Partners want city funding

 

By Randy Tucker

The Cincinnati Enquirer

 

Ed Smith (left) talks with Vinnie Clark on Wednesday at the southwest corner of Seventh and Broadway, where they and a third partner plan to build a mini mart. The grocery would be at street level in a complex of apartments and parking.

 

Two former Ohio State football players and a local small business owner have visions of bringing a new grocery retailer to downtown Cincinnati.

 

No link available

maybe this would help the condo tower out. They have 5 years to the air rights..one of those years has passed, so 4 more years to go. It will be a nice addition to the skyline.

More info, I am unaware of this tower you speak of...

More info' date=' I am unaware of this tower you speak of...[/quote']

 

If you look right behind the guys in the picture, you will see the parking garage that was built last year. That is where a condo tower of 12 floors plus the 5 floors of parking equals 17 story tower is supposed to be built. I forget what it is supposed to be called. We had threads on it on ssp. They are wanting to put the mini mart in the commercial space that is available on the ground floor of the garage.

This is an article from the courier journal...it is a bit dated at 1-12-2002, but you get the idea.

 

 

 

 

 

The first residential tower to be built downtown in more than 20 years will be a $20 million apartment/parking complex on the central business district's eastern edge.

 

 

Broadway Tower at St. Xavier Park is a partnership between Al Neyer Inc. and North American Properties. The firms plan to build a 16-story, 150-unit building featuring upscale apartments marketed to empty-nesters. The apartments will be built on top of a four-story, 400-car garage to be developed by the city in the spring.

 

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^ I completely forgot about this tower. All I know is that the residential market in the area is doing pretty well.

I like seeing anything move downtown

The only part of this proposal that really bothers me is the line,

 

"The group plans to ask city council next month for full funding for the project. Smith did not disclose terms of the lease."

 

Maybe I will dream up a business and get the city to fund it. I hope they have a financing plan other than asking the city for all the money, because there is no way that will fly.

The only part of this proposal that really bothers me is the line' date='

 

"The group plans to ask city council next month for full funding for the project. Smith did not disclose terms of the lease."

 

Maybe I will dream up a business and get the city to fund it. I hope they have a financing plan other than asking the city for all the money, because there is no way that will fly.[/quote']

 

As sad as this might sound, it would propably be in the best interest of City Council to fund some of this project because not only is this a needed item in downtown but the group is of a minority race and would show City Council is willing to work with them if the business is right. It could help in easing the racial tensions.

 

If this is turned down, then people will cry foul.

Monte,

 

The above point would be all well and good if one of the gentlemen weren't involved in a class-action racial profiling lawsuit against the city.

I've got some friends that live in the Renaissance (Power Building) and the Sycamore Place apartments in that area. A great place to live, although a patch of grass with a few trees would be welcome along with a grocery. Silverglades moved in a few months ago, but doesn't have much in the way of night time hours.

What ever happened to this?  This idea seemed to drop off of the face of the earth!

I sure hope not.  I thought they were supposed to make some type of announcement the end of last year.

Here is a pic of the proposed Broadway Tower.....

 

^

That's pretty ugly looking on paper.  I'm sure it will be much better in person....construction needs to start now!

We're getting ahead of ourselves with tower talk!  We can't even get a street-level grocery....  :D

 

Here's my guess on what happened:

The two gentlemen asked the city for full funding for the project.

The city said, "No.  What else ya got?"

The two gentlemen walked, never to be heard from again.

 

I hope I'm wrong, of course.

 

 

Well, I did a little digging and found the reports about this stuff.

 

First, the letter from Ed Smith and Vinnie Clark (Broadway Grocery, LLC) to city council:

http://city-egov.rcc.org/BASISCGI/BASIS/council/public/child/DDD/8680.pdf

 

Here is a report from the DCDP via City Manager Lemmie back to council:

 

Document # 200408111

 

The City Council at it session on 03/10/2004 referred the following item for review and report:

 

COMMUNICATION, dated 03/10/2004, submitted by Mayor Luken, from Ed Smith, Vinnie Clark and Jeff Graham, Broadway Grocery, LLC 7th and Broadway, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202, regarding the opening of a grocery store.

 

Department of Community Development and Planning (DCDP) staff met with Mr. Smith on March 18, 2004, to discuss his business proposal. Mr. Smith with two other individuals is planning to form Broadway Grocery, a limited liability corporation. Mr. Smith plans to operate a grocery store on the first floor of the 7th & Broadway parking garage. According to Mr. Smith he has negotiated a 5-year lease with the first 18 months free and $4,200 per month for the remainder of the leasing agreement term for 5,300 square feet of retail space. Mr. Smith estimates that the total project cost is $500,000, with $250,000 for working capital and $50,000 for machinery and equipment. Mr. Smith is presently completing his business plan. However, based on a cursory review of the information provided to DCDP staff the project may qualify for a small business loan and an Enterprise Zone tax abatement. DCDP staff will continue to work with Mr. Smith and guide him through the application process for both programs as well as identify other potential funding sources.

 

This report is for information purposes only; no action is needed.

 

 

So, it was pretty much tabled and not mentioned since then.  I'm going to try to do some more digging and see what ever became of this.

It could help in easing the racial tensions

why because they are black?

Is this going to happen?  This is the first I am seeing of this pic:

 

This pic is posted in this thread from about January.

This was the response I recieved just recently from Neyer regarding Broadway Tower

 

Thanks for your kind words, Chris. The Broadway Tower will happen, we

just don't have it on a firm schedule today. We've been focused on new

projects in College Hill, Columbia Tusculum and Norwood, and several

more in the pipeline, so we can let the downtown market continue to

develop while we execute on these other opportunities. We feel strongly

that downtown Cincinnati residential will continue to grow into the

foreseeable future, so we're not worried about missing a window. Please

stay in touch.

 

Regards,

Lew

Lew Bonadies

Vice President, Marketing

Al. Neyer, Inc.

 

Encouraging I would say.  They have been very very good about responding to questions posted via their website.

^ Good!  Meanwhile, I haven't ever recieved a response about Broadway Grocery LLC despite numerous attempts.

Interesting.  I have had a response to every question posted. 

^ Did you only e-mail Neyer?  Because I've been e-mailing people in city govt about the grocery plans, but not the tower.

^ Yeah.  Well I did the question/comment submission on Neyer's website.  I have been posing questions about the tower i guess.  No specifics one way or another.  But they got back to me within 24 hours and we've actually e-mailed back and fourth a couple of times.   

Havent heard a whole lot about this project.  The new garage is currently what sits on the site.  The developer has had their plans to build an additional 12 stories of residential space above the garage.  This aproval is good for five years after the completion of the garage (2002).

 

 

 

 

I love this emerging neighborhood.  It includes the young creative class that all cities yearn for and is just dynamic altogether.  There have been great rehab projects, great architecture, and cool businesses (Blue Wisp Jazz Club, GBBN Architects, University Art Galleries, etc.)

 

This is what has been proposed for the area...I have also heard rumors of another possible residential tower, for the neighborhood, at Sycamore and 8th.  This is across the street from the Power Building (currently a surface lot)

 

If anyone has more info on this emerging neighborhood please let it be known.

That thread is not really the same topic.  So I think we should continue to report to this thread on this particular topic.

 

I emailed the developers of this project today.  I was asking on the where-abouts of this project.  They replied to my email and informed me that there is no scheduled ground breaking yet, but that the project is still in the preliminary stages.

 

Their response seemed somewhat brief and I wonder still where the project stands.  According to the agreements they must start on the tower by 2007 if they want their permits to hold up.  Therefore, I would think things would be getting exciting here in the near future.....or shot down the drain :-(

Okay, here's where we are--an amendment to the lease.  This document claims that they have secured a tenant for the retail space.  It also sets a timetable for the beginning of the condo tower, after which time the developer would be penalized.

 

This is in Finance Committee.  I don't know when council will vote on amending the ordinance.

 

 

Attached is an Emergency Ordinance captioned:

 

AUTHORIZING the City Manager to enter into Amendment No. 1 With Broadway Development 2001, Ltd. For the City-owned property at Seventh Street and Broadway Avenue.

 

The City entered into a Lease Agreement for Private Redevelopment with Broadway Development 2001, Ltd. (Developer), an Ohio limited liability company, to develop and construct the 7th & Broadway garage. The Lease agreement grants the Developer rights to lease the ground level retail space and air rights to construct residential units atop the garage.

 

The basic term of the lease is 65 years. The developer is required to commence the residential development by June 1, 2007. If the developer does not commence the residential construction by that date, they forego the air rights. The developer is required to repay the City $2,160,000 for the cost of structural overbuilds in the garage designed to accommodate the future residential units.

 

The Developer has secured a tenant and is prepared to build out the retail space improvements at the developer’s expense contingent on an amendment to the Lease Agreement which would continue the Developer’s rights to lease the retail space in the event that the residential construction doe not commence by June 1, 2007, or if the City does not agree to extend the air rights terms of the agreement.

 

The ordinance contains an emergency provision to allow the developer to proceed with build-out of the retail space to meet the time constraints of the tenant and to provide job retention and creation opportunities in the Central Business District.

 

The Administration recommends adoption of the Emergency Ordinance.

 

thx for the update :-D....June 1, 2007....I'll mark it on my calender!

^i'd use a pencil if i were you.  there is no way they are going to start building anything by then.  hopefully they will have started marketing...but i dont see construction there anytime soon

I'd use ink myself, be hopeful.

 

And then if you have to, buy white-out.

Just to update this, the amended ordinance listed above passed unanimously in the last council meeting.  The clock is ticking!

Sorry to burst everyone's bubble but according to this week's Business Courier the tower section of this garage is on hold for the time being.  Neyer does have a tenant on the ground floor however.  Some office furniture store from Bond Hill.

^^ its been on hold since we started talking about this building two years ago, thats nothing new...the recent discussions have simply been about when will it come out of hibernation

It's new in the sense that the hold is being reaffirmed and that Neyer is stating that they intend to ask for the July 2007 deadline to be extended.

ok

Yeah, I don't believe I ever said that there was a change in the status of the tower.

They finally printed the article....

 

Developer parks plan for apartments atop garage

For now, Kimbler to lease space at 7th and Broadway

Cincinnati Business Courier - April 14, 2006by Dan MonkSenior Staff Reporter

 

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Broadway Tower will bring 17 new jobs to downtown this summer, but the task of fulfilling its original goal -- to lure 165 new residents to the corner of Seventh and Broadway -- is taking longer than expected.

 

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Good thing the city subsidized this with the garage.  The problem in Cincy: not enough national developers who have institutional money.  Local developers have a hard time getting money for development.  It takes a long time and the local banks are extremely conservative about lending.  Therefore, projects take forever to come to fruition. 

i just wish these developers would try to tap into the "somewhat reasonably affordable" market.  people would absoultely be eating these things up if they were.  and it would be younger people too.  just look at the parker flats development.  their units are moderately priced and they have sold nearly 70 percent of before constuction has even started.  i also wouldnt consider the parker flats site a "prime" location in downtown especially as far as views are concerned.  just doesnt make any sense to me sometimes

Yeah it seems as though the market is right for residential development downtown...NOW!  However, developers are being hesitant and reluctant to go through with plans.  This opportunity will most likely not last forever, so I would hope that these developers would get their act together and start building now...and quit bullshitting around.

i just wish these developers would try to tap into the "somewhat reasonably affordable" market.  people would absoultely be eating these things up if they were.  and it would be younger people too. 

AMEN!!!  I understand that developers want to get the most return on their investment, but is marketing every new condo development to weathly empty nesters really the only way to breath new life into the city?  I think most of these projects are focused too much on the high end units and not enough on pricepoints that will lure young people to buy downtown.  If you truely want to make the core city a 24 hour urban neighborhood, you need young people.  I guarantee that the bars, coffee shops, and restaurants that are and will open downtown as the population increase will not be packed with people my parent's age at 10:30 on a Tuesday night.   

I also do not understand the developer's hesitance to move forward with this project.  The demand for downtown living is there.  Downtown apartments are 95% leased, sales at condos developments in the CBD have been solid. Interest in the surrounding city neighborhoods is on the rise - Mt. Auburn hillside, Mt. Adams, Walnut Hills/Eden Park, East End, Betts-Longworth.  If there was any way to get bring the units to market between $150 and $250k they would sell quickly.

i guess neyer is just too concerned right now with all the crap they have going up along 71 and in at columbia

Broadway condo tower design to be re-examined

DAN MONK | [email protected]

February 23, 2007

 

***IMAGE: New Rendering***

 

CINCINNATI - Developers planning a 12-story condo tower at Seventh and Broadway downtown will try to redesign their project to create "sexier units" that can sell at lower price points.

 

Click on link for article.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2007/02/26/story8.html

I like the new rendering, the more residential units we get over in the St. Xavier area, the more likely we can land a grocery store on the surface lot.

isnt that rendering really old?  i thought they had designs pending the demolition/preservation of the red brick building.  this rendering obviously indicates that the building is still there, but that building has been torn down. 

You know what I think it is, but I've never seen it before.

yeah, i havent seen that particular rendering before...but its the first computer rendering i have seen for the project too.  also...the white building behind is sycamore place right?  and that is now red.  the image is obviously out of date

Yes...and the blackish looking bldg is the Power Building.  So I think the colors may be off...the other rendering I had seen is on Emporis, but it was much more simple (just a plain old box design).  Me likey this one much more!!!