BY NED ADAMSON
Enquirer Contributor
NEW RICHMOND -- Village council has approved final plans for Riverview Bluffs, a project that could help transform this river town into a booming suburb.
Mayor Jack Gooding said the development undertaken by the Flannery Development Corp. and Ray Murphy Homes could push the village's population -- now about 2,300 -- to more than 3,000 when completed in a projected four years.
"I think it's great and it will be a boon to the community," the mayor said.
"The demographics of New Richmond will be changed by a substantial amount."
Mr. Gooding said the upscale development -- homes will range in price from $110,000 to $300,000 -- will provide more balance to the housing mix.
"Growth is necessary to go forward," he said. "We had this loss of residences (an estimated 200 to 250 people) due to the floods (in 1996 and 1997).
"This new construction will bring in tax money that we never would have dreamed of on the river property."
The development will be built on 100 acres off Old U.S. 52 between Burney Lane and Front Street and adjacent to a shopping complex, Rivertown Marketplace.
Paved roads and utilities are in place.
Plans call for construction of 210 single-family houses in four phases on lots of a quarter-acre up to 5 acres.
A 60-unit condominium section and a small strip shopping center fronting the development also are planned, said Tom Murphy, sales manager for Ray Murphy Homes.
Murphy officials expect the homes to sell briskly because of several factors: river views, a well-financed school district propelled by two locally based power companies, New Richmond's small-town charm and a 20- to 30-minute commute to downtown Cincinnati. Officials say the development will not push the village toward rampant and unmanaged growth because planning, zoning and infrastructure controls are in place.
Mr. Gooding said the village has a tie-in agreement with Clermont County for additional water, if needed.
A waste-water treatment plant opened in October 1996, he said, and is operating at only 20 percent capacity.
New Richmond Schools Superintendent Larry Grooms said the district could easily accommodate the additional students because of surplus elementary space.
