I
ANNUALREPORT
2016
CREATING A CITY WHERE BUSINESSES INVEST,PEOPLE LIVE, & COMMUNITIES GROW.
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MAYORJohn Cranley
CITY MANAGERHarry Black
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTOscar Bedolla
COUNCIL MEMBERSVice Mayor David MannPresident Pro Tem Yvette SimpsonKevin FlynnAmy MurrayChris SeelbachP.G. SittenfeldChristopher SmithermanCharlie WinburnWendell Young
COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SENIOR STAFFJulie Burke Philip Denning Bill Fischer James Flick Daniel FortinberryMonica HardmanGreg Huth Clifton PendergrassMegan RyanBob Schroer Aisha Tzillah
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MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR 4
MISSION 6
ORGANIZATIONAL CHART 7
KEY STATISTICS 9
DIRECTOR’S OFFICE 10
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 17
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT 23
LISNR INNOVATION SPOTLIGHT 30
BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION & FISCAL 32
MONITORING & COMPLIANCE 34
PARKING FACILITIES 36
CONTACTS 38
CONTENTS
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Thank you for the opportunity to tell you the story
of the year we had in 2016 at the Department of
Community and Economic Development. At the onset
of the year, we looked to build on the development
momentum we saw in 2015 throughout the city’s urban
core and neighborhoods. Thanks to the leadership of
Mayor Cranley, City Manager Harry Black, and the City
Council Members, as well as the hard work from our
team and many community partners, we exceeded our
expectations and goals.
As a department, we were busy in 2016, It was our first
full year being restructured through the addition of a
Major Projects Division, Policy and Communications
Division, and the expanded the role of the Monitoring
and Compliance Division. The layers of support we
added have allowed us to make project facilitation
more efficient, City investments more effective, and
departmental activity more transparent to both internal
and external audiences.
To better showcase the expanded service delivery of
the department, my team and I collaborated to rewrite
our Mission: to facilitate strategic development and
services within the Cincinnati community that improve
the lives of residents, increase business investment, and
revitalize City neighborhoods. This mission represents
not only what we do, but also what we are passionate
about dedicated to. It is this passion and dedication that
helped drive the success of the Department over the last
12 months. The following report will discuss the many
successes we had, the projects we helped facilitate,
and what we hope to accomplish in 2017 when we once
again look to assist local business development, grow
local jobs, create quality housing opportunities and build
sustainable and vibrant neighborhoods.
OSCAR BEDOLLA
M E S S A G E F R O M
THE DIRECTOR
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Cincinnati is a city on the rise on several fronts. Our economy is growing stronger,
as evidenced through an improved bond credit rating from Standard & Poor.
We are gaining the attention of outside investors, both foreign and domestic,
who are investing in our real estate, our small and medium sized businesses,
and our workforce. Additionally, the metro area saw the highest growth rate (74
percent) of entrepreneurs in the US, as reported in the Kauffman Index of Growth
Entrepreneurship. Finally, the City continues to receive recognition and accolades
across the spectrum such as KPMG LLC naming Cincinnati as the most cost-friendly
business location among large U.S. cities, Christie’s International Real Estate naming
the City as a Top City to Watch in 2017 and Travel + Leisure calling Cincinnati a Top
Place to Visit in 2017.
To continue this rise we must continue to be proactive in identifying trends, drive
innovation to cater to the needs of the new economy, strategic in our development
to create vibrant and sustainable neighborhoods, intelligent through expanded data
collection, transparent in our process, and inclusive of minority and female owned
businesses. In 2017, we intend to do just that, examples of which will be detailed in the
report to follow.
I look forward to the challenges and successes 2017 will bring and leading the
Department of Community and Economic Development in doing our part to help
Cincinnati continue its rise.
Oscar Bedolla
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Our mission is to facilitate strategic development and services within
the Cincinnati community that improve the lives of residents, increase business investment,
& revitalize City neighborhoods.
MISSION
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ORGANIZATIONAL CHART
Director’s Office
Parking Facilities Major Projects BusinessAdministration
& Fiscal
Monitoring &Compliance
EconomicDevelopment
Housing &Community
Development
Policy &Communications
8
Sayler Park
Riverside
W. PriceHill E. Price
HillQueensgate
S.Fairmount
CBDRiverfront
Mt. Adam
sWestEnd
OverThe
Rhine
CUF
EastEnd
Mt.Lookout
HydePark
OakleyMadisonville
PleasantRidge
BondHill
PaddockHills
N.Avondale
EvanstonAvondale
CliftonC
orr
yvill
e
Ros
elaw
n
Carthage
WintonHills
CollegeHill
Mt.Airy Winton
PlaceNorthside
Hartwell
Kennedy
Heights
Linw
ood
Columbia
Tusculum
California
Mt.Washington
Walnut Hills
Mt.Auburn
E. Walnut
Hills
Low
erP
rice
Hill
Westwood
S.Cumminsville
FayAptsE.
Westwood Millvale
N.Fairmount
Cam
pW
ashingto
n
Sedam
sville
Sayler Park
Riverside
W. PriceHill E. Price
HillQueensgate
S.Fairmount
CBDRiverfront
Mt. Adam
sWestEnd
OverThe
Rhine
CUF
EastEnd
Mt.Lookout
HydePark
OakleyMadisonville
PleasantRidge
BondHill
PaddockHills
N.Avondale
EvanstonAvondale
CliftonC
orr
yvill
e
Ros
elaw
n
Carthage
WintonHills
CollegeHill
Mt.Airy Winton
PlaceNorthside
Hartwell
Kennedy
Heights
Linw
ood
Columbia
Tusculum
California
Mt.Washington
Walnut Hills
Mt.Auburn
Pendelton
Pendelton
HeightsHeights
E. Walnut
Hills
Low
erP
rice
Hill
Westwood
S.Cumminsville
FayAptsE.
Westwood Millvale
Eng.Woods
Eng.Woods
N.Fairmount
Cam
pW
ashingto
n
Sedam
sville
52 NEIGHBORHOODS
REVITALIZINGCOMMUNITIES
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KEY STATISTICS*
*All key statistics are measured for calendar year 2016 unless noted otherwise.
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DIRECTOR’S OFFICEThe role of the Director’s office is to
support the overarching Department
mission: To facilitate strategic
development and services, within the
Cincinnati Community, that improve
the lives of residents, increase business
investment, and revitalize neighborhoods.
The department is made up of
seven divisions including Economic
Development, Major Projects, Community
Development, Fiscal and Operations,
Monitoring and Compliance, Policy and
Communications, and Parking. Each
of these divisions will be discussed
throughout the report and together
create a team that is highly focused and
responsive to the needs of constituents
and implementing policies that are
innovative, transparent and maximize
efficiency.
MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS Looking back on 2016, our department
had several major accomplishments.
Incentive Review In June, HR&A Advisors, an urban
development consulting firm, assisted
us with completing a year long,
comprehensive, review of the City’s
incentive policies. The key goals of this
review were to evaluate the effectiveness
of the City’s incentive offerings, assess
the processes by which recipients
were evaluated, and identify how the
Department’s toolkit can be enhanced
to help maximize the City’s return on
investment.
The final report measured the City’s
competitiveness in both the region and
the nation by profiling our major incentive
programs against a cohort of peer cities.
It also made specific recommendations on
how the City can improve development
efforts. These included:
1. Deploy a more streamlined and
strategic deal evaluation process.
2. Leverage Commercial Community
Reinvestment Area (CRA) Tax
Abatements more effectively for
place-based investment and job
growth.
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3. Refine the use of Job Creation Tax
Credits (JCTC) to maximize return
on investment for the City.
4. Continue to innovate new
mechanisms to reinvest property tax
revenue in Cincinnati.
5. Tailor use of programs generally to
meet specific economic objectives.
Our department immediately began
implementing these recommendations by
lengthening the retention periods on Job
Creation Tax Credits and expanding the
role of our Monitoring and Compliance
Division to develop the framework for
a more rigorous due diligence process
that will include surveillance reviews
in addition to tracking progress of
commitments made by incentivized
businesses. We also formed a Data
Integrity Team (DAT), inclusive of
members of each Division and led by a
Data Manager. The DAT is tasked with
streamlining data collection and ensuring
accuracy. All of this was done to minimize
risk, maximize return on city investment
and make more informed decisions about
development.
Cyber Monday RFP ReleaseCapitalizing on development momentum
is a key goal of our department. To do
that, our Policy and Communication
team partnered with our Economic
Development, Housing and Community
Development, and Major Projects
divisions to create the “Cyber Monday
Request for Proposals Release.”
The release event occurred on the
Monday after Thanksgiving (November
28th), which is commonly referred to as
“Cyber Monday” as it is the busiest day
for online holiday shopping.
The event was designed to build
momentum around the release of
community development opportunities in
the City of Cincinnati. Coupled with social
media marketing and press releases, we
could gain additional visibility for our
opportunities to attract a greater amount
of developer responses and garner
additional community support.
The early success of the RFP release,
as seen by nearly 80 people attending
the first informational session, showed
the appetite for continued development
throughout the City.
This coordinated release of opportunities
is a tactic the department will employ
moving forward twice a year, with the
first 2017 release to be scheduled for
early April.
ONGOING DEPARTMENTAL INITIATIVES 2016 also found our department pursue
several ongoing initiatives that will have a
lasting effect on the community.
Creating a Collaborative Environment to Capitalize on Momentum
The City is currently seeing a great deal
of momentum in the business community
that is resulting in continued job creation
and development activity. To capitalize
on that momentum and influence
additional investment, we regularly
collaborate with partners to promote
economic development and inclusion,
as well as sustainability and job growth.
We especially applaud the efforts of our
partners who assist us in attracting world
class employers to increase job creation.
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The City of Cincinnati is not alone in
our efforts to grapple with economic
development policy issues and seek
high quality data and analysis to inform
critical and often politically challenging
and complex conversations. For example,
the City of Kansas City, Missouri is
currently in the process of conducting a
comprehensive historic review of their
past use of incentives, just as Cincinnati
partnered with HR&A to do.
To broaden our collective understanding
of the long-term policy impacts of these
tools and accelerate identification of
policy and process improvements to
the benefit of our communities, the City
of Cincinnati and the City of Kansas
City, Missouri joined efforts to create
an Economic Development Incentives
Consortium. This effort is still in the
beginning stages, but will bring cities
across the country together to learn from
each other and to move forward in a
more informed and impactful manner.
DIRECTOR’S OFFICE (cont.)
LOOKING AHEAD TO 2017
Building Diversity and CapacityOne of the great attributes of cities that
have experienced substantial growth
over the past few years (like New York,
Los Angeles and Chicago) is the fact that
they embrace diversity. In fact, it can be
argued that economic growth follows
diversity.
As Cincinnati continues to develop
diversity is a priority. We firmly believe
that the Organizations that invest in the
City should reflect the diversity of our
communities. By developing targeted
policies and programs to promote
diversity we will insure “a rising tide lift all
boats”.
To this end we have created strategic
initiatives that provide transparency and
build capacity.
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Advancing Diversity in DevelopmentThis program provides trainings and
workshops that help individuals get a
better understanding of our tools and
our investment strategies so they can
successful engage with the City with
projects all sizes and types.
We have also partnered with Private
and Public organizations to discuss
Bonding, Financing as we know these are
challenges that all businesses face.
Aging in PlaceAs population grows we need to ensure
to create an environment that allows
aging in place. Aging in place means,
regardless of the stage of life, ensuring
the ability to live in one’s own community
safely, independently, and comfortably.
Our department is actively working
with various partners including People
Working Cooperatively, Cincinnati City
Council P.G. Sittenfeld’s office, the
City of Cincinnati Office of Data and
Performance and Analytics, and others.
Through our collective work, we will
develop a downtown and neighborhoods
that provide the necessary amenities,
housing, and infrastructure in order to
retain and grow the population and allow
all residents to age in place. .
Foreign Direct Investment StrategyThe Department of Community and
Economic Development is taking the
lead on the organization of a Foreign
Direct Investment Symposium, which
is scheduled to take place on March
31, 2017. The one-day event will bring
together public and private partners
to discuss the impact and attraction of
foreign direct investment in the region.
As a follow up to our Foreign Direct
Investment Symposium, our office will
release a comprehensive Foreign Direct
Investment Strategy.
This strategy aims to build on the
momentum of domestic and international
private equity investors who have looked
to deploy capital in Cincinnati particularly
because of being priced out of gateway
markets by large institutional investors.
Downtown Retail Action PlanAnother major accomplishment for our
Major Projects Division was the release of
our Downtown Retail Action Plan.
Downtown is the economic center of
the region and it is evolving quickly.
New residents are flooding downtown
due to shifting urban trends. This
population shift, as well as the growth
of e-commerce, has led to a massive
change in the retail market. To harness
these trends, and provide opportunities
for entrepreneurs, we sought to create a
comprehensive strategy to ensure long-
term success in meeting the needs of a
growing downtown.
Our department recognized this, as
well as the growth of entrepreneurism,
and sought to create a comprehensive
road map to ensure long-term success
in meeting the needs of the residents,
visitors, and customers of Downtown.
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Thus, in June we created our Downtown
Retail Action Plan, in collaboration
with Downtown Cincinnati Inc. (DCI),
by soliciting direct input from our
downtown retail community and other
key stakeholders.
The key components of the strategy
include:
Inventory of Available PropertiesCurrently, our staff is working to develop
an online interactive map, powered by
data DCI has collected, to catalogue
available street level retail (and in some
cases, skywalk level), restaurant, and
service-oriented spaces. When complete,
this catalogue will aggregate key
information into a central, digital location.
Momentum MapDowntown Cincinnati is flush with
development activity and has been
for some time. Since 2013 alone, our
department has helped facilitate $672
million in investment in completed
projects, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more on the horizon. There is so
much activity, that we wanted to create
an interactive tool to showcase this to
developers and investors looking to
invest in the Urban Core. Thus, our Major
Projects Division began working with
Cincinnati Area Geographic Information
System (CAGIS) to create a “Momentum
Map”. This map was launched in early
February 2017 and includes activity in all
sectors of the CBD, including retail, office,
residential, parking, etc.
Downtown is not the only reason
Cincinnati is a city on the rise. Each of the
52 neighborhoods are seeing activity as
well. Therefore, the Momentum Map will
be expanded to be inclusive of all 52 of
Cincinnati’s neighborhoods as information
is collected and able to be visualized.
Retail RecruiterWith downtown population growth
skyrocketing due to apartment
development, tourist growth increasing
due to convention attraction and a boom
in hotel development, and the nature of
retail shifting, it’s time to be proactive
and recruit retailers to the urban core
that, along with the local shops, will
create a vibrant atmosphere that will
keep residents and visitors fulfilled and
continue to attract more.
The City Administration is actively
working with DCI to create the role
of a retail recruitment specialist. This
person would be tasked to understand
the shifting market, and to identify,
attract and connect retail opportunities
within the CBD. This tactic has been
implemented in other cities and will focus
efforts. It will also facilitate the retention
of existing retailers and act as a service to
property owners.
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Cincy Pop ShopThe rise in strategic investment in
organizations that foster entrepreneurism
has been embraced in Cincinnati with
groups like Cintrifuse, the Brandery,
Mortar, First Batch, Bad Girl Ventures,
CincyTech, and others. Many of the
businesses helped by this rise in strategic
investment influence the retail market
and our Retail Action plan seeks to foster
opportunities for these retailers to expand
their businesses in a brick and mortar
space. This concept came to fruition,
though a partnership with DCI and the
Carew Tower, in the inaugural Cincy Pop
Shop program.
In October and November 2016, this
program became a reality with the
selection of 8 vendors who set up
operations in the Carew Tower. The
selected vendors included:
• Chapeau Couture Hats
• Davis Cookie Collection
• Flying Pig Marathon
• Jenco Brothers’ Candy
• Green Box Gift Wrapping
• The Sarah Center
• Barcode Glam
• Tronk Design
Each of the vendors were supported
with a $1,000 grant and free rent from
November 21st through the end of
December, the height of the holiday
shopping season.
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CINCY POP SHOPFollowing the release of the Downtown
Retail Action Plan in June 2016, DCED
led the charge to bring a pop-up retail
program to Cincinnati’s urban core. Cincy
Pop Shop addresses the fifth goal of the
plan, which is “to catalyze retail offerings
that appeal to the diversity of the
Cincinnati market by providing small and
unique business opportunities.”
The program was created in partnership
with Downtown Cincinnati, Inc. as an
opportunity for future Cincinnati business
owners to test the waters of a brick-
and-mortar retail location in a low-risk
environment.
After searching available spaces in
the Central Business District, the team
identified Cincinnati’s iconic Carew
Tower for the inaugural Cincy Pop Shop
program. Through partnership with
the Carew Tower team and building
management company Belvedere Corp.,
three previously vacant spaces in the
building were activated for the holiday
shopping season.
Many vendors submitted applications
for Cincy Pop Shop. Through a careful,
collaborative selection process, eight
diverse vendors were chosen:
• Barcode Glam
• Chapeau Couture Hats
• Davis Cookie Collection LLC
• Flying Pig Marathon
• Green Box Gift Wrapping
• Jenco Brothers’ Candy
• Sarah Center
• Tronk Design
We sat down with two of the vendors to
talk about their experience.
“It was a no-brainer for us,” relates
Fernanda Vergara, co-founder of Tronk
Deisgn. “We had never ventured into
retail before, and this was a great learning
experience.”
Tronk designs and builds contemporary
furniture, but mostly online and mostly to
customers outside of Cincinnati – that is,
until Cincy Pop Shop.
“The Pop Shop program enabled us to
bring our local story to Cincinnati. Our
goal is to market to Cincinnati and tell our
local story, and open retail spaces. After
this experience, we feel more confident
about what we need to do before we do
that.”
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The Winter 2016 Cincy Pop Shop offered
selected vendors a rent-free retail
space on the arcade level of the Carew
Tower during November and December,
and $1,000 in support for eligible
merchandising materials.
“We learned so much about how to
merchandise and sell our product to
the end user, not the internet,” reflects
Fernanda. “We had never ventured into
retail; it was a learning experience.”
For Davis Cookie Collection, it felt good
to be able to answer the question,
“Where are you located?”
Christina and Miles Davis quickly realized
in 2014 that Christina had a tasty talent
for baking, although at the time she was
using it to relax during graduate school.
When coworkers began paying her to
make boxes of a dozen cookies the
couple capitalized on the opportunity.
Fast forward to 2016. Davis Cookie
Collection participated in the 12-
week entrepreneurship program at
MORTAR, learning the ins and outs of
starting a business and connecting with
valuable resources, such as University
of Cincinnati law students who helped
them with legal aspects of running a
business.
At present, the duo sells 15 flavors of
cookies homemade with natural, organic
ingredients. The Cincy Pop Shop program
gave them the perspective of having a
store and allowed them to get an idea of
how to stock a brick-and-mortar location.
What advice would the Davises give the
next round of Cincy Pop Shop applicants?
“Be ready for that pitch and come with
your best. It can really be a game changer
for your business.”
And it’s a family business. Miles muses,
“We’re both doing it. It really promotes
family. We’re creating something for our
family to be able to call our own.” Christina
was raised by entrepreneurs with a talent
for cooking and entertainment. Her family
owned and operated a restaurant/club
in Downtown Cincinnati called the Safari
club, which hosted live music acts and
offered home cooked meals and desserts.
The Davises’ goal is to pass the business
down to their children, and to become
a Cincinnati staple along the likes of
Graeter’s or Montgomery Inn.
Cincy Pop Shop is funded through the City
of Cincinnati’s Community Development
Block Grant, which is allocated through
the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban
Development.
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BUSINESS EXPANSION AND ATTRACTION PROJECTS In 2016, the Department created and
retained over 2,900 jobs and leveraged
$____ million in private investment
through economic development projects.
This success has been achieved by
attracting new businesses and helping
local companies expand their operations.
The Economic Development and Major
Projects Divisions serve as a liaison
between City departments, businesses,
and the development community. They
are dedicated to cultivating commercial
development in all of Cincinnati’s 52
neighborhoods by providing financial,
informational and technical assistance to
businesses seeking to relocate of grow.
Our staff is extremely proficient in helping
commercial developers, business owners,
real estate brokers, and site selectors in
navigating the legislative process related
to their developments.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & MAJOR PROJECTS
Projects
Jobs Created 2,773
Jobs Retained 1,892
Private Investment $243.1M
City Investment $37.2M
FIGURE 1: NON-HOUSING RELATED PROJECTS
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The story of 2016 in Cincinnati features
several projects in neighborhoods that
showcase why Cincinnati is a City on the
Rise.
Lower Price Hill, the West End,
and Queensgate are three of the
neighborhoods located in or around the
Lower Mill Creek Valley. This area once
represented the industrial heart of the
Cincinnati area. For years, this region of
the City has struggled with divestment
and the inability to attract new business
and create jobs. However, in 2016,
companies sought to invest in these
neighborhoods. Examples of this include:
Q-LabsQ-Labs will soon begin rehabilitation of 2
buildings totaling 25,000 square feet and
the construction of a new 30,000-square-
foot laboratory within the Knob Hill City
View industrial park on Radcliff Drive in
the Lower Price Hill neighborhood. This
$7.5 million project will retain 100 full time
permanent employees (FTEs) and create
47 new FTEs. Q-Labs is a full-service
laboratory servicing the food ingredients/
flavorings, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and
health and beauty care industries.
Jet Machine and Path Forward IT TechSolve II Business Park was, until
recently, a blighted, underutilized
shopping center known as Seymour Plaza,
located in Roselawn near the southwest
corner of Reading Road and Seymour
Avenue. Through the City partnered with
the Port Authority of Greater Cincinnati to
demolish, and remediate the property so
that was pad-ready for new construction.
Jet Machine broke ground 105,000-square
foot industrial facility on 9 acres
within TechSolve II Business Park, the
largest undeveloped pad in the park, in
September 2016. Construction is expected
to cost approximately $5,000,000,
and the company will invest a total of
$12,000,000 in the project. The new space
will allow the company to create 52 new,
permanent FTE jobs and retain 118 existing
FTEs in Cincinnati. This expansion will
also free up space at one of Jet Machine’s
existing buildings in Bond Hill for an office
tenant, Path Forward, to expand and
create 150 new jobs and retain 151 existing
jobs.
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Messer Messer Construction acquired two
properties on Cutter Street in the West
End to construct a two-story, 50,000
square foot facility that will house the
company’s corporate operations. The
project broke ground in October 2016.
The roughly $12.8 million project will
facilitate the retention of 116 jobs, as well
as creation of 40 new employees.
SFA Architects SFA, an architecture and engineering firm
with more than 47 years of experience, is
renovating a warehouse building at 555
Carr Street in Queensgate. The building
is 60,000 square feet and located along
a prominent gateway into Cincinnati
off the 6th Street Viaduct. This new
expansion will retain their headquarters
in Cincinnati and be a major investment
for the Queensgate neighborhood. The
total project cost is $4.7 million and the
company will commit to increase their
employment from 60 full time permanent
employees (FTEs) to 85 FTEs.
MEDPACEActivity in Cincinnati also featured a
major business expansion project initiated
by Medpace. Medpace’s commitment
to Madisonville started in 2008 when it
selected the former NuTone site at the
corner of Madison and Red Bank Roads
for its headquarters. Now, just 8 years
later the company will add another 962
jobs to the site in the Madison Square
development.
Madison Square is being done by RBM
Development LLC. The project features
office and retail space. There will also
be a Dolce Hotels & Resort Lifestyle
Collection hotel, which will have 239
rooms and conference space. All in all, the
development could bring $200 million in
investment to Madisonville.
Medpace’s commitment includes adding
962 jobs and retaining 1,150 jobs. The
new jobs will have an approximate annual
salary of $55,000 per year. The addition
of these employees will undoubtedly have
a positive effect on neighboring business
and will serve as a catalyst for new
businesses attraction in Madisonville.
(cont.)
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & MAJOR PROJECTS
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PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
309 Vine Street (Downtown)Cincinnati has seen its population in its
Urban core soar over the last few years
as seen in the boom of the apartment
market. That shift is due in large part to
urbanization.
There are two aspects to the urbanization
trend. First is the “millennial effect.” We
have all heard that Millennials and those
in Generation Y are migrating to urban
areas. However, it is not just the younger
generations moving to urban areas.
Today more baby boomers and retirees
are calling downtown home. These two
populations converging on downtown
forces developers to become innovative in
their projects. They must offer amenities
that appeal to both population segments.
One such change developers are
making is the sacrifice of living space for
entertainment and social common areas.
There is no greater example of this in
downtown Cincinnati than the 309 Vine
Street Development.
The Chicago-based developer, Village
Green, is currently converting the
348,934-square foot Union Central Life
Building Annex at 309 Vine Street in
the Central Business District (CBD) into
approximately 300 market rate micro
apartments with 18,000 square feet of
retail and 24,500 square feet of office
space. The total cost of the reconstruction
project is $70 million. These micro-units
will be approximately 400 square feet.
When finished, the new 309 Vine will be
the first of its kind in the Cincinnati market.
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PROGRAMSBusiness Retention and Expansion
The business retention and expansion
program is a top priority for Economic
Development and Major Projects. Our
teams conduct business retention
and expansion (BRE) visits with local
companies to continue to cultivate
relationships and serve the needs of
businesses located in the City. The goals
of these visits are to facilitate greater
communication and remain connected.
In 2016, 181 BRE visits were conducted,
a 170% increase over the amount we
completed in 2015.
LOOKING AHEAD
Industrial Market StrategyAs the Retail Action Plan is implemented
we are shifting our focus to develop a
market-driven and adaptable industrial
market strategy that is influenced
by the changing trends in advanced
manufacturing and technologies.
Cincinnati has a long and proud history of
manufacturing and industry throughout
its neighborhoods. However, the nature
of manufacturing and industry has shifted
dramatically in recent years and a plan on
how to adapt or redevelop underutilized
industrial building stock within City limits
is necessary to compete for business.
This strategy will be a combination of site
readiness work and workforce education,
training and development.
Additionally, Cincinnati’s entrepreneurial
community consists of makers that will
be the future of Manufacturing Industry
as they drive innovation. Our industrial
strategy will help facilitate an environment
that will support the growth of these and
other small and medium sized businesses
to ensure long term success. As a
department, we understand the need to
foster these types of businesses in the
industrial space, as they are the future job
creators.
The goals of the industrial strategy will be
like those of the Retail Strategy.
• Support existing industrial businesses.
• Guide administration activities,
policies, and investment.
• Better position and market available
industrial properties.
• Support further industrial
development.
To accomplish these goals, our
department will work with its Economic
Development partners, such as the Port of
Greater Cincinnati Development Authority
and REDI Cincinnati to fuel investment and
job creation/retention.
23
Neighborhood Business District DevelopmentIn an ongoing effort, we are working to
become more connected to neighborhood
and business leaders by supporting
communities to further their visions for
their communities and business districts.
To date, we have seen success in pursuing
smart development opportunities that
capitalize on uniqueness and walkability
of our neighborhoods. An example
of this is the Madison and Whetsel
Project in Madisonville. This project is
transformative and will convert four blocks
of underutilized commercial space and
activate it into 185 new residential units,
5,000 square feet of amenity space, 7,500
square feet of new leasable retail space,
24,850 square feet of new leasable office
space and façade improvements to the
existing 24,542 square feet of retail space.
This project is anticipated to break ground
in the spring (2017).
(cont.)
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & MAJOR PROJECTS
24
CINTRIFUSE SPOTLIGHT
Make sure startups are equipped, that they come here,
stay here, get customers around here, and get funding.
“That’s really my day job,” says Cintrifuse CEO Wendy
Lea.
In an ever-changing business climate, Cintrifuse is a dot
connector, to put it very simplistically. The nonprofit,
headquartered at the Union Hall building in the heart of
Over-the-Rhine, works with 300 startups to connect their
innovation with investors and corporations, or BigCos.
But the work doesn’t end or even begin at the front door of their offices.
“I’m not building a kingdom; I’m building an economy,” Lea explains. Cintrifuse takes
a holistic approach to building the next generation of small and medium businesses
through nurturing venture capital-backed startups.
We are focused on building an economy and to build an economy around small and
medium business, with a certain percent of that small to medium segment coming from
venture-backed startups. Even that sector influences small to medium business, because
small to medium business, meaning bootstrapped, or loaned, businesses, they thrive
around the ecosystem of a venture-backed startup segment.
It’s not just one or the other – it’s the combination of all of them that will lift us up, so
you have to watch all those different segments.
Lea doesn’t see any reason why the next Uber or Amazon wouldn’t come out of
Cincinnati. She appreciates the history of tradition in the city. “I love the tradition of
us,” she says, “but also the desire to bring in some new, vibrant, digital-native next
generation and I think that’s sincere; it’s not a commercial thing. There’s a sincere desire
for the tradition of this community to be cracked open a little bit to let new folks in.”
The regional higher education institutions play an important role in bringing this new
talent to the city, Lea relates. She is exactly right when she points out that it is not only
her job, but the City’s job as well to make sure graduates are connected to the right
degrees and career paths, e.g., digital manufacturing, physical products, cyber security,
etc. to thrive in Cincinnati’s economy.
25
Lea also credits Cincinnati’s burgeoning startup scene to “gritty” entrepreneurship, and
observes the Midwestern qualities that drive startups to be mindful of investors’ money
and work diligently for what they earn.
Looking down the line, Lea sees good opportunities for entrepreneurs in several fields.
Given the high level of customer service integrated in health care, retail, foodservice,
and hospitality, she hopes to see more innovation around those sectors, as well as
others. With industry strongholds like Kroger, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical
Center, Procter & Gamble, and others, Cincinnati is a perfect place to give BigCos access
to innovation.
Lea emphasizes the importance of Cincinnati’s longstanding larger businesses in the
startup ecosystem. These are the businesses that engage with, invest in, and rely on
startups.
What’s next for the startup scene in Cincinnati? The Cintrifuse team won’t rest until
Union Hall is full and there is a line out the door.
26
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENTThe Housing and Community Development
Division focuses on targeted and
transformative development to provide
quality housing options for all Cincinnati
residents. Through creativity and
collaboration, our division staff works
to position the City as a thriving urban
center with diverse housing options and
supportive housing services.
MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTSIn 2016, our Housing and Community
Development Division sought efficient and
innovative means to utilize limited federal
and local resources to provide quality
housing and community development in
our 52 neighborhoods.
Overall our department created 1,098
housing units, leveraging approximately
$197 million in private investment.
Projects
Jobs Created 2,773
Jobs Retained 1,892
Private Investment $243.1M
City Investment $37.2M
FIGURE 2: HOUSING RELATED PROJECTS
27
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
(cont.)
Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA)The Notice of Funding Availability
(NOFA) provides a stimulus for housing
development. It helps fund exceptional
homeownership and rental projects that
make positive and visible impacts in
neighborhoods. The NOFA is designed
to produce housing products that
provide a full spectrum of quality housing
options and improve housing quality and
affordability. The release of the NOFA
is significant in that it is an open and
competitive request for proposals (RFP)
process that allows transparency and aids
in how the Department makes funding
decisions.
In 2016 our department recommended
funding of 10 projects throughout
eight neighborhoods: Over-the-Rhine,
Walnut Hills, College Hill, Madisonville,
Northside, Roselawn, Camp Washington,
and South Cumminsville. These projects
were a mix of affordable and market rate
developments totaling 12 homeownerships
and 253 rental units and closed out the 2015
NOFA, which made $4 million of funding
available for housing projects.
Additionally, we launched the 2016 NOFA
through an informational webinar, which gave
developers an exciting preview on November
2nd ahead of the November 28th release. The
2016 program has made $6.5 million available
for housing projects including:
• CDBG - $1,500,000 (Affordable and
Market Rate)
• HOME - $ 1,500,000 (Affordable)
• CAPITAL - $2,000,000 (Affordable)
• CAPITAL - $1,500,000 (Market Rate)
The inclusion of $2 million of capital funds
for affordable housing is a special allocation
unique to the 2016 NOFA that we are excited
to be able to offer.
Applicants recommended for funding from the
2016 NOFA will be notified in the Summer of
2017.
28
CiTiRAMA® Cincinnati has seen a boom in rental
housing market, however, we as a
department also recognize the importance
of creating home ownership opportunities
for City residents. As a result of this,
we partnered with the Home Builders
Association (HBA) of Greater Cincinnati to
put together the latest installment of the
CiTiRAMA® program. CiTiRAMA® has been
and continues to act as a catalyst for the
revitalization of urban communities and
is a part of the Housing and Community
Development Division’s comprehensive
plan to increase housing options
throughout the City.
The 2016 edition of CiTiRAMA®, titled
CiTiRAMA® @ Gershom Grove, took place
in College Hill and featured 36 single
family homes by four builders: Brookstone
Homes, Drees Homes, Maronda Homes,
and Potterhill Homes. Home prices ranged
from $200,000 - $350,000. Of the 36,
23 were pre-sold before the event kicked
off in September 2016 making it the most
successful CiTiRAMA® since the program
was launched in 1996. At the time of this
report, there was only 1 lot remaining for
sale.
PROJECTSAs a department, we strive to develop
housing opportunities that assist residents
of all ages and all income levels. A primary
focus of the Housing and Community
Development Division is to assist our lower
income families with community resources
and affordable housing. The following
three projects are examples of how we
could do just that in 2016.
The Sheakley Center for YouthMany young adults are at a high risk of
experiencing homelessness. Especially
those who age out of the foster care
system, have mental and behavioral
issues, or are leaving the juvenile
justice system. The Sheakley Center
for Youth is a creative, adaptive reuse
of a 64,000-square foot commercial
warehouse in Walnut Hills into 39
affordable permanent supportive housing
(PSH) apartments that will assist these
young adults (aged 18-24) and help
them from experiencing homelessness.
Developed by the Sheakley Center for
Youth Limited Partnership, the project
will also contain a youth shelter as well as
a social service component designed to
help stabilize at risk youth experiencing
homelessness. Total project cost is
approximately $7.5 million and is expected
to be completed in early 2018.
29Mercer Commons
Abington, Race, and Pleasant ApartmentsOver-the-Rhine has a rich long history of
being a diverse neighborhood. To maintain
this diversity, we must develop affordable
housing options so residents of all income
levels have quality housing options.
It is no secret that the resurgence of Over-
the-Rhine (OTR) has put many longtime
residents at risk of being priced out of
the market, that is why projects like the
Abington, Race, and Pleasant Apartments
are vital to maintaining affordable housing
options in OTR.
The project is a collaboration between
the Cornerstone Corporation for Shared
Equity and The Model Group and involves
the renovation of five historic buildings
in Over-the-Rhine. The redevelopment
of these historic buildings will reduce
blight, create jobs, and help attract private
investment in the area. This project is also
significant in that eight of the properties
are located south of Liberty Street
creating a rare opportunity to preserve
affordable housing in this portion of Over-
the-Rhine. In total, this $13.7 million project
will create 50 units of affordable housing
totaling approximately 77,000 square
feet with 22 of the 50 units designed
as accessible. Construction started in
November 2016 and is expected to be
completed by the end of 2017. The project
is part of a larger estimated $130 million
affordable housing plan in Over-the-
Rhine that will preserve historic structures
as well as provide over 300 units of
affordable housing the neighborhood.
Marlowe CourtMarlowe Court is the new construction
of 53 senior affordable housing units in
College Hill. The project will also include
approximately 3,600 square feet of retail/
commercial space on the first floor. The
Senior apartments will contain a mix of
22 one-bedroom and 31 two-bedroom
apartments and will be built to LEED
Silver standards. The project will be
100% visitable and include a minimum
of 5% ADA and 2% sensory impairment
units. The development team consists of
Episcopal Retirement Services (ERS), The
Model Group, and College Hill Community
Urban Redevelopment Corporation
(CHCURC). The total project cost is
approximately 11.0 million. Construction
started in July 2016 and is expected to be
completed by September 2017.
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (cont.)
30
PROGRAMSOur Housing and Community
Development Division has several
programs designed to assist residents
as well as community organizations.
These include the American Dream
Downpayment Initiative (ADDI), Hand-
Up, and Strategic Partnerships Advancing
Communities (SPARC).
American Dream Downpayment Initiative (ADDI)The ADDI program is a down payment
assistance program designed to assist
first time homebuyers with down payment
assistance and/or closing costs up to
$5,000. Participating households must
be at or below 80% of the Area Median
Income (AMI) and must be willing to
purchase a home in one of the City’s 52
neighborhoods. Funds are awarded in the
form of five-year forgivable loans with
20% forgiven each year of occupancy.
In 2016, approximately $140,000 was
awarded to 37 households leveraging $3.1
million in private financing.
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
(cont.)
Hand-UpThe main component that drives business
attraction is workforce. To have a well-
rounded experienced workforce, we must
provide job-readiness programming to
develop employees, especially those who
are struggling to break the cycle poverty.
One such program we have at our disposal
is the Hand Up Initiative. Launched in
May 2015, Hand-Up is a mechanism to
alleviate the burden of joblessness and
poverty affecting many Cincinnatians. By
helping those who are out of work attain
employment and move their families
toward self-sufficiency, the Hand-Up
Initiative will improve the economic
outlook for local families and help break
the cycle of poverty.
Below is a breakdown of Hand-Up Service
Providers:
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We are continuously seeking additional
providers and opportunities to expand the
Hand-Up Initiative to maximize the benefit
it can have on our community.
Strategic Partnerships Advancing Communities (SPARC)2017 marks the second year of
our Department’s neighborhood-
centric program known as Strategic
Partnerships Advancing Redevelopment
in Communities (SPARC). This program
provides technical assistance to
neighborhood organizations, including
but not limited to Community Councils,
Community Development Corporations
(CDCs) and Community Housing
Development Organizations (CHDOs). This
upcoming year, we will partner with the
CDC Association of Greater Cincinnati to
administer SPARC.
HOUSING & COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (cont.)
The program’s primary objective is
to leverage available resources and
development experience of City Staff
and the CDC Association to improve the
development capacity and processes
of the Participating Neighborhood
Organization (PNO). Together, DCED,
the CDC Association and the PNO will be
the spark that ignites a neighborhood to
achieve transformative development.
The 2017 SPARC Application was released
in January 2017, and the awardee is
anticipated to be announced in early
Spring. Once the awardee is selected, the
program will follow a 12 month, 3 phase
schedule including:
• Phase 1 - Exploration and Inventory
of Neighborhood Priorities
(2 months)
• Phase 2 - Capacity Building
(8 Months)
• Phase 3 - Report on Success of
Program and Next Steps
(2 Months)
32
Business Administration & Fiscal OperationsOur Business Administration and Fiscal
Operations Division has two main focuses.
The first is to manage the budgets and
fiscal operations of the department and,
secondly, to ensure daily operations
and human resources support our
department’s vision and goals.
BUDGETS AND PROGRAMSFY2016 Operating BudgetOur department’s operating budget
for Operations (human services and
monitoring), the Housing Division and
the Economic Development Division is
comprised of both general fund operating
and Community Development Block Grant
(CDBG) funding.
In fiscal year 2016 (FY2016), which runs
from July 2015 – June 2016, we had a
general fund budget of approximately $8.8
million. Allocation of these funds was as
follows:
• 60% - Operations Division
• 13% - Housing Division
• 27% - Economic Development Division
Additionally, we received approximately
$1.7 million in administrative funding
from CDBG. These funds are primarily
used to fund staff that administer the
HOME, CDBG, ESG, and HOPWA annual
programs and projects in the 2015 - 2019
City of Cincinnati’s Consolidated Plan,
as approved by HUD and reported on
annually.
Allocation of these funds was as follows:
• 65% - Operations Division
• 21% - Housing Division
• 14% - Economic Development
Division
FY2016 Capital FundingIn FY2016, we secured capital funding
to support 26 projects. This support
goes towards programs for new housing
development and neighborhood business
district improves. In total, we were
awarded approximately $17.4 million, 24
percent of which went to housing and 76
percent to economic development.
33
Business Administration & Fiscal Operations
CY2016 CDBG ProgramsIn addition to the administrative funds
received from CDBG, we also receive
program funding. These funds, unlike
the others, is done on a calendar year
(CY) basis. In CY2016 we were awarded
approximately $7 million, which funded
19 different programs throughout our
divisions. Allocation of these funds were as
follows:
34
Monitoring & ComplianceOur Monitoring and Compliance
Division is charged with tracking and
recording community and economic
development incentives and programs.
They ensure that recipients of city
support comply with relevant regulations,
job and investment metrics, and key
performance indicators. This ensures
that the incentivized companies and
programs have the greatest impact on
the community and maximize the City’s
return on investment.
MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Implementing the Incentive Review Report RecommendationsOver the last year we have taken major
strides to expand the departments
oversight of incentivized businesses
based on recommendations made from
our incentive review.
One process that existed prior to the
incentive report for both Job Creation
Tax Credits (JCTCs) and Commercial
Reinvestment Area (CRA) tax abatements
is the annual self-reporting forms through
which companies provide updates on
their compliance progress including
jobs created and investment. We have
now made these reports available online
to make the reporting process more
efficient.
Additionally, immediately following
the incentive review report, we began
to develop the framework for a more
rigorous due diligence process that
includes surveillance reviews (formal
written assessment and site visits). This
way our staff can physically verify that
what companies are self-reporting is
accurate. To date we have completed
21 surveillance reviews based on a mix
of neighborhoods, approval date, and
project type. These surveillance reviews
have also been helpful in gathering
feedback from developers that will assist
our team in our upcoming CRA program
renewal.
Data IntegrityOur stated mission for 2015 was to
create a centralized database for
information on tax incentive programs.
The database system allows for a
single location for information on tax
incentive programs, making data more
accessible and compliance monitoring
easier. This effort has improved the
efficiency and effectiveness of JCTC/
PIR (Job Creation Tax Credit/Property
Investment Reimbursement), Residential
Community Reinvestment Area (CRA),
and Commercial CRA procedures for
collecting and reporting monitoring and
compliance data.
35
To govern the centralized database and
all other analytics that our office has
and uses, we created a Data Integrity
Team, managed by our Monitoring
and Compliance Division, specifically a
Data Integrity Manager, to oversee all
the data input and report outputs to
ensure accuracy and completeness of
information.
Tax Incentive ConversionOur Monitoring and Compliance Division
oversaw the conversion of all active
Property Investment Reimbursement
Agreements (PIR) to the tax credit
method (JCTC) of payment for these
incentives. This shift minimizes the use
of General Fund dollars for this program
without changing the tax incentive
benefit amount.
Operating Contract Monitoring Process ImprovementTo help promote the goals of the City
Administration we have partnered with
the Office of Performance and Data
Analytics to better monitor the general
fund contracts negotiated by this
department. This includes contract with
the following organizations: CincyTech,
Cintrifuse, CDC Association of Greater
Cincinnati, African American Chamber of
Commerce, Film Commission, MORTAR,
REDI Cincinnati, and the UC Economics
Center, plus multiple human services
contracts. The work done by these
organizations supports the mission and
goals of the Department. In 2016, DCED
staff worked with these organizations
to improve the accuracy of contract
performance data and to hold these
agencies accountable for the outcomes
they commit to in their agreements.
Through this new process the City
hopes to improve the efficiency and
effectiveness of service delivery, thus
maximizing the benefits of each dollar
spent by the City on these programs.
Federal Reporting Program Compliance
Our Monitoring and Compliance staff
includes a Community Development
Administrator (CDA) who’s responsibility
it is to ensure compliance with federal
reporting programs throughout the year.
In 2016, the CDA oversaw 43 federal
reporting programs, which resulted in
zero findings and concerns from regional
HUD and state representatives; successful
implementation of the Consolidated
Plan, Annual Performance and Evaluation
Report and Action plan; and the
execution of over 100 federal contracts
worth approximately $16.4 million.
36
Looking Ahead
CRA Program RenewalThe City is preparing to renew and
improve its Commercial Reinvestment
Area (CRA) incentive program, set to
expire in the Fall of 2017. In addition
to factors already considered when
determining the term and rate for
tax abatements and tax incentives
such as project underwriting, LEED
accreditation, and visitability standards;
DCED staff is exploring several additional
factors that could be considered
including geographic/neighborhood
priorities, market and affordable
housing requirements, and job creation
requirements.
Staff is currently coordinating with
a variety of stakeholders, including
Hamilton County, and will recommend
policy improvements this summer to City
Council before petition the State of Ohio
for program renewal in the early Fall.
Monitoring & Compliance
37
Parking Facilities
A unique aspect of the Department of
Community and Economic Development
Department, is that it includes the Parking
Facilities Division.
Our parking staff is committed to
providing high quality customer service
to ensure the needs of our residents,
visitors, and workforce are met. This is
done through an entrepreneurial model
that is data driven, efficient, public-
focused, and financially independent.
BUDGET AND REVENUEParking facilities is an enterprise fund.
This means that its financial reporting is
separate from the rest of the department
because a fee is charged for parking
services. With that said, the FY2016,
operating budget for parking facilities
was approximately $12.7 million.
Parking revenue, which is derived from
several sources including parking meters
and citations has rose in Fiscal Year 2016.
• In FY2016 meter revenue was
approximately $6 million. This was a
44 percent increase over FY 2015,
which had approximately $4.18
million in meter revenue.
• In FY2016 citation revenue was
approximately $4.9 million. This was
a 9 percent increase over FY 2015,
which had approximately $4.5
million in meter revenue.
Looking forward, we expect pay by cell
parking usage to rise in FY2017 by 145%
over the previous fiscal year.
PROJECTS
Cincy EZParkCincy EZPark is the City’s new app that
will simplify parking at the city’s metered
parking locations for smartphone users.
With nearly 30,000 currently using
the City’s PassportParking app, Cincy
EZPark serves the same function with a
City-specific brand. In upcoming years,
we hope to build in real-time parking
information, bus schedules, bike share
passes, and more into the app .
Cincy EZPark is now available at all on-
street parking meters. With Cincy EZPark,
users can:
• Purchase parking using a debit/credit
card
• Get alarms when meter time is about to
expire
• Extend time remotely (up to the
maximum allotted time)
• View personal parking history
The new app also maintains a feature for
users to validate parking at participating
merchant locations. Merchants can
setup and fund accounts through which
personal codes are generated to offer
shoppers to subsidize their parking.
The City of Cincinnati has been in
partnership with Xerox for on-street
38
parking services since 2014. After
bringing Passport in to launch the
PassportParking app in 2015, Xerox and
Passport delivered the new Cincy EZPark
branded app to provide more convenient
payment options for customers in
Cincinnati. Customers may choose to use
the existing PassportParking app as well.
The Cincy EZPark app will carry current
PassportParking users’ account features,
profile and stored credit cards. Users will
be prompted to sign in using the same
credentials (email address or phone
number) and pin number.
Enabling digital payment systems like
Passport Parking and Cincy EZPark has
also allowed the City to reduce rates at
underused meters, provide options for
paying parking tickets online or by phone,
and fix meters more quickly to improve
meter uptime.
On-Street ImprovementTo “clean up” our on-street parking
systems, the department lowered 1,800
meter poles to meet the American with
Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility height
requirements. Additionally, signage
and decals were replaced to provide
more information to users and improve
the aesthetics of our parking systems
throughout the City.
39
Our Policy and Communications
Division was created to facilitate more
transparency of information. Whether it
is engaging with the community, working
with the media, or producing marketing
content and materials, our Policy and
Communications staff is here to serve
as liaison between the department and
both internal and external customers. The
division is also tasked with managing the
legislative and policy-related activities of
the department.
MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Improved CommunicationsIn our efforts to provide more information
to internal and external stakeholders, we
launched a brand-new website design
in March. The new www.choosecincy.
com is tailor-made, with a user-friendly
layout and navigation structure, a page
dedicated to projects both completed
and under construction, browser-
responsive design, and additional features
to better serve those looking to partner
with us.
The change was not only effective, but
grabbed the attention of the greater
economic development community.
The website was awarded the 2016
International Economic Development
Council Silver Award for “General
Purpose Website”.
Policy & Communications
Our website will continue to evolve to
better serve site selectors, developers
and community members, as well as
maintain a high level of transparency of
information.
Webinars
Our Policy and Communications team
is the front line of our effort to increase
transparency of information and provide
more insight to the programs and
initiatives of the department. To this
end, we hosted three webinars designed
to provide developers and community
members with clear information
regarding some of our initiatives. The
subject areas included:
1) 2016 Notice of Funding Availability
2) Available Incentives
3) Programs for Small Businesses
These videos are available online and can
be found by visiting www.choosecincy.
com.
We will look to continue these in 2017.
If you have a suggestion on a topic
area you would like to be covered, we
encourage you to contact us at edinfo@
cincinnati-oh.gov.
40
“Why Choose Cincinnati?” Marketing VideosWe as community and economic
development professionals are some
of the chief advocates for the City. We
work to attract and retain businesses
and residents constantly. A part of that
is through proactive marketing efforts.
One such effort we undertook in
2016 was to work with the business
community downtown to create two
videos answering the question of “Why
Choose Cincinnati.” These videos are
a power tool that speak directly to
areas c-suite executives consider when
choosing a location for their businesses.
These videos can be found on our
website (www.choosecincy.com) and
feature Director Oscar Bedolla, along
with:
• John Barrett, Chairman, President
and CEO, Western & Southern
Financial Group
• Mario San Marco, President,
Eagle Realty Group
• Stuart Aitken, CEO, 84.51
• Joe Allen, General Manager,
GE Global Operations Center
at the Banks
LOOKING AHEAD
“Why I Love Cincinnati!” To increase the visibility of the great
things happening throughout the City of
Cincinnati, our Department is embarking
on a video marketing campaign designed
to highlight the people and places that
make this a great place to live and work.
The first is “Why I Love Cincy” and will
be an effort between the department
and several local partners where we will
ask people to submit videos explaining
why they love Cincinnati. Prizes for the
best videos will be incorporated with
this campaign. Secondly, we will feature
several neighborhood spotlight videos
showcasing each of the neighborhoods
and the unique character and personality
they have.
41
Director’s Office513.352.1948
Economic Development513.352.2435
Major Projects513.352.1953
Housing & Community Development513.352.1955
Business Administration & Fiscal Operations513.352.6130
Monitoring & Compliance513.352.3305
Parking Facilities513.352.1902
Policy & Communications513.352.6136
CONTACT