Cincinnati votes to fund Clifton plaza

Cincinnati City Council has adopted a motion asking the City to build Clifton's new plaza by the end of this year.

In order to fund the project, council then voted unanimously to channel $150,000 in advanced 2009 Cincinnati Neighborhood Business Districts United funds to cover the financing gap.

The plaza, which is to be built on the former site of Bender Optical on Ludlow Avenue, stalled within recent weeks as the City informed the community that funding and other issues would stall the project indefinitely.

Clifton Town Meeting held a rally on the site with Councilmember John Cranley on Sunday, and a motion to fund the plaza appeared before council's Finance Committee on Monday.

Currently a vacant lot, the site has been used for construction staging for the $1.8 million Ludlow Avenue streetscape project.

When completed, the public plaza will provide better connectivity between the business district and the Merchant's Lot on Howell Avenue.

Previous reading on BC:
Clifton fighting for promised plaza (7/28/08)
Ludlow Avenue streetscape begins (6/24/08)