there really is no hope for mititgating the congestion in kenwood, they could make montgomery rd 12 lanes wides (it might be already) and nothing would be different

Center to tower above rest

BY MIKE BOYER | [email protected]

 

 

Kenwood Towne Place, the nearly 600,000-square-foot office-retail center wedged between Kenwood Towne Centre and Interstate 71, will be unlike any other development in suburban Cincinnati.

 

Click on link for article.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070405/BIZ01/704050341/1076/BIZ

Deck the Walls leaving Towne Centre

May 21, 2007 | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

 

Deck the Walls, which had its only local store at the mall, will move to Kenwood Place, a new project on Montgomery Road, said franchise owner Ken Rubin. It will open at the new site June 1.

 

Click on link for article.

^ Ummm...is it me or is this article all kinds of wrong?  Neither of the kenwood developments are on montgomery road and sterling cut glass was on Kenwood road...so this might not even be the right thread for the article.

Deck the Walls is going in the new complex where the Franks was.  They tore that down and then rebuilt a new complex and added space.

Shopper's paradise

Towne Place to add more upscale retail

 

 

 

KENWOOD - Crate & Barrel is on schedule to open its first store in Greater Cincinnati at Kenwood Towne Place in October 2008.

 

Work is progressing on the almost 600,000-square-foot office-retail center, which is wedged between Kenwood Towne Centre and Interstate 71.

 

Click on link for article.

 

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070821/BIZ01/708210348/1076

This project will look pretty cool as you're driving southbound on I-71.

I don't know... I still think this thing is hideous.  Unfortunately, those in the real estate community think I'm crazy when I express this sentiment.  I guess no one has architectural appreciation anymore.

 

I'm curious... in the year 2020, will we look back and say, "what the hell were we thinking?" like we do when we see '50s and '70s construction today?  I mean, I'm sure they thought it was cool back then.

Kenwood Towne Place photo update, 10/20/07

Building Cincinnati, 10/29/07

 

Work continues on the five-story, 1,600-space parking garage at the Kenwood Towne Place development in Kenwood.

 

Bear Creek Capital is building the $180 million project along I-71, next to the Kenwood Towne Centre.

 

Tenants will include Crate & Barrel, Fresh Fare by Kroger, Ethan Allen, Container Store and LA Fitness.

 

A 10-story tower will hold 250,000 square feet of office space.

 

Also pictured below is the muddy site of the former Parisian store and garage at Kenwood Towne Centre. A 140,000-square-foot Nordstrom is scheduled to open there in 2009.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.building-cincinnati.com/2007/10/kenwood-towne-place-photo-update-102007.html

 

Borders joining Kenwood Towne Place project

Business Courier of Cincinnati - by Lisa Biank Fasig Staff Reporter

Thursday, March 13, 2008 - 12:19 PM EDT

 

Kenwood Towne Place, the mixed-use project anchored by Crate & Barrel, has signed Borders Books, leaving three retail vacancies before reaching capacity.

 

Click on link for article.

Kenwood would actually be a really great light rail stop...until then I'll stick to Rookwood Commons and various other points closer to the center city.

What do they want a Borders in Kenwood for?  That giant Barnes & Noble just doesn't cut it?  Crate & Barrel is a huge score, since it's the only one in the city and practically every wedding nowadays has a bridal registry at C&B, but I don't see the addition of a Borders as big news.  I would have loved to have seen that Borders open downtown instead, but oh well.

That Barnes and Noble will probably fold within the next 2-3 years after the Borders is added to Kenwood Mall.  Isn't there a Barnes and Noble in Newport on the Levee though?

Yeah there's a B&N at Newport. Every time I go to Newport, it's window shopping at Barnes and Noble then off to the AMC. No other reason to go there unless you like watching your ice cream  being mixed on a dirty marble counter!

What do they want a Borders in Kenwood for?  That giant Barnes & Noble just doesn't cut it?  Crate & Barrel is a huge score, since it's the only one in the city and practically every wedding nowadays has a bridal registry at C&B, but I don't see the addition of a Borders as big news.  I would have loved to have seen that Borders open downtown instead, but oh well.

 

Almost everyone goes to Kenwood, no matter where they live in Cincinnati metro. I wouldn't be surprised if both survived.

That BN is one of the top producers in the whole chain. I don't think its going anywhere. Most regional retail centers around the country have both BN and Borders.

^ Agreed on both points.  I just don't see the addition of a second mega-bookstore as a major draw for the area.  It's like when they put a Lowe's next to an already existing Home Depot.  It makes perfect sense for Lowe's as a company to try to pull some of Home Depot's customers, but doesn't do much to make the area more attractive for consumers.  "Oh great, there's a store with a blue sign across the street that's identical to the store with the orange sign that I'm in right now. Yawn..."

are there any plans to renovate the interior of the mall?

 

I was there yesterday, and realized that 1989 wants its food court back. The corridors are pretty shabby too, especially in comparison to other malls of this caliber in OH (Beachwood and Polaris)

Borders are large footprint stores which are great for rents now but bad for rents in the future because there spaces have to massively reconfigured to accomodate smaller stores which will take those spots if the business were to fail.  That's also the reason that Border's wont soon open downtown it's a real hard sale with the retail space that we have right now.  Tower Place would have to redesign extensively to accomodate a bigger retailer.  The spaces inside would be better for boutiques but that ain't going to happen for a few more years.

I would love to see independant businesses start up in Tower Place (but from what I hear, credit is always a big problem in attracting them). I doubt the new owners of Tower Place have the money to accomidate top notch retailers; It probably would require a lot of funding from the city to modernize it. The economics just don't work without it.

Actually, I wasn't even thinking of Tower Place when I mentioned downtown.  I was imagining a multi-story one like they have in Chicago, with entrances at street level.  I don't know where they'd put such a thing, but it would be nice to have.

I hate Barnes and Noble. It's too Cliche. I'd rather have a Borders. B and N is all over the place, even in neighborhood business districts and at Ohio State they're taking market share from student text book sales. I'm sure its a trend all over the country by now.

Philly has a big Borders downtown, right off Broad. It is PACKED (too often with crazies though).

Philly has a big Borders downtown, right off Broad. It is PACKED (too often with crazies though).

 

Yup they have a guard at the door to keep bums out I guess...I stumbled in so that I could use the restroom.  Of course making it look like I was considering a purchase my whole way to the bathroom.  :-D

Yeah, what drives that store in Philly though is that its right in the heart of the University...  Not sure you'd see it in that location if it weren't for the University.

I think you are thinking of the big BN up by Penn, there is also a Borders right by City Hall. Philly is also a much larger city and Center City alone has as many people living in it as the entire 5 mile radius from the basin of downtown Cincy.

^Yup I was thinking of the one near City Hall in the Rittenhouse Square District.

OH oh, gotcha.  Yeah, different store all together. 

 

Rittenhouse has plenty of tourist activity (which also drives the concentration of panhandlers thereabouts).  I still would have rather seen one of the two up at Kenwood downtown.  Actually, what I would really love to see is something like Powells.  Hopefully, increasing the population density in that area can bring something like that downtown.

Actually, what I would really love to see is something like Powells. 

 

That bookstore rules!  But I think you have to be lucky enough to have something like that grow over time, whereas you could build a Borders or a BN anywhere tomorrow.

Actually, what I would really love to see is something like Powells. 

 

That bookstore rules!  But I think you have to be lucky enough to have something like that grow over time, whereas you could build a Borders or a BN anywhere tomorrow.

Yeah, you couldn't build that overnight, its more of a tradition than just a store... but with the buildings that are available for use (CBD and OTR), it seems like you wouldn't have a really high overhead for rehab to do something like Powells (no need for shiny glitz and other shellac, just bookcases and space).

 

I don't think Kenwood will have a problem supporting both in such close proximity really... I just wish they were more "original" and not "run of the mill"

Actually, what I would really love to see is something like Powells. 

 

That bookstore rules!  But I think you have to be lucky enough to have something like that grow over time, whereas you could build a Borders or a BN anywhere tomorrow.

Yeah, you couldn't build that overnight, its more of a tradition than just a store... but with the buildings that are available for use (CBD and OTR), it seems like you wouldn't have a really high overhead for rehab to do something like Powells (no need for shiny glitz and other shellac, just bookcases and space).

 

I don't think Kenwood will have a problem supporting both in such close proximity really... I just wish they were more "original" and not "run of the mill"

 

I don't think the terms Kenwood and Original get thrown out together

I don't think the terms Kenwood and Original get thrown out together

 

*sigh* too true.  I'll keep my business in the small local stores when I can, but sometimes, for example with books, its really hard to do...

There is the Ohio Bookstore, which is great, but certainly isn't a Powell's.

Jigsaw strategy pieces retail site together

Kenwood Towne Place project masters density

BY LISA BIANK FASIG | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

April 25, 2008

 

If location is gold in the real estate world, then the developers of Kenwood Towne Place have located a spot that requires treasure ship-like excavation.

 

Click on link for article.

Does anyone have more recent photos?  The most recent ones I could find at Building Cincinnati were taken March 1.  Has there been a lot of progress since then?

I have heard from a very reliable source that there will be a restaurant on the top floor of the 18 story office building.  Supposedly from up there you can see downtown and all the towers in Walnut Hills, as well as Kings Island to the north.

^ What 18 story tower?

^ What 18 story tower?

 

The garage is five levels

The retail area is two levels

The office tower is nine levels  including what appears to be restaurant space on the top floor (it will be called the 16th floor, even though only 10 stories will go above the kenwood mall elevation.  There is also restaurant space on the 6th level, or first retail level but facing I-71.

 

All retail will be open in Ocotber.  The office tower will be well after that, since that really hasn't even begun to go up yet.  It is the hole in the middle of the project if anyone has updated pictures.

 

Crate and Barrel is being built almost as a completely separate project, so it sounds like it will be open a few weeks ahead of everything else.

 

I think they did an excellent job of separating the retail from the office.  It is almost like two separate projects built together.

the traffic on montgomery road is just going to be even worse

the traffic on montgomery road is just going to be even worse

 

Yup...another reason to stay away from that area.

Kenwood is the best shopping area in Cincinnati.  They just need a good electronics store, maybe even something unique to the area.  It is odd that the big box stores of Best Buy & Circuit City never opened a store there, not that I am wanting them to necessarily fill the void.

^Just think how this area would have benefited from a light rail stop near that interchange.  Things would be densifying at an accelerated rate, and most likely traffic would be improved.

Kenwood is the best shopping area in Cincinnati.  They just need a good electronics store, maybe even something unique to the area.  It is odd that the big box stores of Best Buy & Circuit City never opened a store there, not that I am wanting them to necessarily fill the void.

 

Kenwood does have great shopping, but I have a hard time handling that traffic.  Last time my husband and I tried going to Kenwood Mall (note I said "tried"), we circled the parking lot for 15 minutes without finding a place to park.  We almost got into an accident, too.  It's ridiculous that they keep building stuff up in the area without have the infrastructure to support it. 

 

I've also had some issues with employees at the mall looking down at me for whatever reason.  Over a year ago, my husband and I were looking at furniture at a specific store in Kenwood Mall.  We were pretty serious about it.  We were checking out measurements and pricing, and this was obvious.  We were completely ignored by the staff, so we decided not to bother with them.  Another time, before I was married, I went to the Mall to exchange a duplicate item I had received as a shower gift.  The sales lady was very snooty towards me.  It was extremely annoying.  I felt like telling her that I had a professional job and owned a home 10-15 minutes from the mall.  Even if I didn't, there is still no reason to treat a potential customer like dirt.

 

That said, I do go up there just for Trader Joe's.  Even then, I will only go after 7:00 PM if it's not a Friday or Saturday.  i used to go there for World Market, but now I only go the one in Western Hills.

Same here; I don't shop there that often but I've gone into places like Kennith Cole, totally ignored. The dudes working there just talk to each other or their friends the entire time. Or maybe it was because I came in with jeans and a t-shirt instead of a Prada suit. Same thing happend in Coach when I bought my grandma stuff for her birthday. When I bought my laptop at SonyStyle I was ignored at first but after I picked out a laptop they had 4-5 people surrounding me trying to convince me to get insurance on it. They were all hasseling me for 15 minutes about it, even after I told them I bought insurance before and they wouldn't let me make a claim because the damage was my fault.

 

One thing that I love about the west side is that everyone is much more laid back.

 

Oh, and Kenwood definitely does have a parking problem!

Or maybe it was because I came in with jeans and a t-shirt instead of a Prada suit.

 

When I was trying to exchange a shower gift (at Dillard's), it was the same thing.  I had on jeans and a rock band t-shirt.  I hate stereotypes, but I seriously doubt a sales lady at the Western Hills Dillard's would have looked down at me while wearing the same outfit.

 

 

I don't understand why Kenwood Towne Centre doesn't build a large parking garage instead of just the two tiny ones that are there now (one of which is Macy's garage).

Same here; I don't shop there that often but I've gone into places like Kennith Cole, totally ignored. The dudes working there just talk to each other or their friends the entire time. Or maybe it was because I came in with jeans and a t-shirt instead of a Prada suit.

 

Maybe you were ignored, because you don't know how to spell Kenneth!  :evil:

 

If you should up in a Prada suit, I highly doubt the folks at KC would know it. :-P

Maybe you were ignored, because you don't know how to spell Kenneth! :evil:

 

If you should up in a Prada suit, I highly doubt the folks at KC would know it. :-P

 

Hey if you are going to correct someone's spelling, at least make sure your response is grammatically correct. 

 

should = showed

 

Melanie, sounds like you had an experience at William Sonoma Home. They do that to everyone. ;)

Maybe you were ignored, because you don't know how to spell Kenneth!  :evil:

 

If you should up in a Prada suit, I highly doubt the folks at KC would know it. :-P

 

Hey if you are going to correct someone's spelling, at least make sure your response is grammatically correct. 

 

should = showed

 

Melanie, sounds like you had an experience at William Sonoma Home. They do that to everyone. ;)

 

Touche!!  Curses cincyimages, Aghhhhhhhhh!!!

Well you get points for saying, "curse" and not "cuss".