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Arts & Entertainment News

Big city, small town

Cincinnati is an amazing place. You get all the benefits and features of a big city, while also being able to take advantage of the small town charm.

Last night Fountain Square was packed for a political rally encouraging voters to get out there and vote early. The night featured Natalie Portman and music by prominent Indie bands like The Breeders and The National.

The music was awesome, the crowd was big and the weather was perfect. Unfortunately we were a little late arriving and missed The Breeders performance and only caught about 3/4 of The National. But while we were there the night was amazing, and we couldn’t help but think where else could this happen than Cincinnati.

We lucked out and a tabled opened on Via Vite’s rooftop terrace. From there we were able to not only take in the amazing music from The National, but also enjoy some of the area’s best Italian food in comfort and style. We didn’t have to wait, pay top dollar, or even know somebody. We just had to show up and take advantage of the awesome night ready to be had.

We were there with local celebrity/politician Jim Tarbell and nationally known pop star turned Green Party politician Justin Jeffre. In NYC you would have had to been a high roller in order to get that kind of experience, but here some average twenty somethings were able to roll with the big dogs. Only in Cincinnati.

Photo from Jeff Swinger/Cincinnati Enquirer — MORE PHOTOS HERE
Categories
Development News Politics

Giving the ‘Soapbox District’ some teeth

W. 4th Street has seen a buzz of activity in recent months. New stores have opened, new buildings have gone up, and new residents move in. In addition to this the area has also attempted to be rebranded as the ‘Soapbox District.’

A soapbox is a raised platform on which one stands to make an impromptu speech, often about a political subject. This is one of the angle that the branders were getting at. The other was to pay tribute to Cincinnati’s soap making history and the shape of many of the buildings in the W. 4th Street area.

I find the angle of public speech and discussion to be most interesting. Fountain Square was seemingly that spot, but that public space has been converted into a hybrid public/private space where I doubt this kind of thing would be tolerated any longer. The branders also mentioned how this could be the spot, in Cincinnati, where young people make their voices heard. Great, many of the new residents in that area are indeed young so this seems to possibly have some traction.

The problem is that there seems to be no concerted effort to make this into reality. I look to London’s Hyde Park. In the park’s NE corner (aka Speaker’s Corner) people come to speak publicly about what they wish. They are allowed to continue as long as it is considered lawful. I look at this example and see a huge opportunity at 4th & Plum (GoogleMap) in Cincinnati.

That location is right in the heart of the ‘Soapbox District’ and is currently occupied by a surface parking lot. An ideal scenario would be to acquire this lot and turn it into a park. Create a much needed dog park area within it, sitting places, and lots of trees. In addition to this, make the park the epicenter for public/free speech in the newly dubbed ‘Soapbox District.’ The idea is great, now let’s give it some teeth.

Categories
News

The great turnaround

Unlike many Cincinnatians I grew up a Bearcat fan. I remember going to football games and what occupied most of the south endzone was impromptu games up catch by kids my age, the north endzone had some bleachers set up for opposing teams bands, but were rarely filled. A smokestack cast its shadow over those bleachers and parking lots surrounded the stadium making for plenty of tailgating opportunities for the handful of people that actually showed up – most of whom were forced into buying season tickets so that they could get basketball season tickets.

A lot has changed since then. The Bearcats are now a BCS school, the stadium has been expanded slightly and cleaned up, that north endzone is now occupied by a student section at capacity, and the south endzone has a filled fan section with a eatery and massive new scoreboard atop the large rec center.

We play teams like Oklahoma, South Florida, West Virginia, Pittsburgh and other top-notch BCS schools regularly…and we’re competitive. We also have the oldest stadiums in college football with one of the most unique settings anywhere. UC Athletic Director, Mike Thomas, aptly described Nippert Stadium as the Wrigley Field of college football, but it is also one of the smallest stadiums for a BCS school.
So with all this positive change, big time opponents, and a winning team you would expect a region of over 2 million people to be able to fill a 35,000 seat stadium for 6 home games a year. This past Saturday was Homecoming. It was a beautiful Saturday with not much else going on in the region and the announced crowd was something like 32,000 and change. It was announced, on the scoreboard, as “the sixth largest crowd in Nippert history.” Embarrassing.

It was a perfect day, Homecoming, Big East conference opener, the Buckeyes didn’t play until after the Bearcats finished, and the Bengals were scheduled for a road game on Sunday (and they suck). At the same time CBS is predicting that the Bearcats will win the Big East and head to Miami to play Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

The team is 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the conference. Let’s start supporting them before it’s too late. Cincinnati has been waiting for a winner for many years now. Well we have one, and there are good tickets still available. Single game tickets can be purchased for as little as $35, and the Bearcats will be playing host to South Florida, Pittsburgh and Syracuse to finish out their home schedule.

Categories
News

Cincinnati’s Cycling Scene

It’s no secret. Cincinnati’s cycling scene is a little lacking, and the effort put forth by the city to cater to this mode of transport is paltry at best. The City of Cincinnati states that there are 55 miles of bike routes, although 24 miles are signed. A bike route does not necessarily mean that it features a dedicated lane for cyclists or improved bicycle storage facilities, just that it is a city-preferred route. There are also only 200 bicycle racks in the city that boasts a population of over 300,000.

The city boasts that it has added six sets of bicycle lanes over the “past few years,” although if it is anything like what was added to Victory Parkway, in which the lanes only extend for 1/2 mile and connect to no other facilities or bike lanes and are entirely isolated, then this boasting may be a bit premature.

The city, though, is looking to create designated two-wheeled, motorized vehicle parking areas, and it would be nice if the city could extend that to implenting more bicycle racks throughout the study area.

For the month of September, UrbanCincy asked its readers what the city should do to cater to cyclists, and the response was pretty overwhelming:

  • 38% would like to see additional bike lanes and trails;
  • 16% wanted more bicycle facilities that include dedicated parking areas, lockers and showers;
  • 1% requested additional bike signage and striping on roadways;
  • 1% would like to see more bicycle co-ops;
  • and less than 1% wanted more driver and cyclist education programs.

Interesting enough, 50% wanted to see all five options implemented.

The demand is there for these facilities, and every day that I am out on the bike or walking the streets, I spot countless cyclists interacting in various ways with traffic. Some are commuters, others are racers, but many just don’t fall under any identifiable category. And the number of cyclists continue to increase, especially with weekly rides such as Cincinnati Mayhem and various rides from the local bicycle shops, and with the ever-popular end-of-the-month Critical Mass.

Finding information about these, though, is a bit cumbersome. Queen City Bike is a great resource and blog, where you can find up-to-date information. Although it is a new forum, CincyRides attempts to combine many of the divergent resources together into one convenient and accessible web-site.

Even though winter is fast approaching, it is still a great time to get out on the bike and become one of the many commuters who take to the streets every morning, or one of the many who bike for pleasure and health. An ever-greater bike presence will only result in ever-greater attention by the city, after all.

Categories
News

The Seafarer at the ETC

The second show of Ensemble Theatre’s 08-09 Season is upon us. The critically acclaimed production of Connor McPherson’s The Seafarer, will kick off next Wednesday, October 15th. The production stars Dennis Parlato, Adrian Sparks, Joneal Joplin, Brian Isaac Phillips and John Librizzi, and is nominated for 4 Tony Awards including ‘Best Play’.

The Seafarer is a chilling new play about the sea, Ireland, and the power of myth. It’s Christmas Eve and Sharky has returned to Dublin to look after his irascible, aging brother who’s recently gone blind. Old drinking buddies Ivan and Nicky are holes up at the house too, hoping to play some cards. But with the arrival of an oddly familiar stranger, the stakes are raised even higher. Sharky may be playing for his very soul.

The show runs 2 hours and 20 minutes with a 15 minute intermission. Tickets can be purchased by calling the ETC box office at 513.421.3555 or via the internet. Ticket prices vary based on the day of the week and other possible discounts. You can also enter to win 2 FREE tickets as part of the ETC’s monthly drawing.

Read the NYTimes review of The Seafarer.