Cincy Downtown (Cincinnati, Lexington, Covington: real estate, hotel, neighborhood)

[Sarah Perry]

I'd be very surprised if any of the people claiming panhandling is trivial are female.

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by Sarah Perry

I'd be very surprised if any of the people claiming panhandling is trivial are male.

Sarah, did you mean what you said? I would be surprised if females were not very upset by panhandling, including feeling intimidated. Males may write it off as an undesirable but fact of life, particularly those who want to justify how to have street smarts in the city.

Have your street smarts, I will prefer to have family smarts in the suburbs.

[Sarah Perry]

Originally Posted by kjbrill

Sarah, did you mean what you said? I would be surprised if females were not very upset by panhandling, including feeling intimidated. Males may write it off as an undesirable but fact of life, particularly those who want to justify how to have street smarts in the city.

Have your street smarts, I will prefer to have family smarts in the suburbs.

Oops, no, that's not what I meant. I'd be surprised if any of the people claiming panhandling is trivial are female. And it continues to frustrate me that so many men won't even acknowledge that women are approached differently by panhandlers, not to mention the fact that we're socialized differently.

[progmac]

there is one panhandler that i see around 5th and race and starts with, "can i ask you a question?" i think wilson mentioned a similar operation, maybe the same guy. i like this approach, because i can simply say "no." or "yes" but not stop and then if the guy wants to keep up with my speed walking while giving me a sob story i'll actually give him some money.

the number of panhandlers is closely related to the number of social service agencies and shelters within walking distance. though i have the deficit of being male, i would rather live somewhere that provides social services to the poor than not, even if that means having to ignore a panhandler now and again.

we live in a country with a great deal of poverty. the side effect of this is dealing with poor people, directly or indirectly (i would say that moving to a second-rate location because of safety and schools is an indirect effect)

[nthomas1999]

Originally Posted by BostonToKC

Downtown Cincinnati seems fairly safe during the day (especially weekdays) however I am not sure about after dark. I drove around on a Sunday afternoon recently, and the downtown was deserted (maybe five or six people walking around). I drove around Over-The-Rhine, and I felt completely unsafe there. I did not care for the unsavory individuals loitering on street corners, and really did not get the sense that OTR is an up-and-coming neighborhood. That is the first and last time this Cincinnati transplant is venturing to that neighborhood.

Man, hear this all too often and you hit the nail right on the head, and why I have done everything to try and break this just in my own close friends, but it'll never be fixed. That stigma is there and it's going to be so hard to break now. It will almost be impossible to clean up that area as the culture is so deep rooted now, and (break the stigma of OTR) with the heroin trade and the churches that have a financial gain in making everyone think that 3cdc and white ppl are out to get them, and keeping that chip on there shoulder. Really kills me to see Music Hall area like it is. Putting a school, and reestablishing Washington park are nice but 5 years down the road I see it just going right back to the disgusting scene it was before. The only way I see OTR thriving is to make it Pedestrian only, and crack down hardcore on the loitering, so people won't feel threatened to get out of there vehicles. Sitting at the Lackman with the open windows a few days ago was thinking about wow what an amazing bar, then 3 panhandlers hit me up for change while sitting there. Sorry, I deal with it as I've lived here my whole life but getting other young professionals or corporate people to deal with it is not going to work. Why goto OTR when Covington Main Straus, or Newport are both safer and you don't have to deal with the garbage that OTR has.

[t45209]

What ever happened to the Hyde Park Hobo? Anyone remember him? Wilson? There was a guy who up until about 10 years ago used to roam the streets of Hyde Park and Oakley. He was heavily bearded and dressed like any of the homeless people you see downtown. I was told that some of the area churches would take him in from time to time and clean him up. I heard rumors that he came from a well-to-do Terrace Park family. All the times I saw him wandering around, I never once saw him panhandle, and honestly, I think people in the area sort of got used to seeing him around and didn't think much of it one way or the other. He seemed an old school hobo...lived day to day, didn't much bother anyone, and never was into sitting at a highway interchange with a sign.

[Wilson513]

Originally Posted by t45209

What ever happened to the Hyde Park Hobo? Anyone remember him? Wilson? There was a guy who up until about 10 years ago used to roam the streets of Hyde Park and Oakley. He was heavily bearded and dressed like any of the homeless people you see downtown. I was told that some of the area churches would take him in from time to time and clean him up. I heard rumors that he came from a well-to-do Terrace Park family. All the times I saw him wandering around, I never once saw him panhandle, and honestly, I think people in the area sort of got used to seeing him around and didn't think much of it one way or the other. He seemed an old school hobo...lived day to day, didn't much bother anyone, and never was into sitting at a highway interchange with a sign.

Oh, yea, knew of him well. I'm not sure why we never spoke to him. He didn't ever approach anyone that I know of. His regular warm weather sleeping spot for many years was the bench located on the east side of the intersection of Herschel and Observatory about 300 feet from my bedroom windows. So I saw him a lot.

The story was that he was from a wealthy family and had a lot of $$$. He certainly didn't spend it on anything. I'm sure he never panhandled anyone. That would have been big news.

I tried not to get too close to him but everyone said he smelled really bad. He certainly looked like he did.

[austiNati]

Originally Posted by nthomas1999

Man, hear this all too often and you hit the nail right on the head, and why I have done everything to try and break this just in my own close friends, but it'll never be fixed. That stigma is there and it's going to be so hard to break now. It will almost be impossible to clean up that area as the culture is so deep rooted now, and (break the stigma of OTR) with the heroin trade and the churches that have a financial gain in making everyone think that 3cdc and white ppl are out to get them, and keeping that chip on there shoulder. Really kills me to see Music Hall area like it is. Putting a school, and reestablishing Washington park are nice but 5 years down the road I see it just going right back to the disgusting scene it was before. The only way I see OTR thriving is to make it Pedestrian only, and crack down hardcore on the loitering, so people won't feel threatened to get out of there vehicles. Sitting at the Lackman with the open windows a few days ago was thinking about wow what an amazing bar, then 3 panhandlers hit me up for change while sitting there. Sorry, I deal with it as I've lived here my whole life but getting other young professionals or corporate people to deal with it is not going to work. Why goto OTR when Covington Main Straus, or Newport are both safer and you don't have to deal with the garbage that OTR has.

Actually, unlike other gentrifying cities, OTR will be VERY easy to transform. The neighborhood is 75% abandoned, meaning that you won't have to kick anyone out. All you need to do is fill up and restore the available housing and infrastructure and the new wave of residents will greatly outweigh the established residents who live there. This IS happening, and by the end of this decade, you'll see a completely revamped OTR. The streetcar would have done wonders for this, but this isn't the right forum for that topic.

If OTR is restored to it's prime, then areas like Mt. Adams, Main Straus and Newport will have stiff competition. You also have to consider the fact that not everyone who lives in OTR is looking for trouble. There are ALOT of people who are hard working, honest individuals who are also sick of the constant BS that goes on there. Alot of these people are excited to see the progress that has been taking place. Residents of the Cincinnati area have stigmatized soooo many neighborhoods here, that it seems like people are afraid to take advantage of the great urban atmosphere we have. This mentality is what seems to seperate us from similar towns such as Philly, D.C., Boston etc...

[progmac]

Originally Posted by austiNati

. Residents of the Cincinnati area have stigmatized soooo many neighborhoods here, that it seems like people are afraid to take advantage of the great urban atmosphere we have. This mentality is what seems to seperate us from similar towns such as Philly, D.C., Boston etc...

The locals in those cities stigmatize their neighborhoods just like we do. unlike us, they are absorbing young people from all over the country.

and the changes in otr are already dramatic. and i don't mean fancy new buildings; i mean commercial occupancy, the number of people in shops and restaurants, and the number of people who are moving in. there is really strong demand for these kinds of neighborhoods and the investment in OTR is staggering and even the social service agencies are cashing in and moving out. i can't imagine it going backwards at this point.

[Marv101]

Although I haven't been to Cincy since I attended a Dodgers/Reds game in 1990, I stayed at the Embassy Suites/Riverfront in Covington during their grand opening in late June of that year, and I've noticed that several new hotels have opened within blocks since then, including a Marriott & a Hampton Inn, IIRC.

Has downtown Cincinnati experienced a similar 'boom' similar to what Covington has experienced over the past two decades?