The City to Scale: Unbuilt Cincinnati

In a wrap-up of The City to Scale series, here are a few personal favorite unrealized visions of what could've been here in Cincinnati:

Sky Loop.
Proposed in 1998, rejected in 2001 by OKI.

Promoted by Forward Quest (based in Covington, KY).

 

 Olympic Park.
Proposed in 1996, eliminated 10/26/2001 by USOC selection committee.
Nick Vehr's vision and marketing efforts.

 CMC Office Towers (1971).
Proposed redevelopment of the then-abandoned complex.

 Broadway Commons, Over-the-Rhine.
Jim Tarbell's dream development for rejuvenating the old neighborhood.

 Ovation, Newport KY.
Northern Kentucky's version of The Banks, via Bill Butler.

 Millennium Monument, Newport KY (1997).
Proposed by Wayne Carlisle and David Hosea (DW Productions).
Only the foundational footings of the tower were set, in the
vacant parking lot next to the World Peace Bell structure.

 McMillan Park, Clifton (2001).
Originally proposed by Dan Deering, only the left half was built.
Though, there's new hope for completion by Towne Properties.

 Manhattan Harbor.
David C. Imboden's ongoing vision for Dayton, KY.
(aka The Banks/Ovation, Part 3).

 Covington Harbor, Covington KY.
An extension of Bill Butler's Corporex development,
though Covington has had many announcements of this sort
(1998, 2003, etc.).

Fountain Square West.
Part of CAC's 1999 Unbuilt Cincinnati exhibit.
Concept reconstructed by Midwest Model Makers.

 
University Plaza, Clifton (2005).
Proposed redevelopment of Corryville (Short Vine) district.
Source: Building Cincinnati.

  Cincinnati Gateways.
An artist's rendering of the proposed city gateways forming a "crown of light".
More info on this project at KZF Design.

Additionally, here are few more drafts of the unrealized from earlier posts: Unbuilt Cincinnati teaser (showcasing a pair of amazing illustrations from the 1999 CAC Unbuilt Cincinnati exhibit) and Procrastinators Synonymous (which highlights a couple of the old Millworks, Fifth & Race, and Banks plans).

"Crystal Forest", Fountain Square West. 

Source: Cincinnati Enquirer.

 Canal Reconstruction, Pete Rose Way.

Source: Cincinnati Enquirer.

 The Banks, Cincinnati riverfront (1999).
Image source: Urban Design Associates.

• All images are owned and/or copyrighted by sources cited.

Fountain Square (1978)

Click on the images for a larger view.

June 1978 (or at least that was the development date)... a long time ago. The Square looked a lot different back then - more like a traditional European plaza. Stark, arid, flat... the 70s.

I'm assuming my mom was taking the shot (as she always was), with my grandparents, dad, and sister by the fountain. In the first pic, I'm standing solo near the outer figure on the left of the fountain, entranced by the jets.

Additionally, noting that the US Census is around the corner (June 2010), and Mayor Mallory's valiant efforts to update the city's statistics recently, this is a small remembrance of times past: Even though the 70s marked Cincinnati's slow decline in population movement, it still had roughly 100,000 more people in it's borders than today (with Ohio being the 6th most populated state). A recent discussion on city life with a long-time downtown worker conjured up a vivid nostalgia of the streets' dawn-to-dusk vitality that existed in those days.

WCPO Handbook

WCPO Employee Handbook, cover (1967-1976). 
Illustration by -usterberg(?).

When things as simple as internal handbooks were illustrated with interesting fonts and matching hand-drawn line art.

• From Channel 9's website - specifically, the Pictures from the Past section (found from research from an earlier post on news stations' archives).
 
• Suspected date comes from reference inside the handbook to 1967, but during Jack R. Howards' reign at the station, which ended in 1976 [source].