October 3, 201212 yr Vandercar seems to be the sleaziest developer in town. This is definitely not fair to existing restaurants. Agreed, I have never seen Vandercar build anything worth a damn. I would have preferred Steiner over Vandercar to develop this land.
October 5, 201212 yr Construction starts on Cinemark theater at Oakley Station Construction got under way this week on a 14-screen Cinemark movie theater at the Oakley Station mixed-use project under development on the former Cincinnati Milacron plant site in Oakley. The theater is expected to be completed by September 2013, said Alan Forsythe, spokesman for Reece-Campbell Inc. More below: http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2012/10/05/construction-starts-on-cinemark.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
October 11, 201212 yr I was surprised to see this rendering of the residential component of this project. It looks good. Oakley Station gets slammed on this site so much I wasnt expecting a decent apartment design. http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20121010/BIZ/310090134&Ref=AR
October 11, 201212 yr The apartment rendering looks good but its a complete deception. The apartments are not oriented towards any of the existing streets and are instead arranged around a completely enclosed street network fronted by parking. Completely suburban in nature: inward facing, auto dependent, big boxes and tons of surface parking. Oakley deserves better. See master site plan here: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/developingnow/files/2011/06/Oakley-Station-Illustrative-Site-Plan-03-31-11.pdf “All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
October 11, 201212 yr ^Dammit. You are right. It would be so easy to align these apartments in a more appealing way by creating a couple of rows of new through streets. Why didn't they just do that? Why didn't the City require them to do that?
October 11, 201212 yr This is what happens when developers design these projects, it isn't community based, and it's designed to maximize profits for them. This is the kind of bogus and backwards way of doing things that is keeping us from growing as a people, and fueling our auto dependent and independent lifestyles, which just isn't good.
October 19, 201212 yr It's too bad that the developer missed out on getting a Jungle Jim's location when the first iteration of this project fell through. Jungle Jim's just opened their 2nd location in Eastgate, and I'll bet they have no desire to open additional locations any time soon. It just wouldn't been nice to have Jungle Jim's within a short drive instead of stuck out in two far-out 'burbs.
November 17, 201212 yr I guess this is something of an occasion - the first vertical structure of Oakley Station is up. There are cement block walls under construction on the site of the Cinemark Theater adjacent to Sam's Club. I saw it from a distance so I don't know details of what's been built. Site prep, and what I assume to be environmental remediation, continue at other parts of the site. A rebuilt Ibsen between Ridge and Marburg is mostly finished, though last I checked I don't think it was striped. It's seeing occasional open periods, probably to do with the church and weekend shopping. My guess is that it will be open through the holidays if it's not officially complete by the end of Wednesday. Earthwork continues on the Kennedy Connector. What appears to be storm sewers are installed at the Madison end. Work to move the floodwall and bridge Duck Creek at the Kennedy/Duck Creek end continue.
November 18, 201212 yr I'm not familiar with the area at all but I was over there doing some work at the Milacron site. Interesting all of the embedded rails in the old pavement. Sad that they will be ripped up and can't be repurposed.
January 26, 201312 yr Looks like the apartments are starting to rise this week, the frames are now visible across the site.
August 7, 201311 yr The movie theater opens Friday. http://www.fox19.com/story/23074212/cinemark-oakley-station-movie-theater-set-to-open-on-friday?utm_source=buffer&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=buffer02bf1&utm_medium=facebook
August 8, 201311 yr Both roads of the facility are complete and I have heard a few of the tenants of the new Apartments maybe have started moving in.
August 16, 201311 yr The apartment rendering looks good but its a complete deception. The apartments are not oriented towards any of the existing streets and are instead arranged around a completely enclosed street network fronted by parking. Completely suburban in nature: inward facing, auto dependent, big boxes and tons of surface parking. Oakley deserves better. See master site plan here: http://cincinnati.com/blogs/developingnow/files/2011/06/Oakley-Station-Illustrative-Site-Plan-03-31-11.pdf It looks like you are referring to an out-of-date site plan for the residential, here is what is being built: http://www.reztark.com/images/oakleyE.jpg http://www.reztark.com/images/oakleyJ.jpg BTW, there are no existing streets on the master site. The industrial ring road around the site was removed on the southern side...not that it contributed to any sort of street grid. All the streets on the site are new and start to create a grid and to connect to one where it existed outside of the site. The parking where Kroger will go breaking up part of the new grid as shown on your referenced site plan. The residential buildings front the street where the new grid comes through and starts to create the "urban" conversation of buildings across the vehicular streets and pedestrian "streets". I think the parking ratio is something like 1.25 cars/unit, which would be less than 1 per bedroom. That is fairly dense.
August 19, 201311 yr Seems pretty close. I had to go straight instead of left to get on 71S when I left the Center of Cincinnati this weekend.
September 14, 201311 yr The official new name of the Kennedy Connector: Mill Ridge. http://www.wlwt.com/news/local-news/hamilton-county/kennedy-connector-projects-name-the-street-contest-winner-announced/-/13550662/21927684/-/htknbd/-/index.html?absolute=true Just about the most watered-down name a person could think of. Sounds like the name of a Warren County subdivision.
December 31, 201311 yr Kennedy Connector (aka Mill Ridge Road) opened Monday: http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=45c52e7ac37a5e5f75832a2d6&id=d8a099a219 (Snark: is this the part where I mention this 1/4-mile road project designed to ease access to a suburban-style mall cost 1/5 as much as Phase I of the streetcar, with no public outcry?) Site prep continues for the Kroger at Oakley Station. Build-out of the apartments at the southwest side of the site is maybe half done, if I'm guessing.
December 31, 201311 yr Best line from the press release, or whatever that was posted above: "The Kennedy Connector project has been named Ohio Concrete Project of the Year for Southwest Ohio." :roll:
December 31, 201311 yr ^That I'd actually agree to. The entire length was done in concrete, including a large railroad tunnel and a crossing of the Duck Creek. (That rail tunnel was built of 50 80,000-lb precast arches.) It goes up and over a pretty sizable ridge. Still, on a per-mile basis, WAY more expensive than the streetcar.
January 21, 201411 yr Maybe good news for making this into a more walkable development? Oakley Square to add 400,000 sq. ft. of office space http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/morning_call/2014/01/oakley-station-to-add-400000-square.html?page=all
January 21, 201411 yr ^^ No, considering the parking ratio for the development is 3.5-4 per 1,000 sq ft of space. Not to mention they are building a skywalk between both buildings. The dream of the suburbs is alive and well in Oakley! “All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
January 22, 201411 yr Maybe good news for making this into a more walkable development? Oakley Square to add 400,000 sq. ft. of office space http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/morning_call/2014/01/oakley-station-to-add-400000-square.html?page=all Glad to see that. Cincy Mid Town does not have a ton of Class A office product. The Norwood class a stuff has some vacancy holes though.
January 22, 201411 yr Maybe good news for making this into a more walkable development? Oakley Square to add 400,000 sq. ft. of office space http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/morning_call/2014/01/oakley-station-to-add-400000-square.html?page=all Glad to see that. Cincy Mid Town does not have a ton of Class A office product. The Norwood class a stuff has some vacancy holes though. Please don't take this as a personal attack, but if like to point out the problem buried right in the language you just used to think about this project. Buildings aren't "products" or "stuff." They are buildings. The purpose they serve, unless it's highly specialized, shouldn't mean anything. They should just be good buildings and part of a well designed community. We have made a horrible mistake by bringing buildings into the universe of " products."
January 22, 201411 yr ^^ No, considering the parking ratio for the development is 3.5-4 per 1,000 sq ft of space. Not to mention they are building a skywalk between both buildings. The dream of the suburbs is alive and well in Oakley! Read more: http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,160.455.html#ixzz2r4S6OFkx No what? Those are huge floorplates, I bet there aren't more than a handful of true office properties in greater Cincinnati with floorplates that big (not industrial/flex space converted to office). It is sadly suburban in design though, as we have all said since the beginning with this development.
January 22, 201411 yr ^^ No, considering the parking ratio for the development is 3.5-4 per 1,000 sq ft of space. Not to mention they are building a skywalk between both buildings. The dream of the suburbs is alive and well in Oakley! No what? Those are huge floorplates, I bet there aren't more than a handful of true office properties in greater Cincinnati with floorplates that big (not industrial/flex space converted to office). It is sadly suburban in design though, as we have all said since the beginning with this development. It was implied that it was good news for walkable development, for which it is not. Hence the "no." “All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
January 22, 201411 yr Maybe good news for making this into a more walkable development? Oakley Square to add 400,000 sq. ft. of office space http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/morning_call/2014/01/oakley-station-to-add-400000-square.html?page=all Glad to see that. Cincy Mid Town does not have a ton of Class A office product. The Norwood class a stuff has some vacancy holes though. Please don't take this as a personal attack, but if like to point out the problem buried right in the language you just used to think about this project. Buildings aren't "products" or "stuff." They are buildings. The purpose they serve, unless it's highly specialized, shouldn't mean anything. They should just be good buildings and part of a well designed community. We have made a horrible mistake by bringing buildings into the universe of " products." Product is a common reference in commercial real estate circles. https://www.google.com/#q=class+a+office+product+vacancy+rate
January 22, 201411 yr It was implied that it was good news for walkable development, for which it is not. Hence the "no." They are increasing the amount of office space at the site by 133%. 700k sq. ft. of office now instead of 300k sq. ft of office. That's a big difference, and the difference has to be made up somewhere.
February 4, 201411 yr Fresh Thyme Farmers Market signs lease for 1st Cincinnati store Fresh Thyme Farmers Market, a new specialty grocer that has been scouting the Cincinnati market for locations, signed a lease for its first store. Fresh Thyme signed a 10-year lease for the former Circuit City building at 3321 Alamo Ave. in Oakley, a nearly 30,000-square-foot store. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2014/01/24/fresh-thyme-farmers-market-signs-lease.html
February 5, 201411 yr Maybe good news for making this into a more walkable development? Oakley Square to add 400,000 sq. ft. of office space http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/morning_call/2014/01/oakley-station-to-add-400000-square.html?page=all Glad to see that. Cincy Mid Town does not have a ton of Class A office product. The Norwood class a stuff has some vacancy holes though. Please don't take this as a personal attack, but if like to point out the problem buried right in the language you just used to think about this project. Buildings aren't "products" or "stuff." They are buildings. The purpose they serve, unless it's highly specialized, shouldn't mean anything. They should just be good buildings and part of a well designed community. We have made a horrible mistake by bringing buildings into the universe of " products." Product is a common reference in commercial real estate circles. https://www.google.com/#q=class+a+office+product+vacancy+rate OK guys, what we're seeing here is the difference between how real estate people use their jargon and how non-RE-industry people want to see structures viewed as. Calling a building "product" sounds annoying to people who are into architecture and urbanism because it sounds like buildings are being reduced to widgets that can be as dull, ugly and invasive as needed to reach a price point. Meanwhile people who use real estate jargon don't see anything wrong with that because the words "product" or "space" don't have any negative connotation to them because no matter the location, or building type, OTR or Mason, Italianate or CMUs slathered with EIFS it's all called product or space within the industry. And I'll descend into the jargon when necessary too so that we are speaking the same language (they at least smile and give me a vegemite sandwich). But I don't like calling empty houses "homes" though. Home is where you make it and if nobody's living there it's not home.
February 5, 201411 yr they at least smile and give me a vegemite sandwich I see what you did there :)
February 5, 201411 yr I know it new(kennedy connector) but it has to be the most expensive unused street in Cincinnati.
February 5, 201411 yr ^It gets a decent amount of use at evening rush when 5/3 lets out, but otherwise, you're right.
February 5, 201411 yr I know it new(kennedy connector) but it has to be the most expensive unused street in Cincinnati. It's probably only busy during rush hours. It serves no purpose other than getting people to/from I-71 and the Norwood Lateral. I still think they need to do a massive overhaul of the highway ramps in that area. It's a complete tangled mess right now.
February 6, 201411 yr It took me two months of driving through there every day to stop making mistakes, having to turn around at the K-Mart or Kenwood.
February 6, 201411 yr I know it new(kennedy connector) but it has to be the most expensive unused street in Cincinnati. It's probably only busy during rush hours. It serves no purpose other than getting people to/from I-71 and the Norwood Lateral. I still think they need to do a massive overhaul of the highway ramps in that area. It's a complete tangled mess right now. It's actually just getting them to the lateral or 71 south. The ramps from either of those highways are unchanged. Previously, traffic leaving 5/3 (for example) and wanting to go south or west would either need to go Duck Creek-Oaklawn-Madison-Ridge, or Duck Creek-Red Bank-71S. Agreed on the tangled web of ramps, but I've found it's instructive to think about why it was built that way to begin with. When that section of I-71 was built around 1965, the main traffic driver at that exit was Milacron. Those ramps were sandwiched in with two highways, but it worked because there wasn't a lot else there. It's much the same reason there are weird ramps at the Montgomery exit off the lateral (GM Norwood plant) and why GE has such weird ramps to/from I-75
February 7, 201411 yr Yes, there was a reason for why the ramps were constructed like they were. And Yes, many of those businesses no longer exist. So is it now a justifiable endeavor to redo all of those ramps at today's cost? There is still not much at the confluence of these ramps which justifies a second look.
February 7, 201411 yr Yes, there was a reason for why the ramps were constructed like they were. And Yes, many of those businesses no longer exist. So is it now a justifiable endeavor to redo all of those ramps at today's cost? There is still not much at the confluence of these ramps which justifies a second look. Virtually all of the nonstandard exits along I-75 are being rebuilt or eliminated at great expense. I-71 has its fair share of nonstandards exits, too, and over time they should be brought up to modern interstate standards.
February 8, 201411 yr If the city starts bouncing back and adding more population, it would be very smart to modernize all the ramps so that the city could take advantage of higher valued land. As to how they take advantage of it? That is up to discussion. They could have done a lot better, as I am sure many of you have already talked about I am sure (new to UrbanOhio and haven't read the whole thread). When I drive up and down Madison Road, it seems like a perfect spot for a streetcar / light rail line, with fairly dense nodes in East Walnut Hills commerce district, O'Bryonville, Oakley and a possible extension all the way to Madisonville. It could be a fast mover line with limited stops and TOD at those stops, then once it gets at the terminus of Madison Road on the southern end, head Southwest down Woodburn, then head west down McMillan Connecting to an Uptown / UC line. Thoughts?
February 8, 201411 yr Since they just re-did the Oakley area I doubt there will be anything else happening on Madison road for another 20 years. A park and ride to and from this development may do wonders.
February 8, 201411 yr It's not an official Park and Ride location, but I wonder now why it isn't. The #11 has a stop right in front of Crossroads, and #4, 41, and 51 already loop through by Target. If Crossroads gave permission to use their auxiliary lot, I can see that working really well. Metro could even add a stop there for the #12x.
February 8, 201411 yr When I drive up and down Madison Road, it seems like a perfect spot for a streetcar / light rail line, with fairly dense nodes in East Walnut Hills commerce district, O'Bryonville, Oakley and a possible extension all the way to Madisonville. It could be a fast mover line with limited stops and TOD at those stops, then once it gets at the terminus of Madison Road on the southern end, head Southwest down Woodburn, then head west down McMillan Connecting to an Uptown / UC line. I feel the exact same way, as bus service is pretty lacking there too. Its a wealthy part of town, so the service has to capture "choice" riders, the expansion of Metro*Plus into this corridor would be a good test/start.
March 7, 201411 yr saw this...update on prep work for Kroger. http://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/local/hyde-park/2014/03/06/work-underway-oakley-station-kroger-store/6129149/
April 1, 201411 yr Oakley Kroger land bought, to be largest in region: http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2014/03/31/kroger-buys-land-for-largest-store-in-greater.html
Create an account or sign in to comment