Fountain Square Survey

[Euclid]

Who among us would go downtown MORE often if they renovate Fountain Square as proposed?

How much more from current frequency?

Would it sway you to move downtown?

[gae]

No.
None.
No. The things that people need in real life, like groceries or gasoline aren't available.

Cincinnati is NOT New York or Philadelphia and it never will be.

[cincygreg]

Maybe, I always liked lunchin on the square.

Maybe again. It would depend on what's there.

No, I seriously doubt I would ever move downtown.

[Euclid]

Well, we only have a survey of 2...but from that survey I don't think they should renovate it. I suspect it will be a waste of money.

[LAKE]

nevermind.

<font color="#FFFFAA" size="1">[ June 03, 2005 05:47 PM: Message edited by: LAKE ]</font>

[travelinman]

I would like them to fix the pot holes in my street first.

[Dulcinea]

No.
None.
No.

The way that Fountain Square is configured is not why I don't go downtown more. There is no real draw worth the traffic and the ambience. By ambience I mean so many people that look like gangsta wannabees. I spend so much of my time downtown avoiding eye contact, do you feel like that in a place you want to go?

Where I grew up, downtown was fun. They had the main library, a nice square with the City/County Building, cool shopping with underground tunnels to the street with the Planetarium, lots of public gardens to walk through. Where I grew up, before the city was built up the ultimate authoritarian figure in the new city dictated that all the streets would be "wide enough that a covered wagon with 4 horses could make a u-turn", and because of that all the main streets of downtown have 6 lanes. Now Main Street is down to 4 because of the light rail that goes out to the southern suburbs which is also very cool. By now they have built the eastern light rail from downtown to the University, and the western light rail from downtown to the airport.

[Lew]

No, this is not the railroad geek in me...

I'm in Minneapolis right now, heading home. Last night we went to the Twins game. We were going to go to mega-mall for awhile, then drive to the game. Traffic up here suck, and parking near the stadium I assume is ream city.

Alas, I pull into the mall, and they have built a light-rail system that runs from mega mall to downtown, with a stop right next to the stadium. $3.00 round-trip.

I know Chicago and New York and Boston all kept their mass transit so that's not a fair comparison. But cities that recently restored their mass-transit systems- Portland, Dallas, Houston, et al. I think something like a light or heavy rail system helps. It's not enough, but it helps.

The other thing is, Cincinnati's downtown needs a home run, and it just doesn't if there isn't a Reds or Bengals game going on.

Maybe if we elect 98 degrees as our mayor, things will change...

[reason]

I have a problem with the tone of the survey.

I don't think anyone promoting the redevelopment of the square is claiming it to the end all and be all for downtown redevelopment. Rather, they see it as the starting point due to the fact it is the focal point of downtown and the region, yet it is widely seen as worn and dated. If the living room looks like crap, who wants to see the rest of the house? THAT'S the point.

How interesting that dulcinea mentions her hometown downtown, and how the green spaces and nice public spaces are what she found appealing.

Excuse me, but isn't that exactly what they are attempting to do with Fountain Square.

Also in response to Dulcinea, Cincinnati's main public library is quite fine, thankyouverymuch.

[reason]

Sorry to be nasty, but downtown has more than all of your crap neighborhoods combined.

How funny to sit and listen to greg say he'll never move downtown when he lives in crap Clermont County. Good gravy.

And Dulcinea? Butler County is the crapville of crapville. I work there, and have driven through it many times, desperately trying to figure out what's appealing - other than good schools. Culture? Bzzzt. Restaurants? Culinary dessert. It's great if you want a WalMart close by.

The west side of Cincinnati? Good God, don't get me started. It's bad and going downhill.

If I lived downtown, I'd be no farther from a grocery store than most of you in the burbs. I'd be closer to sports, entertainment, restaurants, and more of it.

Suburbia sucks. Downtown rules by comparison.