CINCINNATI —

One person is in the hospital after a shooting in West End on Monday night.

The shooting happened on Linn Street.

Officials say a woman in her early 30s was shot and transported to University of Cincinnati Medical Center in critical condition.

According to Cincinnati police, the shooting stemmed from a domestic violence incident.

Police said an off-duty firefighter administered CPR to the victim after jumping out of a truck to help.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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This story was curated by Hearst's WLWT Alert Desk.

CINCINNATI — FC Cincinnati’s ownership has plans to renovate one of Cincinnati’s most storied former breweries into a massive office space.

The property is the Tri-State Wholesale Building at 1550 Central Avenue. In the early 20th century after Prohibition, the building was home to Burger Beer, extending multiple city blocks at the time. Prior to that, it was home to Lion Beer, or the Windisch-Muhlhauser Brewing Company.

Steve Hampton, the executive director of the Brewing Heritage Trail, said the old brewery used to be one of the biggest in the country. It was also at one point the second-largest brewery in the city after Christian Moerlein.

“This is an interesting building. It’s not your typical historic building,” Hampton said. “It was built post-Prohibition. It’s concrete. It’s actually a pretty wide floor plate because it’s a modern industrial building, so it’s a little different challenge than our typical brick Over-the-Rhine building. So, number one, we’re happy it’s being preserved and re-used.”

Hampton notes it will need some modifications, but is hopeful the developers will maintain the spirit of the building.

“I’d much rather have the building reused and saved than torn down and something totally new built there," Hampton said.

FC Cincinnati and its development teams aim to transform the humdrum industrial space into a sleek, opulent place to work for Cincinnati professionals in post-pandemic life. The office space may have some retail on the ground floor, and be part of a larger mixed-use development.

“It’s the area that we’re really hoping to make this full, kind of vibrant, creative district with all kinds of different uses,” said Scott Abernethy of Cushman & Wakefield, one of the firms collaborating with FC Cincinnati to renovate the building. MSA Design and Perkins Eastman are also supporting the designs and planning for the project.

Offices will be spread across three floors, as well as a basement level. The project is projected to cost about $40 million. The developers are looking to book about three to five tenants to lease the space, then will start construction.

In a statement, FC Cincinnati Spokesperson Anne Sesler wrote:

“When we committed to building the stadium, we also committed to make the area around TQL Stadium a place where people can live, work and play. We want a thriving environment, not just an island...FCC’s Planned Development for the stadium site envisioned mixed-use development and we are pleased to see the former Tri-State warehouse be transformed…”

Developers plan on opening the space by mid-to-late 2023.

Monique John covers gentrification for WCPO 9. She is part of our Report For America donor-supported journalism program. Read more about RFA here.

If there are stories about gentrification in the Greater Cincinnati area that you think we should cover, let us know. Send us your tips at moveupcincinnati@wcpo.com.

CINCINNATI — As it stands, the section of Central Parkway between Findlay Market and the bend just south of 12th Street is pretty drab. Commuters use it mainly as a major artery for cars passing through the city. But a group of concerned residents and business owners think it can be so much more than that. That’s why they have formed a task force to renovate the area, transforming the parkway into a grand boulevard that connects the city’s landmarks.

Organizers from the task force see it in part as a way to follow through on the city’s original vision for the parkway: a sprawling street with features like gardens and fountains that rivaled the most beautiful European cities.

“It was meant to be a grand street, connecting from the river through Downtown and Over-the-Rhine and up to the universities and to the neighborhoods along the Mill Creek,” according to Chris Manning of Human Nature. Human Nature is on the task force’s design arm for the project.

Ever since the canal that was once here was filled up, the area’s scenic beauty faded over time.

The task force feels revamping this section of the parkway can enrich the architectural character of the city.

Michael Williams, the owner of Wooden Nickel Antiques, has run his store on the parkway for over 40 years, and is one of the originators of the renovation project.

“It's going to be beautiful. It needs to be beautiful, or people won't be here,” Williams said. “It needs to be a tourist attraction. People will want to come here, but also it is about development. It will tie in Downtown to Findlay Market.”

Organizers say they want to create a more cohesive, attractive space that connects the West End with Over-the-Rhine while also making the street safer for pedestrians. They also want to make the parkway more practical for everyday use. Both the West End and Over-the-Rhine Community Councils have endorsed the project. The city also pledged $1 million to advance the project.

However, some prominent community figures object to this, arguing there are other issues to tend to that are more deserving of this money.

“I feel like that million dollars that they're putting into beautifying the street could have gone to affordable housing development,” said Mary B. Rivers, the executive director of Over-the-Rhine Community Housing.

“I thought it was unnecessary and sort of tone deaf in terms of the greater needs in the community of Over-the-Rhine in the city of Cincinnati that we would spend $18 million of our public dollars for a streetscape project of a couple of blocks.”

Manning acknowledges those other needs but stresses this is a big opportunity.

“We don't see other needs as being opponents or competition for what we're trying to do. We have a lot of respect for everybody who's working to make the community better.”

Next steps for the task force include refining designs, cost estimates and holding more community engagement. It's projected the renovations could cost around $20 million dollars.

Monique John covers gentrification for WCPO 9. She is part of our Report For America donor-supported journalism program. Read more about RFA here.

If there are stories about gentrification in the Greater Cincinnati area that you think we should cover, let us know. Send us your tips at moveupcincinnati@wcpo.com.

CINCINNATI — Robert Killins wants to be a part of the change that is happening in his neighborhood. That's why the West End resident is an organizer for WE Speaks, a plan to help make sure residents of all incomes have a voice in developments and investment in the area.

“There always has to be oversight," said Killins, who is also a member and former president of the West End Community Council. "And so what I think it'd be incumbent upon the community is to watch the process very closely to track it very carefully. If we see deviations from the plan as it's laid out, then that would be a time to say, 'Hey, the plan says X. We don't see X occurring. We see Y occurring. Why is that?’”

Killins joins scores of residents and community stakeholders joining forces to update development plans and neighborhood goals for the West End.

They're also hoping the West End Speaks Plan can set a new precedent for a historic neighborhood weathered by demolitions, urban renewal and displacement.

WE Speaks outlines residents and community partners’ goals for quality of life in the neighborhood. Areas for improvement include housing, business, employment, uplifting the youth and more. Organizers say they are fixated on getting as many residents as possible to share their feedback through public meetings and surveys.

“Having people engaged in the community always makes a difference,” Killins said.

Leaders of this project include the city’s planning department, Seven Hills Neighborhood Houses and the West End Community Council. Other entities like The Port, the Community Building Institute, and LISC have also been providing support. Kristen Baker, the executive director of LISC, says organizers have the challenge of uniting people with conflicting priorities for the West End. Despite this, she says they are trying to still impart onto residents that they are more alike in their wants than they may readily recognize.

“Everybody wants a neighborhood where they feel safe, where they have housing that meets their needs, where they know their neighbors, where they have access to jobs and to the services,” Baker said. “We all want those things. And so that's what these planning processes can really help us get to.”

The effort is a local iteration of HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods program. A hallmark initiative for HUD, Choice Neighborhoods restores communities, maintains affordable housing and fosters opportunities for residents. The WE Speaks plan was first drafted and approved by the city’s planning department and city council back in 2016. However, major events in recent years that have impacted the neighborhood drew organizers to revise the initial plan.

“A lot has changed in the neighborhood since 2015,” said Tia Brown, Community Engagement Director of Seven Hills Neighborhood Houses.

The plan is being renewed this year to account for unprecedented events like Seven Hills and the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority receiving a grant through HUD Choice Neighborhoods, the findings in a 2019 housing study and the arrival of TQL stadium.

Organizers say they’re pushing for a collaborative agenda that better informs future redevelopment while safeguarding against the pitfalls of gentrification.

“There are lots of really wonderful outcomes for a neighborhood when big investment comes in,” Baker said. “There's also, I think, an important note to pay attention to those who might not be directly benefiting from those changes, but that are part of the neighborhood, too. And so their voice needs to be heard.”

Upcoming meetings to update WE Speaks will be held monthly through November at the Seven Hills office on Findlay Street. The next meeting takes place Sept. 27.

“It's your neighborhood and you have a say," Brown said. "You have input. You have firsthand experience about what it is to live in the neighborhood or work in the neighborhood or own a business.

“These efforts need your voice and we need to hear from you so we can make sure the things that you're most concerned about are addressed.”

Organizers encourage residents and stakeholders who want to take part in WE Speaks to visit the project’s page on the city’s website, or contact the city’s planning department or Seven Hills to share input and get more information.

Monique John covers gentrification for WCPO 9. She is part of our Report For America donor-supported journalism program. Read more about RFA here.

If there are stories about gentrification in the Greater Cincinnati area that you think we should cover, let us know. Send us your tips at moveupcincinnati@wcpo.com.

CINCINNATI — Cincinnati is preserving affordable housing in the West End, but some believe it is coming at the expense of more than two dozen families.

Chris Griffin, West End Community Council president, said his father is one of the people paying the price for upgrades to the Arts Apartments.

"My father has been a 30-year resident at those apartments, and he's being displaced," Griffin said.

Griffin said his father fell victim to a policy involving tax incentives used to upgrade the Arts Apartments, long recognized as an affordable housing development that did not enforce specific income requirements.

By taking advantage of those tax incentives, apartment residents will now have to meet specific income requirements.

Griffin said those displaced are "poor" but "not poor enough" to live there.

"These people shouldn't have to move," he said. "They've been paying their rent there for a long time."

Cincinnati city council approved the tax exemption for owner and developer Birge & Held in November.

The company also applied for Low Income Housing Tax Credits through the state. And committed to making all units affordable.

Of the 248 units, 83 will be Section 8 housing. The remaining 165 units will be deemed affordable, with rents varying by income levels below 60 percent of the area median income.

For the West End, that means a family must make below $35,800 to live at the Arts Apartments.

Under the new terms, 28 existing tenants don't meet those income qualifications and must leave.

"My dad…he sent me a photo and said I don't want to end up like this," said Griffin, who shared a photograph on Twitter that appeared to show a displaced resident.

Welp this is what’s going on in the West End, Market-rate renter were forced out of their homes. 29 families the CDC and city council approved to be displaced from the west end @GregLandsman @ChrisSeelbach @voteSundermann @voteSmitherman @Dr_JRTate @VoteDillingham @StaceySmithCCC pic.twitter.com/czd0XSPMvw

— Christopher Griffin (@Chris_SupaG) August 25, 2021

But Mary Burke Rivers, executive director of Over-The-Rhine Community Housing, said that is not what's happening in the photo.

"In that particular image was a person who relocated on site while their unit was being renovated. And when they moved back they didn't want their furniture. So they talked to the property mangers and said, 'I don't want this. I'm going to put this out,'" she said.

OTRCH is working with Birge & Held on the project.

Rivers said those displaced are being offered relocation assistance.

"All moving expenses are being covered, nobody is set out, and can get upwards of over $9,000 in relocation benefits," Rivers said.

She added that the goal for her organization is to help preserve affordable housing, not end it for some residents.

"We know that it's so important to preserve affordable housing, because you can't get it back," Rivers said.

Some residents and West End representatives argue the changes in the neighborhood, such as those at the Arts Apartment, aren't helping everyone who lives there.

"This is just an example of the double-edge sword if we don't look at all outcomes of the actions that we're taking, and the development that we're doing," said Ashley White, West End Community Development Corporation president. "We need to talk to everyone and not just one side."

Both the West End Community Council and the West End Community Development Corporation said they want more say before the city council makes any further decisions on developments as more housing projects with set income levels are on the way for the West End.

"If we convert everything to deed-restricted income-based housing… we really don't have affordability for anybody at any other income," said Noah O'Brien, vice president of the West End Community Council.

CINCINNATI —

An entire community is wrapping its arms around the family of a 3-year-old boy who died after a tragic fire in the West End.

Amari Campbell was pronounced dead after the fire at an apartment near Winchell Avenue and Wade Walk yesterday.

Many have been mourning the loss of a sweet child, by leaving messages, flowers and balloons at a memorial outside the apartment.

Dozens of firefighters and neighbors rushed to help Amari.

His family is struggling with the loss but also grateful for so much support.

"I'm all out of cries, man. I'm just all hurt now," Amari's father Robert Eubanks said.

Eubanks shared his heartbreak at a memorial for his young son.

"Everybody loved him man, everybody loved him," he said.

Eubanks thinks of the fear his son must have felt as Cincinnati firefighters said he played with a lighter and incense and lit a couch on fire at his grandmother's West End apartment.

They said he hid under a bed as flames raged.

A neighbor helped his grandmother out.

Another tried to help Amari, but it was too hot.

"To the guy who tried to go in there and get my son. I love you for that man because I would've ran to get yours. I wish I was here because I would've been in there," Eubanks said.

The fire spread quickly and eventually claimed Amari's life at the hospital.

Family members said he was a bright, sweet young boy, who loved his 12 brothers and sisters.

"That picture right there explains it all. Joyful. Fun. He loved to eat apples," Eubanks said.

Outside of the apartment, there were many balloons, stuffed animals, flowers and candles.

Family members, neighbors, adults and children, all left something to show how much they loved Amari.

His aunt, Caroline Eubanks, said she struggles with the loss.

"He was a sweet boy, you know, just, he's full of laughter and just funny, you know. That's Amari, you know, he's my baby," she said.

"I love you" was part of several messages written by family members on plywood at the apartment.

It's something Amari's father said every parent should tell their child often as they hold them close.

"Amari, man, I love you, man. You hear me? Daddy loves you, man. I pray for you every minute and every second, man," Robert Eubanks said.

Fire officials said this appeared to be a tragic accident.

Amari's father said he is thankful for all the help and support.

He said he could use as many hugs as possible.

His father has also launched a GoFundMe page to help cover the unexpected funeral expenses for his young son.

You can find more information about the GoFundMe page here.

CINCINNATI — For more than 150 years, some of the American flags that adorn things like US naval ships, or have been given to world leaders as gifts, have been made right here in Cincinnati.

The National Flag Company has called the West End home since 1869, and members of the Schaller family have been helping to lead the company for many years.

Art Schaller Jr., the National Flag Company's current president, started working at the company in 1979, two years after his father, Art Schaller Sr., became president of the company. Now Artie, Schaller's son, works at the company, and one day the company will be in his hands.

"It's kind of in the Schaller blood," Art Schaller said.

And what makes the flags made by the National Flag Company so special is they are sewn by skilled craftsmen, like Schaller himself, who still finds time to work with a needle and thread.

"I enjoy sewing," Schaller said. "I'd say, this year, I'm probably sewing a good 20 hours a week or so."

Schaller said he thinks the National Flag Company is one of the best-kept secrets in Cincinnati.

"To some degree, we still are," he said. "But we feel like we're kind of starting to come out of our 150-year-old shell a little bit."

CINCINNATI — When driving through the West End – you can’t miss it. TQL Stadium is huge, but the team it houses isn’t just a sports presence. All along, FC Cincinnati has said it’s going to be a good neighbor to the community – and a big part of that is working with local kids.

Laurel playground is the place 170 local kids come to get their soccer fix. The practice field sits in the shadow of TQL stadium by design.

WCPO Staff

There’s a double meaning to the words on 11-year-old Jasiah Murph’s jersey – West End Pride. You see, FC Cincinnati’s mascot is a lion – and we all know a group of lions is called a pride.

“You get to be with teammates, coaches and be around here playing with your friends,” Murph said.

Then there’s pride in one’s community.

“You show people what it’s like to be in this neighborhood,” Murph said.

Acknowledging the stadium by playing the sport that brought it to the area – and even sharing it. The FC Cincinnati Foundation supports the youth soccer cause by covering the kids’ registration fees, uniforms, equipment and after-practice snacks. It’s part of the local team’s commitment to making the West End a better place to live and play

WCPO Staff

“We’re here showing that we wanna be part of the community,” former FC Cincinnati player Omar Cummings said. “We wanna be good neighbors.”

Cummings works as an ambassador to the team and focuses on the next generation by helping to grow the youth soccer program.

“It’s about the future – 5 years, 10 years, 15 years down the line – hopefully have kids from this neighborhood in our academy, playing int the stadium,” he said.

Speaking of the kids – they were the first ones to play on the pitch at TQL Stadium.

“I’m a little jealous, myself. Having been a pro in the MLS, that’s still one of the best stadiums anywhere – and for the kids to have the first opportunity to play on it, I was like, ‘man,’” Cumming said with a laugh.

The kids were impressed, too.

“It was amazing,” West End Pride player Harmoni Dennard said.

WCPO Staff

Dennard’s mom, Thelma Little is so happy her daughter and all the other kids get to play.

“It keeps them active, keeps them engaged in the community, and we’re from down here,” Little said. “It’s exciting to have this type of opportunity available to them.”

In just five years, the West End Pride has grown to nine teams – with one co-ed preschool team. Like Cummings said – the hope is that one of the program’s kids will make it to the academy, which can be a pathway to Major League Soccer play.

CINCINNATI — As TQL Stadium opens for FC Cincinnati's home opener, here's what fans should know about parking before heading to a match.

Season parking pass holders will have access to parking close to the stadium, which includes:

• The East Garage on the stadium site
• The West Premium Lot in the rear of the stadium
• The newly built West End garage north of the stadium with about 800 parking spots
• The Town Center Garage across from Music Hall on Central Parkway.

The Washington Park Garage is also offering parking sign-ups for FC Cincinnati fans, but this garage also has spots set aside for season parking pass holders.

Fans can also get their steps in by parking at the Mercer Commons Garage, the Ziegler Park Garage or the Kroger Garage and walking between 15 and 20 minutes to the stadium.

The stadium is nestled into the West End neighborhood where some might try their luck with street parking, but FC Cincinnati has a map online that shows that parking in residential neighborhoods is off limits. Residents hope fans respect this.

"They’re not going to want to pay to park, so they’re going to think they can come over here, which is free parking, and it’s not," Yona Dowdell, a West End resident, said. "They don’t live over here to park over here.”