Tag: Cincinnati

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Cincinnati designated consumer marketing Hub of Innovation & Opportunity

Ohio governor Ted Strickland traveled to Cincinnati on Friday, July 9th to officially announce Cincinnati’s newly appointed status as a Hub of Innovation and Opportunity in the area of Consumer Marketing for the state of Ohio.  With companies like P&G, Landor, Kroger and LPK located here, Cincinnati has long established itself as a global leader in the fields of marketing, branding and forward thinking.

“Cincinnati’s Hub designation will assist this region’s already strong business and educational community in attracting young creative talent, new companies and job opportunities in consumer marketing to Ohio,” Governor Strickland said to a packed house of dignitaries on Friday at LPK’s headquarters in downtown Cincinnati.  “Targeted investments in Ohio’s urban regions and businesses are a critical piece of our economic development strategy to create jobs and strengthen Ohio’s economy.”

The Hub designation is much more than a point of civic pride. According to the Ohio Department of Development, the Ohio Hubs are envisioned as regional economic development initiatives that build upon leading assets in our urban centers to accomplish three major goals:

  1. Propel innovation through cutting-edge, market-driven applied technology and knowledge spillover;
  2. Foster the opportunity for job creation and retention; and
  3. Catalyze the formation of new companies in the region, while at the same time helping to ensure that Ohio’s existing industries retain their competitive advantage in the global marketplace.

Now more than ever, the state of Ohio seems committed to investing in Cincinnati’s comparative advantages. The $415 million the state has invested in the city has already translated into $2.3 billion in development. The Consumer Marketing Hub of Innovation and Opportunity will focus on promoting entrepreneurship, economic development and commercialization in the consumer marketing industry, providing the intelligence, insight, innovation, and infrastructure to sell Ohio’s products and services. The designation comes with $250,000 in seed money for the city intended to spur growth, encourage entrepreneurs and attract and retain creative talent in the area.

“The Ohio Hubs are vital to the continued economic success of our state’s communities,” said Mark Barbash, Assistant Director of the Ohio Department of Development. “Today’s investment in the Cincinnati region will further enhance Southwest Ohio as a globally recognized hot-spot for consumer marketing and branding.”

Further illustrating Cincinnati’s dominance in the consumer marketing industry, the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, Procter & Gamble, Kroger Company, the University of Cincinnati and Macy’s have partnered in order to strengthen and create job opportunities in Ohio’s consumer marketing industry.  Other local companies, including branding firms Landor, Bridge Worldwide, and LPK, and consumer marketing service companies such as Dunnhumby USA and AC Nielsen/Buzzmetrics have also committed to support this effort.

Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls spoke at the event, connecting the Hub designation to the recent announcement of money received from the federal government for the Cincinnati Streetcar.  “These announcements are transformative for the greater Cincinnati region.” Qualls said.

“The hub designation strengthens partnerships and creates new opportunities for the citizens of Cincinnati, and the streetcar will now physically connect the Central Business District to the Uptown/University area – the city’s two larges employment areas. These projects are an investment in attracting and keeping the creative class, and they will help make this a great place to live for young folks who are the anchor of this region”

The Cincinnati Regional Action Plan states the goal of creating 200,000 new jobs by 2020. Local business leaders believe the hub designation will help Cincinnati hire even more creatives who are looking to stay in the region.

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Arts & Entertainment Development News

Take a mini-tour of UC’s dramatic architecture and urban campus

The campus of the University of Cincinnati has been called one of the most dynamic urban campuses in the world, and recently named one of the world’s most beautiful campuses by Forbes Magazine.  Stunning architecture is met by dramatic urban spaces in the heart of Uptown Cincinnati, and it can all be seen in this video produced by Soapbox Cincinnati.

“There are at least a dozen buildings designed by world-renowned architects in partnership with local architects,” said Michaele Pride, Director, School of Architecture and Interior Design at the University of Cincinnati.  “The highest concentration of these special buildings align with what is now known as Main Street in the center of campus.”

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Business Development News

Cincinnati Habitat for Humanity to construct first ‘green’ home in College Hill

Cincinnati Habitat for Humanity (CHFH) began construction on two homes in College Hill over the weekend. The home located at 1141 Homeside Avenue (map) is Cincinnati Habitat’s first ‘green’ home. The house was designed by The American Institute of Architects Committee on the Environment (AIA COTE).

The design, for the home, won an architecture competition held last year with Cincinnati Habitat for Humanity, AIA COTE, and other Ohio Habitat affiliates. Entries were judged on cost, ability to build, and neighborhood context, in addition to integration of environmental strategies including impact on the site, water efficiency, energy use, material use and indoor environmental quality. The first place winners of each category are being built throughout the 2010 build season in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Newark, Ohio, and the designs will be made available to all 70 Habitat affiliates throughout the state.

An anonymous donor will sponsor this Cincinnati Habitat build, but most importantly, this new green Habitat home illustrates that entry-level home builders of any income can explore and implement green techniques without breaking the bank.

The home site in College Hill is characteristic of dense pre-war suburbs that are typically found in older American cities. These neighborhoods are often served more efficiently by public transportation, thus reducing auto dependency and factoring into the National Association of Homebuilders Green and LEED scoring. The design of the new home is by architect and LEED AP, Allison Beer and project designer Jessica Farmer, both of whom are donating their services while also being supported by their firm SHP Leading Design.

The four bedroom, one-and-a-half bath home has many green features, including high performance windows, a ground source heat pump, low VOC carpeting, and an Ecogrid driveway/sidewalk that allows stormwater infiltration. Organization leaders say that the model will serve as a prototype for changes CHFH hopes to incorporate into future builds.

Once the four-month build is complete the home will belong to Felita Jordan and her two daughters who are excited to move into the new home.

“My children and I are a loving family and we have been waiting all of our lives for an opportunity like this to build and buy our own home,” said Jordan. “Our current apartment is very crowded and we need more space. My family is so excited to have our own home. It is something we have always wanted.”

You can support Cincinnati Habitat by attending a young professionals happy hour event at Neon’s Unplugged on Friday, July 19 from 6pm to 9pm and will include live music.  You can also follow Cincinnati Habitat on Twitter @CincyHabitat and @CincyHabitatYP.

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Arts & Entertainment News

2010 DAAP Fashion Show dazzles sold-out crowd, top names in fashion

Considered to be one of the 50 things to do before you die, the 59th Annual Macy’s Fashion Show dazzled a sold-out crowd of 1,500 in Uptown Cincinnati while hundreds more participated in overflow watch parties nearby.  The 2010 class of graduates showcased their work for some of the top names in the industry as they gathered in Cincinnati to recruit some of the best new fashion design talents.

For the second straight year, Seven/Seventy-Nine was tasked with creating videos that introduced each section of the show. With the themes – Adapt, Transform, Evolve – of this year’s show in mind, Seven/Seventy-Nine created the following videos to introduce and compliment the exciting visual experience that was the 2010 DAAP Fashion Show.

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Arts & Entertainment News

Cincinnati Opera to celebrate early beginnings with free concert – 7/13

The Cincinnati Opera will return to the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden for a special concert on Tuesday, July 13 at 6pm. The free concert is open to the public thanks to the Marge & Charles J. Schott Foundation, and will bring the Cincinnati Opera back to the location where its first opera was presented in 1920.

“On June 27, 1920, Cincinnati Opera presented a production of Martha in an outdoor pavilion at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden,” event organizers stated in a prepared release sent to UrbanCincy. “For the next half-century, performances at the Cincinnati Zoo Pavilion filled a ten week season that regularly featured some of the most legendary singers of the 20th century including Plácido Domingo, Norman Treigle, Beverly Sills, Sherrill Milnes, Montserrat Caballé, James Morris, and Roberta Peters.”

Organizers state that the event will celebrate the Opera’s storied history at the Zoo through the performance of vocal selections from past productions, and feature Meghan Dewald, John Christopher Adams, Nathan Stark, and Carol Walker. The artists will perform “Che gelida manina” from La Bohème, “La Calunnia” from The Barber of Seville, “Sempre libera” from La Traviata, and the famous tenor-baritone duet from Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers.

“Back at the Zoo” is free and open to the public, but reservations are required and can be made calling the Cincinnati Opera Box Office at (513) 241-2742. The celebration will be taking place at the Wings of Wonder Theater at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden (map), with a complimentary reception immediately following the concert at The Lodge. Free parking will be available at the Safari Camp parking lot on Dury Road after 5pm, but bicycle parking and Metro bus service (plan your trip) is also available.