Project Updates
Video of Kathleen Norris's presentation on Urban Retail - October 31
Kathleen Norris, Vice President of Urban Experience for Brandt Retail Group gave an incredible brown bag lunch presentation on October 31. We posted the audio recording and slides previously, but if you want the whole experience, here's the video. Click on each of the links below to view that segment:
- Charles Graves introduces Kathleen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-DICqDSs34
- Kathleen frames the key issues facing retailers of all types and sizes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lBHWXxc56E
- Kathleen describes how retail environments functioned up to about 1950 and how the world of retailing changed after that: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgyDP-dAc0s
- Kathleen describes the limited choices retailers have in finding enough customer density: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ob5iixOGyzw
- Kathleen proposes that we need to go back to the future for urban retail to work. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGtGQ2C2vSc
- Kathleen reviews the implications of the residential density/retail square footage relationship that Ed Starkie discussed at the previous Brown Bag Lunch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN_kvZdVggs
- Finally, Kathleen focuses in on how a form-based code helps strengthen retail districts and the necessity of working hard at improving...or else. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llAl6QBtu88
Video of Ed Starkie's presentation on Economic Development impacts of Form-Based Codes
We have been trying to improve this set of video's quality, but we felt it was better to share with you in its not-quite-ready-for-prime-time form than hold it back. Ed's insights in this session are that good.
Ed spoke on Tuesday, October 29, as the first of our two Brown Bag Lunches. Ed focused on the economics of neighborhood commercial districts -- and it was an eye-opener, even for experienced economic development people.
You can pick up each segment of the presentation at the links below:
- Charles Graves, Director of Planning and Buildings, Introduces Ed Starkie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZfceVnl1Ak&feature=plcp
- Ed Starkie compares the economic development impacts of form-based and traditional codes and gives an example. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rPMsYItQx8&feature=plcp
- Ed talks about another experience in Montgomery, Alabama: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY_QcBlxkdA&feature=plcp
- Ed describes how Form-Based Codes work to help enable economically healthy neighborhoods: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHtr4eDP7IM&feature=plcp
- Ed talks about the impact of street design and high traffic speeds on retailers and demonstrates the relationship between the residential density of the part of a neighborhood near a business district and the amount of retail space the neighborhood can support. The implication: all four Neighborhood Charrette communities, and many others in the City, have more existing retail space than their nearby residences can support: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0HXbtdcI9E&feature=plcp
- Ed's preliminary thinking about the neighborhoods' economic development needs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gPyDADH87M&feature=plcp
- Ed's conclusions: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNHR3XK1pEA&feature=plcp
Westwood Pin-Up! See it here!
Here is the video from the Pin-Up for Westwood on Tuesday night. If you want to see what Maggie is talking about when she references DeWayne's presentation on street parking alternatives, check out the College Hill Pin-Up video, which is linked in the blog entry with that name below.
Audio and slides from the Retail Real Estate and Form-Based Codes Brown Bag Lunch, October 31
As expected, Kathleen Norris of Brandt Retail Group gave a great presentation today at the Neighborhood Charrette Brown Bag Lunch Series. Kathleen talked about the factors that influence retailer success in a neighborhood business district. -- and many of those factors aren't what we have gotten used to assuming.
Click below for the audio recording and presentation slides. Video of the session will be posted as soon as possible.
College Hill Pin-up Video -- Watch Here
As we work on uploading video and audio and other goodness from the Neighborhood Charrette events, here' s the Tuesday night presentation of the preliminary analysis and strategy for College Hill. In these two videos, Dan Parolek of Opticos introduces Joe Nickol and Paul Ostergaard of Urban Design Associates. DeWayne Carver of Hall Planning and Engineering also explains some strategies for on-street parking in College Hill and Westwood.
Stay tuned for more!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtrGSh3eIlE&feature=plcp
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZblJKaFygOM&feature=plcp
Neighborhood Charrettes Going On Now
Come one, come all, but especially if you live in the four first Form-Based Code neighborhoods of Cincinnati: College Hill, Madisonville, Walnut Hills and Westwood! The charrette - an intensive, multi-day urban design session with public participation encouraged - is running this week, from Monday, Oct. 28, until the closing presentation at 6:00 Thursday, Nov. 1.
An integral and interesting part of the charrette is a sort of reporting-out session, or "pinup" for each neighborhood. Last night (Tuesday) were pinups for College Hill and Westwood. If you missed it, you can see lots of pictures in the album posted on Facebook here. Tonight is the pinup for Madisonville and Walnut Hills. There are even a few preview photographs posted in the Facebook album for tonight's session, which you can see here.
In any case, keep following here and on Facebook for more photos and videos of the charrette. If at all possible, come down for tonight's pinup, at 6:00, on the 4th floor of the Centennial II Building, at 805 Central Ave. Tomorrow night's closing session is well worth seeing, too. That also starts at 6:00, and in the same location.
These four neighborhoods are serving as "guinea pigs" in implementing the Cincinnati Form-Based Code. By applying it to these four neighborhoods, urban designers, citizens, and City staff get to see how the Code, available for use by any neighborhood that wants it, work on real, live neighborhoods.
Audio and slides from the Economic Development and Form-Based Codes Brown Bag Lunch, October 30
The Neighborhood Charrette's first Brown Bag Lunch today featured a fascinating presentation from Ed Starkie of Urban Advisors, one of the consulting members of the Form-Based Code team. Ed talked about the impact of residential density on neighborhood commercial district viability -- and demonstrated that most neighborhoods need more residential options near their commercial districts to create enough demand to use their existing commercial spaces.
You can listen to an audio recording of Ed's presentation here, as well as review his slides. We'll post video of the session as soon as it is edited.
What a start to the Neighborhood Charrette! Missed it? Listen and view the presentation here!
Whoo!! Over 120 people from the four Neighborhood Charrette neighborhoods and beyond came out last night to start making it happen! The energy in the room was fantastic, the ideas flowed, and the maps got messy (that's a good thing)! We are off to the races on Cincinnati's first four form-based code neighborhoods!
If you didn't attend but want to get the inside take, you'll find an MP3 recording of the entire opening presentation below and in our Documents section, as well as the slides from the presentation! We'll be posting video of that presentation as soon as we can get it edited. You can find photos from the visioning sessions on our Facebook page as well.
Stay turned today for the brown bag lunch on Economic Development and Form-Based Codes, and the Pin-Up tonight with preliminary vision plan elements for Westwood and College Hill!
.
Breaking News: Brown Bag Lunches and detailed schedule announced!
As we get closer and closer to the Neighborhood Urban Design Workshops -- and to fitting the form-based code to Cincinnati's first four neighborhoods -- we've got three events that you'll want to know about!
First, for those of you from any community who are interested in learning more about neighborhood revitalization, the Urban Design Team's two economic wunderkinds will each give a Brown Bag Lunch presentation:
- On Tuesday, October 30, Ed Starkie of Urban Advisors will show us how Form-Based Codes can improve a neighborhood's economy. Ed will use examples from Cincinnati and across the country to demonstrate how walkable streets, great public spaces and pedestrian-friendly design actually create economic opportunity for urban neighborhoods.
- On Wednesday, October 31, Kathleen Norris of Brandt Retail Group will help us understand how to recruit retailers to an urban neighborhood district. Kathleen will talk about her experiences building retail in Over the Rhine and elsewhere, and give us her insight into the unique factors that contribute to successful urban retail (spoiler alert: they are probably not the factors you're assuming!)
Both Kathleen and Ed spoke to full houses at the Urban Design Workshop in April, and if you attended those sessions you know to expect something eye-opening from these presentations!
Both sessions will start at 12:00 noon at the Neighborhood Design Studio in Two Centennial Plaza, 805 Central Avenue (the middle one of the three buildings behind City Hall).
Second, if you are a resident of Westwood, Walnut Hills, College Hill or Madisonville, make sure that you don't miss the Opening Session on October 29 at 6:00 PM. After the Urban Design Team makes a brief presentation, we will divide up into neighborhood groups and break out the maps and markers. This will be your opportunity to help create the Vision Plan for the future of your community's business district -- the design teams want to hear your vision and see your good ideas! If you have photographs of buildings of places that you think would be great in your neighborhood, bring them along.
Third, the grand culmination of the Neighborhood Urban Design Workshops will occur on Thursday, November 1 at 6:00 PM. You will definitely want to come and see the results of the neighborhoods' and Design Team's hard work!
Check out the table below to see the full schedule of events, including presentations, Pin-Ups, open studio times and Brown Bag Lunches. All events will be held at 805 Central Avenue, Downtown.
Update to schedule of public events, Neighborhood Urban Design Workshop Charrettes
An update for those of you keeping score at home: the four evening public events at the Neighborhood Urban Design Workshop (also known as the Neighborhood Charrettes), will start at 6:00 PM, not 6:30 as originally posted. All sessions will still be held at Two Centennial Plaza, 805 Central Avenue, Downtown. We certainly don't want you to miss any of it!