Kenyon-Barr II

Bigger view.  :clap:

 

In all seriousness, although the price isn't something that could ever even begin to be swung, burying 75 in a perfectly straight line (maybe a block or two east with caps so there isn't a sad one block area once you get beyond it) and allowing development to resurround Union Terminal would have been the absolute best option for rebuilding the Mill Creek Expressway. And moving the bridge west. Rebuliding the grid. Form based code in place. All that jazz.

Better yet, put I-75 into the air and over top of the rail tracks running behind Union Terminal...

 

Tie it in at I-74 and run it over the tracks all the way to 8th. Then veer it between Mehring and Lynn through Queensgate to point it right into Fort Washington Way.

^Yeah that would be ideal. Not at all feasible, but if we're not taking money into account might as well get the highway out of there entirely, right?

Does anyone know the status of all of the vacant lots at CityWest? Are they ever going to come through and build another phase of houses, or are they sitting there empty for the foreseeable future?

I was wondering that as I drove by today.  With the way prices are heating up (overheating?  I hope not) in OTR south of liberty, you'd have to think CityWest may start to get some spillover.  The location is really prime. 

The vacant lot will be the home to the Cincinnati Streetcar construction trailer HQ.

With home prices that plummeted and a crime rate that is still higher than average, CityWest is in a peculiar position. I'm not sure there is private developer interest out there just yet without a handout from the federal government.

There seems to be a bit of a chicken and egg problem with the number of residents and commercial development.  There's currently not enough residents to support the commercial strip along Linn Street, but who wants to move into a neighborhood with no amenities? 

 

I'd also say the development pattern represents a flawed type of new urbanism.  Most of the streets are rather wide, enough to allow parking on both sides, while at the same time there's very generous alleys with huge parking pads.  This sacrifices back yards in the name of having attached garages and extra driveway space.  The whole place is a mess of hard surfaces, nearly all of which are for vehicles, front and back.  That means there's virtually no outdoor private space, exposing the cheap ugly back ends of these buildings to vandalism and crime.  It's much harder to keep eyes on the street when you have to look out the front and back at the same time.

When buildings don't look like they want to be there, people don't want to live in or around them.  This happened because of building materials, to be sure, but the bigger problem is the layout and the particular way these homes are not assertively situated.  They don't meet the streets or the corners in a way that both responds to and projects context.  Rather, they sort of float out there on that plain nebulously. 

 

I think some high quality design for the remaining areas could help, but it's like having to sit at a wedding reception with some weird people you barely met 8 years ago. 

What is the construction fence and equipment doing in the large vacant piece of land south of Ezzard Charles and West of John?  Is it just staging for construction somewhere else, or are they building here?

^^ It's an MPD staging area for the streetcar construction

I think Linn Street (and most all streets in the West End) would benefit tremendously from a combination of a bike lanes and bike-share stations. Linn Street is absurdly wide given the low amount of vehicular traffic. Dedicated bike lanes and bike-share stations would make it easy to "close the distance" between Linn Street and the activity further to the east. Linn Street is roughly half a mile from Union Terminal, Findlay Market, and Washington Park. That half a mile makes for a long-ish walk but a very easy bike (on entirely flat terrain with little vehicular traffic). A solid network of bike lanes throughout the West End could make it a much more appealing neighborhood for folks who want to live near downtown/OTR and not rely on a car.

I agree completely. But Cranley has made it clear he won't allow new bike lanes. Small minded

Does anyone know what is going on with all of the undeveloped parcels at City West?  These are all platted but nothing has been built in 10 years:

https://www.google.com/maps/@39.11129,-84.5256121,388m/data=!3m1!1e3

 

Plus, this giant block hasn't seen any activity in 10 years other than construction staging for the streetcar project:

https://www.google.com/maps/@39.1084512,-84.5242012,388m/data=!3m1!1e3

This very poorly made image has been sitting on my hard drive for a year and a half, so I'll just go ahead and share it with everyone here. Basically, the concept is that Duke Energy moves the Charles Street power substation somewhere else, allowing for redevelopment of that site. The awkward Central Parkway bend and intersection with Plum Street would be turned into a roundabout and the parkway extended one block west to reach Central Avenue. The black boxes are sites for potential new development. This would really help connect OTR with the West End and start to rebuild that part of the city into a more pedestrian friendly area.

Would also be nice to convert Plum to two-way from Central Parkway to 6th Street.

Would also be nice to convert Plum to two-way from Central Parkway to 6th Street.

Agreed. And on that topic, we should get rid of the weird few blocks of Central Ave that are 1-way. Central Ave should be two-way throughout (from Mehring Way all the way up through the West End).

Would also be nice to convert Plum to two-way from Central Parkway to 6th Street.

Agreed. And on that topic, we should get rid of the weird few blocks of Central Ave that are 1-way. Central Ave should be two-way throughout (from Mehring Way all the way up through the West End).

Yes. Central is a frustrating guess of which block is two-way or one way. Its a significant reason why almost nobody goes to that part of downtown, among others.

There was a period of time about fifteen years ago when there was a lane of parking in the middle of Central. 

Would also be nice to convert Plum to two-way from Central Parkway to 6th Street.

Agreed. And on that topic, we should get rid of the weird few blocks of Central Ave that are 1-way. Central Ave should be two-way throughout (from Mehring Way all the way up through the West End).

Yes. Central is a frustrating guess of which block is two-way or one way. Its a significant reason why almost nobody goes to that part of downtown, among others.

You would think that Cincinnati downtown could benefit from a comprehensive traffic study by competent professionals.

 

Would also be nice to convert Plum to two-way from Central Parkway to 6th Street.

Agreed. And on that topic, we should get rid of the weird few blocks of Central Ave that are 1-way. Central Ave should be two-way throughout (from Mehring Way all the way up through the West End).

Yes. Central is a frustrating guess of which block is two-way or one way. Its a significant reason why almost nobody goes to that part of downtown, among others.

You would think that Cincinnati downtown could benefit from a comprehensive traffic study by competent professionals.

 

Sounds daft!

Even if the study indicates that the city should change the direction of a street, the city DOTE is unlikely to do it. The streetcar project called for converting 14th Street to two way between Elm and Race, but neighbors complained so the city didn't do it. The new traffic lights were already installed during streetcar construction and are still hanging there covered by blue bags. It also called for converting Green Street to two-way, and again, the traffic lights were installed but are still not being used.

Even if the study indicates that the city should change the direction of a street, the city DOTE is unlikely to do it. The streetcar project called for converting 14th Street to two way between Elm and Race, but neighbors complained so the city didn't do it. The new traffic lights were already installed during streetcar construction and are still hanging there covered by blue bags. It also called for converting Green Street to two-way, and again, the traffic lights were installed but are still not being used.

 

Green Street is still in process as a precursor to Liberty Street improvements. They are going door to door with postcards get buy in as part of their process.

January 1, 2020: