Carew owner savors change as restaurants replace stores

Cincinnati Business Courier - June 23, 2006by Dan Monk

 

You might think Alex Warm would be worried, with the Carew Tower's largest retail tenant (The Limited) opting not to renew its lease beyond the end of this year and the building's largest office tenant (Kendle International Inc.) shopping for a potential new headquarters site.

 

But Warm doesn't get worried. He just gets busy.

 

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2006/06/26/tidbits1.html

wow, I'm eager to see what these restaurants are!

wow...sounds like an interesting restaraunt if it is going to draw from up to 100 miles... could be something really different!!! :clap:

Hopefully these new restaurants will buck the trend from the rest of Tower Place and get in touch with the street-level environment.  I would like to see entrances to these places right smack dab on the corner of 5th and Vine!

I would think that restaraunts would like to have street level access...i think that this will have to be part of the plan

I think there is still a TJ Maxx in there.  Wasnt the Express for Men the old Structures.  I remember when that opened..that was sort of a fun mens store.  Architectural theme throughout.

 

 

This "restauranitzation" of Tower Place sounds like what happened to The Galleria in Louisville, thought that was sort of a planned all-at-once thing, transforming the Galleria into Fourth Street Live.

 

Whats happening with Tower Place seems to be more evolutionary, with some retail still there, and nearby (Saks and that downtown Macys.

Still waiting for a Joseph Beth's flagship store to be announced.  Come on Graeter's & Joseph Beth's, we are all waiting.

 

How about that damn air space above Macy's?  Can we get some Fountain Square residential?  Now that would be sweet!

Still waiting for a Joseph Beth's flagship store to be announced.  Come on Graeter's & Joseph Beth's, we are all waiting.

 

How about that damn air space above Macy's?  Can we get some Fountain Square residential?  Now that would be sweet!

 

Some residential would be killer there, I hadn't thought of it before.  I don't think 5/3 is in any rush to build more office space (they own the air rights).  But, 5/3 has been a pretty good corporate citizen lately with all their other stuff on the square.  Perhaps a mixed office/residential development would be a little easier to swallow given the amount of tax dollars already in that project, plus they would have to work out a deal on the interior parking for the residents, I believe there are only about 140 spots in there and I don't know how many of them are spoken for.

^You could always build a garage on the empty lot at the next block, there is already a skywalk in place. ;)

 

But yeah, some residential there would be cool.

 

I'm trying to remember what direction the fountain faces...it would face toward the Tiffany's/Macy block, correct? Imagine waking up to a view of that!

I too have never even entertained the idea of residential above Macy's.....however, this would probably require some kind of change in zoning from its current designation.  I dont believe that the city has any kind of mixed-use designation....I could be wrong.

I heard the restaurants moving into the Lerner New York and Express locations will be Morton's and some kind of fiesta steak place. I think Lerner is going to be upstairs with a glass elevator that takes you up from the street level. I'll post more when I find out.

 

BTW, you guys do know that Tower Place and the Carew are 2 totally different locations and ran by two different groups. The copper line near TJ Maxx is where the two buildings separate.

More residential is hardly ever a bad thing downtown :). Macy's should definitely be a taller building...it just seems more appropriate in an ultra-dense setting such as downtown Cincinnati and with Federated being based nearby, one would expect a pretty grandiose looking flagship store. I still like the Macy's building though; very aesthetic design...and it's definitely my style of clothing.

 

 

Edit: Hey what about a hotel? That would be good for their sales too...people tend to shop for stuff like that when they're on vacation. I don't know how good the occupancy rates are downtown though.

well, according to Morton's website, they are going to have a site at Tower Place.

http://www.mortons.com/website/index.html

 

Isn't Morton's already in Tower Place?  Are they just moving to a new location?

maybe.  i dont know if they are already there or not. 

They are indeed already there, since 1996 I think.  If you have not gone, it is the second best steak (to Ruby's) downtown.

So then Cincy-Rise, did you hear Morton's is relocating?

Morton's has  been a Tower Place for a long time.  If that is what they are talking about, then they are just relocating a restaurant not bringing in new restaurants. Hopefully it is more exciting than the relocation of Morton's.  Come on!

I heard rumors of Morton's relocating to 4th & Walnut so I am not surprised about the relocation.  I think Morton's is trying to get out of the basement location and get more exposure.

>You could always build a garage on the empty lot at the next block, there is already a skywalk in place.

 

I thought of that myself.  I'm worried that they would want to put extremely high priced units meaning that that type of resident would expect on-site parking.  I believe I read that up to 20 floors can be built above Lazarus, and I'm sure that building a deck or two of parking above the existing store would be pretty expensive since it wasn't designed with that in mind.  The 5th & Race lot is the obvious location, but whatever would be built there would need its own parking as well.

 

No doubt, just a few floors of residential with balconies facing the square would really activate the area. 

 

   

So then Cincy-Rise, did you hear Morton's is relocating?

 

Yes, that's what I heard. I'll see if I can find out anything else this week. Their current location is horrible.

If it is just a relocation I will be very disappointed.

Morton's is at Tower Place and has been for a decade.  There's no news here.  Read both of the articles announcing the restaurants, they are going to be new to this area and one will be new to the midwest.

Morton's is at Tower Place and has been for a decade.  There's no news here.  Read both of the articles announcing the restaurants, they are going to be new to this area and one will be new to the midwest.

 

Kendall, can you please post a link?

^Look at earlier posts in this thread and you will find all of the info he's talking about.

Bad news - I just heard that 5/3 is kicking out several of the tenants on 6th St.  This include Servatti's, Jones the Florist, and Widmers.  I'm not sure if the other tenants are included in this as well.  I'm going to send email to DCI and 5/3 and express my opinions. 

 

I think the changes to Fountain Square sound great, but I do not understand kicking out successful businesses.  This sounds similiar to what the 580 Building did.  They basically kicked out the 580 Cafe, Havana Martini Club, and Blue Chip Cookie.

^That's stupid. You're not really progressing much if you're kicking old successful businesses out in the process.

^Look at earlier posts in this thread and you will find all of the info he's talking about.

 

Oh, I know, but I was talking about the article talking about Morton's and the other going into Express and Lerner.

Bad news - I just heard that 5/3 is kicking out several of the tenants on 6th St.  This include Servatti's, Jones the Florist, and Widmers.  I'm not sure if the other tenants are included in this as well.  I'm going to send email to DCI and 5/3 and express my opinions. 

 

Was there any mention as to why they were 'kicking' those tenants out?  Is there a larger tenant that they may be trying to make room for.....what?  I wouldn't think that they would just go 'kicking' people out all willy nilly.

Bad news - I just heard that 5/3 is kicking out several of the tenants on 6th St.  This include Servatti's, Jones the Florist, and Widmers.  I'm not sure if the other tenants are included in this as well.  I'm going to send email to DCI and 5/3 and express my opinions. 

 

Was there any mention as to why they were 'kicking' those tenants out?  Is there a larger tenant that they may be trying to make room for.....what?  I wouldn't think that they would just go 'kicking' people out all willy nilly.

 

Sorry, I forgot to mention the reason!  5/3 is relocating their branch on the skywalk level down to the street level.  I do think that this makes sense, especially with the skywalk demolition.  However, I think it is unfortunate that successful businesses will close.  I'm under the impression that Servatti's will not bother trying to find another location to replace 6th Street.  Their court street location will be the only one downtown. 

 

It seems that over the past few years, several business down here have been kicked out by their landlords, never to open again in CBD.  Havana Martini Club has been the exception.

^So 3 stores have to relocate in order for enough room for 1 bank location?  That doesn't seem right.....but crazier things have happened.

^So 3 stores have to relocate in order for enough room for 1 bank location?  That doesn't seem right.....but crazier things have happened.

 

Honestly, I'm surprised they need so much room.  Anytime I go to the Fountain Square location, only 2-3 tellers are working.  They currently have about 10-15 windows available.

Bad news - I just heard that 5/3 is kicking out several of the tenants on 6th St.  This include Servatti's, Jones the Florist, and Widmers.  I'm not sure if the other tenants are included in this as well.  I'm going to send email to DCI and 5/3 and express my opinions. 

 

Was there any mention as to why they were 'kicking' those tenants out?  Is there a larger tenant that they may be trying to make room for.....what?  I wouldn't think that they would just go 'kicking' people out all willy nilly.

 

Sorry, I forgot to mention the reason!  5/3 is relocating their branch on the skywalk level down to the street level.  I do think that this makes sense, especially with the skywalk demolition.  However, I think it is unfortunate that successful businesses will close.  I'm under the impression that Servatti's will not bother trying to find another location to replace 6th Street.  Their court street location will be the only one downtown. 

 

It seems that over the past few years, several business down here have been kicked out by their landlords, never to open again in CBD.  Havana Martini Club has been the exception.

 

Servatti's opened up a store in Clifton (the old Virgina bakery)

 

Was there any mention as to why they were 'kicking' those tenants out?  Is there a larger tenant that they may be trying to make room for.....what?  I wouldn't think that they would just go 'kicking' people out all willy nilly.

 

There are some tenants that will be going in that will be a "better fit" for the new square.  From what I hear, they will be worth it.

Here are the mockups of Fountain Square North's facade:

 

The day shots are of the glass that was selected.  The glass on the left that looks like alternating bands is what will be on the big box at the west end of the building.  The glass on the right is what will be the majority of the façade.  You’ll notice on the top pane of glass on the right side that there is an edge deletion of the frit on the top and bottom of the piece of glass.  This will be what all of frit will be like – so there will be horizontal bands of clear glass at each steel plate.

 

The main elevation will have the glass on the right and there will be three lites of glass between each vertical tube column.  The glass is supported off of the horizontal steel plates which will be supported between the tube columns by pairs of steel rods spanning from top to bottom.

 

The night shots are pretty representative of what the light will look like.  The fixture mounting for the mock-up was with zip strips… in the finished design they will be mounted on plates projecting off of the front face of the vertical pipes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The nighttime shots do look cool, but I will need to see the whole thing up before I pass judgement.

Ahh, the power of LEDs.  They should rig it up so the color can change with the musical act on the square.

I like this very much...however I was under the impression that work on the 5/3 facade would not begin until after the renovation of the square was finished....if I am misinformed then that is awesome!  Looks great better than what I originally envisioned.

Are they already putting them up?...i ate lunch near the square and it didn't seem like i saw anything new...i will check again today when i head out to lunch...

I stopped by today and saw nothing out of the ordinary...they are starting to get hte surface flattened with concrete on the actual square....but, i was looking around for those glass "whatever they are" and i could not find them...that must have just been a test and then now they are put away in safe keeping until they are ready for their premier :-D  :-D ...I will say that Rock Bottom Brewery is doing a killing at lunch i walked in (just because i had never been there) there was a 45 minute wait FOR LUNCH....good to see they are still doing well even with the square closed...

Here are some images of the new logo for fountain square...I just received this in an email today from 3cdc.  I like it!  I especially like that they put an effort forth to make sure that it works with the Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism brand identity.  Here is the text that accompanied the email:

 

3CDC UNVEILS NEW FOUNTAIN SQUARE LOGO

Cincinnati, June 27, 2006 – The Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC), today unveiled the new logo for Fountain Square. Bill Donabedian, Managing Director of Fountain Square, said the new graphic "will help us brand the Square as a destination where all Cincinnatians can find fun, excitement and even a surprise or two."

 

Designed by Over the Rhine firm Metaphor Studio, the logo is based on three guiding principles. In collaboration with the designers, 3CDC determined that the new logo (shown below) must:

· Adhere to the brand guidelines developed by the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber to underscore the Square's connection to organizational partners and area stakeholders

· Be an abstract representation, open to different interpretations by different audiences

· Appear fun and full of motion, like the revitalized Square it symbolizes

 

Much more than a place, the new logo represents the experiences visitors will find on the new Fountain Square, according to Donabedian, who purposely requested a design that can be adapted for different uses. The open center section of the four-cornered graphic is designed to accommodate any one of a series of icons reflecting different activities planned for the Square.

 

For example, the sample icons shown left to right below might be used to help promote a live music event, the unveiling of the Fountain, a food-related event, a retail store opening, a special celebration or an activity specially developed for teens. "In a word," says Donabedian, "our new logo – like our new Square – is organic…a vibrant, adaptable thing."

 

Soon, 3CDC will launch a website at www.myfountainsquare.com, to provide information and invite the comments, suggestions and volunteers necessary to further enrich the activities planned for Cincinnati's most important public space.

 

Contact:  Kevin Armstrong, 513-861-3220

 

 

 

 

 

Are they already putting them up?...i ate lunch near the square and it didn't seem like i saw anything new...i will check again today when i head out to lunch...

 

 

I believe McMicken said they were just mockups.

 

Also, the new logos don't really seem to fit with the cool new work and design being installed on Fountain Square and Government Square.  In so many words, I don't like them!

Also, the new logos don't really seem to fit with the cool new work and design being installed on Fountain Square and Government Square.

 

How so.....just curious?

I'm not really a big fan of the "branding" I mean fountain square pretty much speaks for itself; but oh well...I'm really excited about the project and can't wait until it's done.

^I'm not really a big fan of the "branding" I mean fountain square pretty much speaks for itself; but oh well...

 

Agreed.  That new design looks incredibly stupid.  It looks stupid because it assumes we are stupid, that's why there are little pictures of what one can do at Fountain Square just in case a bunch of wealthy illiterates wander down to Fifth and Vine and can't figure out what's going on- Guitar = Cool Music!, Confetti = Fun & Wholesome Party!, Fountain = Fountain!  How many euros did they pay the gay German designer to come up with this piece of schlock?  How bout some catchphrases for these signs just in case people don't understand what they're supposed to do when they see them: 

Fountain Square- You're supposed to have fun here.

Fountain Square- Don't be scared, a square is like an outdoor mall.

Fountain Square- Lamer than the Special Olympics.

 

I apologized for the above cheap shots, but in the words of G.O.B. Bluth, "C'mon!"

I guess the rest of you aren't familiar with brand identity and marketing.  It is one of the most powerful and influential tools in modern society.  It goes beyond simply creating a brand, but rather creating a feeling (or in our case a sense of place).  If you disagree with me then you should look towards the success of such companies as:  Procter & Gamble, Starbucks, Macintosh (ipods...), and NYC (I Love NY).  All of these companies have had great success at creating these feelings/emotions and as a result people must have/want their product.  Cincinnati is lucky enough to have great talent in this field right here.  With branding and marketing giants like:  P&G, Federated, LPK.

 

This is not a matter of informing people of the obvious....its about design and its appeal.  Does everyone who buys the T-shirt really LOVE NY?  Most likely not, but it is 'cool' to get/wear the shirt to many people.  Many people buy white colored headphones just so that their portable music device also looks like the 'cool' ipod.

 

The two images that I posted are separate pieces....the 1st is the main logo...whereas the other ones would correspond to the event ie:  should they be promoting a music act on the square they would use the applicable logo for the circular part of the logo.

 

If you would like to continue to deny the strong effects that branding and marketing have on modern society then I would strongly recommend reading Lovemarks.  This book will explain the extreme amount of influence that branding/marketing really have on society.  You can also check out this website that will give you a crash course:

http://www.allaboutbranding.com/index.lasso?article=336

Rando, the main attraction is a monument. It looks tacky. Would you have those crazy vibrant colors on a sign in front of The White House? I can understand the businesses that surround it having signage but I just don't think it's appropriate for Fountain Square. It just looks tacky. It looks like it's marketed towards little kids.

^So then you dont like the new facade on the 5/3 bldg either???  And I would also guess that you find the modern videoboard, above the square, to be tacky and out of place.

 

These are also not children's colors, but rather colors that are sleek/modern/hip.  This color scheme is being used all over the place to promote design/creative things (check out a design firm, architect, etc website...many are designed with this color scheme).  Your design principles need to be sharpened a little.

My design principles are fine. The fountain isn't "modern and hip". It's an important historic monument. If it were signage for a business it would be very appropriate but whatever you have your opinion and I have mine.