Meeting summary:

  • Community involvement will be a priority in helping to determine the future of Piatt Park and the weekly food distribution operated from that city property if Cincinnati’s next operating budget includes funding for 3CDC, according to the chief operating officer of the nonprofit private development corporation.
  • Two 3CDC ambassadors were first on the scene of the deadly May shooting outside a restaurant on Fountain Square, and their response is an example of what the nonprofit development corporation provides to maintain a safe and clean environment, the organization’s chief operating officer said. 
  • More attention should be paid to creating or expanding homeless shelters that offer women-only, couples-only, and pet-friendly choices, a 3CDC official said.

Documenter’s follow-up question:

  • What is the state of homelessness in Cincinnati? What’s the population in the city’s downtown core? In Over-the-Rhine? In each of the city’s 52 neighborhoods? 
  • How much money (state and federal) does Cincinnati spend on homeless people?

Notes

SCENE: The committee convened around 10:05 a.m. (its scheduled time is 10 a.m.), in Council Chambers (Room 300) at City Hall, 801 Plum St., led by Chair Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney. The meeting adjourned about 10:55 a.m.

Committee

Vice Mayor Jan-Michele Lemon Kearney, chair

Council Member Seth Walsh, vice chair

President Pro Tem Scotty Johnson

Council Member Anna Albi

Time Spent

44 minutes: 3CDC Public Space Management Presentation

05 minutes: Public comment

[NOTE: The meeting was interrupted several times because of problems with microphones in a new audio/public address system.]

Agenda

Presentation: 3CDC Public Space Management

The presentation from Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) officials provided an update on what the nonprofit real estate development and finance organization is doing to fight homelessness and what help is being provided for vulnerable populations. 3CDC:

·  Manages public spaces, such as Fountain Square and Washington Park, by deploying “ambassadors” who remove trash, provide customer services such as maintaining clean public restrooms, offer event support, and provide a layer of safety

  •  Supports retention and development of ambassador staffing through Fair    Chance Hiring, which offers a retirement program, as well as Fair Chance Housing, a pilot program for people facing barriers, such as people with felony convictions and those in recovery. Findlay Flats and Russ Flats together comprise 26 buildings with 120 units. Fifty-seven are affordable units at or below 80% AMI (Area Median Income).

·    Supports “vulnerable populations” by providing jobs, housing and other services through its GeneroCity 513 program

·      Improves the city’s core through the establishment of special improvement districts, such as the Downtown Cincinnati Improvement District (DCID) and Over-the-Rhine South SID

·      Provides outreach to people experiencing homelessness, addiction and mental illness by developing “comprehensive residential and service facilities,” also through GeneroCity 513

“We are committed to prevention and early engagement,” COO Paula Boggs Muething said, focusing on the critical work 3CDC staff performs daily to provide a safe and clean environment in the public space. “We are on the ground every single day, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

Public Space Management: David Vissman, vice president of operations, addressed public space management through the use of 3CDC ambassadors, staffers who have lived experiences, people who can build relationships and identify immediate needs of vulnerable populations. Ambassadors make first contact with vulnerable populations, he said.

Muething, citing an example of the work being done in managing public and civil spaces, said two 3CDC staffers were first on the scene at the May shooting outside the CityBird restaurant that left one man dead.

Shelter and Support Housing: Operations Director Marissa Reed spoke about the GeneroCity 513 street outreach program, which develops trained mental health professionals that complement the ambassadors and Cincinnati police. GeneroCity 513 staffers work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including case managers who work with the chronically homeless.

Reed, responding to a concern from Kearney about the availability of homeless shelters in the city, said attention must be paid to women-only beds, couples-only and pet-friendly shelter opportunities.

“We need a safe place for people to be, off the street out of the elements, when it’s super cold, and when it’s super warm,” Kearney said in asking 3CDC for ideas about a day center where homeless people could stay beyond overnight periods.

The Q&A period involving committee members covered the removal of graffiti, Fountain Square upgrades, how 3CDC used city dollars in 2026, and the future of Piatt Park:

Graffiti removal: “We work on graffiti every day,” Vissman said, noting that 3CDC maintains a list of properties where graffiti is found. 3CDC alerts the city when graffiti is found on city property and gets permission from private property owners to remove graffiti. 3CDC maintains a graffiti inventory every quarter, he said.

Fountain Square upgrades: There is money in the Fiscal Year 2027 budget for upgrades to the square, Kearney said. Muething said 3CDC is in the planning stages with the city and Fifth Third Bank to make improvements (she provided no details), and will need money for those improvements.

Council investment in 3CDC: Albi asked how 3CDC used council investment ($850,000, Albi said) in the ambassador program in 2025. Vissman said the money has allowed 3CDC to hire and send two staffers to clean, remove graffiti and interact with the public in a sizable area north of Liberty Street, around Findlay Market. 3CDC assigned two more staffers to the downtown core and one in OTR, primarily on second shift, to monitor alleys to provide “more eyes in those locations” and help with cleaning and safety, which included adding cameras tied to the city police department Real Time Crime Center (Cincinnati police decided where to place them).

Piatt Park: Kearney asked for an update about Piatt Park, which was not on the agenda. Muething said 3CDC has outreach workers and ambassadors there and has no role beyond that. Vissman said 3CDC met last week with Triiibe, the organization distributing food to the homeless, and meals are continuing at the park. Vissman said if 3CDC is given funding in the city’s fiscal year 2027 budget to program what happens at the park in terms of a remake, community sessions could begin in early 2027.

Johnson joined Walsh and Kearney in encouraging 3CDC to be more public in sharing its mission. “You guys don’t brag enough about the good stuff you continuously do,” he said. 

The committee filed the report.

Public Comment

Stephan Pryor: Asked council not to dissolve the city recreation commission, which he said is proposed in emergency legislation. He accused the council of “giving 3CDC everything.” (1:56)

A man identifying himself as Sam B. challenged 3CDC’s housing strategy. He said occupants would not be able to afford to live in 3CDC Fair Chance Housing. He also spoke against what he called “handouts” to 3CDC. He also spoke in favor of changing square footage zoning to permit the building of tiny homes. (2:06)

Darren Blasingame (via Zoom): He was allowed to begin his comments but was cut off several seconds later when Kearney announced that committee rules would not allow him to speak because the comment period had closed. (1:00)

Kearney adjourned the meeting at 10:55 a.m.

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