A representative community-based plan developed by people who care
The City of Cincinnati City Planning Department, Over-the-Rhine Coalition, Over-the-Rhine Community Council, ABCD Resident Table, and Other Community Stakeholders are pleased to announce the completion of the Over-the-Rhine Comprehensive Master Plan
Thank you to the many residents, businesses, social service organizations, institutions and other stakeholders who participated in the planning process for the Over-the-Rhine Comprehensive Plan. On Friday, June 21, 2002, Cincinnati Planning Commission approved the Over-the-Rhine Comprehensive Plan. Final approval of the Plan by City Council occurred on Wednesday, June 26, 2002.
To view a copy of the Final Draft of The Over-The-Rhine Master Plan in PDF format please
click here.
Background and Process
Since September 2000, the City Planning Department has been diligently meeting with community stakeholders to develop the OTR Comprehensive Plan.
The planning process was originally initiated based on a recommendation from the Urban Land Institute (ULI). In 1997, the City contracted with ULI to examine the potential development opportunities in the OTR community. One of the recommendations that resulted from that process was "that a coalition organization, which can serve as an ‘honest broker’ between diverse neighborhood factions and build consensus for planned improvements be established." Following this recommendation, a group of volunteers worked to establish the OTR Coalition. The Coalition opened an office, recruited stakeholders, provided resident training and began to put together a planning process. The City Planning Department provided further assistance to the process and broadened the planning partnership to include the OTR and Pendleton Community Councils, the Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) Residents’ Table and others. A Steering Committee was ultimately established to oversee the process in October, 2000.
The Planning Steering Committee
The Issue Committees
The Community Visioning Process
Key Community Issues
The overarching issues of the OTR neighborhood are:
- The need for quality housing options for all income levels
- How to introduce higher income residents to the neighborhood without displacing or diminishing the quality of life of current residents
- The need to stimulate business development and create job opportunities for residents
- The need to eliminate crime, improve the perception of safety in the neighborhood and improve community-police relations
- How to encourage both old and new residents to respect each other and form one diverse community
