Pete Blackshaw, a VP with NM Incite, updates his official Social-Media and Mobile Glossary of 2010 - he originally created it in January. The updates include a jargon refresh and new words like "mayoral graft" and "hash bragger." Read the full story here.
In an attempt to bring more fresh produce, and expand Findlay Market's reach, Daisy Mae's Market is now delivering throughout much of Cincinnati's center city.The new business endeavor first started a couple of months ago with their Healthy Breaks program that delivers 30 servings of seasonal fruit to offices in the downtown area for just $20. But as the program settled in, owners at Daisy Mae's realized that the demand was a bit greater than they originally thought."We make a few of the Healthy Breaks deliveries each week, but we learned that many of those customers thought it would be nice to be able to order produce and take it home with them," explained Barb Cooper, marketing director at Daisy Mae's Market.As a result, Cooper says that the program now brings custom, grocery list-type orders to office workers downtown who want to bring fresh produce home with them and not have to worry about making an additional trip on their way home. She says that it's all part of their effort to make getting fresh, healthy produce as easy as possible and promoting Findlay Market as a central point for doing so."Whatever we're doing, whether it's Healthy Breaks, produce deliveries, or quick-pick produce where you can drive by and pick up your order on Race Street, we're doing it to promote Findlay Market," explained Cooper. "Findlay Market's historical importance is a critical element of the urban core and we need to do everything to preserve that."Those who do not take advantage of Daisy Mae's Healthy Breaks program can still have fresh produce delivered to their address as long as it is within the 45202 zip code. Cooper says that those orders must be at least $15, but that they will deliver the order the next day.Those interested can place an order online, call (513) 602-5601, or email their order to daisymae@daisymaesmarket.com. The produce offerings will change on a weekly basis so stay tuned to Daisy Mae's website. Once the order is placed, Daisy Mae's will then respond with a price and a tentative delivery time.Writer: Randy A. SimesImage ProvidedStay connected by following Randy on Twitter @UrbanCincy
Luis Leon grew up in Chicago and lived there with his family for twenty-five years. Luis says, "My father worked in a factory and my mother was a secretary. They were good years, but my mother wanted something else, she had a dream. She wanted to own a restaurant."So when the family left Chicago and moved to Cincinnati they opened Cancun Mexican Restaurant. A year and half later, the Leon's opened the first of three restaurants bearing the name Taqueria Mercado. The first was in Fairfield, just east of Jungle Jims. The second opened about a year and a half later in Erlanger. That store eventually closed and relocated to its present location in Florence. And then, earlier this year, Leon's family opened the third Taqueria Mercado at 100 E. Eighth Street in the space formerly occupied by Javier's Mexican restaurant. Asked if he was worried about opening a Mexican Restaurant in a space where another had just failed, Luis smiles and says, "No, not at all." He then explains, "Many of our customers in Fairfield were from Downtown and they would ask us, all the time, to open a store downtown, so I knew if we opened it people would come."The restaurant serves as a welcome addition to the downtown dining community. To mollify long time fans of the Fairfield restaurant, and to ensure continuity, Leon brought Alfredo - his favorite cook - with him from Fairfield. Which is not to say that all three stores will are identical.For Luis and Jody, both of whom live downtown, the downtown location represents an opportunity to do something special for the ever growing downtown population.Taqueria Mercado Downtown will soon offer amenities beyond those at the Florence or Fairfield locations. For instance, Luis has hired long time music promoter, Jody Steiner (who did former similar duties at The Madison and Stanley's) to book music. Steiner says live music will start the weekend of October 15 and will, eventually feature a myriad of musical styles including Latin, Rock and Roots. Prior to that, physical improvements- including the hanging of acoustic panels- will be undertaken to ensure a pleasant listening environment. For Luis and Steiner, both of whom live downtown, the 8th street location represents an opportunity to do something special for the ever growing downtown population. As a result, the Downtown restaurant will also be opened extended hours (till 11:00 weekdays; 1 am on the weekend) and offer an extended happy hour (11am to 9pm).Writer: Michael KearnsPhotography by Michael Kearns
The District A Festival is a day of art, dance, music and food in Kennedy Heights and Pleasant Ridge that highlights those communities' efforts to band together and brand themselves as a destination arts district."We are doing a progressive party building on our arts assets, moving from Kennedy Heights in the morning to Pleasant Ridge in the afternoon," District A's board chair Maria Kreppel said. "Then we're having a community art party in the middle."Kreppel said the festival, this Saturday, mimics a typical Saturday in "District A" where Kennedy Heights' arts organizations offer programming in the morning and restaurants and shops are open in Pleasant Ridge during the afternoon and evening.At this year's festival, dance classes and art demonstrations begin the day at the Kennedy Heights Arts Center and Arts Innovation Movement (AIM) Cincinnati (formerly Ballet tech.) During the course of the day artists from the neighborhood (of which there are many) will sell works along Montgomery Road while art activities and a book sale will be offered at the Pleasant Ridge Library. Also, AIM will present a dress rehearsal preview of TwiNight, a dance performance premiering next Friday at the Aronoff. The event ends with indoor/outdoor concerts and dinner at the All Saints Episcopal Church in Pleasant Ridge. A non-profit, all-volunteer organization, District A grew out of a years-old effort in the two neighborhoods to keep their business districts vital despite businesses moving out. An arts renaissance in Kennedy Heights was sparked five years ago when community members turned vacant buildings into "arts anchors" like the Kennedy Heights Arts Center and later Ballet Tech Cincinnati (now AIM) and the Green Corner and Giving Garden - a market and garden.Pleasant Ridge, a district with restaurants, bars and shops, joined the effort when its community councils joined with Kennedy Heights' to establish the "Montgomery Road Arts Collaboration." It became "District A" in 2008 with assistance from design agency LPK. Kreppel said the name reflects the effort to be "not your typical arts district." The organization currently works to foster communication between artists, businesses, building owners and neighbors to promote community and economic growth, Kreppel said.District A recently helped Pleasant Perk, a coffee shop, through a change in ownership. They have also placed artwork by local artists in vacant commercial spaces at the corner of Montgomery and Ridge roads. Plans for the next big "arts anchor" in Kennedy Heights - the conversion of an abandoned Kroger's supermarket into the Kennedy Heights Cultural Center - will be unveiled at the event.Information on the festival, including times, can be found here. The festival runs from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.Writer: Henry Sweets Photography by Henry Sweets
The Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority has landed a $100,000 grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank. This American Dream Home-ownership Grant will go to support CMHA's Family Self-Sufficiency Program which works with qualified individuals to purchase their first home.The grant works by providing a $10,000 down payment for minority home-buyers within CMHA's self-sufficiency program. The program is designed to move people out of the cycle of poverty and into a more rewarding life that otherwise might have been out of reach without the down payment assistance."This grant helps the participants get a leg up on moving toward self-sufficiency," explained Stacia Buck, CMHA's Family Self-Sufficiency Manager. "We want to help them become economically self-sufficient, and this program allows the participants to do just that."CMHA officials say this is the first time they have received this grant, and that it is the largest grant received for the program. To date, the program has assisted approximately 40 families move into homes; 75 percent of which utilized down payment assistance.To qualify, participants must go through home-ownership training classes before and after they move into the home to make sure the new homeowners understand the costs involved. Home-buyers must also be approved for a loan before they are eligible for down payment assistance through this program."Our participants tend to come from a long line of renters, and the first step toward home-ownership can often be quite daunting," said Buck. "We're helping them to take that first step, and we're helping a family move into a better situation that they might otherwise not have been able to afford."The $100,000 grant expires in 2012, but CMHA officials hope that demonstrated success through the Family Self-Sufficiency Program will help them earn this grant award again.Writer: Randy A. SimesImage ProvidedStay connected by following Randy on Twitter @UrbanCincy
A new report released by the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) shows that initial speeds for the proposed 3C Rail Corridor could be faster than first thought. The ORDC worked with Woodside, an industry leading railroad modeling firm, to produce the report and find new travel efficiencies.The new report included a draft schedule that showed passenger trains traveling the corridor's entire length, 259 miles, in just over five hours. The five hour travel time equates to average speeds of 50 miles-per-hour.According to Amtrak, the initial travel speeds are some of the fastest of any recently developed system, and the third fastest since 1980."All statewide intercity rail systems in the United States were first introduced at lower speeds and evolved over time to higher speed service," explained Ken Prendergast, executive director of All Aboard Ohio.Trips between Columbus and Cleveland are projected to be even faster and boast average speeds close to 60mph. This would result in a two hour and twenty minute trip from downtown Columbus to downtown Cleveland - about the same as driving an automobile.Project officials say that negotiations with the freight railroads are ongoing and could result in even faster speeds. For now though, Ohioans should expect a system that has top speeds of 79mph and average speeds between 50 and 60mph.Cincinnati's service would include three daily trains. Based on service to a proposed Lunken Airport-area station, northbound departures would leave at 6:30am, 12:30pm, and 4pm. Southbound arrivals would roll into town at 12:01pm, 6:01pm, and 9:31pm.The 3C Rail Corridor is part of a larger Midwest regional rail plan that connects most major cities throughout the mega-region with one another. Officials say that the $400 million 3C Corridor could be operational as early as 2012 and create more than 8,000 jobs.Stay connected to ongoing progress and news on Ohio's 3C Rail Corridor by becoming a fan on Facebook.Writer: Randy A. SimesImage ProvidedStay connected by following Randy on Twitter @UrbanCincy
William T. "Bill" Robinson III has just been named president-elect and will take over the reins of the 400,000-member American Bar Association (ABA) in August 2011 at its annual meeting in Toronto.
London's influential magazine, Times Higher Education, issued its annual 200 world university rankings. The University of Cincinnati ranked for the first time on this prestigious list as 190th among all universities and 76th regionally among North American schools. Times Higher Education claims this is the most rigorous and reliable rankings ever as the magazine looks at five different categories including teaching, research, citations, industry income, and international mix. Read the full story here.
Cincinnati ranked among the top 50 "Twitter Cities" reported by NetProspex. The sales and marketing database company looked at the cities with the most activity on Twitter by businesspeople. They assessed the average number of tweets and the average number of followers of U.S. professionals to compile this new, unique list. Read the full story here.
America's Promise Alliance, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of children, ranked Cincinnati and Norwood on its 100 Best Communities list. The list ranks communities that make the effort to keep children in school and prepare them for college and work through programs. Cincinnati focuses on various programs such as the Strive partnership, Jobs for Cincinnati Graduates, and Place Matters, while Norwood focuses on after-school and youth activities to maintain student involvement. Read the full story here.
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