‘Welcome to Cincinnati’ is a song and video produced by University of Cincinnati students Jeff Stephens and Jeremy Powers. Pretty fun all around, with lots of great views of one of the world’s most beautiful campuses.
Month: May 2010
City Council is expected to vote today on whether to approve $64 million in bonds toward funding the Cincinnati Streetcar. Providing this local funding greatly increases the likelihood of receiving federal funding for the remainder of the cost of the project. Cincinnati was passed up in the first round of TIGER funding due to a lack of local financial support. Several additional federal funding sources are available, including one specifically targeted at urban circulator projects such as streetcars.
On April 19, Council voted to support $2.6 million of funding to keep the project moving forward. Council members Quinlivan, Cole, Qualls, Thomas, Berding, and Bortz voted in favor of the funding in April, and are expected to also approve the bond issue today.
Twenty-nine citizens spoke in favor of the Streetcar project at the April 19 council meeting, while only two spoke against it. This overwhelming community support certainly played a role in council’s decision. To ensure council continues to support the Streetcar and pass today’s critical bond issue, please attend today’s session if you are able and register to speak in favor of the project.
Today’s meeting will begin at 2:30 at City Hall. To show your support of the Streetcar, show up 15 minutes early to fill out a card to speak at the meeting. Alternatively, you can e-mail your comments to City Council.
Get live updates from today’s council meeting by following the #CincyStreetcarVote tag on Twitter.
Fountain Square will play host to a wine tasting and sampling event with dozens of wines from around the world Friday, May 7 – making it the place to end the work week.
Event organizers state that knowledgeable staff will be on hand Cork ‘N Bottle to help guests explore the wine selection and learn about each wine they taste. There will also be food available for purchase and live jazz by the Faux Frenchman (5pm to 8pm) and the Chris Comer Trio (8pm to 11pm) filling Fountain Square with music.
The wine tasting will start at 5pm and last until 11pm. Admission is free, but those wanting to engage in the wine tasting will have to purchase wine tickets that can be exchanged for small tastings or full glasses. For those not interested in the wine, then the music and calm spring night should be enough to get you out and out on Fountain Square for the evening.
Fountain Square Wine Tasting photograph by PicNewbie.
The 2010 Urban and Regional Public Transportation Conference, held May 5 at The Westin Hotel and sponsored by the European-American Chamber of Commerce, featured presentations by over a dozen industry experts including a keynote speech by John D. Porcari, Deputy Secretary of Transportation of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
“America’s rail infrastructure is in shambles”, said Porcari, whose department is shifting policy away from a decades-old process that considered road or rail projects individually but could not easily approve multi-modal projects.
In working to rebuild “the squandered investments of our grandparents”, Porcari described a profound turnaround in federal transportation policy from one that encouraged sprawl to one that will promote walkable smart growth. He promised that America’s new generation of passenger trains will not be assembled here from components manufactured overseas, but rather be “100% American” in order to “capture every piece of the high speed rail value chain”.
Although the announced policy changes portend an increased opportunity for federal assistance for local rail transit projects, Porcari stressed that in the short term those places with their “act together” will be first to benefit from these changes.
Speaking on the matter of the $400 3C’s grant, Matt Dietrich, Executive Director of the Ohio Rail Development Commission, remarked that early in the planning of the 3C’s line, Amtrak offered to sell Ohio a variety of retired and surplus locomotives and passenger cars for $10-$15 million. But after grants were awarded to projects in other regions, that equipment has been directed elsewhere, and Ohio has now budgeted $175 million – almost half of the 3C’s grant – for new passenger trains.
The constricted budget means grant funds are presently unavailable for construction of a track connection to Cincinnati Union Terminal. A permanent suburban station is planned for Sharonville and a temporary terminal station is planned for Cincinnati in Bond Hill.
Cleveland’s station will be located on that city’s lakefront, with a convenient connection to its Waterfront light rail line. Both Dayton and Columbus will have stations located in their respective downtowns.
Dietrich also discussed plans for a station at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, possibly within walking distance of the National Museum of the United States Air Force. The base is the state’s largest single-site employer and the museum is, aside from King’s Island and Cedar Point, the state’s most popular tourist attraction.
The conference also featured speakers from France, Spain, Germany, and England, each of whom discussed not only the technical aspects of their high speed trains, but also how their networks are funded and administered.
Tom Stables, Senior Vice President of Commercial Development for First Group, discussed how England awards franchises to approximately a dozen different companies who for periods of seven to ten years operate the county’s various commuter and intercity train lines.
Juergen Wilder, representing industry giant Siemens, described how a ticketing and revenue sharing agreement was achieved with Lufthansa after a high speed rail line extended to Frankfurt’s airport drew significant patronage away from the airline. In the face of competition from passenger rail, Wilder suggested that American carriers might seek similar arrangements or even bid to operate the country’s envisioned high speed rail lines.
Herve Le Caignec, representing SNCF, the company that operates the French TGV network, discussed attempts at private-public partnerships in the construction of new TGV lines. He also offered evidence of the TGV’s staggering success – every day trains seating 750 to 1,100 passengers leave the French capital bound for Lyon and Marseilles every five minutes and do not just sell out individually, but all trains – more than 300 of them — often sell out each weekend as Parisians escape their drizzle and migrate en masse to the Mediterranean coast.
Morton’s Steakhouse is hosting a “Hoppy Hour” beer tasting this Friday, May 7 at 6pm. The tasting will feature a variety of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery beers which is one of the fastest growing breweries in the country.
According to event organizers, guests will be able to sample four different Dogfish brews that will be paired with selected cheeses and accompanied by Morton’s Petite Filet Mignon sandwiches, Tuna Tartare Canapés, Smoked Salmon Wedges and Lamb Chops with Brie. There will also be a beer specialists on hand that will give a short presentation on each beer being sampled.
The four Dogfish brews being sampled include their Midas Touch, Raison (Belgian Ale), 90 Minute IPA and Palo (Brown Ale). The 90 Minute IPA is one of Dogfish’s most popular selections and has been identified as the “Best IPA in America” by Esquire Magazine. The four beer selection will offer a variety of tastes and styles though ranging from the simplicity of the Midas Touch to the complexity of flavors found in the Palo and Raison.
Tickets for the Hoppy Hour this Friday at Morton’s (map) cost $45 which includes your beer samplings, food, tax and gratuity. Tickets can be purchased now by calling (513) 621-3111. Nearby on- and off-street parking is available along with valet service. Metro bus service is available (plan your trip) along with free bicycle parking on surrounding streets and on Fountain Square.
Dogfish Sampling photo by Bubli.