Cincinnati’s first-ring suburbs face unique challenges. Changing demographics, economic stability, and issues regarding resources and security are common threads among these jurisdictions.
The ways the 49 Hamilton County cities, villages, townships, and municipal corporations not only adjust but thrive is the focus of this series, First Suburbs—Beyond Borders. The series explores the diversity and ingenuity of these longstanding suburban communities, highlighting issues that demand collective thought and action to galvanize their revitalization.
The closure of most of the Frisch's restaurants in Greater Cincinnati has affected many neighborhoods and small towns, as a longtime gathering spot and local favorite has been shuttered, perhaps for good. No community was more affected by its Frisch's closing than the little village of Fairfax. For 85 years, Fairfax was the home of the original Frisch's, the Mainliner, its status marked by its unique sign topped by a replica of a passenger plane and an entrance arch over the parking lot that spelled it out : M-A-I-N-L-I-N-E-R.
The Mainliner closed in December, the restaurant evicted by its landlord, a publicly traded, nationwide real estate investment trust. It was one of dozens of evictions set in motion by the property owner. But in Fairfax, the Mainliner was its claim to fame. Located on busy Wooster Pike, U.S. 50, it was the entrance to the village and its business district.
The Mainliner memories run deep. It was a nostalgic reminder of the days when Frisch's was a drive-in, not a drive-through. It was the area's first year-round drive-in, and it had space for 60 cars, and menus mounted on lighted signs, and intercoms for ordering at each parking space, where you could relax in the car and order burgers, fries and shakes brought to your window.
"I'm old enough to remember the carhops and everything at the Mainliner," says Jennifer Kaminer, who grew up in neighboring Madisonville. "It was a place our family went to all the time. "The Mainliner has been a fixture for decades
."
But the carhops went away a long time ago, and now the restaurant itself has gone away. It's famous sign has gone to a museum. It's a loss of a touchstone of days gone by for many. But for Kaminer, who is the Fairfax village administrator, it's also a challenge and a possible opportunity for the community. While there's a slim chance that some of the closed Frisch's may reopen, it appears more likely that they will stay closed and the real estate will eventually become available to new tenants or be sold. That leaves Fairfax, one of the smallest towns in Hamiton County, in a sort of limbo as community leaders, business owners and residents wait to see what happens to an anchor property in its business district. It's a case study of the impact a cornerstone restaurant can have on a small community.
The Mainliner sits on a big lot, about two acres, and is situated on U.S. 50 at the entrance to Fairfax as one travels on Columbia Parkway from downtown or Cincinnati's East Side neighborhoods. "It is the gateway to the village," Kaminer says.
The key property is owned by
NNN REIT, Inc., a real estate investment firm based in Orlando, Fla. that says it owns more than 3,500 properties in 49 states, and more than 36 million square feet of leasable space. Its tenants around the country include 7 Eleven convenience stores, car washes, tire stores, and restaurants such as Taco Bell, Arby's, Bob Evans, and Chuck E. Cheese. Needless to say, the Mainliner property is not necessarily atop its priority list, although the site is currently gathering dust and not rent.
Village officials have reached out to the company seeking information, but have not heard back. "We don't know what is going on or what their intention is," Kaminer says. The company did not return my calls either.
The Frisch's brand is owned by a private equity fund based in Atlanta that bought it in 2015. Brother and sister Craig and Karen Maier, grandchildren of company founder David Frisch, sold the business to
NRD Capital. That firm then promptly sold the real estate to NNN in order to generate cash, or as the company said at the time, "to unlock the value" in Frisch's. The private equity firm continued to run the business, leasing back the real estate that it had just sold off. But the firm fell behind on its rent, and the property owner, NNN, went to court, and was successful in evicting most of the restaurants from its properties, including the Mainliner.
When a community loses a signature restaurant, it can be hard to replace. It happened at the end of 2021 when the Grand Finale, located in the heart of the village of Glendale, closed after 46 years in business. In January 2020, Chris and Stephanie Stone closed Stone's Restaurant in Cheviot, a West Side staple for more than 50 years. More than five years later, the building is still vacant.
What all this means to the village of Fairfax is a big empty lot with a vacant building in its compact business district. That's true in many other towns and villages around the area as Frisch's has been evicted from sites in Norwood, Forest Park, Blue Ash, North College Hill, Delhi Township and other first-ring suburbs.
In Fairfax, a town that is working to build its population and
update an antiquated zoning code to respond to today's needs, leaders have started thinking about the post-Mainliner future. The property is zoned for "business mixed use," as is the entire Wooster Pike business district. That allows for a range of potential uses. "For lack of a better term, years ago, it was simply kind of called the retail zone, but it allows for a little bit more than that," Kaminer says. Retail, business services, professional offices, even multi-family residential or a hotel is permitted under that zoning.
Early discussions among the village council about the property have mostly centered on what they don't want. "They really don't want to see any more auto-centric type of development, like repair shops, tire shops or gas stations," she says. "We do have a lot of that already."
A special type of use, called a planned unit development, is also possible. That would be a specific use proposed by a developer, and it must be approved by the village council. That's what Maronda Homes is doing at the other end of Wooster Pike, where townhomes are planned. Council approved that use partly to keep gas station and warehouse-type of development off of its main thoroughfare.
The village would also consider purchasing the property if it went on the market, Kaminer says, although that could be too pricey for a village with an operating budget of just under $6 million. Buying it would ensure public control and enable the village to seek the kind of tenant it wants.
That's what the city of Sharonville did when
it purchased the site of that city's oldest business, Cliff Hardware, which was going out of business. The site sits in the center of Sharonville's downtown in a few blocks the city has rebranded as The Loop. Gaining control of the site allows the community to determine the best use for it, in keeping with its long-term vision.
Mike Misleh owns the Skyline franchise in the next block east of the Mainliner. “It’s a high-profile corner,” he says. “We don’t want to see it just sitting there closed with no activity.” He’d like to see something that would elevate the community and the rest of the business district, possibly a mixed-use development with retail and housing or office tenants. Any buyer, he says should have a plan that the community will embrace.
Down the street, the owners of Golden Hands Bakery have mused about moving their operation there. But co-owner Adam Gilvin, like many others, lapses into nostalgia: “I’d just like to see a Frisch’s there.”
The First Suburbs—Beyond Borders series is made possible with support from a coalition of stakeholders including the Murray & Agnes Seasongood Good Government Foundation - The Seasongood Foundation is devoted to the cause of good local government; Hamilton County Planning Partnership; plus First Suburbs Consortium of Southwest Ohio, an association of elected and appointed officials representing older suburban communities in Hamilton County, Ohio.