By Anna Guido
Enquirer contributor

CORRYVILLE - The buzz on Buzz, a college staple for eight years, is not good. The popular late-night café and CD shop - also known for its innovative youth culture agenda - is closing Jan. 18.

"It's been a labor of love for eight years," says owner John Knodel.

John Knodel, owner of Buzz, prepares a cup of espresso. (Gary Landers photo)

Knodel, who works full-time building Web-based software, says his decision to close Buzz is more a result of neighborhood deterioration than lack of profit. But he concedes that his artistic approach to business - Knodel takes no money from the hundreds of young artists and musicians who have used Buzz as their gallery and performance venue - contributed to fiscal woes.

The emporium is located at University and Jefferson, directly across from the University of Cincinnati campus and one block down from the Short Vine business district.

"If half of all new businesses fail and you open up in an area that is very challenging anyway, then the deck is stacked against you. Buzz was fighting that," says Corryville Community Council president Dan Schimberg.

Community volunteers, city officials and Cincinnati police have made great strides the past two years to revitalize Corryville, says Schimberg, who owns Uptown Rental Properties. Those improvements include making aesthetic upgrades, razing unkempt buildings, and stepping up efforts to combat underage liquor sales and drug trafficking.

"It's begun to dent the loitering problem, but it's by no means resolved,'' Schimberg says.

When Knodel opened Buzz, he concedes he was "extremely idealistic" about how it would play out.

A Walnut Hills High School and Northwestern University grad, Knodel says his intent - never realized - was to make money selling coffee and CDs. But he also wanted to give artists and musicians a forum for their talents. At this, he says, he succeeded.

Performers including award-winning songwriter Jessie Harris, have performed at Buzz for gatherings as small as 13 people. Other young musicians have earned as much as $1,200 for sold-out shows.

But now, "I'm just tired. It's not safe. There's no money. And it's not worth it anymore," Knodel says.

Beat cop Alex Haase, who patrols Corryville on a bicycle, says part of the problem is that a lot of students who rent property in the area are not interested in community improvement.

Corryville has seen little improvement in overall crime rates. There were 693 serious crimes - such as robberies, rapes and auto thefts - in the college neighborhood from January through November 2003, the latest statistics available from Cincinnati Police. The number includes three homicides - one of which happened in front of Buffalo Wild Wings, just up the street from Buzz. That business has since closed.

Those statistics compare to 792 serious crimes in all of 2002, and 729 in 2001.

Haase says he's sad to see Buzz close. It has a good reputation and represents the allure of Corryville - "a cultural gathering place for everyone - gothic, punk, preppies, rappers - everyone."

One recent afternoon, a mix of students and other young Cincinnatians who stepped into Buzz for coffee and a smoke had much to say about the coffee shop.

"It's a place of self-expression - a place where you can rail," says neighborhood resident Chris Stewart, a 2001 Amelia High School grad.

Alaina Laumer, a 2002 School for Creative and Performing Arts grad - home on winter break from Hocking College in Nelsonville - says Buzz is a place where you can be safe until 2 a.m.

"I'm really happy with everything that's happened here," Knodel says. "But if I could have one teeny legacy, it would be that just five of the people who have come here over the years - artists, customers, employees, anybody - will go on to do interesting things.''

Meanwhile, an urban renewal plan has begun for Corryville, funded with matching $45,000 grants from UC and the city of Cincinnati.

"We expect, in the next couple of months, to unveil a proposal for residents to vote on," Schimberg says.

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