Categories
Arts & Entertainment Business News

Neighborhood Group Attempting To Establish Museum Focused on Over-the-Rhine

Over-the-Rhine Museum Kick-Off Event [Provided]

For those of us who worry that Over-the-Rhine is in the process of losing its history to a swarm of new development and residents who know little about the previous lives of the neighborhood, there is a new group, of which I am part, which is working to address that very issue.

The impetus behind the Over-the-Rhine Museum, which is still in its formation stage, is to create a space where people can come to “discover and interpret the history of Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood from its earliest inception through to the present.”

The goal is to accomplish this by using the stories of real people who have lived in specific buildings in OTR to show how the neighborhood has changed over time.

The museum plans to share not only stories of the neighborhood’s celebrated German heritage, but also stories of the Appalachian and African American residents that have helped to define the neighborhood more recently – creating a comprehensive history of the neighborhood over the past century and a half.

The Over-the-Rhine Museum group is in the early stages of forming and is basing itself on the model used by the Lower East Side Tenement Museum in New York City, which is located in another neighborhood with a strong immigrant influence that has changed dramatically over time.

While the Over-the-Rhine Museum does not yet have a physical location, the plan is to establish a pop-up museum in the near future, with the exhibits based on the specific space where the pop-up will be held. Any historic building in OTR can fit the bill for the pop-up space or the permanent museum because, as founding member Anne Steinert says, “all of these buildings have stories to tell.”

Those interested in getting involved with the effort, or simply learning more, can participate in a walking tour of historic tenement buildings around Findlay Market on Sunday, October 4. Tickets for the OTR Tenement Walking Tour cost $10 and can be purchased online.

Group organizers say that they are also planning to host a storytelling event over the winter. Additional questions regarding how to get involved can be directed at otrmuseum@gmail.com.

Categories
Business Development News

PHOTOS: Aqua on the Levee Rising Along Newport’s Waterfront

Last November developers broke ground on the $80 million second phase of Newport on the Levee, called Aqua on the Levee, some 15 years after the first phase opened. Since that time, a significant amount of work has progressed on the project that will yield 239 apartments, a hotel, and 8,300 square feet of retail.

The project is being built atop what long sat as a three-acre surface parking lot at the foot of the Purple People Bridge.

The residential component is expected to bolster business for retailers at the complex that have struggled to draw crowds on non-weekend days. It will also bring the first Aloft Hotel to the region, which will also be the trendy hotel’s first in Kentucky and feature 144 rooms, a bar and 10,000 square feet of meeting space.

The project is being developed by Capital Investment Group and Musselman Hotels, and is expected to be completed in fall 2016.

EDITORIAL NOTE: All six photographs were taken by Travis Estell on September 27, 2015.

Categories
Up To Speed

Cincinnati’s booming center city should be obvious choice for CDK Global’s new operations center

Center city should be obvious choice for CDK Global’s new operations center

It was announced earlier today that CDK Global, an integrated information technology and digital marketing provider for the retail and automotive retail industries, is looking at Southwest Ohio for a new facility that would house around 1,000 employees.

CDK Global LLC expects to create $45,000,000 in new annual payroll as the result of a 75 percent, 15-year job creation tax credit estimated to be worth $15,652,715 that was approved by the Ohio Tax Credit Authority on Monday. The tax credit will require CDK to maintain operations at its new site for the next 18 years and would retain $3,421,465 in existing payroll along with 80 jobs. CDK is expected to make $9,750,000 in capital investment as a result of the tax credit.

The move makes sense given the region’s strong marketing and retail presence, and its rapidly growing tech scene. According to the report from our content partners at the Business Courier, a specific site has not yet been selected. We would like to take this opportunity to point CDK Global to the center city where many of the region’s fastest-growing, most innovative and successful companies are locating. Plus, there are several great sites located directly on the first phase of the Cincinnati Streetcar that would only add to the experience and quality of life for CDK’s employees.

Categories
Business Development News Opinion

Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation Refocusing Efforts on Inclusive, Equitable Change

Recently, David Brooks wrote an article for the New York Times about Vice President Joe Biden. The article referenced Biden’s ‘Formation Story.’ Regardless of the politics of the article, we were drawn to this term. In order to be effective in civic work we must have a deep understanding of who we are and what drives us to get out of bed every day and fight.

Most people don’t realize that the Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation has been around for almost 40 years. We were created by the community council in 1977 to develop quality affordable housing in a time when places like Walnut Hills were being abandoned and, in many cases, forgotten.

After decades of assorted success, the organization was at a crossroads five years ago. We could close our doors … or innovate into an organization that reimagines our role as much more. Having chosen the latter, we maintained that we didn’t just want to be a developer. We wanted to be a catalyst for sustainable and positive change. Partnerships with the Walnut Hills Area Council and Walnut Hills Business Group ignited that course, yet, we have still struggled to establish an identity.

Throughout this time we’ve asked big picture questions like ‘What is our purpose?’ ‘What do we value?’ and ‘What will we fight for?’ Recognizing the importance of community input, we posed these tough questions in the form of neighborhood listening sessions, survey collection, and through non-traditional engagement streams. As a result, our new brand was born.

Our new brand identity is a mash up of what we’ve heard in the community over the last four years. It reflects our relentless desire for equitable change and growth. It reflects community development that values the community organizing and boots on the ground strategy of the past and matches it with the modern day approaches to big, bold and innovative ideas that are driving urban expansion across the country. It is an inclusive brand that respects and celebrates the history and identity of Walnut Hills, while inviting new stakeholders to the table to contribute to our community’s growth.

Will inclusive and equitable change be easy? Will we always be as successful as we want to be? No. It will be hard. Damn hard. But we believe that we must do what’s hard. We believe that we must lead by example. And guess what? We can’t do it alone. This type of change is going to require your participation, through both successes and challenges. It’s going to require all of us to listen to each other, to inspire each other, to be agile, smart and strategic together.

We believe that the future of community development belongs to change agents and risk takers. Those who believe the impossible is possible. Are you one of those people? Are you ready?

Let’s go.

EDITORIAL NOTE: This letter was jointly authored by Kevin Wright, Executive Director of the WHRF, and Christina D. Brown, who serves as the organization’s president. Wright was a reporter for UrbanCincy in 2010, prior to taking on his leadership role in Walnut Hills.

Categories
Arts & Entertainment News

Street Food Festival Returns to Streets of Walnut Hills This Saturday

Cincinnati Street Food Festival (2015)Walnut Hills will host the fourth annual Cincinnati Street Food Festival this Saturday, September 26. Event organizers say there will be music, art, drinks and, of course, food trucks.

There will be 15 food trucks, five live music acts, artists and drinks provided by Rhinegeist and Hopwater at this year’s festival. While none of the food trucks specifically focus on vegan or vegetarian dishes, several of the operators do offer those options.

The event has been organized each year by the Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation, which started the festival with the help of many sponsors and volunteers in back in 2012. The idea has been to celebrate the city’s diverse street food scene, while also bringing people to what was once Cincinnati’s second largest business district.

While the neighborhood has been struggling with a shrinking population and limited job opportunities, recent investments in the neighborhood have been encouraging. Over the past few years, several new businesses have opened up shop, and dozens of new residences have been developed.

In addition to that, Metro has announced that it will be making bus service upgrades for the area, and the WHRF continues to forge ahead with several new public space projects.

As a result, festival organizers see one of the main purposes of the event as showcasing these improvements and opportunities.

Organizers also say that they are proud to use proceeds from the Flying Pies booth to support UpSpring, a non-profit agency serving the education needs of homeless children and youth, and the Cincinnati Preschool Promise.

The Cincinnati Street Food Festival will take place along McMillan Street, between Hemlock and Chatham Streets, from 11am to 5pm. It is free and open to anyone interested in attending. Several Metro bus routes serve the area, and plenty of free bicycle parking is available in the immediate vicinity.

EDITORIAL NOTE: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that proceeds from the festival would go to support UpSpring and the Cincinnati Preschool Promise. Proceeds from the festival will actually go to support the Walnut Hills Redevelopment Foundation, while money collected from the Flying Pies booth will go to support UpSpring and the Cincinnati Preschool Promise.