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Hive13 brings hackerspace to Cincinnati

Hive13 has been settling in to their versatile Camp Washington space where the growing group has brought Cincinnati its very own hackerspace to life. This past Saturday the group hosted a party and open house where Soapbox Cincinnati was able to get a glimpse inside.

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Business Development News

Senate opens today in the Over-the-Rhine

Many Cincinnatians can now begin to understand the long journey that most candidates go through to get to Senate. The hotly anticipated new gastropub opens in the Gateway Quarter today and by all accounts it should live up to the high expectations that the Cincinnati community has set for it.

UrbanCincy was invited to a preview event earlier this week and while the food and drinks were only samples of what Senate promises to offer going forward, the glimpse we got at the atmosphere made the trip very worthwhile. With simple lines and candle light, the sense one gets when walking in the door is both comforting and sophisticated at the same time. All in all, the room is relatively small but very warm and welcoming, as are the large windows along Vine Street that will be opened in warmer months.

Senate joins Lavomatic in the ever-changing and growing Gateway Quarter district of the historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. Be sure to go down and check out what Senate has to offer this weekend…maybe even drop by on your way to the Shepard Fairey opening night party at the CAC.

Senate Menu photograph by Julie Niesen.

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News

Shepard Fairey debuts exclusive Cincinnati works tonight

Shepard Fairey has already made an impactful and lasting impression on Cincinnati. Tonight the contemporary artist will be at the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC) for the opening night of his first museum retrospective and will display an “extensive exploration” of his 20-year career.

The retrospective is mounted in two parts – one at the CAC itself, and the other can be seen in several locations around the city in the form of mural projects. The CAC galleries will have around 250 pieces of Fairey’s work displayed ranging from his Andre the Giant piece to his iconic Obama HOPE image. Most notably though Fairey will display his brand new mural custom-made for the CAC’s prominent lobby space.

Fairey has also released an exclusive screen print (right image) of the world famous Zaha Hadid-designed Contemporary Arts Center which has been described as “the most important new building in American since the Cold War” by the New York Times. The limited edition screen print is available for purchase at the CAC.

The opening night celebrations will take place tonight at the CAC from 6pm to 11pm and include a cocktail reception, discussion with Shepard Fairey, and an opening party which will feature a DJ set by Shepard Fairey himself. The opening party is free and open to the public starting at 8pm.

Shepard Fairey works on his mural in downtown Cincinnati [LEFT]. A view inside the CAC’s lobby from the street of Fairey’s new custom-made mural for Cincinnati [RIGHT]. Shepard Fairey photographs by Thadd Fiala.
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Development News

Tour of The Banks – February 2010

Earlier this month just a few hours before a February snow blanketed the Cincinnati area, UrbanCincy was invited on a hard hat tour of The Banks construction site. The event was hosted by Messer Construction as a way to get show off some of the recent progress made along the Ohio River. News was recently made about vertical construction starting above ground, but Messer has been diligently plugging away at the “dirty” work of the project for quite some time now.

As we went through the safety briefing, we were told that the project now stands at over 160,000 hours worked without a lost time accident which was clearly something of which the group was very proud. They have very strict controls in place to help ensure that all the workers are safe and able to put forth their fullest effort, and made sure we followed all their rules as we entered the work site.

After the briefing it was time for a tour, and while our photos from the trip will likely better show you the story of what we saw, the best way to describe this project is BIG. While that is probably evident if you drive by the site, it took on a whole new meaning as we walked around inside the garage.

Once everything is complete, there will be seven acres of parking and you will be able to go in at Paul Brown Stadium and emerge at Great American Ballpark. The best part of course is that these garages will be topped off with development and green space which give it a great multi-use functionality. For perspective, a similar (and much grander) project would be Boston’s “Big Dig.”

The other part of the story that became a bit clearer upon our visit was the difference between The Banks and Central Riverfront Park. While they share much of the same infrastructure, project manager Dave Prather was able to help draw a picture about what the park will offer. If you go past the site these days you will be able to see where the garage stops and everything south of that will be the park, while everything north is considered part of The Banks. According to Mr. Prather, Phase I remains on track with an expected opening in April of 2011 which includes the Moerlein Lager House.

Enjoy the pictures, some of which were taken by Jake Mecklenborg. Messer seemed interested in making these hard hat tours a regular event, so stay with UrbanCincy for more developments as progress on The Banks continue.

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News

This Week in Soapbox – 2/16

This Week in Soapbox UrbanCincy has the following six stories that you must check out. Read about the changes happening in OTR’s Gateway Quarter, AIA’s Broadway Commons casino charrette, the new Twin Bistro in Covington, Daisy Maes Market’s new healthy program, Cincinnati’s ongoing urban planning, and the sustainability efforts in Cincinnati as led by UC.

If you’re interested in staying in touch with some of the latest development news in Cincinnati please check out this week’s stories and sign up for the weekly E-Zine sent out by Soapbox Cincinnati. Also be sure to become a fan of Soapbox on Facebook!

TWIS 2/16/10:

  • Shaking things up in the Gateway Quarter of Over-the-Rhinefull article
  • AIA to lead Broadway Commons casino charrettefull article
  • Twin Bistro opens restaurant in heart of Covingtonfull article
  • Daisy Maes Market brings on Healthy Breaksfull article
  • What is Cincinnati’s best laid plan? (feature story)full article
  • Sustainability 101: UC Heads the Class (feature story)full article