I was just thinking that the Metro area has so many great neighborhoods and districts, that it would be fun to see what everyone's opinion is on the top 10.  Qualifications for best are completely subjective and up to the individual. Here's mine in no order:

 

Hyde Park-Great restaurants, shopping, very pedestrian, great homes...

 

Mt. Adams- Beautiful views, very urban and dense, nightlife, cultural ammenities

 

Northside- Funky and bohemian, underground vibe, great restaurants

 

Clifton-Ludlow- Love the Esquire and Sitwells, the cool stores, walkability of the neighborhood around it

Mainstrasse- Hidden gem in NKY, lots of restaurants and bars, outdoor seating, unique

 

Mariemont- Feels like you're in a utopic England, love the Tutor everywhere, the movie theater, parks, restaurants, and all the trees

 

Over the Rhine- Architecturally stunning, so much potential.  Will definitely be better in a couple years if the Gateway Quarter is any indication of the future...

 

Mt. Lookout- Nightlife, restaurants, many businesses open late, love the neighborhood feel of the place

 

Wyoming- Great housing stock, Wyoming Ave. has some nice stores and restaurants, good place to walk around in

 

Clifton Heights- College energy, unique dining and shopping, lots of people around my age

Cheviot!!

In order:

 

1) Prospect Hill 

2) Over the Rhine 

3) Downtown CBD 

4) Northside 

5) Pendleton 

6) Mt Adams

7) Clifton (ludlow)

8] West End

9) Hyde Park

10) Brighton

1) Clifton (Ludlow)

Heck, I live here now, and I love the convenience.  Absolutely everything is within walking distance.

2) Northside

Blue Jay Restaurant, Shake-It, two of my former places of employment...

3) Mt. Washington

Lived there for 15 years, so I definitely have a soft spot for the old neighborhood.  Creamy Whip has definitely become a wonderful addition.

4. Over-The-Rhine

I hope to see the neighborhood have everything someone could ever want and need outside of a job...one day.

5. Business District

Ditto the OTR blip, but *including* a job.

6. Mt. Lookout

I guess I have grown to like neighborhoods nestled into or on to hillsides.  Mt. Lookout has so much to offer.  I'm torn though:  I do and I don't wish it wasn't transforming into an extension of Hyde Park

7. Hyde Park

I love seeing all the runners in this neighborhood along with Mt. Lookout.  Arthur's is wonderful.  The area is beautiful.]/i]

8. O'Bryonville

I can thank them for The Running Spot and the neat little small town anomaly thing it's got going on.

9. Mt. Adams

Why does anyone else like Mt. Adams?  The overlooks, narrow streets, small storefront, wonderful style and architecture.

10.Corryville

I used to live right on the edge of Corryville, and I took great pride in trying to contribute to the community in whatever small way I could.  It's a shame that it's such fair game to the university, developers, the hospitals, the zoo, etc.

 

Which neighborhood I hope to see on my list in the next 20 years:

*) Northern Liberties

I still feel that OTR's current designation is much too large, and I think the area north of Liberty St, using it's actual neighborhood name and distinction could greatly benefit that area positively.  Otherwise, I don't see much of it getting redeveloped and rehabbed in the next 20 years.  I hope for a hip neighborhood known as NoLib.

 

Oh, and I don't care for the west side much.

Top 10 Neighborhood Business Districts (I don't know why I completely ignored the Top 10 neighborhoods topic when I posted this):

 

[*]Clifton - It's functional, lively, and has virtually everything you need all from great local businesses. It also has a good residential/commercial mix and nice public space. The nightlife is equally as vibrant as the day time. New streetscaping project should do wonders to make this NBD even better.

 

[*]Hyde Park - Probably the nicest looking of all the NBDs. It's clean, has a great centerpiece of a public area, local businesses, good mix of offerings. Comes in a close second to Clifton because the variety isn't as great - no grocery store, no theatre to be specific.

 

[*]O'Bryonville - This is my #1 most underrated NBD in Cincinnati. Great layout and functionality, unique design/feel and its location is great. It is lacking in variety like Hyde Park, but the offerings are unique and local.

 

[*]Mt. Lookout - The same could be said for Mt. Lookout that was said for Hyde Park. The one exception is a bad one...Mt. Lookout is lacking the gorgeous centerpiece that Hyde Park boasts and in its place is surface parking. The removal of that parking for a great public space would spring this NBD up a couple spots.

 

[*]Mt. Adams - This NBD is in one of the most unique settings with the sharp inclines of its streets. The businesses are local, the nightlife is great, great public space, but it lacks those some of the biggies for an outstanding NBD (grocery, theatre, service shops).

 

[*]Northside - A bit gritty, too gritty for some people's tastes. Great offerings though that are unique to this district and local. The nightlife is there, as well as, the day time traffic. Good variety, but there are some serious gaps that need to be plugged in the NBD strip and a great public space for gathering is lacking.

 

[*]Clifton Heights - Not a great diversity of businesses, but has some great food offerings. You can also find a natural foods grocery, decent nightlife, and buzzing daytime traffic. It's got direct access to some of the best bus routes in the city. The NBD is lacking a public space, needs a good cleanup with a streetscaping project, although the Facade Improvement Program has done wonders for the district. With some TLC and a couple new offerings in the new development to the east, this NBD could get bumped up a few spots.

 

[*]Over-the-Rhine - Up and comer with great local offerings that are unique. If I didn't weigh the unique/local offerings so much then this might be lower than Downtown/CBD. The area needs some streetscaping, facade improvements, still has vacant buildings, and needs some more service retailers...also lacking public spaces.

 

[*]Downtown/CBD - Has everything you would expect a CBD to have, but in order for it to move up the list then it needs some more service retail and local offerings. Great public spaces and very clean.

 

[*]DeSales Corner (E. Walnut Hills) - This makes the list because like OTR it is an up and comer. It has a great location and great potential. The new businesses are great, but the rest of the district is lacking. A public space is also needed.

[*]Northside - A bit gritty, too gritty for some people's tastes.  Great offerings though that are unique to this district and local.  The nightlife is there, as well as, the day time traffic.  Good variety, but there are some serious gaps that need to be plugged in the NBD strip and a great public space for gathering is lacking.

 

Hoffner Park is a pretty significant public space.  Centrally located as well.

Brian's list of underrated neighborhoods, because I can't follow directions:

1. Prospect Hill - Not on many people's radar, but great location, history, architecture, style

2. O'Bryonville - Nice, quaint business district

3. Pendleton - Like a condensed OTR

4. DeSales Corner - I LOOOOOVE the potential of DeSales Corner. With completely different architectural styles working together on one corner. Not there yet.

5. Columbia Tusculum - Oh little river town, how I love thee. Unique architecture for the area, unfortunatly headed the wrong direction.

6. Lytle Park - In the CBD, but a completely unique corner of town that maintains the character of the CBD 100 years ago. Needs some more restaurants/streetlife.

7. Camp Washington - Despite being chopped up and somewhat abandoned, walking around still gives that strong neighborhood feel.

8. Corryville - Because everyone needs the seedy part of town. Ours just happens to have streetscaping and a concert hall frequented by high schoolers.

9. The Brewery District - OTR is several neighborhoods, can you imagine how wonderful this will be if it's realized?

10. Queensgate - Ok, there's not a lot happening there now, but my favorite named neighborhood, and there's talk of making a mixed-use area and not just empty manufacturing

 

Overall, I am continually blown away by the quality of the built environment in Cincinnati. After studying in St. Louis, I realized most neglected neighborhoods don't stay standing like they do here. Somebody knew what they were doing, and we're lucky for it.

1. Over-the-Rhine/Downtown

2. Northside

3. Norwood

4. College Hill

5. Mt. Adams

6. Walnut Hills

7. Clifton

8. North Avondale

9. Roselawn

10. West End

1. Northside - I don't think there's a need to really explain this one.

2. East Walnut Hills - My neighborhood.  :)  Gorgeous houses, Eden Park, the Brewhouse, Parkside Cafe.  And one of Cincinnati's best looking places during fall weather.

3. Downtown/OTR - Home to the Coffee Emporium, Kaldi's, the CAC, Findlay Market, Shanghai Mama's, and much more.

4. Mt. Adams - Not my scene at all, but the uniqueness of the layout and the views of downtown are worth a nice stroll through the area.  Plus, it's close to East Walnut Hills, and a drive through the park on a nice night to get a milkshake at the Mt. Adams UDF is hard to beat.

5. Clifton - Yes, UC's recent development of a lot of the area sucks, but it's still a great neighborhood.  Many small businesses, coffee shops and the best art house theater in the area.

 

6. Pleasant Ridge

7. Hyde Park

8. Oakley

9. Columbia-Tusculum

10. East Price Hill

Clifton

Mt. Adams

Hyde Park

Northside

E. Walnut Hills/O'Bryonville

Oakley

North Avondale

Columbia-Tusculum

Mt. Auburn

College Hill

 

 

I am going to do this in terms of where I would live if I were to settle here:

 

Over-the-Rhine

Downtown/CBD

Northside

Clifton (live here now)

Prospect Hill (Mt. Auburn)

Mt. Adams

Mt. Lookout

Oakley

East Walnut Hills (DeSales)

Hyde Park

 

2) Northside

Blue Jay Restaurant, Shake-It, two of my former places of employment...

 

you worked at both those places?

^No, I was listing some of the things I've enjoyed about Northside.

 

Sorry.  Now I see how that could have been mistaken.

Clifton - I live there.

Clifton Heights - used to live there.

Hyde Park - used to live there - East Hyde Park that is.

Mt. Adams

Northside

O'Bryonville

Oakley

Mt. Lookout

Pleasant Ridge

North Avondale/Paddock Hills

 

 

 

Since I wasted everyone's time with my Top 10 NBDs post I'll do a quicky for my Top 10 Neighborhoods now...

 

[*]Clifton

[*]Hyde Park

[*]Northside

[*]East Walnut Hills (amazing housing stock)

[*]Downtown/CBD

[*]Columbia Tusculum (incredibly unique architecture compared to rest of city

[*]East End (Riverside Drive is going to be incredible once fully built-out with bike/ped trail, new streetscaping, and the riverfront parks)

[*]Mt. Lookout

[*]Over-the-Rhine (not there yet, but it won't be long with the streetcar on the way)

[*]North Avondale (like E. Walnut Hills...amazing housing stock)

1. Downtown

2. Newport (KY)

3. Covington (KY)

4. OTR

5. Mt. Adams

6. Clifton

7. Northside

8. Mt. Lookout

9. Hyde Park/Oakley

10. Bellevue (KY)

 

There are a lot of great neighborhoods in Cincinnati, but the most important feature for me is walkability.  So my number 1 has to be Downtown.  My 2, 3, & 4 are all neighborhoods surrounding to Downtown, meaning that not only are they walkable, but they're also adjacent to the most walkable neighborhood which also happens to be THE major employment hub in the region.  I think OTR in its current state is 4th, but could easily become number 2 or even 1 in the coming years.  I love Mt. Adams, even though it is somewhat isolated.  Great views, neat buildings, high density, and lots of restaurants and bars.  I like the rest for various reasons.

Oh yeah, I didn't even think to include Nky neighborhoods, but Covington would definitely make the list.  Newport maybe, and Bellevue definitely not, even though they have a cute and functional NBD (too Appalachian for me).

Oh yeah, I didn't even think to include Nky neighborhoods, but Covington would definitely make the list.  Newport maybe, and Bellevue definitely not, even though they have a cute and functional NBD (too Appalachian for me).

 

Randy "forgets" about NKY. Shocking!  :wink:

 

Thanks for the Bellevue NBD shoutout, I'll make sure to tell my neighbors about it while we're shooting at each other from across the holler.

tough choice...

 

1. Mt. Adams - cliche... but I just love its atmosphere... love the tight hilltop streets and the nightlife and restaurants tucked here and there... wonderful example of "upscale Appalachian urbanism"

 

2. Clifton - perhaps the quintessential Cincy neighborhood... offers a little bit of everything

 

3. Over-The-Rhine - it will be No. 1 when it fully revitalizes... the built environment is simply one-of-a-kind... feels very "big city"

 

4. Hyde Park

 

5. Cumminsville

 

6. Columbia - Tusculum (what does he mean by "going in the wrong direction"?)

 

7. Lower Price Hill (I LOVE the built environment there)

 

8. MainStrasse

 

9. Oregon (Dayton)

 

10. Carthage

Thanks for the Bellevue NBD shoutout, I'll make sure to tell my neighbors about it while we're shooting at each other from across the holler.

 

Actually, a friend of mine in Bellevue did shoot a raccoon off of his roof last year.  Only in Kentucky...  :roll:

I mean that a lot of the great buildings in C-T are falling into disrepair and not being restored. Sad...

I mean that a lot of the great buildings in C-T are falling into disrepair and not being restored. Sad...

 

I was not aware of this... I thought it was a revitalizing area.  I'm sorry to hear this.

i mean i can't say that i'm an expert on the matter, but i haven't heard of a lot of investment besides the new big box office complex, unlike many other neighborhoods in the city. maybe someone else knows better than i do.

What's happening is that a bunch of the older homes that have been all but abandoned for decades are being pulled down, while those homes with residual value are getting investment. The area is being set up for a major expansion once the economy turns (along the likes of what's going on Riverside Drive).

 

My list:

1. PRidge

2. Hyde Park

3. Mt. Lookout

4. DT

5. East End/C-T, Riverside Drive

6. Covington

7. Wyoming

8. Clifton Gaslight

9. Northside

10. Mt. Adams

I mean that a lot of the great buildings in C-T are falling into disrepair and not being restored. Sad...

 

I was not aware of this... I thought it was a revitalizing area.  I'm sorry to hear this.

 

The area has seen several infill projects over recent years.  There is the new commercial strip that isn't desirable, but overall the area is pretty well maintained (especially the historic structures).  A drive along Tusculum Ave should do the trick as the neighborhood is quite tiny.

MoonlightOhio - I love your list, but I do need to quibble:

 

2. East Walnut Hills - My neighborhood.  :)  Gorgeous houses, Eden Park, the Brewhouse, Parkside Cafe.

 

The Brewhouse, the Parkside Cafe, and much of Eden Park are all in Walnut Hills, not East Walnut Hills - they're two completely distinct neighborhoods, and as a Walnut Hills guy, I'm particularly particular about the distinction!  Sorry for my quibbling...

 

My list:

 

1) OTR

2) Mt. Adams

3) Clifton

4) Walnut Hills

5) Hyde Park

6) East Walnut Hills/O'Bryonville

7) Northside

8 ) Pleasant Ridge

9) East End

10) Montgomery

 

OTR/Pendleton

Clifton

Mt. Auburn

Walnut Hills

East Walnut Hills

Mt. Adams

Hyde Park

Northside

(Covington Mainstrasse)

Clifton Heights

(Newport Mansion Hill)

(Mariemont)

Pleasant Ridge

1) Mt Adams- Nothing in the midwest/south competes

2) Over the Rhine - see #1

3) Glendale- Yes, an entire city... was one of the first suburbs not built on a grid... incredibly charming... incredibly unique

4) Hamilton- The most under utilized suburb in Greater Cincinnati. With a little TLC, could be amazing. If the money put into Crapchester was invested here, it would be a Tourest trap

5) Indian Hills

6) Newton -It amazes me that places like #5,6 are INSIDE the beltway. How many metro areas have suburbs/country closer to downtown than traditional suburbs. You feel more in the sticks in these areas that anywhere else near by.

7) Covington. From Mainstraus to Riverside drive. Antebellum to the Ascent.

8) Pendleton - What OTR CAN BE

9) Mariemont

10) Walnut Hills

Yo,

 

What the hell is Newton?

Newtown... my bad

Yo,

 

What the hell is Newton?

my favorite part of urban ohio is when people type 8 )

1.) Mt Adams - Incredibly unique. A true treasure of a neighborhood. The dense housing, thriving business district, and of course the hilltop setting combine to make this my favorite neighborhood anywhere. Enough said.

2.) Hyde Park - My wife lived here when we got out of college in an apartment on Observatory, and I actually spent about 3 months there as well. It's deserving of the hype - great street grid, beautiful houses, the swankiest business district around, and Arthurs!

3.) OTR - Based on potential alone. This would be the easiest #1 pick if it was truly on it's feet, but while there has been terrific progress and newfound energy and excitement, it still has a ways to go. I think anybody who appreciates good city planning absolutely worships this place for what it once was and what its well on its way to becoming again. Special place.

4.) Clifton - I'm lumping Clifton proper and Clifton Heights together on this one, they've always been the same neighborhood in my mind. Moved out when I was 17 to live in a house in Clifton Heights with my buddies so it will always be pretty special to me. Plus you can't beat the gas light district, another superbly laid out 1st generation suburb with great housing stock and the Ludlow business district a short walk away.

5.) Mt. Lookout - Lived here while my wife lived in Hyde Park right out of college. Great idea. Bars, pizza, sushi. Gorgeous (and expensive!) houses. All settled into a little nook between two hills.

6.) Oakley - Hyde Park light. Great housing stock and a completely rejuvinated business district make this a great place to be Hyde Park 'near'. It's a great neighborhood on its own though.

7.) Norwood - Norwood is at a place right now where Oakley was maybe 15 years ago. That said, Norwood has something to offer that Hyde Park and Oakley don't generally - HUGE HOUSES. The area around Floral and the president streets has some of my favorite houses in Cincinnati. The other side of Montgomery will take a little longer to catch up, but the place has a pretty decent present and nothing but upside.

8.) Mt. Auburn - The 'other Mt.' Sitting right on top of OTR, you get some of the best views of the city. Plus housing almost as old and almost as beautiful as OTR.

9.) Bellevue - I live in Bellevue b/c it's on my list. Not the other way around. Despite disparaging remarks made about my neighbors (it is definitely Kentucky, I'll give you that), Bellevue has a great socio-economic mix. It's been called gritty, appalacian-y, whatever, take a walk through all of Bellevue and I think most people would be surprised. Bellevue's ace in the hole is its revived business district on Fairfield, which is what drew us here in the first place.

10.) Newport - Historic District - Newport to me is almost 2 seperate neighborhoods. East and west, and I'm ignoring NOTL b/c people tend to crap whenever it's mentioned. West Newport is pretty bad, though it does have signs of life. East Newport is just a great collection of brick row houses and quiet leafy streets.

9.) Bellevue - I live in Bellevue b/c it's on my list. Not the other way around. Despite disparaging remarks made about my neighbors (it is definitely Kentucky, I'll give you that), Bellevue has a great socio-economic mix. It's been called gritty, appalacian-y, whatever, take a walk through all of Bellevue and I think most people would be surprised. Bellevue's ace in the hole is its revived business district on Fairfield, which is what drew us here in the first place.

 

Yeah, Bellevue's pretty great.  If 471 didn't exist, it would have been much higher on my list.  I know that 471 doesn't technically run through Bellevue, but it does a good job of isolating it from Newport.

 

10.) Newport - Historic District - Newport to me is almost 2 seperate neighborhoods. East and west, and I'm ignoring NOTL b/c people tend to crap whenever it's mentioned. West Newport is pretty bad, though it does have signs of life. East Newport is just a great collection of brick row houses and quiet leafy streets.

 

I totally agree with this.  If Newport could just get the westside under control, there's a lot of opportunity buried there.  There's a ton of small, well-built brick houses over there that are just aching for first time homebuyers with more time than money to come in and fix up.  I'm hoping that a combination of the RT9 realignment and Ovation project will give western Newport a nudge over the next 10 years.  Also, I love that Newport has been adding infill housing with traditional lot sizes all over the east and west side.  Hope they keep that up until all of the empty lots are filled!

^ Newport has done a great job with infill. We actually looked at some of the new houses being built over by Pompilios. They look well-made, and blend well with the rest of the neighborhood.

 

Forgot to mention Monmouth, too. Reminds me of Cheviot's business district on steroids for some reason. It's much healthier though. Just gotta get the Brass @ss outta there.

3) Glendale- Yes, an entire city... was one of the first suburbs not built on a grid... incredibly charming... incredibly unique

 

I would say Glendale is charming in spite of the fact it was one of the first suburbs not built on a grid. Grids=Good.

I mean that a lot of the great buildings in C-T are falling into disrepair and not being restored. Sad...

 

Yea, you have to be thinking of another neighborhood.  CT is very well maintained, even in the lower part of the 'hood closest to the river.  There are three different sections of the 'hood: lower, middle, upper.  The upper is seeing some suburban type infill and their are also established mansions up close to Alms.  The middle section is the best part, featuring the beautiful Tusculum Avenue and some branching streets.  There has been A TON of infill here, some good, some bad, and some just awful. 

REK, are you kidding me?  If the Brass A** goes, Newport is dead to me! 

MoonlightOhio - I love your list, but I do need to quibble:

 

The Brewhouse, the Parkside Cafe, and much of Eden Park are all in Walnut Hills, not East Walnut Hills - they're two completely distinct neighborhoods, and as a Walnut Hills guy, I'm particularly particular about the distinction!  Sorry for my quibbling...

 

Well, then I'd like to amend my previous post to say "Walnut Hills" and leave the "East" out.  :)

 

I've always taken East Walnut Hills to be the area east of Kemper and west of O'Bryonville.  The immediate area that I live in is marketed as being Eden Park, but I've always assumed that was just for real estate reasons.

There are areas of ambiguity, but this generally outlines Walnut Hills:

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2390895

 

And here's East Walnut Hills:

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2390915

 

Victory Parkway is the main dividing line between The 'Nut and The East 'Nut.  Both are great neighborhoods, by the way - I've lived in both! - but I must say, I prefer Walnut Hills on a number of levels...and I could die happy if the locutions "The 'Nut" and "The East 'Nut" ever actually caught on...

 

 

Oh, and I can't believe I left Norwood off my Top 10 list...I need to make mine a Top 11...actually, Mt. Auburn too - Top 12.  And wow, if I had to include NKY, I'd need to squeeze at least 15 neighborhoods into my Top 10...

 

Price Hill from the top of the incline to St. Lawrence is one of the midwest's most exotic urban areas, in some ways the equivalent of Mt. Adams.  Obviously it hasn't attracted the same kind of money, and is hurt aesthetically by some of the 1960's apartment buildings on side streets fanning from Warsaw, which replaced what was surely some more interesting housing stock.  Nevertheless the little dip where Holy Family Church is situated is one of the city's great spots and the way St. Lawrence is angled to the street grid makes for countless dramatic views. 

Price Hill from the top of the incline to St. Lawrence is one of the midwest's most exotic urban areas, in some ways the equivalent of Mt. Adams. Obviously it hasn't attracted the same kind of money, and is hurt aesthetically by some of the 1960's apartment buildings on side streets fanning from Warsaw, which replaced what was surely some more interesting housing stock. Nevertheless the little dip where Holy Family Church is situated is one of the city's great spots and the way St. Lawrence is angled to the street grid makes for countless dramatic views.

 

Completely agree. That whole area around Grand Ave. Houses on Grand also have amazing views of downtown Cincinnati and Kentucky. Probably the most underrated street in Cincinnati. For years I went to school in Price Hill and went to friends houses and never even knew how nice Grand was. I bet you could snatch one of those houses up fairly cheaply too.

Another community in the metro area that I think should be mentioned is Oxford.  While it is completely dependent on the university, it is a pretty cool little town.  Also, downtown Loveland and Milford along the bike trail are pretty cool, as is Indian Hill, IMO.

I bet you could snatch one of those houses up fairly cheaply too

Grand views in Price Hill but the Primary Skimmings Thickening Building at MSD Sewage plant reeks when the wind blows your direction. I watched the eternal poop flame burn with vigor for a few years from atop Summit View when I lived up there.  As long as the odors remain "Price Hill Won't".

And wow, if I had to include NKY, I'd need to squeeze at least 15 neighborhoods into my Top 10...

 

 

Yeah, and I left out the KY suburbs that I like: Fort Wright, Fort Mitchell, Fort Thomas, & Park Hills.  Gotta draw the line somewhere I suppose.

I bet you could snatch one of those houses up fairly cheaply too

Grand views in Price Hill but the Primary Skimmings Thickening Building at MSD Sewage plant reeks when the wind blows your direction. I watched the eternal poop flame burn with vigor for a few years from atop Summit View when I lived up there.  As long as the odors remain "Price Hill Won't".

 

People think the quality of life in OTR is bad, try living in Lower Price Hill next to that Kroger plant or whatever the hell it is! That sh!t reeks.

 

Edit: wait, is that the sewage plant you're talking about?

1. OTR

2. Pleasant Ridge

3. Hyde Park

4. Mt. Adams

5. Northside

6. Columbia Tusculum

7. Mt. Lookout

8. Oakley

9. CBD/DT

10. Clifton