Month: September 2010

Categories
Arts & Entertainment News

CET wins regional Emmy award for Cincinnati Parks documentary

CET received a Regional Emmy Award for its documentary on Cincinnati’s famous park system at the 46th annual Ohio Valley Regional Emmy Awards in July 2010. Cincinnati Parks: Emeralds in the Crown tells the story of the creation of the city’s top-notch park system, how it continues to work today, and what plans are in store for the future.

“To me the heart of the story is the legacy from citizens who acted on a vision of a public park system,” explained Cincinnati Parks Director Willie F. Carden, Jr. “Our city parks remain strong and vibrant to this day thanks to the support of the entire Cincinnati community, and we congratulate CET on winning the regional Emmy for Emeralds in the Crown.”

Those who missed the original broadcast of this award-winning documentary will have several chances to check it out on CET in the near future. The first of those opportunities will take place this evening as CET will air the documentary at 9pm. Emeralds in the Crown will once again air on CET on Friday, September 24 at 10pm; and Sunday, September 26 at 4pm.

CET officials say that the public station will air a series this fall called Cincinnati Parks Recollections that will feature segments that were edited from interviews that did not make the final cut for the one-hour documentary. Broadcast times for this series, and the documentary, are available on CET’s website.

Categories
News Politics

City looking for public input on selection of next police chief

Cincinnati’s long-time police chief, Thomas Streicher, has announced his planned retirement in 2011. As a result, the City of Cincinnati Administration has begun planning the recruitment process for his replacement, and they would like some community input.

In a prepared release, City Manager Milton Dohoney said that the City is looking to better understand what kind of attributes citizens most desire in their next police chief.

In terms of the City’s desired traits Dohoney said, “We can all agree that the individual we are looking to hire as our next Police Chief must possess unquestionable integrity. This person must also have the ability to communicate and interact fairly and impartially with members of our community – regardless of socioeconomic background, ethnicity or race.”

Cincinnati residents are invited to share their thoughts on the matter between now and Saturday, October 4 through an online survey. In the survey participants are asked to assess a list of 10 attributes, while also being able to add their own attributes to the list.

City officials say that the public input will help to guide the selection of the next police chief so that the new leader “will be ideally suited for the challenge of leading an urban police force in working with residents to improve public safety in the 52 neighborhoods of Cincinnati.”

Once on the job the new chief will be tasked with reducing crime and improving safety within the 78 square-mile city that currently uses a police force of 1,057 sworn officers and 281 civilian employees.

“Cincinnati Police work with the community every day to tackle public safety issues through community-oriented policing and creative problem solving. I am confident we will be more successful in this search if we listen to community residents before we establish the qualities and accomplishments the next Chief must demonstrate,” Dohoney concluded.

Categories
Development News Transportation

Streetscaping improvements along W. McMillan Street near completion

Significant progress has been made on the first-phase of streetscaping improvements throughout the Clifton Heights business district. Over the past two months work has been taking place along W. McMillan Street to rebuild sidewalks, crosswalks, curbs, and more. The projected $440,000 project will also include new street lamps, parking meters, trash cans, and street trees.

This stretch of W. McMillan Street had long been plagued by buckled sidewalks due to root invasion from the street trees there and water that subsequently collected. The rebuilt sidewalks not only feature safe and pleasant surfaces for pedestrians, but they also feature uniquely designed brick work at cross walk locations.

The improvement work has been championed by the Clifton Heights Urban Redevelopment Corporation (CHCURC) whose director, Matt Bourgeois, said that “the business community is very excited about the progress being made.”

Some of that progress has been quite noticeable including several facade improvement projects; business expansions and renovations by DuBois Bookstore, Plaza Artist Supplies, and Mac’s Pizza Pub; and the addition of several new businesses to the district.

The first phase of streetscaping improvements, nearing their expected completion in October 2010, were funded through the Cincinnati Neighborhood Business Districts United (CNBDU) and the City of Cincinnati. The later two phases will continue the streetscaping work throughout the district over the next two years depending on funding.

Categories
Arts & Entertainment News

Join the first-ever OTR Urban Kickball League now!

UrbanCincy is proud to announce the first Over-the-Rhine Urban Kickball League.  The league is open to all age levels and anyone interested in participating.  The fall 2010 season will be the first-ever and will feature a variety of special treats and benefits for those participating outside of the kickball fun.

UrbanCincy has partnered with Neon’s Unplugged to offer an official social spot after each game.  Players will be able to walk a short block-and-a-half from Cutter Playground (map) to Neon’s to enjoy its relaxed atmosphere including the newly opened upstairs lounge.

The league costs just $5 per person if you sign-up between now and Friday, September 24.  Anyone signing up after that point will have to pay $10 per person, and hope that there is room left in the league…so sign up now!  The small fee will cover everything you need and even get you a custom-designed, and locally produced, team shirt.

The teams will consist of 10-12 players each and must have a 50/50 split of men and women.  Individuals or teams can sign-up now by downloading the necessary forms, or by picking up a form at Neon’s Unplugged located at 208 E. 12th Street during their regular business hours.

The fall 2010 season will start at the beginning of October and run for six weeks.  Each team will have one game per week at 6pm on either Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday.  Interest has been high already, so be sure to sign-up early before prices increase and space in the league disappears.  Complete instructions on how to join are included on the sign-up forms.  If you are unable to download and print these forms, please visit Neon’s Unplugged to pick up a copy there.

Categories
Development News

Cincinnati Preservation Association to host lead paint seminar – 9/25

The Cincinnati Preservation Association (CPA) will be hosting seminar on how to safely work around lead paint, and how new rules from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) might affect your renovation project.

During renovation or repainting work, toxins found within lead paint can become a health risk for humans. As a result, many regulations have been developed to help guide this kind of work and keep those performing the work safe from any potential toxins.

According to building officials, lead paint is more prevalent in buildings built or painted prior to 1977 when lead paint was banned by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. New regulations passed by the EPA in April 2010 require that all renovators who work on homes built before 1978, and disturb more than six square feet of lead paint, be Renovation, Repair & Painting (RRP) certified. It is estimated that the new regulation will impact more than 100,000 renovators in the United States.

Event organizers say that the seminar will include presentations from Aisha Tzilla of the City of Cincinnati Community Development Department and Bill Menrath of the University of Cincinnati.

Lead Paint: Renovate Safely, Learn the New Regs will be held on Saturday, September 25 from 10am to 12pm. The event will be held at Building Value located in Northside at 4040 Spring Grove Avenue. Reservations are required due to limited space, and can be made by contacting CPA at (513) 721-4506 or info@cincinnatipreservation.org. Admission costs $5 for CPA members and $10 for the public.