Downtown Hamilton! Revitalization Thread (Cincinnati, Dayton: 2015, lofts, hotel)

[SWOH]

Figured it merited its own thread haha. Maybe it was this news that pushed it over the edge:

Call Center Bringing 682 to Downtown Hamilton

But this certainly hasn't hurt:

News > Champion Paper Plant May Once Again be a Home for Water Sports in Ohio

Or this:

Long-awaited Hamilton park gets $3.5M boost for completion - Cincinnati Business Courier

Or this:

Municipal Brew Works: Hamilton enters craft beer industry with plans for new Municipal Brew Works - Story



Or what's already happened, like these:

Artspace Hamilton Lofts | Artspace
Hamilton Mercantile Lofts
City of Hamilton, OH : RiversEdge Park and Amphitheater
Concord to Convert Hamiltonian Hotel to a Courtyard by Marriott


Or the awesome businesses and programs it already offers, like these:

Home | Ryan's Tavern
True West Coffee
https://www.facebook.com/jaustinsriverbankcafe
The Hamilton Mill
Fitton Center For Creative Arts | Enjoy
... and more.


Anyways, to make it more regionally relevant, I think it puts the case in point that there is demand for an awesome urban community in the "suburban northern exurbs".

Looking forward to more news from Hamilton in the future!

[goyguy]

So now the outsourcing of telephone customer service is to Hamil-tucky instead of India! Interesting!

[rrtechno]

A few other recent announcements.

Full-service diabetes center to open in Hamilton | www.journal-news.com

New store brings healthy groceries to downtown Hamilton | www.journal-news.com

InsideOut Studio to expand retail offerings downtown | www.journal-news.com

Hamilton water named best tasting in the world | www.journal-news.com

Mason art gallery plans second location in downtown Hamilton | www.journal-news.com

[kjbrill]

Hey it sounds Like Hamilton is getting ready to play in the Big Leagues. Sorry if I am s little pessimistic about this whole plan. Too many grandiose plans are proposed and then result in exactly where they come from - a column of dust.

[rrtechno]

Be pessimistic if you like. I just assume that you will be willing to acknowledge it when that column of dust fails to materialize.

[Briolat21]

I'm really excited for Hamilton - I hope that these plans come to fruition. We seriously considered the city when we were looking (omg, its really been 8 years now!!) and both my husband and I thought it was a really neat city with a lot of potential.

[Rangerred]

As someone who grew up just outside Hamilton and still has family in the area, I've been closely following the revitalization efforts. There is incredible potential in Hamilton and I feel the city has suffered form poor leadership (and the poor decisions that accompany that) for a very long time. Sometimes I feel like what it will take to really get things moving full-speed is convincing the residents of Hamilton to buy into their city's plans. There seems to be a lot of negativity and cynicism among the older residents especially.

One thing I've never really seen discussed is using the city's large Hispanic population as a benefit. I believe Hamilton has one of the largest per-capita Hispanic populations in the state but yet the city lacks even a small latino festival. There really exists the potential to have a true ethnic enclave in part of the city with hispanic stores, restaurants, grocery, etc. I might be dreaming but something like this would contribute to a sense of place and create better harmony within the community.

[kjbrill]

Yes, Hamilton needs a rejuvenation policy. And if that includes the number of Hispanics moving into the city SOBIT. We need anything required to see Ohio as a whole grow. The historical perception needs to be altered,

[rrtechno]

Originally Posted by Rangerred

As someone who grew up just outside Hamilton and still has family in the area, I've been closely following the revitalization efforts. There is incredible potential in Hamilton and I feel the city has suffered form poor leadership (and the poor decisions that accompany that) for a very long time. Sometimes I feel like what it will take to really get things moving full-speed is convincing the residents of Hamilton to buy into their city's plans. There seems to be a lot of negativity and cynicism among the older residents especially.

One thing I've never really seen discussed is using the city's large Hispanic population as a benefit. I believe Hamilton has one of the largest per-capita Hispanic populations in the state but yet the city lacks even a small latino festival. There really exists the potential to have a true ethnic enclave in part of the city with hispanic stores, restaurants, grocery, etc. I might be dreaming but something like this would contribute to a sense of place and create better harmony within the community.

I agree wholeheartedly with the negativity. There are a lot of people with very positive outlooks, but some with the negative blinders on who are very vocal, especially in the "anonymous" comment section in the newspaper. It seems like they will never be happy (and I'm not sure this will even do it) until Hamilton has 3 paper mills, a safe manufacturer, and a major automotive plant, as well as several major department stores downtown again. They can't seem to see that the world overall has changed, and Hamilton has changed with it. "The 682 new jobs announced for downtown this week does not equal the several thousand manufacturing jobs lost over the years, so we can't accept them and must complain about the news." is the complaint I hear. So many silver linings that have dark clouds instead of dark clouds with silver linings.

Fortunately there are people in town that have vision, not "rose colored glasses" but actual clear vision of how these advances are helping the community as a whole. I think they are working more toward helping the entire city grow together, or neighborhoods grow together. German Village has many people not of German Heritage and is on the verge of "growth" due in part to its proximity to the new park and amphitheater. Dayton Lane, Ross Historical District, Lindenwald, and others have local neighborhood activities that are more neighborhood than ethnic activities, and may thus make more people feel welcome. Operation Pumpkin and the IceFest are helping people realize that there are possibilities for downtown activities and the Thursday Night Summer Concerts at the Amphitheater have growing audiences no matter which of the various musical genres are being featured. In fact, RiversEdge is currently still leading in the voting for the best concert venue in the Cincinnati area, leading 15 other concert sites, including RiverBend down on the Ohio River. Vote for Best Live Music Venue in the Cincinnati Area - Cincinnati A-List

Admittedly I am only a temporary Hamilton resident, having moved to town last September, moving out when our new house is completed in about a month. I can assure you, however, that I will continue to follow the progress in Hamilton, and plan to continue to partake of the growing list of businesses and activities in this community.

[Wilson513]

Without much independent knowledge of my own, I would say that Hamilton has great potential. I think the Fitton Center is one of the best venues in the state.