I think Front Street would be a good call.

I think Front Street would be a good call.

 

Yes actually, this would be the most appropriate way to go.

Boondoggle Way.

The "Freedom" name is supposed to refer to slavery, right? How about Abolition Street? I think that has a nice ring to it. It doesn't sound epic, but it sounds neighborhoody.

Did they clear up the homeless problem along 2nd and 3rd street? I used to see them every evening on the benches down there a year or two back.

Emancipation Boulevard/Street/Way-  Not saying it sarcastically.  It sounds much better than Freedom way, shows the real intention (freedom from slavery, not a silly pro-america tea-party-esque reference) and actually has a stronger association with the Freedom Center than Freedom Way.

 

 

Did they clear up the homeless problem along 2nd and 3rd street? I used to see them every evening on the benches down there a year or two back

Third Street is still regularly occupied.

Emancipation Boulevard/Street/Way-  Not saying it sarcastically.  It sounds much better than Freedom way, shows the real intention (freedom from slavery, not a silly pro-america tea-party-esque reference) and actually has a stronger association with the Freedom Center than Freedom Way.

 

Good one. IMO, Emancipation would have to go with Avenue or Parkway. I guess it could be Boulevard.

Mehring Way is technically Front Street, so naming Freedom Way as such would be inappropriate and inaccurate. I think it should just be called E Pete Rose Way. Hundreds of roads in Cincinnati "jog" or "break", so why should this be given special treatment? The rest of E Pete Rose Way is right on the other side of GAPB.

Since this project is rebuilding the street grid, I say First Street.  Enough with the "Ways" that run for a block or two.

Since this project is rebuilding the street grid, I say First Street.  Enough with the "Ways" that run for a block or two.

 

I think the River's supposed to be "First Street"

There never was a First Street as a street, it was Water Street, Front Street, Augusta Street (west of Vine only), 2nd Street, Pearl Street, then 3rd Street.  Pearl Street east of Broadway became E. Pete Rose Way, and 2nd Street west of Central Avenue became W. Pete Rose Way.  Of course it's all been totally discombobulated in the past several decades anyway.

I don't think it matters if there ever was a First Street or not, or what the historical names of roads in the area are called.  Front St. and First St. would be my ideal.  Easy to navigate because it makes sense.  It makes sense because it fits into an existing street grid.

 

If I am a visitor to downtown, I am clueless as to the whereabouts of "Freedom Way" and "Joe Nuxhall Way" and "Pete Rose Way"

 

Where is the Holy Grail? First and Main.  Easy. Corner of Freedom Way and Joe Nuxhall Way? Huh? Is it located in a suburban housing development?

 

Where is the Lager House? (River)Front and Main. Easy.

 

It makes no sense that the street grid road names change past 2nd St.  Imagine if we just restarted renaming a block or two here and there in the CBD, it would be nuts but is essentially what we have done by the river.

 

The street named after people should be "Honorary ______ St" a la Chicago.

 

 

^ Not saying you don't have a point, but in those situations it's really easy to say "right next to Great American Ball Park."

"Ways" are for industrial parks.

why is there so much discussion on this?  not that I care that there is, but are they changing the name or is this just everyone's hope?

Come on Cygnus...the first pics you posted were promising.  That tile work is great and gave me a little glimmer of hope that Phase 2 will be of higher quality than Phase 1.  Then you posted that Toby Keith crap and it reminded me how low the bar was set.

 

lol, my bad!  :laugh:

 

Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse...

Now I'm confused, when I walk into this establishment, should I exclaim "I Heart this Bar and Grill!" ?

I have read coverage in both the Enquirer and Urban Cincy regarding the ribbon cutting and future plans, however nobody has bothered to ask why the garage between Vine and Race sits several levels (or at least one) below street level. They did not do this with the Phase 1 garages.  Any idea why it was "completed" in this manner, as it is aesthetically unsightly as a parking "pit."  I understand that it could simply be a matter of money.

It'll be capped once the next phase begins. See:

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,2772.msg589197.html#msg589197

I remember who paid for the "pad" being something of an issue with phase 1.  The part of the pad where the office building is planned near the whistling bat boy I suppose didn't need to be built for any functional purpose. 

^ First Street?

 

First Street = the Ohio River

Oops--didn't see Brad had already answered that.

^ First Street?

 

First Street = the Ohio River

 

The streets in Covington should really be negative ordinals

^I'm going to be nice and say that's a ridiculous suggestion.

Wow. Going through my Facebook timeline, I found this old rendering from the vantage point of the GABP:

 

I remember when people were shocked and dismayed that the architecture had gone that far modern from the original quaint brick sketches.

 

Now I would kill for the Banks to look that good.

I remember when people were shocked and dismayed that the architecture had gone that far modern from the original quaint brick sketches.

 

Now I would kill for the Banks to look that good.

 

Agreed.  The one thing that destroys almost all creativity in this world and good ideas...are meetings.  Nine times out of ten, meetings can turn good plans into crap.  Although I don't think The Banks looks bad now.  But There's a fear of looking different when money is involved.  Just look what happens to car design once engineers get involved.

I went out with a couple of friends last night for a night of bar hopping. We started off the night at The Holy Grail which I had yet to visit. I really liked it. It was bigger than I thought it was and had a good atmosphere. The crowd that was there was very obviously the same crowd that lives in The Banks which was a good change of pace from the places I usually frequent. We also quickly walked around to check out the construction progress since I hadn't seen it in person except from in a car recently. The whole development is coming along quite nicely. I am very excited for the next phases to begin.

The Wine Loft and La Crepe Nanou are out and will be replaced by:

 

 

Wine Guy Bistro to open at The Banks

 

The Wine Guy Bistro — a restaurant, wine store and wine bar — is the latest tenant to announce plans to open at The Banks riverfront development.

 

The bistro is expected to open a 6,400-square-foot restaurant along Freedom Way at The Banks by the end of March next year, said owner and founder Craig Decker.

 

The restaurant has four locations in Ohio, including one at the Rookwood Pavilion in Norwood.

 

Decker, a New York native who lives in Columbus,  said designs and layout at The Banks location will be similar to Rookwood and include a wine shop featuring a variety of more than 3,000 bottles of wines for purchase.

 

The bistro will also include a 210-seat restaurant, serving tapas and dinner dishes including chicken marsala, sesame-crusted tuna and cajun scallops.

 

Or guests can enjoy a tasting by the glass, flight or bottle at one of 70 seats at the wine bar. Unlike its Rookwood location, the Wine Guy at The Banks will include a 40-seat private dining room.

 

Cont

More good news!

The new Addriatico's looks better than The Banks.

The new Adriatico's looks better than The Banks.

 

This is a fact.  They made some good choices up there. 

To no one's great surprise ...

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/morning_call/2011/12/toby-keiths-opening-at-banks-delayed.html

 

Too bad. They could have made a killing over the weekend on New Years Eve and then New Years Day with the sold-out Bengals game.

That man's view of what The Banks' restaurants will do to the regional market is a first, from what I've heard. In fact, I hear most people having individual opinions about the restaurants down there. I really doubt that Toby Keith's I Love This Bar is going to put a bunch of locals out of business. Or the other Banks eateries, for the matter.

I don't know, man. My intuition tells me that The Banks is going to be terribly over-developed with restaurants. They have done great things in the urban core lately, but bringing online something like 10 new restaurants in the next 1-2 years on top of everything happening downtown and in OTR...Cincinnati's market isn't that big.

 

 

^ Agreed.  There needs to be a greater mix of things- not just restaurants.  Has anyone been by the Johnny Rockets?  I've walked about about 20 times since it's opening.  It seems as though it's ALWAYS empty.

Yes, I've been to the Johnny Rockets. While The Holy Grail was packed, Johnny Rockets was nearly empty. The problem isn't with the staff, as they were very friendly. There wasn't any music playing when I was in there though.

 

They are close to getting more and larger televisions in the place, to back up its sports bar claim. Currently, it serves as an overflow restaurant, when The Holy Grail gets too busy.

 

It struck me as odd that the Johnny Rockets location at Newport on the Levee is still open. That can't be good for business. I was under the impression that the Levee location would close.

as anyone been by the Johnny Rockets?  I've walked about about 20 times since it's opening.  It seems as though it's ALWAYS empty.

 

I did, when visiting my brother over the Holidays, it was mostly empty though it was kind of late for dinner on weeknight near the Holiday away from a major shopping district (well not far from downtown, but far enough away that I doubt there was spillover).

 

Its nothing special other than the fact that they actually have Yeungling, and I've been meaning to try it out ever since I heard it was coming to Ohio. Mission accomplished there and I never though Johnny Rockets of all places would have it...

I gave the new Johnny Rockets two chances, and both times they disappointed. On my first visit, I sat at the bar (the bar bar, not the food bar) for about 10 minutes before anyone even realized I was there. Then the bartender came by, took my drink and food order and left again. I'm a draft beer fan and all they have are bottles, and they had only one Moerlein OTR left, so that's all I had. They had a single TV on a college football game, which isn't exactly the selection I expect out of a sports place. And the food was mediocre - the burger was good, the fries were abysmal.

 

My second visit was around noon when I took my nephew prior to the Bengals-Browns game about a month ago. He's 15 so a slammed Holy Grail wasn't an option. The place was decently packed - all the tables were full so we sat at the food bar. Our waitress was very nice and the place had a good atmosphere with the music and the crowd. But, again, the beer was bottles only, the food was mediocre and the price tag was ridiculous for what we ordered (2 burgers, 2 fries, 1 Yuengling and 1 orange soda for about $35).

 

I have a hard time imagining a scenario where I'd return once there are more alternatives there.

Yeah, my experiences there have not been that great.

 

My first trip in was apparently during their "soft opening," and it was completely empty. They were alternating between songs from Nickelback and sports on the television via the speakers, and it was too loud - especially when it was just two people. And the service was practically non-existant.

 

The food was mediocre. For what I paid, I could have gotten a decent meal - burgers, fries and a drink for less at the Holy Grail and at The Diner (although that is a bit of a walk). I'm looking forward to seeing more options open up, but I can't see this place panning out with their outrageous prices and lackluster service.

Yeah, my experiences there have not been that great.

 

My first trip in was apparently during their "soft opening," and it was completely empty. They were alternating between songs from Nickelback and sports on the television via the speakers, and it was too loud - especially when it was just two people. And the service was practically non-existant.

 

Nickelback. Ruining dining experiences since 1999.

I've never been to this Johnny Rockets, but I've been to the chain maybe twice. The food is way overpriced for what is basically McDonalds food. Way, way, way overpriced. I don't understand how the place stays in business, really.

 

I wouldn't expect this location to be any better, and it sounds like it's not. At least they have beer to help you forget how much they ripped you off for the burger and fries.

Chains at The Banks will probably take traffic away from the Levee and some of the chains downtown. It probably will not hurt many of the local restaurants throughout Newport, Downtown, or OTR.

Reading these assessments of chain restaurants is hilarious.  I mean, it's a hamburger and fries restaurant. I've eaten thousands of hamburgers and not one of them was "unusual", nor was the best hamburger I've ever had much better than the worst.  There's only about 5 types of hamburgers.  They're the same as when I was a kid, and I don't expect anything to change.  Yet we have these people "try" these dining "options", acting disappointed when a hamburger and fries are...a hamburger and fries.  It's like test driving a push lawnmower from Sears and acting upset that it's a push lawnmower from Sears. 

 

 

Yeah Johnny Rockets is nasty.  What they have going for it is the old style restaurant look and jukeboxes(do they still have those at each table?) Other than that, people will go to this one for a while just because its new.  It might even become trendy and everyone participating will have absolutely no idea why they still eat the food.

I wouldn't compare it to McDonalds nor would I consider it nasty. My giant burger at the Banks location was quite amazing, and I have high standards for burgers.

I actually really like Johnny Rockets but yeah, I've only been to their Banks location once about two weeks ago and I was literally the only person there. But this was during a non-game day and it was noon on a Sunday so that was understandable.

 

But really, that had to be my first time seeing a restaurant not having anyone besides me during daylight, pretty weird.

 

How is the leasing going in the residential space?

Residential space is basically full.  Last I heard there were 7 units available out of 300. 

 

Does anyone remember how long construction of the current development actually lasted? Not counting the pedestal, just the actual apartment building (one block only).  I'm trying to figure out, if they start construction in August of 2012, roughly when would they open the next block.  It felt like forever, but I think it was just about 18 months, right? Or was it less?

 

 

I actually really like Johnny Rockets but yeah, I've only been to their Banks location once about two weeks ago and I was literally the only person there. But this was during a non-game day and it was noon on a Sunday so that was understandable.

 

But really, that had to be my first time seeing a restaurant not having anyone besides me during daylight, pretty weird.

 

How is the leasing going in the residential space?

 

The residential component is proving extremely popular and is virtually full, according to most accounts.