Tuesday, February 4 2014

Cincinnati to Beef-up Police Presence

On the heels of a surprising uptick in homicides in 2013 and 2014, Mayor John Cranley announced a $1 million plan to put more cops on the street. In addition to increasing overtime and a hiring blitz, Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell announced plans to restart a gang unit staffed with about a dozen hand-picked officers.
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For a Taste of the Big Apple, Checkout the Aronoff’s 2014 Season Lineup

Broadway in Cincinnati, the Fifth Third sponsored organization responsible for bringing some of the biggest shows in Broadway to the Aronoff Center has lined up another year of stellar entertainment in 2014. Some of the highlights are Rodger's and Hammerstein's Cinderella, the Lion King, Dirty Dancing, ELF the Musical and more. Season tickets go on sale today, learn more at broadwayincincinnati.com.
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Bike-share Coming Soon to the Queen City

Cincinnati is jumping on the bike sharing bandwagon as 20 bike stations will appear throughout Over-the-Rhine and downtown this summer. The program, dubbed Cincy Cycle, will charge an annual membership between $75 - $85 for unlimited use of the bikes to get around downtown. Nonmembers will be able to rent a bike for $7 or $8 per day.
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County Commissionor Drops Bid for Governor

Gubernatorial hopeful and Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune has shuttered his plans to challenge rival Ed Fitzgerald for the Democratic nomination opposite Republican incumbent John Kasich this fall. In the end, Portune just waited too long to get into the race, according to WVXU political correspondent Howard Wilkinson. Having started in December, Portune faced Fitzgerald's well-oiled and well-funded campaign, not to mention some steep opposition from the Democratic party who's endorsement already favored Fitzgerald. Maybe next time, Todd...
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City Needs to Fill $21-million Budget Hole

Cincinnati's top budget, finance and pension officials outlined Monday that the city's budget will start out in a $21 million hole. The city expects to raise about $356 million in tax and other revenue, but estimates spending $377 million. This news comes just before the Cincinnati officials plan to meet with bond ratings agencies who determine the city's credit rating. According to WVXU, the city has spent more than it has earned for several years and covered the difference with one-time revenue sources.
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Thursday, February 6 2014

Mayor Cranley May Have a New Plan for Parking

According to Cincinnati Business Courier, the hubbub around City Hall is that Mayor Cranley intends to roll out some new recommendations for the city's parking system and the controversial deal to lease the assets to the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority last fall. Cranley has said the City can simply walk away from the deal but hasn't exactly clarified how that would legally come to fruition so this could get interesting.
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This Just In: Hamilton County Commissioners Still Hate the City’s Responsible Bidder Ordinance

Allegations over political motives continue to fly by opponents and proponents of the City's Responsible Bidder Ordinance. Hamilton County Commissioners think the ordinance is unfair and have drawn a line in the sand, as recently as last month, stipulating that any decisions regarding contractors for Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) project are theirs and the City should back-off. The stand-off comes amid looming federal deadlines which threaten steep penalties for not moving forward with projects to rehabilitate the county's aging sewer-system.
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City to Mahogany's: Show Me the Money

A once controversial tenant of the new Banks development downtown is back in the hot-seat after falling behind on its loan, sales tax and workers compensation payments. According to Mahogany's ownership, business has been good since opening last October but sales were naturally slower during the winter months. Co-owner and Executive Chef Elizabeth Rogers, who has a history of falling behind on financial obligations, sparked the ire of some last year when she secured almost a million dollars in startup financing from the city.
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A Bird? A Plane? No, it's a Drone

The Cincinnati fire department is partnering with the University of Cincinnati to research whether or not the fire department will use drones in the future. The small, unmanned aircraft could be used by the fire department to scout out a large fire, helping with search and rescue missions and for crowd control at Riverfest stadium.
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Federal Agents Seize Counterfeit NFL Merchandise at CVG

About $1.5 million worth of counterfeit NFL merchandise was seized by Federal agents last week at CVG, according to the Cincinnati Business Courier. The items included fake jerseys, caps, T-shirts and other souvenirs. The bust was part of a larger national sting that netted more than $21.6 million in counterfeit merchandise.
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Tuesday, February 11 2014

Construction Alters Route for Opening Day Parade

The annual parade for the Cincinnati Red's Opening Day will be taking the scenic route this year due to ongoing construction along Race Street. In its 95th year, the parade will come south down Elm before hanging a left on Fifth Street to rejoin the normal route that runs alongside Fountain Square. The festivities kick-off at noon with the Redlegs facing the St. Louis Cardinals later that afternoon.
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Businesses by the Banks Bewildered at Poor Profits

Despite an annual intake of $92 million, some businesses at The Banks are struggling, according to a detailed investigation by The Cincinnati Enquirer. Those struggling businesses complain that the area is missing key pieces such as a hotel, office tower or grocery store. There's some hope for the businesses, however, with a 291 apartments and 19,000 square-feet of retail space planned for development soon, which will bring the total amount spent by taxpayers to $127.7 million.
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Streetcar's Downtown-to-Uptown Route Poses Challenges

Pro-streetcar advocates are plotting to expand the streetcar's route another mile toward Uptown despite mounting challenges from detractors. A number of challenges, including an important power line to the city that runs underneath Vine Street and an unbudging Mayor John Cranley, threaten derail the plans of connecting Downtown to Uptown. Streetcar supporters maintain that connecting the two key business districts is crucial for the system's long-term success. John Deatrick, who is managing the streetcar project, said he and his team are currently figuring out if completing Uptown route will keep the project on its $128 million budget.
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Scripps Makes Some Acquisitions, WCPO is Now Airborne

The media arm of E.W. Scripps Co. is now capable of reaching 12% of American households, thanks to a recent acquisition of two new television stations. The owner of the Cincinnati news outlet WCPO has also just added a new helicopter to its local arsenal. Dubbed Chopper 9, the latest addition to the regional airspace and only local news helicopter will be bringing you aerial footage of breaking news and daily traffic reports.
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Cranley Crafts a Second Parking Solution

Mayor John Cranley is looking for five votes on Cincinnati City Council to approve his recommended plan for the city's parking system. Under Cranley's plan the city's Parking Services Department would continue to run the maintenance and operation of the city's meters and garages, according to The Cincinnati Business Courier. The plan calls for about $25 million in revenue bonds to improve the city's parking systems and expects an eventual return of $7.4 million per year.
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Thursday, February 13 2014

P&G Selling Downtown Office Building on Sixth Street

Hey investors, want to own a piece of prime real-estate downtown? Then look no further than the corner of Sycamore and 6th where Proctor and Gamble has listed a 110,000 square foot office building for $6.5 million. P&G employees and existing tenants will be fully relocated by November. One existing tenant, startup incubator Centrifuse is planning to move to OTR; no word on what plans for the Port Authority are.
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Cranley's Parking Plan Likely to Pass

It looks like Mayor John Cranley's proposed parking plan has enough votes on City Council to pass. Details of the new plan include: increasing downtown enforcement hours until 9 p.m.; upping neighborhood meter rates by 25–75c; and upgrading all meters to accept credit cards. If the city decides to opt out of its lease with the Port Authority it will lose a one-time windfall of $85 million and cost taxpayers $1 million to pull out of the lease.
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Cincy Brew Bus Officially On a Roll

Forget the taxis, craft beer fans– check out the Cincy Brew Bus, a new venture that provides cross-city transportation for sudsy samples at 6 different local breweries. In addition to adult-beverages, the shuttle will also provide en-route education on Cincinnati's extensive brewing history as well as an update on the recent local resurgence. We’re anxious to see some of the city’s newest players (Rhinegeist & Ei8ht Ball) added to the list of destinations, but this looks like a great start!
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New Additions to GABP Offerings May Include Beer, Social Media Perks

Speaking of craft beer, thirsty baseball fans may soon have even more options to wash down those peanuts whilst imbibing at Great American Ballpark. Business Courier reports that the GABP's craft offerings could soon expand to 30 taps! In addition, there are also rumors of more focus on social media, which may include concepts similar to Cleveland's Social Suite for the most socially engaged fans.
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Can a Dog Run a Marathon?

Those looking for a 4-legged companion to run with them as part of this year's Flying Pig festivities are in luck: The IAMS Flying Fur run will take place Saturday May 3, at 1:30 p.m. The 2-mile route starts near the Purple People Bridge and IAMS will donate a bag of pet food to the SPCA Cincinnati for each dog registered for the event.
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Tuesday, February 18 2014

US Bank Arena Could be 2016 GOP Venue

WVXU is reporting that local GOP leaders are lobbying the RNC to make Cincinnati the 2016 venue for the Republican National Convention. The plan is to have US Bank Arena host the event, which could bring thousands of Republican supporters into town. In order to make the effort a success though, conservatives will have to raise some money, and lots of it.
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Sam Adam's Expands Cincinnati Brewing Operations

There's been a flurry of microbrewery activity in Cincinnati lately and Sam Adam's, the nation's largest-selling craft beer manufacturer, doesn't want to be left out. The Boston-based brewery is adding more than $6 million to its brewing operations in Cincinnati's West End neighborhood, including a $3.5 million storage building and $2.3 million worth of storage tanks. Interested brewers take note: the facility has eight open positions at its Cincinnati facility.
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State Rep. Peter Beck Faces Resignation

Republican State Rep. Peter Beck faces 69 felony charges alleging he took hundreds of thousands of dollars from investors when he was chief financial officer of a failed West Chester software startup. The indictment alleges Beck, who is now under pressure to resign, diverted most of the money for his campaign fund. If convicted, the 61-year-old Beck could face up to 102 years in prison.
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Infographic Details Cincinnati's Abandoned 1914 Subway

What would the Cincinnati 1914 Subway and Rapid Transit Loop look like if it was completed? A graphic from the UW-Madison Department of Geography sheds a little light on that inquiry. The graphic illustrates costs associated with the proposed project and routes that were replaced by expressways.
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More Charges Dropped in Kenwood Towne Place Construction Hole

WCPO reports that the former manager of the failed construction project at Kenwood Towne Place Audrey Tarpley has been relieved of any future legal burdens relating to the case. We'd love to give you more details but WCPO has decided to implement a new pay-wall preventing full access to the article. Helicopters must be expensive, huh? Don't bother clicking on this one...
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Thursday, February 20 2014

Smitherman Wants to Fix the Pension System

Councilman Smitherman has issued a proposal to resolve the looming pension crisis in Cincinnati. It includes a number of previously voiced suggestions such as freezing cost of living adjustments as well as call for the city to cough-up a one-time $100 million. Once the program is solvent, he'd look to transfer everything to the state retirement system, similar to how other cities in Ohio operate.
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Cranley Eying Federal Funds, Partners With Dayton Mayor

Mayor John Cranley has announced that he'll be partnering with Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley to compete for federal funds to attract new manufacturing businesses to the area. There is apparently $1.3 billion up for grabs, and the two city leaders hope to be named among 12 benefactors across the nation. Cranley also noted that whether or not the partnership is a success for this specific initiative, it should help foster future regional relationships to benefit both communities.
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Boone County Considers Arming Teachers

A favored plan amongst gun enthusiasts, the question of whether or not to arm educators to discourage violence in schools is currently being debated in Boone County, KY. The program under consideration, "Protecting Our Students and Teachers" was created by Boone County Constable Joe Kalil following the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. Kalil says that arming teachers will deter any future plans for attack; some parents and teachers disagree.
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Xerox Tries to Regain Control of Parking System

Mayor John Cranley is adamant about retaining control of the city's parking system. According to the Cincinnati Business Courier, Xerox proposed to overhaul the city's parking meters to include smarter technology that would allow customers to pay by their phones. Xerox claims their plan would allow the city to generate $1 million more per year than the current plan, but would require the city to take on more debt to initially implement. Cranley is against having an outside company manage the meters and appears to have support to pass his version of the parking plan.
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Cincinnati Economy Expected to Add 10,000 - 15,000 Jobs in 2014

A chief economist at PNC Financial group estimated Cincinnati's economy should add more than 10,000 jobs this year. Despite the big number, it's not really all that much to be excited about. The Cincinnati area added somewhere between 8,000 - 9,000 jobs last year, which puts this year's predictions at a 1.5 percent growth rate compared to the national average of 3 percent.
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Tuesday, February 25 2014

Cincinnati's Bloodthirsty Streetcar

As construction on the streetcar continues unabated, the opposition is flailing. The latest freak-out? The streetcar will kill you. That's right– drawing from some statistics around the nation from such communities as Portland and Houston, critics of the project are now warning city officials to expect numerous fatalities as a result of motorist and pedestrian accidents. Evidently, looking both ways before crossing the street is no longer an appropriate position for street safety.
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Accessibility Questions Surround Board of Elections’ Move to Mt. Airy

The Hamilton County Board of Elections is moving from Downtown to Mt. Airy. The vote to move the BOE was divided along party lines and decided by Republican Ohio Secretary of State, John Husted. When the office moves in several years it will make Hamilton County the first urban county in Ohio not to have its election offices downtown. Democrats fear the move will restrict early voting for those living downtown without access to a car. It would take roughly two hours by bus to make the round-trip commute from Government Square to the new election offices.
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Cincinnati's Has Bright Plans for Solar in 2014

Cincinnati's going green in 2014, thanks to renewed effort by the Office of Environment and Sustainability. The group, tasked with leading the municipal government towards environmental stewardship, recently noted that upcoming projects will build on the advances the city made in solar energy in 2012. With a stated goal of doubling its ability to generate energy from solar power on government buildings by 2020, there's clearly lots to do.
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Financially Troubled Mahogany’s Defaults on Lease

After a long-fought financial battle the soul-food restaurant Mahogany’s will default on its lease at the Banks. The restaurant owes nearly $53,000 in rent and utilities, according to the Cincinnati Business Courier. Mahogany’s received a $300,000 loan from the city to help with the costs of initial construction. It has not paid the city what it owes for November and December and made a partial payment in January.
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Roadtrippers Interviewed on Cincinnati’s Start-up Culture

USA Today posted an interview with Cincinnati-based startup Roadtrippers about what makes Cincinnati a great place to launch a startup. James Fisher, the owner of Roadtrippers, explains how much has changed in the landscape surrounding Roadtrippers’ offices in Over-the-Rhine and how great it feels to be part of the growing district.
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Thursday, February 27 2014

City to Expand Same-Sex Domestic Partner Registry for Small Businesses

The mayor and city-council are poised to help local small businesses offer benefits to same-sex couples by expanding the city's domestic partner registry. Spearheaded by Councilman Seelbach, the registry will be funded entirely by application fees and will help Cincinnati achieve a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign "Municipal Equality Index".
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Shark Ray Pups Found Belly-up

Newport Aquarium is making shark-ray headlines again. In just over a month, all seven recently born pups– the first ever born in captivity, have died. The facility has been working towards the goal of breeding the extremely rare species since it created the Shark Ray Breeding Progam in 2007, so the loss is a disappointing turn.
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City Hall Launches New Initiatives to Improve Contracts Awarded to Minorities

Mayor John Cranley has the votes he needs to set up an Office for Minority Inclusion at City Hall and $175,000 to spend on a consultant to study the city’s minority contracting. Both initiatives are a result of the city’s poor record of rewarding contracts to minority- and female-owned businesses. Last year the city awarded three percent of contracts to African-American owned businesses, six percent to women-owned businesses and none to Hispanic contractors, according to WVXU.
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Manufactory: A Place to Get Things Done

It's been called a health club for the mind and Disney world for adults– the Manufactory, a new business on Mosteller Road in Sharonville that caters to engineers, tinkerers and maker-folk. They offer access to high-tech tools like welding equipment and 3D printers and aims to encourage the community to roll up it's collective sleeves and get to work. Membership plans are available in daily, monthly and annual installments.
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Spiteful Letter May Have Closed Health Clinics

The closing of four community health clinics impacting as many as 10,000 children and adults could have been a result of spiteful letter sent by the health department who operated the clinics, according to Mayor John Cranley. The letter was sent to federal regulators and may have impacted their decision not to renew funding for the Neighborhood Health Care centers in Walnut Hills, Norwood, Harrison and Downtown. The letter, dated October 14, 2013 and signed by the health department’s chief financial officer Joyce Tate, criticized a merger with Northern Kentucky’s HealthPoint as a way to prop up the financially struggling Neighborhood Health Centers.
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