Kroger taking bids for expanded East Price Hill store

The following story originally appeared in the February 12 issue of Soapbox

The Kroger Company is currently accepting bids for an expanded East Price Hill store that will allow them to offer more product lines to the neighborhood.

Construction of the new 64,000-square-foot store, which was designed by Cole + Russell Architects, is expected to be completed by early November.

The new Kroger will include new product offerings such as a drive-thru pharmacy, a photo lab and a Nature's Market organic food section.

Given the pedestrian-oriented nature of Warsaw Avenue, the exterior site plan was designed with a new streetscape, new crosswalks, improved lighting, a new bus stop and a taxi stand.

According the Kroger Real Estate Manager Kelvin Peyton, the neighborhood's diversity dictated the need to replace the 25-year-old store.

"There's a void for customers in Price Hill and surrounding areas to get the products they want," Peyton said. "It's a diverse community over there. To be able to give the diverse customer base what they want, we have to be bigger than we are now."

The current store will close in mid-March, with demolition by the end of the month.

Wrecking Cincinnati, 2/21/08

1018 Considine Ave, East Price Hill
Two-family

DOB: 1894
Died: February 2008
Cause of death: Water damage to the structural framing, a collapsing side porch, and deteriorating roof, gutters, siding and chimney. The lot was extremely overgrown. The vacant house, whose owner was deceased, was condemned in January 2007 and was declared a public nuisance last August.

Wrecking Cincinnati, 2/12/08

917 Elberon Ave, East Price Hill
Multi-family

DOB: 1885
Died: January 2008
Cause of death: The building was literally falling apart, with cracked brick and concrete, a loose cornice, and bricks falling from the lintels and chimney. It had barricaded windows, but vandals and vagrants still managed to get inside. Long-neglected, the City condemned it in May 2005. The owner was eventually sentenced for the code violations to 180 days suspended, one year of probation, 32 hours of community service, $250 in fines and court costs, restitution for City barricade work and 30 days house arrest. He eventually lost the house in foreclosure. It was declared a public nuisance in April 2007 as part of the Price Hill NEP blitz due to its poor condition and large number of calls for service.

Wrecking Cincinnati, 2/8/08

416 Crestline Ave, East Price Hill
Single-family

DOB: 1924
Died: January 2008
Cause of death: A sinking lawn causing a cracked foundation, poor windows, porch and steps. It was often open to the public, becoming subject to copper theft and vandalism by neighborhood children. The City finally condemned it in November 2006. The owners, Price Hill Properties, failed to show up for any hearings on the property. The house was declared a public nuisance in April 2007. The City handled the demolition at the owner's expense.

Wrecking Cincinnati, 1/10/08

1027 Sturm St, East Price Hill
Three-family

DOB: 1895
Died: January 2007
Cause of death: Being a chronic, vacant nuisance property that's been the hangout of vagrants and vandals, causing excessive service calls. Bricks were falling off of the chimney, sewage had backed up into the property and there were missing windows in constant need of barricading. It was condemned last January, then declared a publc nuisance in April following a neighborhood code enforcement blitz. The house was owned by an out-of-state bank.

Watch an East Price Hill rehab in progress

961 Olive Avenue (1890)

A reader recently sent me some information about a house he and his wife are rehabbing at 961 Olive Avenue in East Price Hill. (I won't print his name here unless he asks me to, but it's freely available if you search hard enough.)

He and his wife have a child and have chosen to move into the City from the suburbs.

The rehab of the termite-damaged home is still in progress, and I plan on posting a "before and after" segment when it's completed.

In the meantime, you can follow the progress and problems on his blog, Room 113. Posts specific to the rehab are under the labels of "old houses", "kitchen" and "parquet". The list of labels can be found along the the right-hand column.

Wrecking Cincinnati, 8/24/07

RIP: 2011 Quebec Rd, East Price Hill
Single-family

DOB: 1950
Died: July 2007
Cause of death: A cracked foundation, open roof, a rotting gable, broken windows and trash. The house was condemned in September 2006 and it was discovered that the owner was deceased. The house was declared a public nuisance in December 2006.

Wrecking Cincinnati, 8/20/07

(NOTE: Wrecking Cincinnati will now be a daily feature.)

RIP: 1811 Quebec Rd, East Price Hill
Single-family

DOB: Circa 1865
Died: July 2007
Cause of death: Demolished as part of the Panther Athletic Complex project.

Rehab: 2325 Maryland Avenue

Tim Macy e-mailed me about a house that he has rehabbed in East Price Hill.

In between a couple of our communications, Macy informed me that the house just went under contract.

The asking price of $373,900 included nearly 3,000 square feet of living space and a great view of the city.

The house was built in 1867.

Here are a couple of "before and after" shots that he sent me. You can click on each pic to enlarge it. More can be found on this website, which probably won't be up much longer if the sale is finalized.


Exterior, before


Exterior, after


Kitchen, before


Kitchen, after


A bathroom, before


A bathroom, after

WINDOWS LIVE BIRD'S EYE VIEW (looking west)
GOOGLE AERIAL MAP

East Price Hill: City Lights is not dead

An update from Price Hill Will, a few weeks old:

The developer, City Lights, is currently exploring the development potential of the "Incline District".

Queen's Tower is now officially open as condos. About a quarter of the units are sold. (An auditor search shows 29 units being sold to owners for between $350K-$450K.)

The parking lot across the street is still supposed to become a 4-story commercial development with underground parking. City Lights is still pursuing tenants for the retail space.

City Lights has also purchased property along Maryland Ave for townhomes, with a possible civic space thrown into that area as well. The original plan was for 14 townhomes there.

Not mentioned is the proposed 10-story tower that was to be built west of the Queen's Tower.

There is still no timetable for the mixed-use development or the townhomes, but the project is still very much alive. City Lights as been working with the City and the East Price Hill Improvement Association closely.

Here's a link to a Cincinnati Business Courier article about the development from October 2005:
Cincinnati Business Courier: Jewel of the skyline to have new polish (10/24/05)

East Price Hill gallery added

The East Price Hill gallery has been added at the bottom of the page.

There are currently 36 photos in the gallery.