Relocating: What's the ethnic and cultural diversity like in Cincinnati? (Springfield: middle-class, section 8)

[peanut's mom]

My family and I will be moving to Cincinnati in 3 months. I've read a few of the threads and I'm still not sure in what neighborhoods to consider looking for a rental. My husband will be working at the airport so we need to live no more than 30 minutes to/from there. We have a toddler and would prefer a family-oriented area (parks, schools). We don't need a luxury home in a high-end neighborhood. Just would like something middle class, safe, and clean. I think my biggest concern is finding a neighborhood with a bit of diversity. What should we expect in regards to ethnic and cultural diversity?

[Ron.]

This info is per City-Data.............

Cincy Info



Races in Cincinnati:

•White Non-Hispanic (52.5%)
•Black (42.9%)
•Two or more races (1.7%)
•Hispanic (1.3%)
•American Indian (0.8%)
•Other race (0.6%)

[SonnyDaze]

The airport is in Northern Kentucky and there are plenty of Northern Kentucky communities that fit what you are looking for with the exception of diversity. Staying on the KY side of the river would lessen your husband's daily commute by a considerable amount but from the sound of it you'd most likely want to be in/closer to Cincinnati. Florence would be the only place in Northern Kentucky I'd suggest looking into. Otherwise you'd probably want to check out the northern/northeastern suburbs of Hamilton County in Ohio.

[Cincy-Rise]

Originally Posted by CincyExpert

The airport is in Northern Kentucky and there are plenty of Northern Kentucky communities that fit what you are looking for with the exception of diversity. Staying on the KY side of the river would lessen your husband's daily commute by a considerable amount but from the sound of it you'd most likely want to be in/closer to Cincinnati. Florence would be the only place in Northern Kentucky I'd suggest looking into. Otherwise you'd probably want to check out the northern/northeastern suburbs of Hamilton County in Ohio.

Florence is 92% white.

[jlrosen]

Gaslight Clifton would be a good choice. The elementary school there is a bilingual school, it has a large indian population along with a mosque, Hebrew union college, a Unitarian church, and three or four other christian denominations. Three large parks, burnet woods, mt. storm, and rawson preserve. About 3 miles north of downtown. There are a lot of young families there, but I wouldn't describe it as 'family oriented'; there are plenty of neighborhood children. There are plenty of rentals, and as far as crime goes, the main concern is theft from automobiles and shoplifting, low on violent crime.

[goyguy]

Diversity still often indicates transition, as in blue-collar to yuppie, White to Hispanic, etc. The cynical definition of "integrated" is, "a neighborhood during the period between the first Blacks' moving in and the last Whites' moving out." But this is happily no longer always the case. Although there are sections of Cincinnati such as Roselawn and Mt Airy that seem to be meeting the cynical definition, several good areas are defying it. College Hill, Hartwell, and the adjoining communities of Pleasant Ridge and Kennedy Hts have stabilized with a "mixed" population following "flight" during the '60's to '80s. All are safe, though in a relative way - being urban - and offer ample rental possibilities, whether in a four-unit "brick box" apartment building or a single-family house. The principal down side is that the Cincinnati public schools are mostly pretty abysmal despite lots of attempts via "magnet" programs and such to correct that.

Finneytown also came to mind right away, as it's part of a suburban community (Springfield Township) and has plenty of affordable houses - and a few apartments - to go along with its predominantly middle- to upper-middle-class feel. There's been some bad press about this area because most of the homes are part of older subdivisions, and Section 8 conversions have been going on. But a lot of this is cloaked racism and classism. The school system has stayed good even as its proportion of "minority" and lower-income students has increased, and no one I know of there is planning to leave. In fact, its reputation as a snobbery-free and affordable alternative to nearby Wyoming is firmly intact. Winton Rd, the main artery through Finneytown, is still a thriving commercial district complete with a new mega-Kroger's, but all the noise and congestion disappear within seconds of turning a corner from it. From the Winton/Galbraith interchange, you can take the longer - westward - way on the Cross-County Highway (Rte 126) to 275, then south on 275 right around to "CVG," and easily make it within a half-hour. (Going east to I-75 guarantees rush-hour horror and a much longer trip.)

The more I think about it, the more I like Finneytown as an option for you. Best o' luck!

[SonnyDaze]

Originally Posted by goyguy

Diversity still often indicates transition, as in blue-collar to yuppie, White to Hispanic, etc. The cynical definition of "integrated" is, "a neighborhood during the period between the first Blacks' moving in and the last Whites' moving out." But this is happily no longer always the case. Although there are sections of Cincinnati such as Roselawn and Mt Airy that seem to be meeting the cynical definition, several good areas are defying it. College Hill, Hartwell, and the adjoining communities of Pleasant Ridge and Kennedy Hts have stabilized with a "mixed" population following "flight" during the '60's to '80s. All are safe, though in a relative way - being urban - and offer ample rental possibilities, whether in a four-unit "brick box" apartment building or a single-family house. The principal down side is that the Cincinnati public schools are mostly pretty abysmal despite lots of attempts via "magnet" programs and such to correct that.

Finneytown also came to mind right away, as it's part of a suburban community (Springfield Township) and has plenty of affordable houses - and a few apartments - to go along with its predominantly middle- to upper-middle-class feel. There's been some bad press about this area because most of the homes are part of older subdivisions, and Section 8 conversions have been going on. But a lot of this is cloaked racism and classism. The school system has stayed good even as its proportion of "minority" and lower-income students has increased, and no one I know of there is planning to leave. In fact, its reputation as a snobbery-free and affordable alternative to nearby Wyoming is firmly intact. Winton Rd, the main artery through Finneytown, is still a thriving commercial district complete with a new mega-Kroger's, but all the noise and congestion disappear within seconds of turning a corner from it. From the Winton/Galbraith interchange, you can take the longer - westward - way on the Cross-County Highway (Rte 126) to 275, then south on 275 right around to "CVG," and easily make it within a half-hour. (Going east to I-75 guarantees rush-hour horror and a much longer trip.)

The more I think about it, the more I like Finneytown as an option for you. Best o' luck!

Rarely do I like to toot the horn of my hometown Finneytown but after reading goyguy's post I'd have to agree that it sounds like the type of place you are looking for. It is centrally located in Hamilton County about 15 minutes or less from everything of importance (however a half hour from the airport on a good day). The schools are about 45% minority with around a quarter of the students being economically disadvantaged, however the community has as middle class of a feel to it as anywhere in the area.

Our family is in fact friends with a Hispanic/Hawaiian family that was transferred here about ten years ago from Ontario, CA and they have made themselves very comfortable here.

[peanut's mom]

Thank you so much for your input. We're coming from the Los Angeles area. I wasn't expecting anything close to what we live in now but wanted to get an idea of what was out there. We will definitely check out Finneytown and Gaslight Clifton.

I'm so glad this forum exists!

[woxyroxme]

Originally Posted by peanut's mom

We have a toddler and would prefer a family-oriented area (parks, schools)

You may want to give serious consideration to Hebron KY which is one exit west of the airport on I-275, there is a new Kroger marketplace at the intersection of RT 20 & 237 and your husband would have a very easy commute. The savings in gas and the increase in quality family time will more than make up for any lack in diversity.

[Cincy-Rise]

Originally Posted by woxyroxme

You may want to give serious consideration to Hebron KY which is one exit west of the airport on I-275, there is a new Kroger marketplace at the intersection of RT 20 & 237 and your husband would have a very easy commute. The savings in gas and the increase in quality family time will more than make up for any lack in diversity.

This area is by no means diverse.