Search

There is a disconnect between Cincinnati’s core and its principal university, the University of Cincinnati (UC). Cincinnati’s Uptown, which is home to UC, is isolated from the city’s downtown. Clifton Heights and Over-the-Rhine (OTR) are border communities of Uptown and Downtown, respectively, that are positioned on opposite sides of a steep hillside green space that effectively divides the city along social and economic lines. However, during the first half of the twentieth century, the two communities were connected via an incline and an extensive public stair system. Since that time, most of this infrastructure has been either wholly or partially removed and many interstitial hillside dwellings razed. A variety of factors likely influenced the removal of these built works, including instability, lack of maintenance, lack of funding, low use, security concerns, and racial animus. In any case, decreased connectivity has likely disproportionately affected the low-income, black population at the base of the hill, as car ownership is less prevalent in that group. In addition, despite nearness in proximity, with some student housing just a quarter of a mile away frompopular attractions in OTR, the student population above perceives the neighborhood as a destination rather than a neighbor.Chief among potential interventions that would increase connectivity and a shared sense of urbanism is the reintroduction of the Elm Street stairs that once connected the two communities, a gondola lift spanning the extent of the hill, and an extension of the existing street grid on the hillside between the neighborhoods. Complimenting these infrastructure improvements, private mixed-use development could occupy newly built roads and capitalize on newfound connectivity. Such transit-oriented development, albeit on a larger scale, has proven successful throughout the nation. However, care must be taken to ensure that housing is apportioned in an equitable fashion, especially given the ongoing exclusion of low-income individuals from the gentrifying neighborhood of OTR and the dearth of available housing for these individuals in Cincinnati generally. A well-planned initiative, lucrative for the private sector and beneficial for both communities, would be a boon for a city engaged in a process of re-establishing its urban character.