Inspired by the success of the Rookwood developments in Norwood, a developer is planning to marry office, retail, residential and industrial in a corner of Oakley.

        With a price tag estimated to exceed $170 million, the project is one of the most ambitious of its kind in Cincinnati, outside of the riverfront.

The orange X on a house along Alamo Street in Oakley means it's about to be torn down to make room for a boulevard entrance to the development called the Center of Cincinnati. (Tony Jones photos) | ZOOM |

        Bulldozing is under way along Interstate 71 on the former Milacron Inc. site, but eyebrows are going up as the developer gobbles up dozens of homes in a small residential enclave nearby.

        Some in the neighborhood fear that a development rush could draw fast-food restaurants, retail strips and low-paying jobs while driving out residents and existing industry. Much of the tract already is zoned for business use.

        Construction has begun on three “big box” stores along the east side of I-71 near Marburg Avenue and Ridge Road — an estimated $70 million project.

        Soon, Target, Meijer's and Sam's Club will take up residence on the site of the former Milacron headquarters building and what was a wooded patch of green space surrounding it. The retail complex has been dubbed the Center of Cincinnati.

Heavy equipment gobbles up the wreckage of another house. | ZOOM |

        But those retailers could be just the beginning, says developer Rob Smyjanus, whose plans to date have generally been well received by the city.

        The big-box stores “will be an economic generator for the city and will percolate additional development in that area,” said Mr. Smyjanus, owner of Vandercar Holdings of Madeira. Mr. Smyjanus envisions a blend of office, residential and retail while perhaps retaining area industry.

        The development area — a tract between Madison Road north to Interstate 71, and Ridge Road west to the dead end of Disney Street — is part of an urban renewal study area initiated by Cincinnati last December.

        “We believe that Jeffrey R. Anderson, by developing Rookwood Commons and Rookwood Pavilion (in Norwood), validated the central part of the city as a market” for upscale mixed development, Mr. Smyjanus said. Rookwood is a chic mix of elite national retailers including trendy clothing stores, specialty shops and restaurants.
       

Don't rush, residents say

        In January, a steering committee of residents, Oakley Community Council representatives, business leaders, city of Cincinnati officials and Vandercar began reviewing the area for development.

        The urban renewal plan, developed by the committee, is expected to be finished by month's end. Full development of the area could take as few as seven years or as many as 15, based on market demand, said Liz Blume, Cincinnati planning director.

        Some residents and community council members are concerned about the area surrounding the project.

        The development site adjoins a residential neighborhood of 344 modest homes and apartments between Marburg Avenue and Ridge Road.

        To the southeast, the Oakley Factory Colony sprawls. Industry there supports about 1,500 jobs. It includes Cincinnati Machine, Kirk and Blum sheet metal fabricators and Cast-Fab Technologies, an iron casting manufacturer.

Don Zapf, 51, has lived on Browning Street for 28 years. He's reluctant to sell out and move. (Ernest Coleman photo) | ZOOM |

        Residents in the neighborhood, and a review of county records, confirm Vandercar is aggressively purchasing properties.

        County records show 38 properties in the area sold — 25 of them between May 1 and May 25. Most of the homes were purchased for prices ranging from $90,000 to $120,000.

        Alamo Avenue, which bisects the enclave of homes, is to be widened to provide a boulevard entrance to the retail complex which, besides the big stores, will include two as yet unidentified restaurants.

        “We want to make sure no one rushes the future development of such a major part of our neighborhood,” said Community Council President Susan Doucleff. She recognizes the area will change and does not object to the three stores but she wants to keep the area special.

        “We want to keep the best paying (manufacturing) jobs there, keep residential wherever we can, keep our manufacturing intact, and limit more retail ... — especially the Blockbusters and McDonald's — and keep it as low key as possible.”

OAKLEY'S HISTORY

Oakley began as an incorporated village of 528 people in 1896 and remained a small village until 1905, when Frederick A. Geier, president of Cincinnati Milling Machine Co., now Milacron, bought 107 acres along Marburg Avenue to build a plant.    Within the next decade, Oakley grew into a bustling industrial district with nine major manufacturing plants, and a population of 1,600.    The community was annexed to Cincinnati in 1913 as industrial and residential growth continued. Industry bustled in the World War II years.    The community saw little change until the 1970s, when young home buyers flocked to the neighborhood in search of housing close to fashionable Hyde Park. Housing stock appreciated and the population peaked at 15,000 in 1970. Over the next decade, it fell to 12,800.    The heart of the community — Oakley Square and its business district with its mix of restaurants, drug and hardware stores, a bakery and bookseller — remained relatively stable.    Oakley's 2000 population is 11,244, an 8.9 percent decrease from 1990's 12,351.    The average home value in 1999, the latest tabulation available, was $138,577. Oakley has 6,546 housing units, with 2,873 owner-occupied, 3,275 renter-occupied and 398 reported as vacant.    Most of the housing stock — 3,231 homes — was built before 1939.    Sources: U.S. Census; City of Cincinnati; The Cincinnati Historical Society

        Preserving local industry is crucial, Mrs. Doucleff said.

        “It's what has kept our community strong. Development could take away a big chunk of it and the city can't afford to lose 1,500 high-paying manufacturing jobs to retail and restaurant, which equates to lower-paying jobs.”

        Jami Leininger, spokeswoman for Cincinnati Machine, which employs about 1,400, said the company has been in Oakley since 1911 and has no plans to move.

        “I think what people are looking at is Vandercar's vision of the future. We have not even evaluated that scenario and ... that does not mean it's our vision.”

        Ms. Blume said she envisions the residential area — east of the new retail — being developed with multistory condominiums with a pedestrian-oriented retail and office environment — “nothing looking like a strip mall.”

        She said that vision mirrors “the direction of upscale retail, commercial and residential development all along the I-71 corridor.”
       

Too much for the roads?

        The possibility of such large-scale development also raises concerns about infrastructure in the area.

        David Gosling, an Ohio Eminent Scholar in urban design at the University of Cincinnati, is wary of developments that will increase traffic in Greater Cincinnati without adequate roads and alternate transportation systems.

        Mr. Gosling said developments merging office, retail and residential are part of a national trend launched primarily in California and Florida called “new urbanism, a throwback to the way settlements used to be” with work, home and shopping within walking distance. “I support that,” he said.

        “What I find difficult to believe is whether (high density) residential development and retail in (Oakley) will work. The I-71 corridor is crowded from town to Blue Ash. I think this will exacerbate traffic problems. The merit associated with the retail, office and residential development movement is mostly connected to walking to jobs and shopping or light rail to town,” Mr. Gosling said.

        Ms. Blume said residents need to understand that the neighborhood “is not going to be the same after the big boxes. What works now as a one-family and apartment enclave is going to be different with the three big retailers.

        “A lot of residents understand and it is my understanding (Vandercar) is offering better than market value” (for the properties). Some folks sold and are anxious to move. There are some who have not decided. It's hard to move from your house,” Ms. Blume said.
       

Some want to stay
        Some residents in the area are pleased with the offers they are getting for their homes. But not everyone is eager to leave the neighborhood.

        After learning of the urban renewal plans, Browning Street resident Rachel Brunner, 45, called Mr. Vandercar and received an offer for her home far higher than market value.

        “It's not just money, though,” she said. “Quality of life is going to be affected. It's happening behind my back yard now. They took down the trees for the retail stores, and I can hear I-71 traffic through the kitchen window now. I've been accused of being selfish. That has nothing to do with it. I do not want to hurt any of my neighbors. I wish them well.”

        One of those neighbors who wants to stay put is Don Zapf, 51, who has called Browning Street home for 28 years.

        “I would like to see our area remain as it is now,” he said. “They say they need this affordable housing; that people are moving out of Cincinnati. And, I don't think those new stores will affect us that much.”

        Mike Hasenfratz, 41, who has lived on Ibsen Avenue for 10 years, said he does not want to move from a comfortable home in an ethnically diverse neighborhood ideally located in the heart of Cincinnati.

        “But, my neighbors have been signing contracts (to sell). If they give me an offer I can live with, I'll go,” Mr. Hasenfratz said. “The fact is this neighborhood is not going to exist.”

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