Author Topic: Cincinnati: Xavier University projects (Read 33138 times)

UncleRando · « **Reply #35 on:** June 05, 2007, 12:19:49 PM »

This could be VERY good for that part of the city...not to mention, it would be particularly advantageous for XU to capitalize on a location that could be the future transit hub of the city. It would also be great for XU to expand a bit, and really give Cincinnati two quality/large universities!

XU buying up land
BY CLIFF PEALE | CINCINNATI ENQUIRER
June 5, 2007

NORWOOD - Xavier University is accumulating property for a massive “East Campus” development that could cover up to 20 acres extending from its Evanston campus to Montgomery Road in Norwood.

The university has hired Covington developer Corporex Companies and it continues to buy the remaining parcels it needs to complete a site bounded by Dana Avenue, Cleneay Avenue and Montgomery Road, extending west toward the 140-acre XU campus.

Click link for article

edale · « **Reply #36 on:** June 05, 2007, 04:40:12 PM »

Xavier definitely needs some stores, restaurants, and bars within walking distance of campus. This will definitely be a big boost for the XU area!

UncleRando · « **Reply #37 on:** June 06, 2007, 04:49:01 AM »

Corporex to build Xavier's East Campus
BY LAURA BAVERMAN | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER
June 6, 2007

NORWOOD - Xavier University has hired Covington real estate developer Corporex Cos. to transform 20 acres at the intersection of Dana Avenue and Montgomery Road into an East Campus village.

Preliminary plans include a mix of residential units, retail and a hotel. No timeline has been set for the project's groundbreaking.

Click link for article

Weedrose · « **Reply #38 on:** June 08, 2007, 08:25:02 AM »

Great news for Avondale. Having the Reading Rd projects and the Dana project together mark this as good news for the community.

ColDayMan · « **Reply #39 on:** September 28, 2007, 05:27:20 AM »

Xavier, Corporex plan mixed-use development

http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2007/09/24/daily54.html?surround=lfn

A former industrial area in Walnut Hills will be redeveloped as a residential/retail/office project, Xavier University said Thursday.

Click link for article

Cincy1 · « **Reply #40 on:** September 28, 2007, 08:48:24 AM »

This is awesome news - if Xavier actually gets a "college town" area they will be even more successful. It really seems like both city schools are stepping up to raise their profile.

jmecklenborg · « **Reply #41 on:** September 28, 2007, 12:42:27 PM »

Including the Zumbiel plant, this is quite a bit of land, and the CL&N ROW runs directly through it. When the Victory Parkway I-71 interchange was canceled, it doomed Xavier to being visited via the small industrial area to its east. But with good highway access and the potential of being located at a major transit hub, this site is one of the best in the city.

Also, I believe the Zumbiel plant in Norwood is still operating in some capacity.

UncleRando · « **Reply #42 on:** September 29, 2007, 03:42:16 AM »

I just really hope that XU doesn't tear down that gorgeous warehouse across from Cintas Center.

The_Cincinnati_Kid · « **Reply #43 on:** December 05, 2007, 10:10:39 PM »

Xavier buys more properties

Xavier University has bought two more properties for development.

Click link for article
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071206/NEWS01/312060010/1056/COL02

UncleRando · « **Reply #44 on:** January 02, 2008, 12:25:50 PM »

Xavier to debut prototype 'learning commons'
January 2, 2008 | CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

CINCINNATI - The former library at Xavier University has undergone a metamorphosis, the school said Wednesday.

Click link for article

UncleRando · « **Reply #45 on:** March 11, 2008, 01:07:02 AM »

Zoning change needed for Xavier University academic complex
BY KEVIN LEMASTER | SOAPBOX CINCINNATI
March 11, 2008

Cincinnati City Council's Economic Development Committee will consider a zoning change today that could pave the way for a new academic complex on the campus of Xavier University.

The Hoff Academic Quad, to be built along Ledgewood Avenue between Dana Avenue and Bellarmine Chapel, will create a new main entrance to campus and will consist of a multi-purpose Learning Commons, a new facility for the Williams College of Business, a new central utility plant and parking and greenspace improvements.

The rezoning would change the property from residential and manufacturing use to institutional-residential.

The Evanston Community Council voted to approve the change on January 16, and the Cincinnati City Planning Commission approved it on February 1.

At the heart of the 9.5-acre quad, the Learning Commons will provide Xavier students with a high-tech, highly social educational environment that will include:

Magis Plaza, the technological hub
Center for Student Excellence
Center for Teaching Excellence
Center for Community Engaged Learning
Institute for Jesuit Education
Information Resources Center
Renovations to Alter Hall and University Library

The new business school will house new classrooms, a trading room, a data-mining laboratory, a studio for taping and reviewing sales presentations and centers for business ethics, entrepreneurship and investment research.

Funding for the project will come from To See Great Wonders: The Campaign for Xavier, the university's $200 million capital campaign.

The Hoff Academic Quad is named after former Xavier president James E. Hoff, S.J., who died in 2004.

*Images with article link

Cincy1 · « **Reply #46 on:** March 22, 2008, 02:59:16 AM »

The Zumbiel Packaging plan was imploded today to make room for Xavier Square - with video included.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Dato=20080322&Kategori=VIDEO&Lopenr=80322001&Ref=AR

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080322/NEWS01/303220025

Down with a 'boom'
BY HOWARD WILKINSON | HWILKINSON@ENQUIRER.COM
E-mail | Print | digg us! | del.icio.us! | Click-2-Listen

It took only seconds this morning to bring down the six-story Zumbiel Packaging plant in Norwood, to make way for a new development at Xavier University.

Click link for article

UncleRando · « **Reply #47 on:** March 24, 2008, 01:05:24 AM »

I REALLY hate that XU felt the need to tear that building down. That building could have been a fantastically cool rehab into dorms. Thanks XU.

Weedrose · « **Reply #48 on:** March 24, 2008, 05:04:42 PM »

Yeah it would've been good housing but we'll see what type of crap they put up in its place

The_Cincinnati_Kid · « **Reply #49 on:** August 27, 2008, 01:47:21 AM »

Xavier demolition begins
By Cliff Peale • cpeale@enquirer.com • August 27, 2008

Workers will start demolishing houses on Ledgewood Drive on the Xavier University campus as soon as next week, the beginning of two years and $250 million of construction that will transform the campus and surrounding blocks.

Click link for article
http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080827/NEWS01/808270345/1055/NEWS

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #50 on:** August 27, 2008, 01:50:07 AM »

You can view our web-site for more information on the project.

Components of the project include,
1. The new Hoff Quad
2. Brockman Hall Renovation
3. Xavier Square

jdm00 · « **Reply #51 on:** August 27, 2008, 02:06:44 AM »

Seicer, I didn't know you worked for XU.

All I can say is it's changed a heckuva lot since I first set foot on campus way back in 1995.

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #52 on:** August 27, 2008, 07:26:56 AM »

Just started in July. I'm a web-developer here, so I maintain all of that. I should start posting up more of our PR's, because they are informative.

edale · « **Reply #53 on:** August 27, 2008, 07:44:13 AM »

I think it's a crime that they're tearing down all of those houses when there is so much open space/brownfields around the campus. This street was one of the few intact streets left around XU.

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #54 on:** August 27, 2008, 07:51:36 AM »

Many of the houses were not in the best of condition, were not accessible -- since many housed offices for Xavier -- and were not part of the expansion plan for Xavier. The goal is to build the new Quad, which will greatly increase the amount of classroom space, close Ledgewood and Herald to all traffic, build Xavier Square on the brownfield (the open space you speak of), demolish the ROCKET building (post office) and the police station, and replace it with open space, and build future housing along Herald. Dana will also be getting a makeover in the next few years as well, to make it more pedestrian friendly and to slow traffic.

jdm00 · « **Reply #55 on:** August 27, 2008, 09:07:03 AM »

Quote from: edale on August 27, 2008, 07:44:13 AM

I think it's a crime that they're tearing down all of those houses when there is so much open space/brownfields around the campus. This street was one of the few intact streets left around XU.

I understand the sentiment, but I also think that it's a much more natural progression for XU to build out from Ledgewood. Putting anything up at, say, the corner of Dana and Montgomery right now would be really disconnected from the rest of campus. Especially as the campus has expanded, this little section of houses on Ledgewood has become more and more out of place--and since they were mostly university functions anyway, I think it makes sense to integrate it more.

I really look forward to any efforts that can slow down the traffic on Dana.

jmecklenborg · « **Reply #56 on:** August 27, 2008, 09:18:01 AM »

Well XU's just making the same mistakes UC did so far as tearing down everything. I'm also against taking out streets. When universities convert residential streets to pedestrian walks, it creates a non-space. At least a blank canvass has 4 sides, but when universities erase all signs of what predated them, they have absolutely nothing to respond to and you get crap. And given XU's design "scheme", get ready for some more Quaker Oats.

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #57 on:** August 27, 2008, 09:37:57 AM »

I disagree. Ledgewood was closed north of Herald several years ago after heavy traffic caused quite a few near-accidents due to students crossing the roadway. With classrooms on one side and residence halls on the other, the number of conflict points was pretty high. Adding speed humps and other traffic calming devices on an otherwise busy street wouldn't have made much fiscal sense -- given that Victory to Dana was an easy and uncongested alternative. The pedestrian mall that replaced it is heavily utilized as a social gathering point and as a crossover -- and it does get congested, as I have seen already today.

Before the Ledgewood closure, Herald Avenue once cut through the heart of Xavier's campus and was converted into a pedestrian-only venue. Beautifully landscaped, it unifies the campus together and removes any evidence of automobile presence -- sans the @#%^ing idiot who drove through campus, killed his oil pan, and dragged its contents across the pedestrian mall. No one can deny that the pedestrian mall has only benefited campus -- enabling students to have wider paths, eliminating conflict points and increasing safety.

The same can be said for Ledgewood and Herald. Both carry low amounts of traffic, sans traffic dumping out of Cintas. Herald will be preserved until the turn into Cintas, but will otherwise be closed, because Xavier Square will introduce a lot of student housing into the mix. Hundreds of additional pedestrians will be walking along Herald, and keeping conflict points to a minimum is all the better. It does get congested along the tiny sidewalks that exist today, and that is without the Quad or the Square even complete.

edale · « **Reply #58 on:** August 27, 2008, 02:48:28 PM »

I have nothing against Xavier expanding, and having just been on campus, I can definitely say that a development like Xavier Square is SORELY needed. However, what I think Xavier needs the most is a real student neighborhood. Evanston is not a student neighborhood, and there are only a few streets in North Avondale and Norwood that are real student streets. Go up to the University of Dayton and see their lively student neighborhood, and the connection that the students feel to the university as a whole, and that is what I want for Xavier. I think these new developments will help, but more must be done to get a college atmosphere around XU like there is at UD, UC, and OSU. I was unaware that most of the houses on this street were being used by the university, and assumed, because they were houses, that students lived there. Now that I know this Isn't the case, I'm not as disappointed by their being demolished.

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #59 on:** August 27, 2008, 03:20:24 PM »

Yeah, when I first scouted Xavier as an employer, I was shocked that Montgomery Road was completely dead. Nothing. Nada. Zip. A gasoline station, a BBQ joint, and a pizza restaurant that is haphazardly open. Empty lots, abandoned buildings.

Building Xavier Square, which will be mixed-use and will have units available to the general public -- it isn't entirely for students, will be a huge boom to the streetscape and will spur additional development. Metro Scooters is doing very good business right now, and they are highly anticipating the Square to be completed for additional visibility.

Most students that live off-campus are east of Montgomery from what my boss and a co-worker have said -- both are graduates of Xavier. It doesn't feel like a partying campus like UC or OSU though.

dmerkow · « **Reply #60 on:** August 27, 2008, 04:49:37 PM »

It has a surprisingly small economic effect on the surrounding community - besides Dana's bar. Even though it has increased on campus housing - it is further behind the schools noted at developing an on campus atmosphere. It also has rather unfriendly neighbors. My sense is that a look of XU students (from Cincy) stay connected to the home neighborhoods rather than XU itself.

jdm00 · « **Reply #61 on:** August 28, 2008, 05:45:11 AM »

Plus you can't forget that it's still a small school. When I went, our class was the largest incoming freshman class ever at XU, and we were just shy of 800. It's getting bigger, but it still has a ways to go to achieve that critical mass. Add to that that a lot of the off-campus housing is scattered about--I lived in a house in Norwood for two years where neighbors on both sides were just regular Norwood residents--and it's hard to achieve some of that stuff you see elsewhere. But it's slowly heading down that road.

UncleRando · « **Reply #62 on:** September 08, 2008, 04:10:36 PM »

Demolition begins for Xavier’s Quad project
http://cincinnati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/09/08/daily6.html

Xavier University will begin demolishing rows of houses this week to make way for its Hoff Academic Quadrangle, which will include a new Williams College of Business building.

Click link for article

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #63 on:** September 08, 2008, 04:23:54 PM »

Yep, work started around 9 AM Monday...

jdm00 · « **Reply #64 on:** September 13, 2008, 05:45:32 AM »

Seicer, any pics on the XU website that you know of? I'm not banking on a live cam or anything....

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #65 on:** September 17, 2008, 01:56:51 AM »

Outside of http://www.xavier.edu/construction/, I don't have any more photos

Quad groundbreaking set
The official groundbreaking ceremony for the James E. Hoff, S.J., Academic Quad is set for Friday, Sept. 26, from noon to 12:45 p.m. at the cleared lot on Ledgewood Avenue near Bellarmine Circle. All members of the Xavier community are invited to attend.

Square signage going up
Signage for the Xavier Square project at the corner of Dana and Montgomery avenues is slated to be installed by Tuesday, Sept. 23. While a construction timetable has not yet been set for the 20-acre project, Corporex Companies Inc. is currently in the process of pre-leasing its retail sites.

Here is an older article on the Ledgewood housing removal, which is approximately 50% complete.

Houses Coming Down on Ledgewood
Demo scheduled to start next week
September 5, 2008
Demolition of the homes along Ledgewood Avenue is slated to begin the week of September 8. The contract with Messer Construction was signed on Friday, Sept. 5, clearing the way for the start of development of the Hoff Academic Quad. Crews will begin removing trees and homes near Bellarmine Circle and move up the street toward Dana Avenue. The demolition will make way for construction of a new Williams College of Business and the Learning Commons. Nearly 60,000 yards of earth will be moved in the process. Much of that earth will be sent to Owls Nest Park in O'Byronville. Completion of the Hoff Academic Quad is slated for the fall of 2010.

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #66 on:** September 26, 2008, 12:54:01 AM »

GROUNDBREAKING TODAY ALONG LEDGEWOOD, NOON-12:45 PM

Hoff Academic Quad facts
Xavier University press release, September 24, 2008

JAMES E. HOFF, S.J. ACADEMIC QUADRANGLE

September 2008
Demolition of houses on Ledgewood and Dana Avenues, Cincinnati Bell structure

October 2008
Concrete foundations laid for new structures

2008-2010
Ongoing construction–built to LEED Silver certification standards
Includes 12 acres of site improvements–walks, roads, parking, landscaping, fountain

2010-2012
Renovation and Relocation
Renovations of Hailstones Hall, Schott Hall, Alter Hall and McDonald Library

WILLIAMS COLLEGE OF BUSINESS
• Four levels for undergraduate and graduate business education
• 88,123 square feet
• 200+ parking spaces
• 110 offices
• 18 classrooms
• 17 project work rooms
• Suites for three executives-in-residence
• Multimedia trading room
• Home to the Center for Entrepreneurship, Cintas Institute for Business Ethics and the Center for Investment Research

LEARNING COMMONS
• Five levels, a portion of which will be open 24/7 to facilitate today’s learner
• 84,453 square feet
• 1,200 square feet of open space for informal student learning (Magis Plaza)
• 66 offices
• Three classrooms
• 200-seat auditorium
• 11 specialized learning spaces
• Home to the Information Resource Center, Center for Teaching Excellence, Center for Student Excellence, Honors Seminar, Center for Community Engaged Learning and te Pedagogical Institute for Jesuit Education

CENTRAL UTILITY PLANT
• 19,160 square feet to provide electrical distribution and hot and chilled water to campus
• Initially will serve the new Learning Commons and Williams College of Business, as well as Alter Hall, McDonald Library and Schott Hall
• Large enough to accommodate additional equipment to serve a 2.5 million-square-foot campus

SITE IMPROVEMENTS
• 12 acre site
• Large open space bearing name of James E. Hoff, S.J., 33rd president of Xavier University
• Large water fountain
• St. Ignatius Steps: stairs leading from existing Academic Mall to the Quad
• Brick and concrete pavers surrounded by native plant materials, consistent with Xavier’s award-winning landscape

SUSTAINABLE PROJECT FEATURES
• Projects designed to LEED Silver standards (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, U.S. Green Building Council)
• Reduce “heat island effect” by maximizing open space, limiting paving, and using landscaping and reflective roofing materials
• Reduce water demands by using low-flow plumbing fixtures
• Heating and ventilation systems free of CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons)
• Optimize energy performance through use of high-performance windows and an energy-efficient building envelope
• Divert more than 75 percent of construction waste from landfills
• Project materials sourced regionally, reducing energy required for transport
• Buildings have excellent indoor air quality: use of low-VOC paints and carpet reduces off-gassing of volatile organic compounds. Use of composite wood products reduces formaldehyde and uses recycled wood products
• Designs take greatest advantage of natural light
• Buildings feature thermal and lighting controls
• Site optimal for the use of public transportation facilities located nearby
• Xavier donating excavated soil to the development of a local park

GRAND OPENING First phase complete summer of 2010

TOTAL COST $115 million Funded by: “To See Great Wonders” capital campaign and bond issue

GENERAL CONTRACTOR Messer Construction Co.

ARCHITECT Shepley Bulfinch Richardson & Abbott, Boston

thomasbw · « **Reply #67 on:** September 26, 2008, 01:15:41 AM »

If light rail goes in, Xavier is right at the hub, that place is going to take off

Sherman Cahal · « **Reply #68 on:** September 29, 2008, 01:37:54 AM »

Hoff Quad ground broken
Xavier Today, September 29, 2008

The University officially kicked off the construction of the James E. Hoff, S.J., Academic Quad on Friday, Sept. 26, with a groundbreaking ceremony on the site's northwest corner. University President Michael J. Graham, S.J., blessed the site and then ceremoniously broke ground along with Board of Trustee Chairman Joseph Pichler, Capital Campaign Chairman Robert Kohlhepp, Academic Vice President and Provost Roger Fortin, Associate Provost for Student Life and Leadership Kathleen Simons, Information Resources Technician Annie Jackson, Williams College of Business Assistant Karen Menkhaus, Associate Professor of Education Leslie Prosak-Beres and Student Government Association President Craig Scanlon.

Video | Photographs (includes renderings) | Fr. Graham's remarks

thomasbw · « **Reply #69 on:** September 29, 2008, 01:42:10 AM »

Drove (unlike me I know) by there on Saturday, it looks like there is some potential

News:

Author Topic: Cincinnati: Xavier University projects (Read 33138 times)