Cincinnati

Godoy plans documentary of historic Music Hall organ

By Newsroom

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November 6, 2012

Melissa Godoy of Mt. Airy is one of seven recipients of $6,000 grant from the Cincinnati Arts Ambassador Fellowship. She plans to use her award to fund a short documentary about the restoration process of the art-carved wood panels from the 1878 Hook and Hastings organ that is currently in the orchestra pit of Music Hall. “These panels have been stored there for about 40 years after this huge, classic organ was dismantled in the 70s,” Godoy says. “In its time, this organ was one of the largest organs in the country, and the art-carved panels were the opus of the art carved movement, which was centered in Cincinnati." The panels, carved by more than 108 women students, inspired Gody, who decided to employ two students from Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, where she is a professor, to help her create the cinema vérité style film. There have been numerous delays in the restoration of Music Hall, so the Society for the Preservation of Music Hall (SPMH) decided to restore these panels while waiting for negotiations to conclude. Godoy plans to show her film at Music Hall in conjunction with the display of the panels. She also plans to put the project online, supplemented with background information and links. “Years ago, when the Cincinnati Wing of the Art Museum opened, I was the coordinating producer of the HD videos that are screening now,” Godoy says. “And I was very much involved in the art-carved furniture research and shooting, so I got really interested in the history of it and fascinated by the movement. “The aesthetic movement (which encompasses the art-carved movement) is so appropriate for Cincinnati because of the natural beauty of the city. So that’s what I’m striving for also stylistically, is something just really natural.” Godoy has been involved with filmmaking since her playwright studies at Northwestern University. Born in D.C., Godoy grew up in Wisconsin, went to school in Chicago and finally settled in Cincinnati in 1994 because her husband was getting his master’s degree. Godoy enjoys the pace of life in Cincinnati and is energized by the revitalization of the city. Since 2008, she has worked on a documentary about the revitalization of OTR, which she says taught her many lessons about her craft. Godoy also worked on several national productions directed by Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert. Her own documentary, “Do Not Go Gently,” with Walter Cronkite as the narrator, is on American Public Television and has won numerous awards. “Until Sadie Blotz” is her most recent completed work, which was shown in the Cincinnati Film Festival. Do Good: • Learn more about SPMH. • Donate to SPMH. • Find out about Godoy’s documentary on the revitalization of OTR. By Stephanie Kitchens

Latest in Cincinnati

Ludlow businesses innovate to feed neighbors, look forward to full grocery opening

By Newsroom

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Development News

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November 6, 2012

Would you like a loaf of bread and a bag of farm-fresh veggies to go along with that hammer? As they searched for walkable ways to sustain healthy diets after the closing of Keller’s IGA in 2011, Ludlow Avenue residents in Clifton discovered food in unlikely places. The Ace Hardware store on Ludlow began stocking fresh produce — tomatoes, apples, oranges, etc. — in the summer following the closing of IGA. It also began stocking Shadeau breads, which have been selling well in recent months — more than 600 loaves in October alone, according to Bryan Valerius, general manager of Ace Hardware on Ludlow and former Keller’s manager. Across the street, CVS shoppers noticed an expansion of canned food options in addition to a wider selection of beers, which allows community members to continue to live a car-free, if less “fresh” life. Valerius says that business has increased at Ace in recent months, but that's after the foot traffic decreased when IGA closed. “The biggest thing I hear from people around here is they don’t like getting in their car and driving to the grocery,” Valerius says. Ludlow Wines owner Mike Anagnostou agrees. “One of the appeals of Clifton is not having to own a car,” he says. “The day-to-day necessities are all in walkable distance.” Not all kinds of business were impacted, though, Anagnostou says. “The weekend entertainment crowd — the people who come to Esquire, Graeter’s, Olive’s, Dewey’s — hasn’t changed,” Anagnostou said. “It’s the weekday traffic [that has declined].” While both he and Valerius think that IGA’s reopening will help rebuild businesses, they also share doubts about its ambitious January 2013 opening date. “It’s a very bureaucratic process,” Anagnostou says. He remembers the construction issues that arose when he went through the process of opening his shop. “You get to a certain point where they say, ‘Now you need this, now you need this.’ I truly believe we’re going to get a grocery store. I also believe Mr. Goessling and his crew have been overly-optimistic as to when they’re going to open.” Valerius estimates the store will require 13-16 weeks of work before it can open again. He thinks the construction time will help his business. “I’m pulling for [IGA owner] Steve Goessling,” Anagnostou says. “I want him to open.” Eli Mock, Ludlow native and University of Cincinnati student, used to shop at Keller’s IGA before it closed, and thinks the grocery store’s reopening will make his diet healthier. “It’ll be easy to pop in and get food for dinner after classes,” Mock says. “It’ll add some diversity to what I eat. I won’t have to rely so much on fast food.” By Kyle Stone

Cincinnati entrepreneur buys market research firm AcuPOLL

By Newsroom

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Entrepreneurship

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November 6, 2012

Cincinnati entrepreneur, consultant and former P&G brand manager Jeff Goldstein spent most of his career helping businesses sell great products faster. Now, as the new owner of AcuPOLL Precision Research, he's expanding his reach through this market research firm with an entrepreneurial edge. "Instead of helping one or two clients at a time, we'll be working with 40 or 50 clients at a time," Goldstein says. "(AcuPOLL) is more consultative than other market research firms, and more willing to contribute ideas, stick their necks out really, to the market research process." Goldstein was a Procter & Gamble brand manager in the '80s and '90s before leaving for consulting. He then launched +Repelle, a hair color stain protectant for skin that sold in Walgreens, CVS and other stores. He continues to sell that brand through Sally Beauty Supply and via salon distributors, and was president of Ingenuity Advisors marketing and innovation consultancy when he formed RVG Acquisitions, Inc. a financial holdings firm, to acquire AcuPOLL. Goldstein purchased the company through the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 7a loan program from Huntington Bank, a local SBA partner agency. Without the program, it would have been very difficult to purchase the business, which is successful but didn't have the collateral a traditional bank loan expects. "A lot of people aren't aware of the SBA loans, but it was a great option for the situation I found myself in," he says. "That's a problem for a lot of (service) businesses that are not asset intensive." Goldstein sees AcuPOLL as a natural expansion of his career and experience. He recently purchased the company, based in Newtown, and founded in 1991 by another former P&G brand manager to discover, accelerate and improve innovation results. "The more I learned about the company, the more I realized it's really a mix of research and consulting," Goldstein says. "It's not a surprise because it was formed by P&Gers looking for better and faster ways to innovate." AcuPOLL was founded on a system designed to lessen the percentage of new product innovation failures. The company, which has about two dozen employees, has tested more than 40,000 new products and ideas. The market research firm works with businesses across the globe, from startups to Fortune 100 companies. AcuPoll works in a wide range of industries, including consumer package and durable goods, quick-service restaurants, financial services and telecommunications. By Feoshia H. Davis Follow Feoshia on Twitter

Fresh art uncovers hidden treasures

By Elissa Yancey

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General

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November 6, 2012

Where you see an empty carton, Andrey Kozakov sees a face. Where you see a cabinet, he sees a magical box. Most of all, the Cincinnatian from the Ukraine sees his art as an expression of his freedom—from the bonds of the past and the constraints of convention.

Pop-up restaurant fundraiser first is golden

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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November 6, 2012

It's a pop-up restaurant. A fundraiser. A crowd-funded themed dinner. All organized in less than a month and sold out in less than 33 hours, thanks to the work and creativity of local blogger Laura Arnold and Over-the-Rhine restaurateur Josh Campbell. Just 25 tickets were available for the Golden Lawn Chair dinner, which, at $80 a couple, entitle diners to a five-course dinner themed around the idea of Uptown Americana: Trashy to Classy at Campbell’s Mayberry restaurant, at 1211 Main St., Nov. 18. The dinner will be followed by an after party, chances to win numerous raffle items, drink specials and live music. And every dime made after their costs are covered will go directly to the Free Store Food Bank. At this writing, they have raised more than $2,000 from ticket sales, with at least $1,000 of that slated for the food pantry. Arnold remains hopeful they will raise at least another $2,000 in raffles, auctions and one-of-a-kind events. Think you are too late to get your tickets? Think again. A pair of golden tickets will be auctioned off for the last two seats at the dinner. The auction will run until the dinner, which will kick off with the awarding of the ceremonial golden tickets. After-party tickets, at $15 each, can be purchased at the door on Nov. 18. “It’s been a blast," says Arnold, who writes the Cincinnati Nomerati blog. "We just kept adding things as we went: the dinner, an auction, the after party, raffle prizes. It was just and-and-and-and-and. Everyone has been so supportive. “Josh has just been great to work with. We are going to have so many things going on: rounds of raffle bingo between courses, a kiddie pool filled with Hudy Delight … There’s been a lot of moving parts. I am pretty confident it will be fun.” Followers of Arnold’s blog will recognize the theme and will understand the impetus for the creation of the pop-up restaurant. Arnold started creating themed welcome-home dinners for her husband, David, who traveled monthly to Michigan for his job. She documented those dinners – the ideas, the menu and the preparation – on the blog. As David continued traveling, she continued to push herself to create more and more interesting and more intricate fare. “With David traveling, I had time to myself, so I started creating these fake menus with themed glassware, table layout and decorations," Arnold says. "It was really just a way to say: ‘glad you are home.' Things just progressed and I continued to push myself to experiment and make new things.’’ About a month or so ago, Arnold took the experimentation to a new level. She and Campbell started chatting about continuing the idea in a restaurant setting. He would shut down the restaurant for an evening; they would invite some friends and have a fun evening. It would be a one-night pop-up restaurant. And then they thought, why not make the event a fundraiser, given the dinner is the Sunday before Thanksgiving? The Free Store Food Bank was a natural fit. “They were all for it,’’ Arnold says. Arnold says everyone she has contacted for gift cards has given. “I’ve been astonished and amazed and grateful at how generous everyone has been.’’ Several OTR chefs and personalities have donated their time and talent for special perk packages that folks can still purchase for varying amounts. In each case, one package is available, with 100 percent of the purchase price going to the Free Store Food Bank. Packages include: · A Limoncella-making class for two at Nicola’s Restaurant for $100. · A cocktail-making class for up to four at Japps Since 1879 Bar, taught by perhaps Cincinnati’s most recognizable and best known bartender, Molly Wellman, for $200. · · A private pizza-making lesson for two at A Tavola, for $250. · A private gelato-making lesson, during which a new flavor will be created and named, with the owner of Dojo Gelato, for $250. While neither Arnold nor Campbell invented the pop-up idea, which is a restaurant or dining experience that opens and closes in just a few hours or days, coupling it with fundraising may be a first for Cincinnati. “To my knowledge, nothing like this has been done before,’’ Arnold says. “But honestly, I really haven’t had time to look into that.” Do Good · Make a cash donation or buy a perk package. · Find them on Facebook. · Follow them on Twitter. · Follow Arnold’s blog. By Chris GravesChris Graves is the assistant vice president of digital and social media at the Powers Agency

Tis the season for Christian Moerlein holiday brews

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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November 6, 2012

The Christian Moerlein Lager House hosts its first Holiday Beer and Brewerania Extravaganza Saturday, Nov. 10, from noon to 4 p.m. During the event, beer lovers can get started on their holiday shopping, tour the brewery and sample 10 holiday beers. Christian Moerlein started the Moerlein Brewing Company in 1853 in Over-the-Rhine. He was a Bavarian immigrant and blacksmith by trade who loved brewing beer. When Moerlein’s beer was exhibited, it always took home top honors. After his death in 1897, the brewery continued to operate until Prohibition forced it to close; it reopened in 1981. Moerlein’s beer has only four ingredients: malted barley, hops, water and yeast, and is the first beer to certifiably pass the Reinheitsgebot Bavarian Purity Law of 1516. In 2004, Greg Hardman, its current president and CEO, bought Moerlein Brewing Company. He continues to follow the same quality and taste guidelines set by Moerlein. The Holiday Beer and Brewerania Extravaganza isn’t all beer tasting. It’s a bit like an antique show, too. There will be free informational appraisals of beer memorabilia; book signings by Mike Morgan and Dan Tolzmann; and souvenirs, such as steins designed by Rookwood Pottery, beer memorabilia, a winter lineup of Moerlein Lager House merchandise, the "Brewopoly" beer game, Cincinnati retro beer shirts and local artist Jim Effler’s Bockfest and Moerlein beer label posters. Plus, Moerlein Lager House’s beer tokens that feature the inaugural Moerlein Lager House design and beer barons Moerlein and John Hauck will be for sale for the true beer enthusiast. Rookwood Pottery designed a series of four steins for Moerlein Lager House. In 2008, Rookwood Pottery created the Christian Moerlein Barbarossa Stein. In 2007, Moerlein commissioned a stein for its Northern Liberty Beer and one for its OTR beer. New for 2012 is the first edition Christian Moerlein Lager House Stein. The stein pays tribute to Christian Moerlein's first beer brewing venture on Elm Street, and to the new Moerlein Lager House along the river. The two locations are connected by a cobblestone road that represents the return of Cincinnati's brewing heritage. All of the steins are currently available on Rookwood Pottery's website. “Customers can walk around the facility and check out the artwork, and brewers will be on hand to discuss the brewing process or talk about beer,” says Hardman. And of course, there will be beer. The event will feature 10 holiday beers from guest brewers: Wittekerke Winter Wit, Founder’s Harvest, Petrus Winter #9, Sierra Nevada Northern Hemisphere Harvest, Sam Smith Winter Welcome, Two Brothers Heavy Handed, Sierra Nevada Celebration, Ommegang Art of Darkness, Hudepohl Classic Porter and a batch of Moerlein Lager Houses Christkindl Winter Warmer Ale. Richard Dube, Moerlein Lager House’s resident brewmaster, brewed the Christkindl ale especially for the event, says Hardman. Admission is free; four-ounce samples of the seasonal beers will be $6 for a flight of four. By Caitlin Koenig Follow Caitlin on Twitter

Cormier Creative crafts logos for budding businesses

By Newsroom

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Architecture + Design

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November 6, 2012

Some people work four 10-hour days for perks like saving on gas and three-day weekends. Others, like Sara Cormier, cram in a second job on the side. Until last April, Cormier was juggling a design gig with Cincinnati Magazine and healthy freelance traffic. When her daughter, Carmen, entered preschool, she decided it was time for a change. “I was kind of going crazy,” she says, noting that she doesn’t regret those hyper-scheduled days: “At least for me, I couldn’t quit my job without having built [my business] up. I wasn’t financially in a place to do that.” Cormier, who graduated from the University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning in 2002, launched Cormier Creative in April, and specializes in helping small businesses with branding, logos and promotions. Her services can help young companies, or those without a budget for an in-house designer, she says. “I’ve always really liked working with a business that’s just getting off the ground and starting from scratch," she says. "Once they invest in that initially, then they’re really excited about how their stuff looks." She encourages businesses not to wait to start branding themselves. “You need a logo right off the bat. It doesn’t take long to get one, and I think the sooner, the better.” Because she’s worked with so many newly launched businesses, Cormier has curated a few tips for proprietors, too. Along with advising that any business that is doing business needs a logo immediately, she advises businesspeople to find a designer they trust and then relinquish control. “You’re not hiring a professional designer to recreate your sketch so much as to help you with the entire identity.” Cormier offers custom design services for all sizes of businesses as well as custom stationary – she calls herself “a paper snob” – that’s popular among local brides. Her design aesthetic favors clean lines and clever graphics. "I love all my brides, they’re really really fun," Cormier says. "We try to come up with something really custom." By Robin Donovan

Lisnr app connects artists, fans with exclusive extras

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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November 6, 2012

The initial concept for Lisnr came from Rodney Williams, but it came alive through a team of five co-founders on the Cincinnati StartUpBus en route to South by Southwest last March. “When I got on the bus, Lisnr didn’t have a name, but within two hours, we had a presentation, and within another two hours, we had more things, and by the time we got to Austin, we had a working product,” Williams says. Lisnr creates interactivity with songs and albums by packaging exclusive content created by musicians with music files. For example, say that an artist announces her next album will be Lisnr-enabled. This means you can buy a music file from any source and listen to it anywhere. With the Lisnr app running in the background, you receive exclusive content via automatic notifications based on the Lisnr-enabled tracks. This content, which can be anything from a tour of the artist’s house to a peek at the song’s inspiration, comes from the artist. Backstage video, unreleased tracks, lyrics or artist interviews are other possible extras. As you listen, the Lisnr app downloads content and saves it to your device. “An average fan will unlock many pieces of content throughout the day,” explains Williams, Lisnr’s CEO. His co-founders – Chris Ostoich, business; Chris Ridenour, tech; Nikki Pfahler, design; and Josh Glick, mobile – form Lisnr’s team, and Williams says two new hires are on the way. Since (and during) SXSW, Lisnr garnered support from the music industry; Williams has strategic advisors from cable station MTV, publishing and management firm Primary Wave Music and the Grammy-nominated artist Nas. For these bigwigs, Lisnr represents an unprecedented connection between artists and fans. The app also tracks listener behavior, such as where, when and how often a song is listened to. According to Williams, Lisnr plans a full-scale launch in mid-2013. The company is currently supported by Cintrifuse, a non-profit startup incubator based in Cincinnati, and seed-stage investor CincyTech. By Robin Donovan

Video Catch it while you can: Warhol screen tests set to music

By Dean and Britta

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Arts + Culture

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November 6, 2012

Andy Warhol invades the Emery this Friday as the CAC and the Requiem Project present selections from the iconic pop artist's screentests set to music performed live by former Luna members Dean and Britta. It's a Warhol Museum commission you won't want to miss.

New road design planned in Northern Kentucky

By Associated Press

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Cincy In The News

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November 6, 2012

A traffic flow design planned for Northern Kentucky aims to smooth the ride for travelers using a technique that’s new to the region. The Kentucky Enquirer reported the double crossover diamond interchange at Ky. 536 and Interstate 71/75 in Boone County will be among the first of its kind in the area. Read the full story here.