Newport : Development News

On National Grilled Cheese Day, April 12, Tom+Chee founders Corey Ward and Trew Quackenbush announced to the public that they will be appearing on ABC’s Shark Tank. The show features entrepreneurs who pitch their ideas to famous and successful business leaders for investment opportunities.
 
Ward and Quackenbush started Tom+Chee with their wives, Jenny and Jenn, in 2009 when they served grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup to ice skaters at Fountain Square. A year later, they opened their first restaurant on Court Street; they opened a Tom+Chee at Newport on the Levee in 2011, and one on Walnut Street in 2012. They’ve also recently opened two locations in Louisville—a third is under construction—but they want to expand their brand beyond the Tri-State area.
 
On the show, Ward and Quackenbush will pitch Tom+Chee to Mark Cuban, media and sports, and owner of the Dallas Mavericks; Barbara Corcoran, real estate; Daymond John, fashion; Kevin O’Leary, educational software; and Robert Herjavec, technology. Their goal is to secure investment and take Tom+Chee global.
 
Tom+Chee has already been featured in an episode of Travel Channel’s Man v. Food Nation and two episodes of Amazing Eats, and its grilled cheese donut was named one of the Best Sandwiches in America by the TODAY show. It was also featured on CBS’s The Chew.
 
Look for Ward and Quackenbush on Shark Tank May 17 at 9 p.m.
 
By Caitlin Koenig
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Although there won’t be a West Sixth Brewing taproom or beer garden in the Cincinnati area, beer lovers will still be able to buy the new brewery’s beer around town.
 
West Sixth opened in Lexington on April 1, and founders Ben Self, Brady Barlow, Joe Kuosman and Robin Sither have already seen the demand for their beer go through the roof. “We’ve had people drive down from the Cincinnati area just to buy our beer,” Self says.
 
The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area was the last part of Kentucky that West Sixth added to its distribution network—the taproom and beer garden are in Lexington, and West Sixth’s beer is available in Louisville, too.
 
The quartet has heard from lots of retailers, bars and restaurants that they’re excited to be getting West Sixth’s brews, Self says. West Sixth beer became available locally about two weeks ago. The brewery kicked off its expansion at Cincy Winter Beerfest, which featured the West Sixth IPA and Deliberation Amber.
 
West Sixth does things a bit differently than other breweries, Self says. It’s the only brewery in Kentucky to can its beers; and Self and his co-founders are not only committed to brewing great beer, but to giving back to the community. They give six percent of the brewery’s monthly profits to local charities and nonprofits to support environmental packaging efforts and rehabilitation projects in Lexington.
 
You can order West Sixth’s beer at Gordo’s Pub in Norwood and Bakersfield in Over-the-Rhine. You can also purchase it at:

• Party Source
• Liquor City
• Party Town
• DEPs
• I-75 Liquors
• Valley Wine and Spirits
• United Liquor
• Hyde Park Wine and Spirits
• Root Cellar
• Listing Loon
• Gramer’s Meat and Produce
• Country Fresh Farm Market
• One Stop Liquors
• Luckie’s Pony Keg
• Antone’s Wine and Spirits
• Bluegrass Carryout
• Churchill Market
• City Beverage

By Caitlin Koenig
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Did you recently buy a historic home and need help getting renovations underway? Or do you want to learn more about living green? Then NKY Restoration Weekend is for you.
 
The second annual Restoration Weekend is from 9 am to 5 pm on Feb. 23 at the Gateway Community and Technical College's Urban Campus in Covington. The event will feature many opportunities for historic home owners, including classes and demonstrations on how to make historic houses and surrounding property more energy efficient and sustainable; researching historic homes; utilizing the Kentucky homeowner’s rehabilitation tax credit; Rookwood tile history and maintenance; historic ironwork; window restoration; plaster; masonry repair and maintenance ask the expert.
 
There will also be a vendor fair with more than 20 booths featuring craftsmen and contractors that represent all aspects of the renovation process.
 
“The weekend is about combining sustainable and green practices with historic homes,” says Beth Johnson, preservation and planning specialist for the City of Covington. “The vendors are a huge part of the event, and helps connect homeowners with good products and contractors.”
 
But Johnson says the highlight of the event is the keynote speakers, Matt Grocoff. He’s a nationally known TV personality who turned a 100-year-old folk Victorian house into net zero, which means it’s historically sensitive, but doesn’t use energy.
 
“There’s such an amazing stock of historic homes in Northern Kentucky and the surrounding area, and people need to be responsible homeowners and be better stewards of historic homes,” Johnson says. “DIY is really big, and they need to know the proper ways to do things.” 
 
The event is partially funded by the Certified Local Government grant that’s given to the cities of Bellevue, Covington and Newport from the National Park Service and administered by the Kentucky Heritage Council.
 
NKY Restoration is an unincorporated association and collaboration of businesses, artisans and craftsmen, nonprofit organizations, cities and the Historic Preservation offices in Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati.
 
The event is free, but reservations are requested to ensure a spot at the keynote luncheon.
 
By Caitlin Koenig
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PizzaBomba, a Northern Kentucky food truck, is no longer just on four wheels. As of Dec. 26, PizzaBomba opened its doors to its permanent location on E. Fifth Street in Covington. Both the food truck and the store serve New York-style pizza, made with homemade dough and sauces and local ingredients.
 
PizzaBomba’s owner, Bill Stone, put himself through college bartending and waiting tables at a high-end Italian restaurant in Rochester, NY. He’s also worked in Cincinnati restaurants and been trained in food and beverage management.
 
Stone and his partner Terri Wilson, who helps with PizzaBomba when she can, began their food truck last March 30. After their fast success, a storefront seemed like the next logical step, says Stone.
 
If you’re looking for something a little out of the ordinary, the Load of BS pizza is topped with homemade pizza sauce, Brussels sprout leaves, bacon and ricotta cheese. PizzaBomba also serves salads, sandwiches (atop homemade bread) and pasta skillets. Customers keep coming back for the Bangin’ Elvis sandwich, which is topped with creamy Thai peanut butter, pepper jelly and bacon, says Stone.
 
Stone currently employs four people, and once PizzaBomba’s POS system is completely up and running, they’ll start delivery service to Covington, Newport, Bellevue, downtown Cincinnati and Over-the-Rhine to Liberty Street. PizzaBomba is still waiting on its beer-only license from the state, but they’ll soon serve local brews and a few higher-end microbrews.
 
The restaurant is open Tuesday-Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. If you’re looking for the food truck, make sure to follow PizzaBomba on Facebook and Twitter to find its daily location.
 
By Caitlin Koenig
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Francisco Marziano has made it his mission to bring art and culture to Newport on the Levee. This August, Marziano’s Locomotion on the Levee will stand as a one-year-old testament to his determination.

Just about a year ago Marziano, owner of the gallery Art on the Levee, along with the Newport on the Levee staff, decided it was time to utilize the space adjacent to Art on the Levee.

“We were trying to bring some kind of energy to this empty space,” says Marziano. “The space became empty just at the right moment to bring the locomotion idea to the table.”

This idea was to establish and nurture a fitness and dance environment at the Levee. Well, they have been going strong on that front with classes in salsa, yoga, break dancing, zumba, belly dancing and tango. (The tango instructor is currently out of the country.)

Even The Cincinnati Circus utilizes the Locomotion space. “They do some classes here and a summer camp,” says Marziano.

Most of the activities at Locomotion on the Levee take place during the evening, though that will likely change.
“We are trying to find more activities for the day, like yoga for seniors. We are trying to bring more instructors as soon as possible,” Marziano says.

He also wants to expand the business of Art on the Levee. “We want to do more art openings, more events at the gallery,” he says.

In addition to regularly scheduled events, both Art on the Levee and Locomotion on the Levee double as flex venues. Want to throw a private party? Art on the Levee is open for that.

“You can enjoy the wine patio, you can enjoy the art, you can go to the movies later. You can have a place other than your home to do something different,” Marziano says.

The same is true of Locomotion on the Levee, which could host a concert or another creative offering. “Let’s say you’re a photographer, and you’re looking for a space to shoot some pictures for a Web page or a special project; you can do that here,” he says.

“You can rent the space and do it here [at Locomotion].”

By Perry Simpson

Next month, Over-the-Rhine will be filled with the blues—as the new home neighborhood for the region’s Winter Blues Fest, which will feature 25 local and regional bands over the two-night festival with two touring acts, Kelley Richey and RB Stone.

The last five of the seven Cincy Blue Society’s annual winter festivals took place at Southgate House in Newport, which closed at the end of 2011. Organizers quickly picked OTR as the fest’s newest locale.

“There are so many venues within walking distance (in OTR),” says Mary Beth Weaver, PR coordinator for the Winter Blues Fest. “Many had already featured blues bands and business owners were very receptive, so it worked out very well.”

The four Blues Fest venues are: the Drinkery, Below Zero, Japp’s Annex, and the former Harry’s Pizza space across from the Drinkery.

The Harry’s Pizza stage will be an all-ages venue that will showcase Blues Society and Blues in the Schools Band (BITS). The BITS band travels to schools in the area to expose children to the long-lasting art form of the blues through presentations and performances. Students can join the band, where members are taught by the same musicians who travel to the schools.

The Winter Blues Fest is just one aspect of the Blues Society, which was formed in 1990 as a non-profit. The group has been hosting the much larger Cincy Blues Fest in Sawyer Point for 20 years. The smaller Winter Fest provides one of the largest fundraising opportunities for the BITS program.

“The Cincy Blues Society is a non-profit with the mission of keeping the blues alive,” Weaver says. “Our Blues in the Schools program is one of the biggest parts of that.”

Each winter, the student-formed band plays at the Blues Fest and shows off their new blues skills. Weaver says many students end up forming their own bands and eventually playing in the Blues Fest.

The Fest runs Feb. 10-11 and costs $25 per person.

By Evan Wallis

Lunch-goers on Newport's York Street might notice customers packed elbow-to-elbow at the 30-foot bar in a new restaurant where Mokka and Pinky Sue's Smokehouse once stood.

It's crowded, but this isn't a drinking crowd. The folks at the bar are there for seafood, thanks to the Bayou Fish House, which opened July 25.

Grant Gieseler opened the store in July after noticing a gap in the range of local restaurants' offerings.

"We haven't had good fried fish in Northern Kentucky for as long as I can remember," he says.

With experience in a variety of restaurants, a stint as assistant maître d' at the Metropolitan Club in Covington, and ownership of another restaurant (the Hayloft Tavern in Alexandria) on his resume, Gieseler and his team renovated the Newport restaurant in a month.

The standing bar substitutes for tables and chairs, and cooking happens in view of customers.

"I wish we had a professional photographer here today," Gieseler says, to photograph a recent capacity lunch crowd enjoying themselves

Gieseler is focused on serving neighborhood and daytime business, rather than the nightclub crowd. He plans to expand his hours later in the evening and to seven days a week this winter.

Tom Fromme, Newport city manager, says staff members who have eaten at Bayou Fish House report good things. He says, too, that he's pleased a vacant building is back in productive use.

Fromme explains that the building is in Newport's main street district, a popular site for restaurants. "The area is ready to explode when the market recovers," he says.

Gieseler says he's been happy with customer response thus far. The restaurant offers four varieties of fried fish and gumbo. "The menu doesn't offer a large selection, but what we do is perfect," he says.

By Andy Dobson

Clifton Comics & Games, a part of its community for almost seven years, has changed names and locations. Owner Steve Struharik now mans the counter of his new store, Arcadian Comics, on Monmouth Street in Newport, Kentucky. 

His current place of business neighbors The Galaxie Skateshop and Mammoth Coffee, and is maintaining a good portion of the customers who frequented the Clifton store. The move itself, however, was a complete surprise. Struharik recalls his first unofficial notice.

"Two gentlemen came in, they were looking around, and one guy was taking pictures of some of the stuff. I asked them what was going on."

One of them mentioned a demolition.

"Are you talking, like, fall?" the then-shocked storeowner recalls asking. "No," the man replied. "Next month. You didn't know?"

Once Struharik had the circumstances confirmed in writing, it was clear that he had less than the six-month notice he expected in such an event when he first began his lease the space through a previous management group.

"I had a total of about 50 days from when I heard any mention of it before I had to get out...the biggest (financial) impact is having no income for 30 days...I had no forewarning," he says. "With this kind of thing, if I only had two grand in the bank, I'm done."

Uptown Rental Properties LLC manages the property.

"Clifton Comics was on a month-to-month lease, so either party could give 30 days notice to vacate," says Johnna Mullikin, an Uptown Rental Properties representative. "To my understanding, that's what was done."

Both Struharik and Mullikin believe that the current ownership group wants to use the prime Jefferson Avenue space for student housing.

The new shop should feel reasonably familiar to former clientele of Clifton Comics, and includes specified sections for regular series, graphic novels and indie books. The upstairs space is devoted to gaming, like the Magic: The Gathering tournaments Arcadian currently hosts.

Despite the drama, Struharik, who links his love of comics back to an old TV ad for G.I. Joe #11 he saw as a kid, manages to find some humor in the situation.

"I'm really hoping to win an Eisner Spirit of Retailing Award for Clifton Comics," he says with a grin, alluding to the comprehensive application that was accepted shortly before he learned he'd have to leave. "It would be really fun to win, 'the Spirit of Retailing Award' (and then say) 'that store's closed.' "

By Adrian Beiting

Photos by Leland Schuler

The popular Queen City Underground and Newport Gangster tours will get a permanent home in the Gateway Quarter of Over-the-Rhine, opening a new office and shop this spring. Jerry Gels, tour owner and founder, looks forward to adding to the growing neighborhood where several of its popular tours take place.

"Last year was a lot of borrowing from places to hold things for us. Having a permanent location and a tie to the neighborhood will make things better," Gels said.

Gels said the Gangster and Civil War tours attracted 5,600 people to Newport and OTR alone. This year, he hopes to have 10,000 to 15,000 people attending the tours.

At the beginning of each tour, a tour guides asks each person when was the last time he or she visited OTR. Gels reports that more than 80 percent have not been in OTR for ten years. The tours serve as a great introduction to the neighborhood, showing people the beauty and history of the neighborhood.

"What we do for the neighborhood is different because we physically walk them through it," Gels said. "People are slightly intimidated to walk through, but by the end of the tour, visitors understand how the neighborhood is important."

At the height of touring season, Newport and OTR tours utilize sixteen employees. Currently Gels is undecided about adding more employees to his staff or keeping a smaller staff, which allows them to have longer and consistent work during the tour season.

The new space at 1220 Vine Street (the former Lucky Step shop) will serve as an office, but also a gift shop for customers who have requested souvenir items and small convenience items. The shop will offer products associated with Cincinnati, including pieces from Rookwood Pottery.

"We want to be the new Savannah or Charleston," Gels explained. "As the neighborhood improves and tours continue to grow, the next big deal will be international publicity."

Writer: Lisa Ensminger

Those who are familiar with Cincinnati's urban core know that something special has been taking place over the past five years. 

Hundreds of new residents and dozens of new businesses are now occupying previously vacant historic structures in Over-the-Rhine, the region's tallest skyscraper is nearing completion on Third Street in Downtown, a new neighborhood and massive park are rising along the central riverfront, an urban casino is nearing commencement at the long underutilized Broadway Commons site, a renovated Fountain Square has injected new life into downtown, Washington Park and its environs are experiencing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of investment, and crime has decreased year-after-year in both Downtown and Over-the-Rhine.

"It's amazing how many people are coming to Findlay Market who have recently moved here," exclaimed Barb Cooper, marketing director of Daisy Mae's Market which opened at Findlay Market last November.  "What's been really special is the number of international customers that are coming here because of the markets they are used to shopping at in Europe or elsewhere overseas."

To discuss this dramatic transformation, and what is in store for the future, the University of Cincinnati Real Estate Center & Program along with the Urban Land Institute will host Cincinnati Urban Renaissance: 2013 and Beyond this Friday, October 1st.

City Manger Milton Dohoney will serve as the keynote speaker, and the event will include two panel discussions.  The first of which will cover Urban Renaissance Projects and include Stephen Leeper from 3CDC, Jeanne Schroer from the Catalytic Development Funding Corporation of Northern Kentucky, Fred Craig from Parsons Brinckerhoff, and Willie F. Carden, Jr. from the Cincinnati Park Board.

The second panel will discuss the Impact of Renaissance Projects and will include Lydia Jacobs-Horton from Procter & Gamble, Ellen van der Horst from the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber, Neil/Arn Bortz from Towne Properties, and Dan Lincoln from the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Cincinnati Urban Renaissance: 2013 and Beyond will take place from 7:30am to 11am at the Westin Hotel Ballroom (map) on Friday, October 1.  Reservations can be made online or by contacting Kate Bridgman at (513) 556-7082 or real.estate@uc.edu.  The event is free for members of the UC Roundtable and ULI, and costs $100 for non-members.  Event organizers also note that those interested in attending who are part of the real estate community in Ohio and Kentucky can count the event towards three hours of continuing education.

Writer: Randy A. Simes
Photography by Scott Beseler
Milton Dohoney pictured
Stay connected by following Randy on Twitter @UrbanCincy

James Remley and Shawn Flynn met while working at a factory more than 15 years ago.  Now the friends have embarked on a new restaurant venture they hope will take them into the next phase of their professional lives.

The new restaurant is Pinky Sue's Smoke House which they opened at 527 York Street in downtown Newport.  Since opening Remley says that their lunches have been exceptionally busy and that they are now considering adding breakfast hours with an expanded menu.

"We decided we wanted to give this a shot to see if it might work out, and we're really hoping it will last," Remley explained.

The long-time friends are both Northern Kentucky residents and Remley says that they stumbled upon the space, formerly occupied by NuVo and Mokka, when driving past one day.  After finding out that the lease financially worked for them, they moved forward with this central location.

Pinky Sue's Smoke House, named for the partners' respective wives, seats about 40 people inside with room for another 20 to 30 people outside on their patio.  Remley says that first-time customers should try the ribs, but that many people have been going after the slow-smoked pulled pork which can be ordered in a sandwich deal for around $6.

The restaurant also offers a variety of other menu items like briskets, chicken, and a bevvy of side dishes including broccoli salad, baked beans, homemade potato salad, french fries and more.

The restaurant is currently open 11:30am to 8pm Monday through Thursday, and 11:30am to 9pm Friday through Sunday.  Dine in and carryout are available, and Remley says that catering orders can also be placed by calling (859) 491-9700 or fax at (859) 491-9888.

Writer: Randy A. Simes
Photography by Scott Beseler
Stay connected by following Randy on Twitter @UrbanCincy