June 26, 20159 yr So what's the latest on this project? It's 7 years, going on 8, and I just don't get it. How can it take almost 8 years for a city to get a 200 room hotel built? Have there been any renderings released of how the hotel will even look like, and any what the construction time frame will be?
June 26, 20159 yr So what's the latest on this project? It's 7 years, going on 8, and I just don't get it. How can it take almost 8 years for a city to get a 200 room hotel built? Have there been any renderings released of how the hotel will even look like, and any what the construction time frame will be? You have to realize a couple things about this project. It wasn't just a simple, "we bought land and are building a hotel." It was complicated due to all the various owners of various aspects of this site in conjunction with the garage that had to be built at 8th and Sycamore in order for this hotel to be viable. So it had to wait on that before construction could begin. Also, this isn't the only hotel that has happened. It's one of many. The city isn't STILL waiting to get a 200 room hotel, we've gotten several in that timeframe, and some really nice ones at that. This project was always going to be slow due to the necessity of tearing down existing public infrastructure, waiting for the Red Cross to move, and a new garage to be a sure thing. And the garage was the slow part. It took awhile for that to become a reality due to the costs associated with it and because it was later revised to become part of a 20ish story tower. In the end we're winding up with a new hotel, a garage, AND a tower from this site. Nothing to squawk at. The renderings have been around for over a year of what the building will look like. They've been doing actual construction for months. If you drive by you an see how far along it is. It is supposed to open towards the end of the year. I haven't been by this week. Are the exterior walls also going to be an ICF system? Or are they going with a hybrid construction of using ICFs for major structural elements and stick framing the rest?
February 1, 20169 yr Bump “All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
February 2, 20169 yr For a low budget hotel the massing/scale/fenestration/etc. of the building isn't turning out too horribly. I'm holding judgment until finish materials are put in place, but so far I like it. Definitely an improvement over that s***hole garage that was there before.
February 2, 20169 yr Does anyone else feel like the progress on the actual construction of this hotel has been moving very slow? I have been watching them build it and its seems like everyday there are only 2 or 3 guys working at a time. Anyone have any insight?
July 13, 20168 yr Pictures of the new hotel from today. “All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
July 13, 20168 yr Not bad - but it's always weird seeing building heights get squashed down from high 12' ceilings to measly 9' ceilings, especially if you don't have to run a lot of mechanicals in the ceilings. '
July 13, 20168 yr Personally, I don't like high ceilings. Aside from the fact that I am afraid of heights, it turns changing light bulbs into an ordeal, forces you to buy an expensive ladder and makes you feel small. More to deal with as far as cobwebs and spiders too.
July 19, 20168 yr I must be the only one that thinks the stacked stone building material on the base columns looks bad. Does not fit into the context of downtown. I guess it slipped by the urban design review board...
July 19, 20168 yr I guess I view the stone as being a little kitschy but iconic of Holiday Inn's design. It doesn't bother me. On another note -- it's insane that this thread was started in 2008. Does anyone know if the "penthouse-level restaurant" is still part of the plan?
July 19, 20168 yr My biggest disappointment is that this was not taller. I wish it were more of a 12-15 story building.
July 19, 20168 yr Yeah I'm also disappointed/surprised that it is so small. I guess they do have one right across the river but at least a couple more floors would have been nice.
July 19, 20168 yr 6 stories is probably the tallest they could go using stick/styrofoam construction. Taller than that, and they probably would have to shift to steel and concrete, which is obviously way more expensive.
July 19, 20168 yr I must be the only one that thinks the stacked stone building material on the base columns looks bad. Does not fit into the context of downtown. I guess it slipped by the urban design review board... At least this is at the storefront level, and much more likely be changed over time.
July 28, 20168 yr I must be the only one that thinks the stacked stone building material on the base columns looks bad. Does not fit into the context of downtown. I guess it slipped by the urban design review board... Isn't one of the great things about downtown Cincinnati -- and any downtown -- that the buildings *don't* look the same architecturally? What is the "context of downtown"?
July 28, 20168 yr There's context and there's context. This stacked stone is an entirely suburban cheap plastic fantastic material appropriate to Mason but not downtown. You can make the same argument about putting vinyl siding on a skyscraper, or a split-rail fence around a downtown park. It doesn't mean you must use cut Indiana limestone cladding or a decorative wrought iron fence, but using objects and materials in the wrong place, or context, is the definition of kitsch.
July 28, 20168 yr When I think of a holiday inn, I see neon green signs and beige stucco walls. I am pleasantly surprised this building actually has a mostly brick facade. It is turning out far better than I had thought it would.
July 28, 20168 yr I am not a fan of the stacked stone columns that are skinny at the bottom and get fatter as they rise. Its a really a lame aesthetic. The brick color of the rest of the building is nice.
January 3, 20178 yr Color me impressed by that Holiday Inn building. Granted my expectations were rock bottom, but it really does look decent, especially with that brick facade. I guess I wish the building itself was taller, but overall their have been waaaaay more unattractive infill in the CBD compared to the Holiday Inn building. Also, any info on the Spoon and Cellar place? It seems like a resturaunt but I've heard next to nothing about this established. It's strange because usually you would at least see the Cincinnati Biz Courier promote places like this a bit.
January 3, 20178 yr Color me impressed by that Holiday Inn building. Granted my expectations were rock bottom, but it really does look decent, especially with that brick facade. I guess I wish the building itself was taller, but overall their have been waaaaay more unattractive infill in the CBD compared to the Holiday Inn building. Also, any info on the Spoon and Cellar place? It seems like a resturaunt but I've heard next to nothing about this established. It's strange because usually you would at least see the Cincinnati Biz Courier promote places like this a bit. Yeah, it is a restaurant and like you I'm surprised there hasn't been any press on it. It opened a few days ago, but I've only been able to find the drink menu.
January 3, 20178 yr Here's their website: https://www.spoonandcellar.com/ And menu: https://www.spoonandcellar.com/menu/ Trademark for "Spoon & Cellar" is held by Bimal Patel, the founder of Rolling Hills, the developer behind this hotel project: http://www.trademarkia.com/spoon--cellar-86572502.html
January 3, 20178 yr It sounds like they used the Hipster Business Name Generator to come up with that.
January 4, 20178 yr taestell[/member]: I was about to chime in with that :D I love the infill. Granted the floor heights are compressed compared to older building stock, I think it turned out well. I appreciate the smaller massing - it doesn't overwhelm and it blends in with its surrounding building stock.
January 9, 20178 yr It took 8 years, but downtown Cincinnati’s Holiday Inn is open and you need to see it: PHOTOS Jan 9, 2017, 1:34pm EST Updated Jan 9, 2017, 1:58pm EST Tom Demeropolis Senior Staff Reporter Cincinnati Business Courier When Bimal Patel started working on plans to bring a hotel to the northwest corner of Seventh and Broadway streets, he had no idea it would be a project eight years in the making. It’s been quite a journey since Rolling Hills Hospitality put the former American Red Cross property under contract in 2008. http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2017/01/09/it-took-8-years-but-downtown-cincinnati-s-holiday.html
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