Is Kenwood Gay Friendly (Columbus, Cincinnati: section 8, renter, house)

[CDBH2013]

Hi All,

We are a lesbian couple in our late 30s. We've been together 10 years and are both professionals. My partner just inherited a house in Kenwood (we currently live in Chicago). It's a nice house, but we both hesitate as we've heard Cinci is pretty conservative. We both went to Miami U back when Western campus was still around and I do remember that the few times we ventured into Cinci it seemed, well, not welcoming. Does anyone know if Kenwood is gay-friendly?

Thanks.

[wrightflyer]

I would wager to say the city has turned a corner over the last 10 or so years. Hamilton County was one of the big reasons Obama won Ohio in 2012.

Would Columbus (Clintonville, Short North, Victorian Village, etc) be more welcoming? Perhaps, but I think many of the Cincinnati neighborhoods on the mend (OTR, Northside, Oakley) would be perfectly fine. Kenwood is sandwiched between a number of inner-suburban towns, plats and neighborhoods that IIRC lean left of center. Part of it is due to the areas Jewish population, but I think Hamilton County as a whole is becoming more blue, to use media slang. It's best known for the shopping strips on Montgomery and Kenwood and the Kenwood Mall, the high-end shopping destination for SW Ohio, SE Indiana and Northern KY. However, there are plenty of older neighborhoods off the main strips that are quiet and nice. I think schools vary by where in the Kenwood area you are, some being Sycamore, some Indian Hill and some Cincinnati Public.

Much of Warren and Butler Counties now? Those are still heavily red, tea-party loving areas I wouldn't wish on many. Not that all residents are that way. Just a decent number to keep tea-party reps in power and elect people like the House Speaker (though oddly enough, he's pretty much the epitome of the GOP and political establishment).

[INsync3]

Cincinnati isn't the same city that it was even a year ago, the city is changing so fast, just 5 years ago the pride festival was almost unheard of, now its a popular destination here in downtown cincy, there were tons of people down there...Cincinnati in my opinion isn't conservative its actually liberal but it is republican(not including Hamilton county).

[Sarah Perry]

I have several gay friends and neighbors, and have been in Cincinnati for going on 14 years this time around. I know the Kenwood area pretty well, despite never having lived there. It's pretty much typical older suburbia. I'd say the neighbors you'd encounter would be likely to be somewhat more welcoming than in some parts of town, somewhat less welcoming than in others. All in all, the greater Cincinnati area is conservative politically and to some extent socially. Many folks you would meet simply won't care that you're gay, others will be fully approving, and a lot of the disapproving ones will treat you with courtesy anyway. Cincinnati people are very big on politeness.

In summary, it's certainly not San Francisco, but it's not a prejudiced backwater either.

[t45209]

I agree with Sarah. People in Cincinnati don't care if you are gay. What you do and how you choose to live your life is your business. This extends beyond sexual orientation, but also to religion and any number of other lifestyle choices. What people in Cincinnati don't care much for is having any of these things shoved down their throats. Cincinnati wouldn't tolerate something like San Francisco's Folsom Street leather festival, but that event obviously represents the extreme. If you carry yourself with a chip on your shoulder expecting to find anti-gay sentiment, I'm sure there are people who would oblige. Otherwise, I think it's a non-issue. The gays I know, some of whom live in my neighborhood, seem to find this to be true around Cincinnati.

[goyguy]

Why not just sell the house?

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by goyguy

Why not just sell the house?

Hey, that is too simple a solution. You are right, if they are comfortable with their current environment, sell the house and use the proceeds to upgrade where they are at.

Cincinnati, like many cities, is not the close minded entity it once was. But as some have remarked it is also not San Fran. But why fight the whole moving thing? Sell the house and use the proceeds to advance your lives where you are.

[SoFresh99]

Kenwood has gotten increasingly down-at-the-heels around the mall, with many of those little SFHs becoming rentals. So I would be concerned about exactly WHERE in Kenwood your inheritance lies. I know this because my parents rent out their tiny SFH in Kenwood. it may be trending upward however because for the first time in years their renter is a fully employed person without Section 8 demands, who is not a hoarder and actually pays their own rent on time and is not making meth in the basement (all of these things actually happened). He happens to be gay.

[kjbrill]

^^^ That would be mainly on the north side of the Mall on some side streets off of Kenwood. Those homes were modest some 40 years ago. On the south side of the Mall, which is across I-71, there is a pocket of homes which are still in the township and Indian Hill School District. A little further south at Euclid Rd you hit Madeira. These homes will definitely hold their price because they are both larger and in two desirable school districts.

As you go west of the Mall you are rapidly in an area which I frankly can't remember being referenced as Kenwood and I grew up in the area. To me it has always been recognized as Deer Park. There are some short street segments west of Kenwood Rd which are township but merge into Deer Park. I can think of a lot of areas far more down at the heels than those around Kenwood Towne Center. Modest maybe, but dilapidated and falling apart, no way.

[CDBH2013]

Thanks for all of your responses! It's nice to know that things are changing around there. Goyguy and Kjbrill, we may sell the house, but my partner grew up in it and says she doesn't think she wants to part with it. Besides that, the thing is huge and really lovely.

Kjbrill, the house is in Indian Hill School District. I'm glad to hear that area is stable and home prices will not drop.

Again, thank you for all of your feedback everyone! You've given us valuable information on which to base our decision moving forward.

Happy Holidays!