Council focusing on beautification efforts, less crime and upcoming night out for the community

Notes

Bond Hill Community Council Meeting (Thursday, June 4, 2026) 

Meeting called to order at 7 p.m.

Meeting adjourned at 8:30 p.m.

Committee members in attendance: 

President: Jacqueline Edmerson

Secretary: Denise Hill

Treasurer: LaTora Jackson 

Member-at-Large: Sylvia Hill 

Updates:

Fire

• Officer Tony Bracado 
  • Began with the run totals for the month of May
    • There were 188 runs last year and 197 runs this year. 136 were EMS and 50 were fire/car accidents. The runs this year are pretty “on par” with last year 
  • Discussed firework safety for the Fourth of July and said it is important to not touch a firework if it doesn’t work for at least 20 minutes. Sparklers can reach  up to 1,200 degrees, so they are still dangerous for children to use.  
  • Question from community member: How much does the average fire truck cost? Bracado said  they can cost anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million depending on the city and how many runs there are. 
  • Question from community member: Are there certain times to light a fire pit? Bracado said fires need to be contained indoors and outdoors, with a water source within 10 feet of the fire.

Police: 

• National Night Out fiscal sponsor request 
  • Event Date: Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026 (6 to 8 p.m.) at the Reds Youth Academy
  • President Jacqueline Edmerson – Last year, Roselawn was financially responsible for the event, but in previous years, Bond Hill was. They are responsible for paying the vendors. Cincinnati uses forfeiture funds to reimburse the community members. They utilize the budget to pay for the grill, face painting and other activities. Cincinnati has always reimbursed the council members in the past. The Bond Hill Community Council placed a motion to be a fiscal sponsor to front the funds, knowing that they will be reimbursed from the city. The proposed budget can’t go over $3,000. (Motion passes – 30 yes, 1 no)
    • The National Night Out is a great time for children with free food like popcorn and snow cones available. Small businesses can attend, but they can’t sell any items. 

• A police officer said there have been reports of people loitering and lawn mowers stolen. The officer said the community needs to find a way to secure their items and write down serial numbers as well. Police use drones whenever available to film all perpetrators and victims, so it is important to be mindful that police officers may not be present at all times. It is also important to stay aware any time of day, not just at night, for loitering. Police  don’t handle animal cruelty, the officer said, but they can visit homes for noise complaints. 

Bond Hill Recreation Center

• Jason Richards, director of Bond Hill Rec Center for Cincinnati Recreation Commission (CRC)
  • The CRC summer day camp starts next Monday with 45 kids already registered. 
  • The pools are open for a 10-week session. 
  • Richards said he wants to bring back more sessions to the recreation center, including after-school day camps and teen programs. 

President Announcements: 

The Port Authority community engagement save the date: June 30

• Edmerson – The port is planning an opportunity to meet with the Bond Hill Community Council to discuss how to revitalize the task force. 

BHCC Parcel Ownership Update

• Edmerson – Two years ago, many of the leadership team members were promised a small parcel (plot of land) in Bond Hill, but they haven’t been given the land yet. They met with the commissioners and the prosecutor’s office to hire an attorney. Once they know they will be getting a parcel, they will go back to their attorney to continue the process. They plan to erect a marker that signifies to people that they are in Bond Hill on land owned by the neighborhood.. 

CBS Update

• A month ago, BHCC members met with City Council to negotiate a community benefit agreement. They met with Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney and a representative of Council Member Evan Nolan. At the time, Kearney asked the city manager if they could allocate staff to negotiate the agreement. The BHCC went to City Hall to speak with City Council members, but they need to meet with the city manager before a decision is made. The date is not set, but it will be this month. They will continue to provide updates. 

Guest Speakers: 

Council Member Mark Jeffreys – Community Initiatives 

• Recently completed walking through all 52 neighborhoods of Cincinnati. 
• Street takeovers – Council Member MarkJeffreys said  there was a street takeover in March. Street takeovers are very dangerous because people are driving recklessly and disrupting the area. Jeffreys said  85% of the people present weren’t from Cincinnati (Texas, Illinois, etc.). Earlier this week, seven were arrested because of a street takeover. Recently, City Council unanimously passed a motion that all participants in a street takeover will have their car impounded for six months and receive a fine of up to $1,250. The point of this motion is to deter this behavior as much as possible. 
• Bus Rapid Transit in Bond Hill – Jeffreys said the city would like to expand the transit to the CVG airport. There are about 25,000 jobs at the airport, so this transition would be very helpful and great benefit for employees and residents. 
• Budgeting in Bond Hill – Jeffreys said the lead poisoning of children is a serious issue. Roughly 1,000 kids per year are poisoned by lead, leading to a permanently impacted frontal lobe development and erratic behavior. Cincinnati Children’s led a study of lead poisoning, and it showed that adults with lead poisoning as children are 48% more likely to be incarcerated due to their behaviour rapidly changing. One of the budget priorities was to remove lead paint in homes in Bond Hill and to divert the cannabis money to this initiative called the Harm to Hope fund. 
• Sidewalks –  . Last year, the city conducted a pilot program to help people fix their sidewalks, and now they are attempting to do it again in multiple neighborhoods. It is the owner’s responsibility to take care of their sidewalks, yard, trees, etc. 
• Question from community member: Is the City Council aware of how to allocate funding towards the emergency food crisis? Jeffreys said they don’t know how much money will be allocated but are figuring it out.  

Devoe Sherman – BH CDC Introduction ROOTS

• President of Bond Hill CDC – Revitaliting Our Own Tomorrow
  • Sherman’s goal was to revitalize Bond Hill by cleaning up the entire district and engaging and involving youth and teens by working directly with the recreation center. 
  • People sitting outside of the old Richie’s restaurant makes the neighborhood look less accessible and pushes negative recreation. The Richie’s building is  vacant, so Sherman aimed to create a motion to address the vacancy in the area and the lack of activity. Sherman felt like Bond Hill was being left behind and wants to understand how the neighborhood can be more sustainable and accessible for everyone. Sherman also questioned why there is vacant land and distressed locations, and not enough beautification efforts.
    • Sherman needed to develop a motion to create a letter to the owners of Richie’s regarding the improvement and quality of the Bond Hill location. Needs to be voted on by the community council because the CDC is resident-related and because Sherman wanted to make sure the community members are represented and aware. 
    • Community members passed the motion – (32 yes, 0 no)

Bond Hill Business:

May Meeting Minutes

• Motion to pass the May Minutes – passed (32 yes, 0 no)

May Treasurer’s Report

• Started the month with $15,622.54 (operating fund) and $67,279.27 (savings)
  • Qualified them for pro bono services 
• Ended the month with $20.412.68 (operating and restricted funds)
• Ended the month with $67,279.27 (savings)
• They don’t have a focal mission for fundraising, but they do seek sponsorships and donations for events. They also reach out to foundations and organizations that provide community investments. 
• Motion to accept the May Treasurer’s Report – passed (32 yes, 0 no)

New Business: 

Planters/Old Pots

• Years ago, Bond Hill received a grant to do streetscape work from the city, but it was put off because of Metro adding additional stops. They have asked the city for seven new flower pots. The president asked the community members which pots they want to purchase that also meet the size expectations for the sidewalks. The colors are limited to possibly beige or black, but they are all the same size. Community members voted to install the bell planters instead of the riverside grandino planters. 

Briefly paused to do a community council drawing for gifts.  

Committee Reports:

• Bond Hill Community Council has 195 members total, with 43 members present that evening. Membership Chair Andrea Baker said she wanted more people in the neighborhood to join the council. 
• Ervin Turner – Bond Hill resident since 1993 and member of the Beautification Committee
  • On July 11 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., there will be a yard sale and free cookout at the CAA building. The Beautification Committee needs more volunteers for the event and also needed help with cleaning up Reading Road and Paddock Road
• Sharon Watkins – member of the Beautification Committee
  • Watkins said that they will only be inviting 10 people to do a yard sale. She said there will also be vendors and other resources that can help the community.

Bond Hill Engaged (Our Voices):

• The Youth Chair resigned, so the community council needs a new chair. 

Community Voices:

• A community member asked permission to create a car wash on Paddock Road to replace the abandoned gas station in Bond Hill. 
• A community member announced that the community garden is still open and that they meet at the garden club on Mondays at 6 p.m. 

Community Partner Updates:

Bethany House 

• Chief Executive Officer Peg Dierkers
  • Zoning hearing for a daycare next week
  • Recently hired two people to operate the daycare 
  • Construction should start some time in August 
  • Anniversary cookout – July 16

Great Parks

• Open hours are from 2 to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to -2 p.m. on Sunday. 
• Produce and free seeds are available for the community. 

If you believe anything in these notes is inaccurate, please email us at documenters@signalcincinnati.org with “Correction Request” in the subject line.

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