Enquirer's Bowdeya Tweh on Twitter says that Anderson Berkla has the Second National Bank building under contract. No word on what they intend to do with it. Fifth Third recently moved out of the ground floor retail space of this building and into the nearby Schwartz Building.

^One of my favorite buildings downtown.

That's such a cool, narrow and fairly tall building. It seems like it'd be a good fit for residential conversion.

Enquirer's Bowdeya Tweh on Twitter says that Anderson Berkla has the Second National Bank building under contract. No word on what they intend to do with it. Fifth Third recently moved out of the ground floor retail space of this building and into the nearby Schwartz Building.

 

CinFed is the bank that recently moved out. 5/3rd was in the white building at Court and Main but moved to the other end of the block at 9th and Main into the Schwartz building.

 

Very good news though!

 

Edit: CinFed is moving their HQ

Has Cinfed moved? Was just there last week.

This is a huge story because:

 

-intended use is residential (Anderson Birkla is high end residential)

-according to Bo Tweh at the Enquirer there is "a plan for the parking lot too"

-combined with Rick Griewe development is establishing high end residential district along streetcar line on Main Street

-it has to put pressure on the Josephs to redevelop the Dennison Hotel

Hopefully they can also get that surface lot next to the building and get some infill going there.

^Bowdeya Tweh says there's a plan for the parking lot:

This is a huge story because:

 

-intended use is residential (Anderson Birkla is high end residential)

-according to Bo Tweh at the Enquirer there is "a plan for the parking lot too"

-combined with Rick Griewe development is establishing high end residential district along streetcar line on Main Street

-it has to put pressure on the Josephs to redevelop the Dennison Hotel

 

Hahaha I just had the EXACT same thought and posted on the 'Save the Dennison' site to give hope before the Monday hearing. I swear i didnt copy, great minds and all that...

 

^Bowdeya Tweh says there's a plan for the parking lot:

 

From: http://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/2016/10/07/at580-developer-working-new-downtown-project/91721836/

 

Birkla envisions the office building being converted to apartments and the parking lot being developed to feature a parking garage and with an apartment tower on top.

^Wish they could go without a parking garage. It really doesn't need it. And it's a relatively small lot for a parking garage.

^Wish they could go without a parking garage. It really doesn't need it. And it's a relatively small lot for a parking garage.

 

Yeah, unless they use a car elevator, I don't see how you ramp and circulate in a garage on that site.

^Perhaps it will just be a single floor of parking on the ground level? Seems like a waste to me if they do that, but maybe they could charge a ton for it and make it easier to sell expensive units on the top floors. It would probably generate more money for the developer than restaurant/retail would.

^Perhaps it will just be a single floor of parking on the ground level? Seems like a waste to me if they do that, but maybe they could charge a ton for it and make it easier to sell expensive units on the top floors. It would probably generate more money for the developer than restaurant/retail would.

 

I guess they could use the first floor of the existing building for parking. That's long, deep space with high windows -- not very usable for anything else.

Here's the business courier with a rendering: http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2016/10/07/anderson-birkla-to-redevelop-building-along.html

 

Hard to tell where the garage is. "Birkla said the plan is to build a six-story parking garage with about 200 spaces. "

Damn!!

Nice! Exciting news. Some good density even with the parking garage. This stretch of Main Street is going to be quite active with construction in the coming years which is good. Every person passing by on the streetcar is going to see this, the two Greiwe buildings, 8th and Sycamore (from across the forsaken parking lots) and anything else that gets announced all in a two block stretch. Should be really good exposure to prove the worth of the streetcar.

 

Edit: I wonder if this will all be developed at the same time. The levels align perfectly in the new tower with Second National which might be so the new and old are combined into one, sharing the existing core of the Second National which cuts down costs. It might also be how they're fitting a garage in since the new construction won't have as much vertical circulation as is typical in a new building since most/all will be handled by the existing vertical circulation in the Second National Bank.

Nice! Exciting news. Some good density even with the parking garage. This stretch of Main Street is going to be quite active with construction in the coming years which is good. Every person passing by on the streetcar is going to see this, the two Greiwe buildings, 8th and Sycamore (from across the forsaken parking lots) and anything else that gets announced all in a two block stretch. Should be really good exposure to prove the worth of the streetcar.

 

Edit: I wonder if this will all be developed at the same time. The levels align perfectly in the new tower with Second National which might be so the new and old are combined into one, sharing the existing core of the Second National which cuts down costs. It might also be how they're fitting a garage in since the new construction won't have as much vertical circulation as is typical in a new building since most/all will be handled by the existing vertical circulation in the Second National Bank.

 

 

Anything else that gets announced you say......... Just my dream (and lunch time doodling) at the moment but I hope something like this comes to life one day once people get over their ego's and outdated thinking of development.

^ Yes the name is trendy branding and not historically correct but i was trying to appeal to a sense of family history and civic pride as a way for the owners to emerge from this a heroes.

 

Looks like the new 830 Main development uses the alleys to access the garage, not Main St, according to the 2nd rendering

Anything else that gets announced you say......... Just my dream (and lunch time doodling) at the moment but I hope something like this comes to life one day once people get over their ego's and outdated thinking of development.

 

I wonder what  it would take to convince them to know that they are making a very dumb business decision.  I mean these guys are successful businessmen, they have to have some semblance of sense of what is going on downtown and how they can profit from it?

My only explanation is that is is the younger generation trying to carry out the unfinished dream of the older generation and build that dream fortune 500 building that eluded them in the 70's and 80's. Sort of how the demolition of the Gamble Estate was done entirely to fulfill the wishes of a person who was getting all the unfinished business crossed of her list before she passed and a younger generation only there to see her wishes carried out no matter the damage dome to history and those still alive. That or an intense dislike of brick.

 

sweet news!

 

^ Yes the name is trendy branding and not historically correct but i was trying to appeal to a sense of family history and civic pride as a way for the owners to emerge from this a heroes.

 

So you've sent this to them?

No, dont know how to get it to them directly (or if they would even care) but put it on the Dennison pages that I know their PR group monitors to make it visible. Just wanted to offer an olive branch of cooperation and hope for a new outcome vs all of their lawyers negativity and dismissal to other options.

Without the parking lot, it would be impossible to get a good shot of the building.

 

Carew Tower files condo conversion plan with Hamilton County

 

CINCINNATI -  Carew Tower is going condo.

 

Documents filed with the Hamilton County Recorder’s office show the owners of Cincinnati’s second-tallest building are dividing the hotel, office and retail tower into smaller units – enabling sections of the building to convert to residential ownership, while maintaining office and retail leases.

 

http://www.wcpo.com/news/insider/carew-tower-files-condo-conversion-plan-with-hamilton-county

 

 

I know we've had discussions on this in the past, but I think this is the first actual movement towards converting at least some of the tower into condos. 

I don't love this. WHile it is outdated as Class A office, There is just part of me that expects this to be an office tower.

It's about time.

Doesn't seem like a lot of units/population though:

 

The plan, drafted by Phoenix Architects LLC in Kenwood, shows a single unit on each on the building’s 30th to 48th floors. The units range in size from 3,629 square feet on the 48th floor to roughly 7,900 square feet on floors 30 to 39. The Phoenix drawings show how 1.2 million square feet of space is divided into three kinds of condo units and how expenses for 81,722 square feet of common area is to be divided among the building’s future owners.

 

With that kind of square footage would that be the Ascent prices or higher?

Love the potential here.

Doesn't seem like a lot of units/population though:

 

The plan, drafted by Phoenix Architects LLC in Kenwood, shows a single unit on each on the building’s 30th to 48th floors. The units range in size from 3,629 square feet on the 48th floor to roughly 7,900 square feet on floors 30 to 39. The Phoenix drawings show how 1.2 million square feet of space is divided into three kinds of condo units and how expenses for 81,722 square feet of common area is to be divided among the building’s future owners.

 

With that kind of square footage would that be the Ascent prices or higher?

 

I'm not an insider, so I was unable to see that information.  Certainly disappointing, especially the 7,900 square feet units. 

I would love for the Carew to become condos, at least on the upper floors. These floors are too small for most companies and would be better utilized as residential condos. Also, any time we can convert a struggling office building to another use, we are reducing the office vacancy rate, which makes it more likely that other proposed office buildings like 180 Walnut will be built.

I hope the observation deck stays open.

As much as I am partial to the original uses of these extremely historic and iconic buildings, I am also looking to the future of what works in todays age, and in the end I truly believe mixed use re-purposing is the way to go.  Although I'm from Columbus now, I have a huge love for Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, Toledo and the many other cities of this great state, so I may be bias here, but the recent completion of the LeVeque Tower here in Columbus is a prime example of how this model could be sucessful.  Combining, class A office space, boutique hotel, apartments and condos, allows for a great mix of uses to make these older buildings a great success in the modern age!  Here is just one article with a few details, which I'm sure all my urban guru's on here are already fully aware of.

http://radio.wosu.org/post/columbus-leveque-tower-shines-anew-after-renovation

I hope the observation deck stays open.

This reminds me, I need to take the kids up there again when the weather is good, it might be our last chance...

I hope the observation deck stays open.

 

Is there a chance it may? Doesn't seem to be mentioned in that article or is there just speculation since it may become residential on the upper floors?

I don't think the rooftop would cease being a public space. It's windy as hell up there and I don't envision people trying to have a cookout/sunbathe while all their personal items are being blown around like in a wind tunnel.

That few units? Wow. The condo market is still weak nationwide, and I'm not sure what the market is for what I am assuming will be super-luxury units.

If Trump gets busted, all those Russians are going to need somewhere to park their money...

I think the term "condo" as used in the article does not mean they want to turn portions of the building into residential condos. The term I believe is used to spilt the building complex into separate portions or "condos". The hotel would be separate from the office "condo" and they could then sell just the hotel which wouldn't include the office portion/condo. They could also turn the top 10 floors into a residential "condo" which could be sold off and then turned into apartments or residential "condos" leaving the bottom floors as an "office condo" separate from the hotel and the residential portion/condo. 

Finally purchased after two failed attempts...

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2017/06/19/exclusive-former-p-g-office-purchased-for.html

What's up with this project? Is it neither hotel or apartments? No lights on & looks like nobody's home. Maybe they all go to bed early?

I've not seen any work being done on it for a few months, and when I had seen work being done they were pretty hack crews that were coming and going. Doesn't give me a good feeling.

Yeah this project seems pretty dead. Announced two years ago and no visible changes anywhere. Would be pretty unfortunate if both this as well as 4/race both get halted.

I've heard bad rumors of Fountain News moving into the building.  If that's the case the area in general is going to get even worse.

This is kind of a bad sign for the market if this one doesn't get done. This project is kind of a wiffle ball on a tee (relatively speaking.)

This is kind of a bad sign for the market if this one doesn't get done. This project is kind of a wiffle ball on a tee (relatively speaking.)

 

Without knowing anything further...it could just as well be the developer bit off more than they can chew or cannot land financing for a project of this size if they do not have a track record.

 

You see other developers who may be more financially sound such as North American Properties and Village Green completing larger/more expensive projects. As well as the developer of AT580 wanting to get involved in other projects in CBD.

Anyone have more recent information about this project? It is dead? Or waiting on historic preservation tax credits?

His focus has been on the terrace plaza property. He pulled Woolpert into do preliminary design and is really trying to get that project going to help make his 580 walnut project more valuable. 830 Main isnt exactly dead its just on the back burner is what i been told by a couple folks.