Month: October 2010

Categories
Development News Politics

Cincinnati to host form-based code webinars at City Hall

Cincinnati leaders are hosting five webinars sponsored by PlaceMakers to give local residents a chance to learn more about the implementation of form-based codes. The sessions are intended to compliment the city’s ongoing effort at developing a form-based code.

According to Vice Mayor Qualls’ office, the webinars will take place on the third Thursday of each month starting October 21, 2010 and running through February 17, 2011. Each training opportunity will have its own unique focus led by specialists in that area.

On October 21, Ken Groves and Chad Emerson will look at the Montgomery case study. Dan Slone will then discuss how to integrate a form-based code with an existing code on November 18. The webinar on December 16 will include a discussion about SmartCode calibration basics led by Susan Henderson. At the second-to-last webinar Galina Tachiva will look at how to repair sprawl development patterns, and the final event will look at the Miami case study with the help of Marina Khoury.

The 75-minute webinars will be held at 2pm at City Hall (map). Those interested in attending the free sessions are asked to contact Jennifer O’Donnel at jennifer.o’donnell@cincinnati-oh.gov.  City Hall is accessible by Metro bus service (plan your trip), and free bicycle parking is available in the immediate surroundings.

Categories
Arts & Entertainment News

Know Theatre’s ‘Skin Tight’ offers passionate look at love

Know Theater Skin Tight

Know Theater Skin Tight Cincinnati’s best off-off-Broadway playhouse, the Know Theatre, opens its 13th season with the intimate, advant-garde play, Skin Tight. Written by New Zealand playwright Gary Henderson and directed by Drew Fracher, the show runs through October 30, 2010.

Skin Tight tells the story of a rural New Zealand couple, Tom and Elizabeth, who relive their love story on stage. From its opening moments, Skin Tight grabs the audience and leads them through a frenzied, passionate dance that refuses to let go. The performance is a heady mix of touching, romantic prose spoken by the duo, coupled with bouts of physical activity: fighting, wrestling, dancing, and loving gestures. The show toes the line between the reality of the couple’s situation and the way they see and view each other.

Director Drew Fracher says, “A friend gave me Skin Tight, knowing my penchant for action and stage combat and suggest that I might like the play. I felt that the Know was the only place in town that fit the style and content best. Thankfully, producing artistic director Eric [Vosmeier] felt the same way. I’m thrilled to have an opportunity to work on such an amazing, theatrical piece.”

Veteran Equity actor Jens Rasmussen (Tom) and local theatre starlet Beth Harris (Elizabeth) commandeer their audience’s attention from the get go. With believable accents and even more convincing love and care for each other, these two actors reveal the inner workings of a relationship that has stood the test of time. From juvenile taunts to real fears and honest wounds, the chemistry between the two on stage draws the viewer in and invites them to experience the same feelings. Their raw, emotional portrayal of a very real, intimate relationship – the combination of trust, pain, passion, laughter, anger, fear, hope – reduced many in the audience to tears by the end of the show.

The sets and lighting, designed by Andrew Hungerford, are simple yet effective, drawing the viewer into rural farmland without distracting from the action. Sound design by Doug Borntrager helps to illustrate the emotions being played out on stage.

This is not an easy show to attend. There is nudity, there is fighting, and it moves at a jarringly quick pace. Basic plot and character development unfolds very slowly, and even at the end the audience may have questions that were not answered.

The experience of this show, however, is completely worth every question and plot twist. In the end, love is a confusing and tricky thing. The heart and soul of Skin Tight is the bond between two ordinary people…people with just enough detail left out to be any one of us.

Let go of your expectations and come along for the ride. Experience the realities of a life well lived and fiercely loved.

Skin Tight plays at the Know Theatre (map) now through October 30.  All tickets can be purchased online, at the Know Theater box office, or by calling (513) 300-5669 for $12 in advance and $15 the week of the performance.  Flexible subscriptions are also available for $48.

Skin Tight Production Dates:
8pm performances: October 9, 14-16, 21- 23, 28-30
3pm performances: October 24 & 30

Categories
Business News Transportation

Pedicab service gets rolling in Cincinnati’s center city neighborhoods

As you walk around downtown Cincinnati, Newport, or even Bellevue these days you may see new pedicabs moving about. Pedicabs have become increasingly popular in other major urban areas throughout the United States including Austin, New York City, Boston, and San Francisco.

Newport-based J-Rides has begun operating within Cincinnati’s center city and, like many start-ups, was born from a moment of seeing a need and realizing that nobody else was providing it.

Residents of downtown Cincinnati, J-Rides’ owners Beatrice Terekhov and Jared Poweski say that they were out running errands one day when they realized that there was no quick and easy way to get from the Ohio side of the river to the Kentucky side without jumping in a car. A few days later they were getting started on a business plan to start J-Rides.

The bike taxis take revelers and residents alike between the different areas of the river basin for little or no charge. The drivers, who work mostly for tips, work under contract to operate a J-Rides pedicab and receive training and licensing.

“Servicing almost the entire urban area, the pedicabs can easily be flagged down for a ride or can be booked for a tour,” Beatrice told UrbanCincy. “Our pedicabs travel on the streets just like any other vehicle, but they are allowed on the Purple People Bridge which makes for a great ride.”

While pedicab service thrives in other urban settings, the owners of J-Rides say that they are still working to dispel myths about their service.

“We are all weather, can carry two to three passengers, and are absolutely safe,” Beatrice explained when asked about what hurdles they have to overcome. “Only severe weather like an ice storm or heavy snow will keep us off the road this winter.”

According to Beatrice, the pedicabs are also inspected by each city in which they operate, include seat belts, and have a canopy for cold and rainy weather.

Aside from moving people throughout the center city, J-Rides is also hoping to help create a thriving urban area in Cincinnati. This support, Beatrice says, may come through advertising for local establishments or by putting more eyes on the street. After one of J-Rides’ drivers recently helped apprehend a pickpocket in Newport, Beatrice says that their service is helping to make the urban environment both better and safer.

The company will also be assisting with upcoming walks and races by offering rides to people who might otherwise not be able to participate, and Beatrice hopes to host a fundraiser of their own later this year that will support the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).

J-Rides pedicabs can be reserved by calling (513) 702-7656 or emailing info@j-rides.com. The pedicab service can also be used for longer rides including tours of the area with rates starting at $25 for 30 minutes. Look for the pedicabs throughout Bellevue, Newport, Cincinnati, and hopefully Covington once the Roebling Suspension Bridge reopens in about a month.

Categories
Business Development News

Fay Apartments to be renamed The Villages of Roll Hill, undergo $36M renovation

Developers and city leaders kicked off a 30-month long rehabilitation project at Fay Apartments yesterday morning on the city’s west side. Once complete, the project will reduce the total number of housing units and become the largest green renovation of an affordable housing community in the United States.

In addition to a $36 million face-lift that will include the demolition of 17 buildings, the community has also been renamed The Villages of Roll Hill. At this time, city officials say that it has yet to be determined if the new community name will impact the official city neighborhood name of “Fay Apartments”, but early indications seem to indicate so.

Community leaders have been looking at rehabilitating the affordable housing community (map) for nearly five years. The latest version of the plan soon to be realized will reduce reduce the number of housing units from 893 to 703 and upgrade security measures, add new landscaping and trees, and include new playgrounds for the many children that live in the community.

The project was made possible through federal funds including a $32 million loan from the Department of Housing & Urban Development and a $3.2 million loan from City HOME. The City of Cincinnati has also granted an eight-year tax abatement on the renovation work.

Developers from Cincinnati-based Wallick-Hendy Properties are seeking Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for the project, but stated last year that the level of green improvements would be dependent upon government support.

Categories
News Politics

New youth city council elected through YMCA’s Youth in City Government program

A new group of young leaders was sworn into office last week as part of the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati’s annual Youth in City Government Conference. This year’s two-day conference included more than 200 Cincinnati high school students from 14 participating high schools.

According to the YMCA, participating students were asked to perform roles of prosecution, defense and witnesses (with expert trial lawyer guidance) in a mock trial as part of a variety of structured activities meant to engage the young individuals.

The new Youth Cincinnati City Council was also treated to a question and answer session with local politicians, a luncheon with Judge Tyrone Yates, a gavel ceremony, and a proclamation from the U.S. Senate before being sworn in before Cincinnati’s regular City Council meeting at 2pm on Wednesday, October 6.

“This conference is all about helping young people to develop skills that will allow them to thrive as they move forward with their lives to become productive, socially responsible adults,” Jana Nattermann, youth zone director for the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati, stated in a prepared release.

The year-round YMCA Youth in City Government program gives Cincinnati students the opportunity to learn about local, state, national and international politics. It offers teen participants a venue to gain leadership skills, strengthen their ability to express ideas clearly and persuasively, and learn fellowship by working together with peers from diverse backgrounds.

YMCA officials say that the year-round program is structured to provide an opportunity for students to learn about local, state, national and international politics while also gaining valuable leadership skills.

YMCA Youth City Council – Mark Brockman (St. Xavier High School); Nick Staresinic (Moeller High School); Evan McConaughy (St. Xavier High School); Mary Crema (Mt. Notre Dame Academy); Le’Asha Moore (Hughes Center); Kyle Denman (St. Xavier High School); Brandon Craig (Withrow University); and Brandon Weiss (Wyoming High School). Standing is YMCA Youth Mayor Patrick Regan (Aldersgate Christian Academy) and YMCA Vice Mayor Jonte’ Pegg (Hughes Center).