June 8, 200817 yr Kenwood is an odd shopping destination. It is a relatively urban location. It has been a major retail center for 40+ years at this point. It managed to go up market over the years, which will take another leap with Crate and Barrel and Nordstrom's. I never found getting to and from Kenwood to be much of problem . . . from Pleasant Ridge. I think the decline of Tri-County and Beechmont has probably driven up the attendance at KTC.
June 8, 200817 yr I have never found the traffic to be overwhelming in Kenwood, nor have I had much trouble with parking unless it's around the holidays or if you're on the Montgomery Road side. It's funny, because many of the arguments used against Kenwood here are arguments that suburbanites usually have for avoiding downtown (lack of parking, traffic, negative encounters with people...).
June 8, 200817 yr I think Kenwood's parking problem is related to people preferring to park off Montgomery in those few spots in front of Cheescake Factory and Arhaus Furniture. People will drive around there for 10 minutes to wait for one of those spots to open. If they drove behind Dillard's, they would find plenty of parking. Macy's also recently built a huge parking garage off Kenwood that always has plenty of parking.
June 8, 200817 yr People who complain about parking at Kenwood are the ones that circle around the lot in front of the Montgomery Rd Streetscape stores for hours. I have no sympathy for these morons. Either pay for valet or go around to the other sides of the mall. At peak times, I park in the upper level of the Macy's garage. It is the easiest in and out possible and you are steps from a mall entrance. Get off the Mongomery Rd exit, but go east away from the mall, turn left at Galbraith, and the seldom-used entrance by the Kroger will be on your left. Nordstrom will have two levels of underground parking which will help, but there will still be those morons who circle for hours thinking the Montgomery Rd streetscape has the only parking for that mall.
June 8, 200817 yr People who complain about parking at Kenwood are the ones that circle around the lot in front of the Montgomery Rd Streetscape stores for hours. I have no sympathy for these morons. Either pay for valet or go around to the other sides of the mall. We did drive away from the Montgomery Road streetscape and near Galbraith Rd. We circled around the entire mall. The only spots available were those in Kroger's parking lot, and we didn't want to risk having our car towed. Melanie, sounds like you had an experience at William Sonoma Home. They do that to everyone. ;) Our experience was at Pottery Barn. The people at William Sonoma Home were a bit nicer.
June 9, 200817 yr Surprising, Pottery Barn actually let my wife and I create some cheesy candle arrangement with rocks and some other over priced filler in a glass vase to see if we like it before we bought it. I have never bought furniture there though. Off subject, it always seems like Pottery Barn furniture is what people are always selling on the Cincinnati Craigslist.
July 7, 200816 yr I've also had some issues with employees at the mall looking down at me for whatever reason. Glad I'm not the only one (+David) who has had that issue. I stopped in the W+S Home store to look at furniture, and we had spent the day unboxing items and moving things around in my apartment. Not one person came to help, and when we sought out one, she kept making these references to lower-end stores. @#%& you. I actually told her that, with checkbook in hand, that we were taking our business elsewhere. The manager was visible and was pleading for us to stay. Sorry. We actually found some good deals at an adjoining furniture store. West Elm employees were more than plentiful and helpful, as was most other stores. I actually went back to W+S the other day after going to lunch, and was in office casual, and had 3 employees slave over me while I browsed.
July 26, 200816 yr Sycamore Twp. work on track Homes for Nordstrom, Crate & Barrel rising http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080726/BIZ01/807260325/1076/NEWS Photo by Michael E. Keating/The Enquirer
September 5, 200816 yr Kenwood Towne Place Taking Shape http://www.wlwt.com/news/17383277/detail.html Things appear to be moving smoothly on the latest development space in Kenwood. Several tenants in the Kenwood Towne Place development are expected to open this fall. An "Opening This Fall" sign is now visible along interstate 71. Click on link for article.
September 8, 200816 yr That Kroger needed to go anyway. It was in a very weird spot, and by the time of the demo, it was clearly smaller and had less variety than the newer stores (like the Blue Ash Kroger).
September 9, 200816 yr ^Demolished for parking. Yeah ... a few weeks ago I was driving around trying to find it and pulled a Homer Simpson.
September 11, 200816 yr Mitchell’s to move to Kenwood Towne Place http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/09/08/daily37.html Mitchell’s Salon & Day Spa, the locally based chain of luxury beauty treatment centers, will be joining Crate & Barrel, Borders Books and Ethan Allen at the developing Kenwood Towne Place in Sycamore Township. Click on link for article.
September 11, 200816 yr Moving to a high traffic area can be very bad at times. For businesses like beauty care . Clients don't want to spend 10-20 mins searching for a parking space.
September 11, 200816 yr ^They were already in a high-traffic area with next to no parking. Their old space was way too small for the amount of business they do now a days. This location will be in line with their West Chester location out by the new hospital.
September 12, 200816 yr Yeah, that parking at the Kenwood Galleria can be a pain. Getting a parking space for First Watch on the weekend is a nightmare.
September 12, 200816 yr Yeah, that parking at the Kenwood Galleria can be a pain. Getting a parking space for First Watch on the weekend is a nightmare. Go to "Day Break" instead. The old manager of First Watch stole the concept and opened up Day Break in Oakley. Food is probably very similar. I don't mind having to walk far downtown; it's part of the "experience" for me. On the other hand, it would be asinine to have to walk from Old Navy's parking lot to Kenwood mall. If I go to the sububs I at least want convenience :)
January 6, 200916 yr Towne Place bills go unpaid By Lisa Bernard-Kuhn • [email protected] • January 6, 2009 SYCAMORE TWP. - Nine contractors say they are owed nearly $6 million from the developers of Kenwood Towne Place, the $175 million retail and office complex that's under construction and is home to the recently opened Crate & Barrel and Container Store. Click on link for article. http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20090106/BIZ01/901060340/1055/NEWS
January 8, 200916 yr ^This project is ugly. There is not a single subcontactor working to finish the office tower portion. I don't see that changing for at least a month or two. The retail portion is still progressing because Bear Creek turned over "white-boxes" to each retail store's own contractor. The $5.97 million in liens will be increasing in the near future.
January 19, 200916 yr On 700WLW they were just complaining about the tower crane looming unattended over I-71. This situation will presumably continue for a few more months. Now just imagine if a project like this was stalled downtown!
January 20, 200916 yr What ever happened to the plan to relocate the FBI from downtown to Kenwood? I don't think that ever was a plan. Weren't they talking about Clermont County?
January 20, 200916 yr What ever happened to the plan to relocate the FBI from downtown to Kenwood? I don't think that ever was a plan. Weren't they talking about Clermont County? No I remember that. Clermont County was NOISH the post Oklahoma City bombing setback requirements for federal offices have a lot to do with why they want to be out of urban areas.
January 20, 200916 yr On 700WLW they were just complaining about the tower crane looming unattended over I-71. This situation will presumably continue for a few more months. Now just imagine if a project like this was stalled downtown! We have projects _under construction_ in downtown, and people still whine and complain! I guess, since this is at Kenwood, you won't hear much of a peep.
January 20, 200916 yr On 700WLW they were just complaining about the tower crane looming unattended over I-71. This situation will presumably continue for a few more months. Now just imagine if a project like this was stalled downtown! If this crane falls over there won't be a random homeless guy drinking at $2 beer in the morning to save everyone's life.
January 20, 200916 yr The FBI is relocating to Kenwood (or was supposed to). It is across 71, where the Best Western used to be.
January 20, 200916 yr http://www.neyer1.com/display_building.php?id=57 The site plan has changed drastically since I last checked the Neyer website. Total redesign of the building. The site plan includes the FBI office. I am not sure what will happen with the neighborhood behind all of this.
January 23, 200916 yr Some sections are operating, but Kenwood Towne Place faces liens, money shortage Coming up empty http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2009/01/26/story2.html A dozen new liens, worth a combined $11.3 million, have been filed against Kenwood Towne Place in Sycamore Township, indicating payment woes at the center are not subsiding. Rather, sources familiar with the project say the developers are seeking additional financing. Click on link for article.
February 13, 200916 yr With Kenwood Towne Place project still dormant, retailers rethink options http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2009/02/16/story8.html Major tenants of the developing Kenwood Towne Place are reconsidering their commitments to the project, or at least delaying their openings, as scores of liens continue to stymie construction of the site. Click on link for article.
February 13, 200916 yr I have an easy solution for these misplaced tenants: GO DOWNTOWN. You'll have no trouble finding ample retail space ready to quickly be renovated at prices that are probably less than Kenwood. Kenwood has a great selection of the types of shops I like (J.Crew, Nordstrom soon) but the place is one of the worst logistical clusterf*cks I have ever seen in my life. The parking there is a disgrace.
February 13, 200916 yr ^I heard that Rookwood Exchange might be back on the table...and wasn't that the spot several of these tenants were looking at to being with before the eminent domain case.
February 13, 200916 yr ^I heard that Rookwood Exchange might be back on the table...and wasn't that the spot several of these tenants were looking at to being with before the eminent domain case. It would be quiet the surprise to see any major new retail project get off the ground in the next year or two.
February 13, 200916 yr Rookwood Exchange isn't necessarily all retail, and it is apparently viable enough for construction to let soon.
February 13, 200916 yr To be honest with Borders', there are real questions of whether they survive the winter so I'd take that one with a grain of salt, though it looks like Bear Creek has been swallowed by the economic debacle. It will be interesting to see if anyone is willing to take off of their hands for cheap and finish the building.
February 20, 200916 yr Contractor sues at Towne Place Concrete company seeks $373K from Bear Creek, claiming contract breach http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2009/02/23/story4.html A Florida concrete company has become the first subcontractor to sue the developers of Kenwood Towne Place, a project so burdened by liens that construction has been delayed by months and tenants are rethinking their commitments. Click on link for article.
February 20, 200916 yr This is such a prominent location, I really want to see this building just completed already. If it's left unfinished it just tarnishes the look of one of the nicest areas in the metro.
February 21, 200916 yr This is such a prominent location, I really want to see this building just completed already. If it's left unfinished it just tarnishes the look of one of the nicest areas in the metro. What about this area is "nice"? Outside of the ritzy store names, you really just have a mall and a bunch of strip centers. The whole planning for the area was poorly thought out leading to major traffic snarls during peak hours. For me, the only institution of any real value in that area is Jewish Hospital. That being said, I would like to see the building completed because it is an eyesore as it stands now.
February 21, 200916 yr It remains the premier retail center for the region, and something of an embarrassment that it sits half empty. No, it isn't perfect but it remains more dense than most of the other retail centers in the region.
February 22, 200916 yr This is such a prominent location, I really want to see this building just completed already. If it's left unfinished it just tarnishes the look of one of the nicest areas in the metro. What about this area is "nice"? Outside of the ritzy store names, you really just have a mall and a bunch of strip centers. The whole planning for the area was poorly thought out leading to major traffic snarls during peak hours. For me, the only institution of any real value in that area is Jewish Hospital. That being said, I would like to see the building completed because it is an eyesore as it stands now. Banks, developers, and retailers care about what the market feasibility studies say. They hardly care about subjective standards of design. They're also conservative and tend to look at what has worked in the past, and hey, Kenwood is as upscale as it gets in metro Cincinnati. I'm sure you're familiar with the phrase "money talks and bs walks". And yeah, that Jewish Hospital is great lol. I went there one time. Probably the best hospital I've ever been to!
February 22, 200916 yr This is such a prominent location, I really want to see this building just completed already. If it's left unfinished it just tarnishes the look of one of the nicest areas in the metro. What about this area is "nice"? Outside of the ritzy store names, you really just have a mall and a bunch of strip centers. The whole planning for the area was poorly thought out leading to major traffic snarls during peak hours. For me, the only institution of any real value in that area is Jewish Hospital. That being said, I would like to see the building completed because it is an eyesore as it stands now. The mall is nice and has good, upscale stores, there are some quality restaurants in Kenwood, and it is surrounded by Indian Hill, Maderia, Blue Ash, P-Ridge, and Montgomery...pretty solid areas.
February 28, 200916 yr Developer works on funding issues By Laura Baverman • [email protected] • February 27, 2009 Challenges are mounting for the developer of Kenwood Towne Place, potentially delaying the opening of stores and businesses at one of the region's most anticipated retail hubs. Click on link for article.
Create an account or sign in to comment