Every two years, the state of Ohio issues bonds for its capital budget in order to support the renovations and updates of local buildings, schools, roads, sewers, prisons and parks. Earlier this winter, the Cincinnati Business Committee recommended projects that would help educate and train the state’s workforce to the governor.
Due to the recession, the state wasn’t able to issue these bonds fromm 2007-2012, but resurrected them for colleges and universities in 2013-2014. This year is the first since 2006 that the state has been able to allocate money to community projects.
Cincinnati’s
Music Hall and the
Cincinnati Museum Center’s Union Terminal are to each receive $5 million of Ohio’s $2.4 billion capital budget to get renovations underway, if the legislature approves the governor’s request to issue long-term bonds for money to improve universities and community buildings. The decision is going before the General Assembly this spring.
But state money won’t come close to covering the $275 million needed to update both Music Hall and Union Terminal. Music Hall, which was built in 1878, is in need of $95 million worth of renovations; Union Terminal, which is 80 years old, uses an outdated heating and air conditioning system, and needs $180 million in repairs.
In all, the state’s capital budget includes $675 million for local school buildings; $454.4 million for renovations at public colleges and universities; $369 million for road and sewer improvements; $574.3 million for state-owned buildings at prisons and parks; and $100 million for the
Clean Ohio program to preserve farmland, trails and green space.
The state-owned
Aronoff Center for the Arts theater and
Hamilton County Memorial Hall will each get $2 million for renovations. Another $4 million will go to the future parking garage south of Freedom Way at
The Banks. The
University of Cincinnati will get $28.8 million for its ongoing Medical Sciences Building project, and
Miami University will get $21 million to renovate Shideler Hall.
Cincinnati Zoo will get $2 million, and West Chester’s
Voice of America MetroPark will get $1 million to build an athletic complex for regional and national tournaments.
By Caitlin Koenig
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