied for, and got, a demolition permit. That permit was allowed to expire. A new owner surfaced and got a stay of demolition. Apparently the two-family home was not salvageable. COLUMBIA TUSCULUM A man has purchased the vacant land at 3216 Golden Ave for $500,000. The lot is 2.7 acres. Expect development here. CORRYVILLE BIOLOGICAL COMPANY MOVES TO BIGGER SPACE Cincinnati Enquirer, 9/3/06 CL Solutions' growth has led it to larger quarters near the University of Cincinnati campus. The company develops natural products made up of specialized microbes to clean up environmental contamination. It has received assistance from UC's Bio/Start initiative in its early development, and has now moved to Bio/Start's biomedical incubator facility at 3130 Highland Ave. "CL Solutions will have access to cutting-edge research and entrepreneurs for the development of new products and for the continuous improvement of existing brands," said company spokesman Mike Saul. Information: 513-475-6625, 877-257-6588 or www.cl-solutions.com. EAST PRICE HILL After six months on the market, 409 Purcell Ave has been sold to an investor for $35,000. It was assessed at $90,000. MADISONVILLE 4538 Lucerne Ave has been demolished. The two-family was declared a public nuisance in May, and the Intent to Raze came a month later. It appears that the building has been in terrible condition for many years and that the owners went through bankruptcy. Then they apparently went AWOL. MADISONVILLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE Eastern Hills Journal, 8/30/06 The Economic Development Committee will hold a public hearing at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 19, at City Hall, 801 Plum St. The hearing will concern amending the zoning map and to rezone property at 4306 Plainville Road from single family to community commercial. NORTHSIDE 1450 Weigold Ave has been renovated for resale. OAKLEY 2711 Minot has been rehabbed. OAKLEY 4127 33rd Ave is in the midst of a remodel. I believe this two-family will be converted into a single-family house, like many others in the neighborhood. PLEASANT RIDGE 5604 Abbottsford Ave has been rehabbed, and looks so much better. This house was purchased for $20,000. The rehabber is asking $110,000. PRICE HILL GRAND OPENING Price Hill Press, 8/30/06 The grand opening of Seton High School's new gymnasium is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 7. Pre-game festivities begin at 6:30 p.m. followed by the varsity volleyball match at 7:00 p.m. The defending state champion Seton Saints host Mother of Mercy. Tickets are only available by pre-sale; no tickets will be sold at the door. Call Seton at 471-2600 for ticket information. The new state-of-the-art gymnasium seats 1,000 people and is equipped with a digital display projection system and is the only high school in Ohio to have a volleyball scoreboard. Two regulation-size practice courts run the width of the gym and one center court will be used during games. The new facility is also equipped with spacious home team and visitor's locker rooms featuring deluxe amenities, an officials' locker room and a training room, all equipped with game clocks. ROSELAWN The multi-family at 7167 Eastlawn Ave will be razed. It was declared a public nuisance in late May, and the Intent to Raze came in late June. So far, only windows have been removed and it looks like there's some interior pre-demo. However, this leaves the building open to anyone who might want to come on in. Citizens have complained about the dilapidated building for years. SOUTH FAIRMOUNT What a bargain! 1914 Harrison Ave AND two adjacent vacant lots...all for $6,700!!! The buyer is one lucky lady!!! ;) WALNUT HILLS The owner of the two-family at 2419 May St is currently working to get the building up to code. This includes gutters and downspouts, siding, paint, windows and a new porch, plus the removal of a ton of litter. NORWOOD 5115 Carthage Ave has been stabilized and rehabbed. Round-up: Outer burbs and metro ANDERSON TWP New homes are currently being built on vacant land at 1115 and 1119 Markley Rd. 1115 is on the market for $349,900, while 1119 is on the market for $10,000 more. (1115 and 1119 Markley) ANDERSON TWP A new single-family home is being built at 2316 Wolfangel Rd. The site, which was a teardown, is between Cathedral Hill Dr and Hampton Place Ln, next to the Anderson Meadows subdivision. The ranch-style home is being offered for $358,700. ANDERSON TWP BEECHMONT BACKUPS Forest Hills Journal, 8/30/06 Orange barrels return to Beechmont Avenue after the Labor Day weekend, in a month-long resurfacing project that may impact traffic flow for Beechmont motorists. According to Steve Sievers, the township's director of development services, lane closures are primarily scheduled for between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. starting Sept. 5. "The whole month of September residents should expect work on the Beechmont Corridor," Sievers said. "There will be some disruption, but fortunately most of the lane closures are scheduled for evening work." Daytime lane closures are expected in the residential area west of the Salem and Beechmont intersection. COLD SPRING CHURCH PREPARING NEW SITE Campbell Community Recorder, 8/31/06 St. Luke Lutheran Church broke ground on the congregations new Cold Spring home Sunday, Aug. 20 at 4800 U.S. 27 near the AA Highway. The church plans to complete its new building by the fall of 2007, and will continue to worship at 3917 U.S. 27 near the intersection with Industrial Road. COLD SPRING City ready to build veterans memorial Campbell Community Recorder, 8/29/06 Construction on a veterans memorial should begin in two weeks and be completed before Nov. 11, Veterans Day. A granite obelisk with a statement of respect to all veterans will grace the center of a pentagon-shaped memorial in the city park, said Mayor Mark Stoeber. Stoeber and councilmembers planned to meet with contractors to finalize plans on Tuesday, Aug. 29. "It's now getting to the point where things are starting to happen," Stoeber said. The plans include a walkway from the city building to the memorial. The colored stone walkway will start from the circle and flag in front of the city building and wind between two holly trees symbolizing Holly Hill Children's Services, Stoeber said. The trail will continue between two other large existing trees before ending at the memorial. DEERFIELD TWP Veterans discouraged by memorial progress Community Press Mason-Deerfield Twp, 8/30/06 The year so far could have been kinder to Deerfield Honors Veterans Inc., a nonprofit group placing a veterans memorial at Cottell Park. "I'm thankful for what has been done, but five years ago if I had known it was going to take this long ... none of us did," said Bruce Chapman, president of the group. "We expected the corporate community to do a lot more than it has." So far, the organization has raised half of its target of about $590,000. Construction is proceeding, with a 12-foot bronze statue of an American soldier placed as well as a flagpole. FALMOUTH Donation supports expansion of access road Cincinnati Enquirer, 9/3/06 The Cinergy Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Duke Energy, has awarded the Pendleton County Industrial Development Authority $10,000. The donation will assist in a "rough cut and fill" phase expansion of the industrial park access road at the Commonwealth Commerce Center in Falmouth. The money is part of $100,000 recently awarded to eight local Ohio and Kentucky communities under the "Duke Energy Community Success Grants" program. The funds are used to help stimulate and support economic development in Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati. The Industrial Authority, serving as the community's economic development agency, is a public non-profit organization created by the Pendleton County Fiscal Court in 1993. It operates as an independent agency and is governed by a six member board of directors appointed by the county judge-executive. The Industrial Authority's mission is to acquire and develop commercial and industrial properties, attract business and industry to Pendleton County, and retain/expand jobs of existing businesses and industries. GEORGETOWN, OH Georgetown council member disappointed with news about courthouse Georgetown News Democrat At least one Georgetown Village Council member was disappointed that the burned out section of South Main Street - offered to Brown County- was not even considered as a location for a new courthouse. The courthouse/jail steering committee made a report to the Brown County Commissioners Tuesday, Aug. 22. Commissioner Perry Ogden said there were three potential sites for the complex and that the downtown Georgetown location was not among the potential sites. "Why would you want to build a $25 million complex if we can do it for half that and still do what we need to do?" council member Ray Becraft said to other council members. "I am very disappointed that the burned out area in Georgetown did not get considered as a viable site to be the new courthouse." Becraft said, after all, it was a steering committee developed by downtown merchants that stated there was a need for a new courthouse and addressed the need downtown. "That's not good, I think we should have been considered after all we have done," said Becraft. INDEPENDENCE Cody Road goes forward Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/30/06 City officials decided this week to take no action on the issue of Cody Road, which allows for a 108-unit subdivision to be built. The issue was in question because Independence has been engaged in a yearlong lawsuit with Kenton County over road maintenance. Cody is one of the roads that the county has been maintaining for decades. Jim Bertram, of One-Eleven Developers, has been trying to develop land on the road. Because of the lawsuit, Bertram said he was going to have to delay, or possibly cancel, his plans. "I'm stuck in the middle between the city and the county," Bertram said. "I just want someone to make a decision." For a year, Bertram has been waiting to develop Carole Ann Estates, a subdivision with 75 single-family homes and 33 duplexes. INDIAN HILL Remington Road still has green light for November completion Indian Hill Journal, 8/31/06 The joint project between the village and the Ohio Department of Transportation on Remington Road is picking up steam and is still on target to reopen the road before November. The project, which began in July, will replace the bridge culverts on the road and place a pier wall along the road to protect drivers from landslides. The village intended to build a pier wall along Remington Road, or Ohio 126, between Loveland-Madeira Road and Montgomery Road at about the same time ODOT was planning to replace bridge culverts on the road. George Kipp, project manager for Indian Hill, said if the projects would have been done separately, Remington Road would have been limited to one lane until June. However, by combining the village and ODOT projects, the road is slated to be reopened by the end of October. Not only will the village save time by cooperating with ODOT, but money as well. Kipp said Indian Hill will save about $100,000 on the project and ODOT will save about $400,000 in all, although some of that will pay for the combined construction of the project. LOVELAND Skatepark proposals must be in by Sept. 20 Cincinnati Enquirer, 9/3/06 Companies that might want to build a new skatepark in Loveland have until Sept. 20 to submit proposals. The park, to be built within Lever Park, has been years in the making - residents first started trying to raise money in 2001. Now the city has a $65,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources to help pay for the project. City officials had a meeting earlier this summer to let skaters who want to use the park give design ideas. MARIEMONT No parking issues on West Street right now Eastern Hills Journal, 8/30/06 The lack of parking in front of Mariemont Elementary hasn't caused an uproar in the community. Not yet, at least. Due to safety issues, village council unanimously voted to eliminate parking on West Street between Madisonville Road and Wooster Pike, where parents and guardians used to pick up children attending the elementary. Congestion on the street was one of the major problems. The ordinance which council voted for called for a designated drop-off area on the street, about three cars length, which drivers can use to pick up elementary students. The village also painted a solid yellow line on this section of West Street, which indicates that the street is now a two-way street. MIAMI TWP (Hamilton County) Traffic redirected for repairs Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/28/06 Zion Hill Road will be closed at Wesselman Road in Hamilton County's Miami Township after 9 a.m. today. Tri-State Concrete will be replacing the bridge. Work is expected to be completed by Jan. 31, weather permitting. Traffic will be routed over Wesselman Road to Taylor Road to Dog Trot Road to Bridgetown Road to Zion Road and vice versa. MIDDLETOWN The long-awaited (opening) day is near for the elementaries Middletown Journal, 8/28/06 In two days, half of Middletown's elementary school students will step into the future. The district's three new elementary schools, Rosa Parks, Highview and Creekview, open in style with advanced technology and a flavor of their own. The new schools — costing about $9 million each — have digital projectors, top-of-the-line surveillance cameras and adjustable basketball hoops in the gyms. Water fountains and sinks are in each classroom, as well as updated facilities for special needs children and isolated playground equipment for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students. In the next few weeks, teachers will use secure key cards to get into the buildings. MIDDLETOWN City says Miami Park trees must leave Middletown Journal, 9/3/06 David Dennis has fond childhood memories of Miami Park. As a boy growing up in Middletown in the 1960s, he lived on Flemming Road, which was a pebble's throw from the quaint 3.5-acre park at the corner of Miami Avenue and Reinartz Boulevard. It was more than a natural oasis; the park was Dennis' front yard. He recalled how scores of children would fill the park daily, and how the city used to place a box of toys on its grounds so that local children could play with them. But those days are long gone, and time has taken its toll on Miami Park. The once vibrant park now is scattered with aging sycamore trees, and the sneakers and rackets that once dominated the tennis court have been replaced by cracked concrete and bothersome weeds. The park lacks many of the play equipment and landscaping upgrades seen at Middletown's other eight city parks. MONTGOMERY Council: No dog parks without voter OK Northeast Suburban Life, 8/30/06 Letting pooches roam freely in city parks might be a far-fetched idea for dog lovers. City council voted 6-to-1 to adopt an ordinance that says it will not place off-leash recreation areas in any of the city's existing parks without a general or primary election. It was a last-minute ordinance created for the purpose of reaching an agreement between citizens who created an initiative petition, which, if put on the November ballot, would require elections for any modifications made parks, greenspace, and recreation areas, according to a release. Council said that such elections would be very costly for taxpayers, or "wasteful spending" as Councilman Mark Combs put it. Combs voted against the ordinance. Residents were originally not happy with the idea of an off-leash dog park in Pioneer Park, which is "one of the most unique parks in the country," said resident Brett Leonard, who founded the group "Preserve Pioneer Park" a few months ago. When they didn't get the response they wanted, Leonard and other petitioners received more than 1,000 signatures from residents who didn't want an off-leash dog park anywhere, thus creating the petition. MONTGOMERY Bank's renovation a Key investment Northeast Suburban Life, 8/30/06 The city's branch of Key Bank will be subject to a exterior facelift in the coming weeks. Matt Kovacic, a senior project construction manager of Vocon Design, an architectural firm based in Cleveland, said this will be the first time Key Bank goes under a major renovation. He said the bank project will cost Key Bank more than $400,000, which is twice as expensive as moving to another location. "This is unique," he said. "(Key Bank) typically doesn't do this a lot ... this city is lucky." The city's Planning Commission unanimously approved at its Aug. 21 meeting the final site plan Vocon Design has to update the present form of Key Bank, which is near the corner of Mitchell Farm Road and Montgomery Road. MT. HEALTHY Forums to share plans Hilltop Press, 8/30/06 Mount Healthy voters will see a 5.95-mill bond and maintenance issue on the Nov. 7 ballot. The district has placed a 5.45-mill bond issue combined with a 0.5-mill maintenance levy, on the ballot in support of a $33 million bond issue to consolidate its buildings from eight to three. "We were pleased to be able to keep it under 6 mills," said Superintendent David Horine. The Ohio School Facilities Commission is helping the district pay $57.2 million of the $90 million construction cost to build new schools. Horine said the new configuration includes two buildings for kindergarten through grade six and a grade seven through 12 campus. The project would not be complete until 2010. OXFORD Oxford begins plans for Family Aquatic Center Miami Student, 8/29/06 Next week the Oxford City Council will begin a feasibility study for the building of a Family Aquatic Center. The $10,000 study will begin at 7 p.m. Sept. 5 and be run by Brandstetter-Carroll, which is an architecture, engineering and planning firm. If built, the center would include many more features than just an average pool, including a zero-depth interactive splash area for children where they can be easily supervised by their parents, a competition pool and water slides. "Our pool right now is coming to the end of its regular life," said Jane Howington, Oxford city manager. "Pools nowadays are a lot different than pools 30 years ago." The center would be all outdoors, and will still offer the same services as the current pool to the Oxford Swim Team, which practices there. RABBIT HASH Visual arts center opening today Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/31/06 The Rabbit Hash Historical Society will have its grand opening of the Lowell Lee Scott Visual Arts Center at 6:30 p.m. today. The event celebrates the Rabbit Hash General Store's 175th anniversary. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is from 7-9 p.m. Complimentary beverages and snacks. Cash bar available. SILVER GROVE HIGHWAY MARKER BEAUTIFIED Campbell Community Recorder, 8/31/06 The City of Silver Grove has spruced up the roadside marker on Mary Ingles by adding floral landscaping around it. The historical marker, at Ky. 8 and Four Mile Road, is a reminder of the flight of Mary Ingles in 1755 from her Shawnee Indian captors. The stretch of Ky. 8 along the Ohio River in Campbell County and eastward is named after Ingles. Ingles traveled along the river's shore to return to her Virginia home 1,000 miles away after escaping her captors around Big Bone Salt Lick. SPRINGFIELD TWP The Springfield Township Board of Trustees will consider a rezoning and PUD alteration at 6 PM, September 5, at the township Administration Building. The revision, requested by McBride Dale Clarion, would allow for the construction of a Walgreens on the NE corner of Winton and Galbraith roads. WYOMING Wyoming christens new athletic complex Tri-County Press, 8/30/06 Wyoming High School alumni Steve Lohman said the newly renovated Wyoming Athletic Field is "awesome." "I'm one of those alum's who have seen that field from the beginning until now. What they've done down there is a good use of taxpayer money. It's very well laid out," he said. He says his daughter, Kelly, a senior goalkeeper for the Wyoming varsity soccer team, is excited too. "She likes the idea that there's not as many bad bounces," he said with a chuckle. The field was just a dream of the Wyoming City Schools several years ago, and it has now been realized. The new $2.5 million complex, which was developed in two stages, was completed over this summer. WYOMING Crescent Park's first phase now completed Tri-County Press, 8/30/06 To Donna Burt, the newly expanded Crescent Park is a "much-needed oasis" in the middle of densely populated Wyoming. "We are a land-locked suburb, meaning that all the vacant and greenspace we have is all that we'll ever have unless some building is condemned and it has to be torn down," said Burt, an Elm Avenue resident in Wyoming. "It presents an opportunity for families who live in the area who don't have the bigger properties with large back yards. Children have a larger open space to play and I think that's a good thing." "The more they develop it as a park, the better it is for the community."
September 4, 200618 yr Author The owner of 2013 and 2015 Colerain Ave has purchased 2017 Colerain. The city forced this guy to clean up 2015. He has cleaned it up enough to get it up to VBML standards. Who knows if he'll actually make the buildings inhabitable. (2017 Colerain) All of the structures at 519 Livingston St will be demolished. Basically, everything that can fail on a neglected building has. The building(s) were condemned in April 2006. The owners called engineers out to see if the building could be saved. Meanwhile, the walls were cracking and the roof caved in. So the owner thought she would have the roof fixed, which would do nothing to address the major rot and structural issues. The city has had enough. This building, and the smaller outbuildings, is too much of a danger.
September 4, 200618 yr Wonderful update! Loads of good news (well, except in East Price Hill)...a recording studio on Walnut Hills that specializes in folk? Who'd have thought it! Wonderful news on the Doughboy statue - that kind of respect for the past does so much to tie a city to its history...outrageous home value in Columbia-Tusculum, teardowns in Madisonville and Roselawn, rehabs in Oakley and Pleasant Ridge...looks like the universe proceeds per normal... It's too bad they couldn't keep the balcony on that Pleasant Ridge place, but far better to do the rehab they did and lose a balcony than lose the whole place! Say, in the Montgomery dog park story, there's this quote: Pioneer Park, which is "one of the most unique parks in the country," said resident Brett Leonard, who founded the group "Preserve Pioneer Park" a few months ago. Er..."one of the most unique parks in the country"? Really? According to Montgomery's web site, it's 21 acres, has 2 ball fields, a soccer field, a walking trail, a gazebo, a pond, a grass play area, council ring (er...what's that?), wildflower meadow, butterfly gardens, and a "grove of flowering native trees." Look, I'm as big a homer for my city as you'll want to meet, and I'm sure Pioneer Park is a great park - but come the f*ck on, buddy...
September 4, 200618 yr Author Look, I'm as big a homer for my city as you'll want to meet, and I'm sure Pioneer Park is a great park - but come the f*ck on, buddy... This cracked me up too. I've been to Pioneer Park. It's nice enough. But you could have blindfolded me and put me in some random park and I might guess it was Pioneer Park. It ain't that special.
September 5, 200618 yr Seton's initiative New gym and classes, new reasons to brag BY DENISE SMITH AMOS | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER September 5, 2006 CINCINNATI - A visiting basketball team once mistook Seton High's 74-year-old gymnasium for a warm-up room. Now Seton, a Catholic girls school in Price Hill, has almost finished a $13.5 million expansion and renovation that includes a 1,000-seat, extra-wide gym with new locker rooms, training rooms, digital scoreboards and projection systems. Students say Seton is finally emerging from the shadow of Elder High, the Catholic boys school next-door, with new facilities, a new 202-car garage and new science labs and other improvements. "We used to be identified as that school next to Elder," said Megan Henderson, a senior from Delhi Township. "Now our new gym is better than theirs, and our science labs are better." MORE: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060905/NEWS0102/609050330
September 5, 200618 yr Elder's gym is pathetic, I remember they had a plywood panther St. X students kept stealing, that is why it is up by the rafters now. The Catholic schools are way too expensive now, many of their tuitions have doubled in the past ten years. This is because they are now two generations away from when nuns did most of the teaching, so they are now stuck paying pensions for all kinds of retiring lay teachers. And instead of trying to keep tuition down they keep buying new stuff.
September 6, 200618 yr Elder's gym is pathetic, I remember they had a plywood panther St. X students kept stealing, that is why it is up by the rafters now. ?? Where you referring to the wrestling Gym or the Pit (BBall?); adjacent the Pit (Fbal)? In the 4 years I was there, never recall the plywood Panther being stolen, or even one...so it might have been after I graduated (I'm a little older than most here)
September 6, 200618 yr Wal-Mart Superstore coming to Fairfax :x BY STEVE KEMME | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER September 6, 2006 FAIRFAX – A Wal-Mart Superstore will be built in a planned $60 million office-retail-commercial development on Red Bank Road, the site developer announced today. The construction of the Wal-Mart Superstore and the other buildings will begin next year, said David Bursall, vice president of investments for Regency Centers, the site developer. The 203,000-square-foot store will open in the summer of 2008 and will employ 450 people, said Ron Mosby, a Wal-Mart spokesman. http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060906/NEWS01/399990018
September 6, 200618 yr Elder needs a bigger gym. It's way too crowded. No one likes an overcrowded gym.
September 6, 200618 yr Who cares about Elder anyways.....ELDER SUCKS!!! Oak Hills has an awesome gym! The Highlanders are the true pride of the west side (didn't mean to rhyme).
September 6, 200618 yr Oak Hills' gym is too big. The last time I was there they couldn't fill half the stands. ;)
September 6, 200618 yr ^Thats true :oops:, but it is a good size for the pep rallies and what not for the entire school. It is overcrowded when they try to pack all the students and faculty in there for functions.....its a pretty cool sight, tons of spirit, it just sucks when your team is so so (all the private schools recruit Oak Hills athletes away from our high school...go to Elder, LaSalle, St. X, Seton, Mercy, and Mecauly...totally spelled that wrong) Oak Hills definately gets the shaft in terms of athletes. Now, back on topic! :whip:
September 6, 200618 yr The village will risk losing state grant money for the widening of the road if an action is not taken promptly, he said. ??Help me understand why we Ohio tax payers are footing the bill for a road widening project to help with future traffic problems caused by a future Walmart??
September 6, 200618 yr Good job at your "chance to build Fairfax up again"....this is the worst possible move for Fairfax...way to sell out!!
September 6, 200618 yr I don't get it. Isn't there one just a couple of miles away near Highland and Ridge?
September 6, 200618 yr Here is an aerial: -The proposed Wal-Mart is a little more than 2 miles away from another Wal-Mart. *this is if my site location is correct*
September 6, 200618 yr A couple of things: First, and this is bad, this means another empty Wal-Mart, they obviously plan to close the one on Highland after the new bohemoth opens. Second, the widening of Red Bank has been planned and under construction for sometime. If you have ever tried to go through there in the a.m. (north) and the p.m. (south), it was a parking lot. Other than winding through Hyde Park and Mt. Lookout, it is the only other cut through to the eastern, southeastern suburbs from I-71.
September 6, 200618 yr A couple of things: First, and this is bad, this means another empty Wal-Mart, they obviously plan to close the one on Highland after the new bohemoth opens. I don't believe they are talking about closing the current Wal-Mart 2 miles away, but rather opening another Wal-Mart in addition to the one 2 miles away.
September 7, 200618 yr A couple of things: First, and this is bad, this means another empty Wal-Mart, they obviously plan to close the one on Highland after the new bohemoth opens. I don't believe they are talking about closing the current Wal-Mart 2 miles away, but rather opening another Wal-Mart in addition to the one 2 miles away. With the new Wal-Mart being a Superstore, I wouldn't be surprised if they closed the Ridge and Highland location. They may not close it right away, but maybe within a few years. Ugh!
September 7, 200618 yr Rando, the P-Ridge one will be closed. I promise you, this is the Wal-Mart way and another reason why I haven't stepped foot in this hell pit since 12/2004. I was very disappointed about the news today. What numb nut thought this was a good deal?
September 7, 200618 yr Believe me, that Wal-Mart will be gone shortly after the new one opens, two miles is way too close for two stores.
September 7, 200618 yr The Catholic schools are way too expensive now, many of their tuitions have doubled in the past ten years. This is because they are now two generations away from when nuns did most of the teaching, so they are now stuck paying pensions for all kinds of retiring lay teachers. And instead of trying to keep tuition down they keep buying new stuff. And the lack of priests have done the same thing to schools like St. Xavier. Now that priests-in-training (or scholastics, as my father, a St. X grad, called them) are few and far between, they have to pay their teachers. There's also the fact that schools, as you pointed out, simply have more stuff than they used to. Every field of human endeavor is a legitimate venue for education, therefore, in the U.S., every educational institution generally requires that a student be able to pursue any given activity there. Competition for students between elite private schools is still the beating drum that sets the pace for education in the U.S. What Harvard offers, competitors must (or at least aim to). This might be a good thing, or a bad thing, or neither. But justifying paying $8,000- $10,000 a year for high school, and then $30K+ a year for college seems more difficult than ever in my eyes.
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