This Place Matters showing boosts more than OTR

It was a near miss that some still see as a much-needed shot in the arm.

The Over-the-Rhine Foundation, a community organization dedicated to promoting sustainable growth in the historic neighborhood, was the dark horse story of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's 2011 This Place Matters Community Challenge. The organization came from behind in the closing weeks of the voting drive event, which offered its winner $25,000 to support historic preservation efforts. At one point, the OTR Foundation led the field of 100 finalists in a close race that came down to the final days.

But when the final tallies came in, preservation projects in Newport, RI, and Wellington, TX, gained first and second spots, respectively. The OTR Foundation placed third, with an accompanying $5,000 prize.

But never mind the scoreboard: the organization's representatives - and historic preservation advocates in the city - are calling the third-place finish a huge success, for both Over-the-Rhine and Cincinnati as a whole.

"The way we look at it, any interest in the neighborhood is good," says OTR Foundation Vice-President and former Soapbox managing editor Sean Rhiney. "It puts us on the map and in the national conscience."

Cincinnati Preservation Association executive director Paul Muller agrees, noting that it was community mobilization in multiple neighborhoods that drove the voting effort.

"It was really exciting to be part of the community that mobilized for that effort," he says. "It was great, particularly, to show the National Trust the passion and support for Over-the-Rhine in Cincinnati."

According to both advocates, Over-the-Rhine's success speaks to something happening in Cincinnati: a renaissance of interest in the city's history, and a new respect for its urban core - the 'inner circle' neighborhoods like Over-the-Rhine.

"That's almost like the city is coming to terms with itself," Rhiney says. "We're changing the conversation from focusing on negatives to attributes."

On Tuesday, Aug. 2, Mueller and CPA preservation director Margo Warminski asked members of Cincinnati City Council to push forward an effort to have Cincinnati designated a Preserve America Community by the Federal government. The move would help preservation initiatives in the city receive grant funding, and would help build what Mueller calls one of the city's greatest present and future assets: its historic treasures.

By Matt Cunningham

Follow Matt on Twitter @cunningcontent