My husband and I live on Beechwood Ave. in North Avondale and we strongly object to Connected Communities proposed zoning changes which would allow unrestricted parameters for “Middle Housing” in our single-family neighborhood. Connected Communities has indiscriminately targeted a wide swath of land on either side of Reading Road with no consideration to the extremely disparate neighborhoods within this zone. Our Beechwood/Rosehill section of North Avondale is filled with historic century homes which are unlike much of the surrounding areas in various stages of decline. In its current form, the city would be incentivizing tear-downs or modifications of single-family homes, removing setback requirements, removing off street parking requirements, and ignoring federal HUD policies which limit the density of neighborhoods that already have high concentrations of publicly funded income restricted housing. This type of development would destroy the architectural character and integrity of our neighborhood, degrade our property values and cause current residents to leave. We pay hefty taxes, including a recent significant increase, for the privilege of living in a higher-priced neighborhood within the city limits. We expect City Council to protect our investment and preserve our homes with respect to the revenue generated by our property taxes which support our neighboring communities. While admirable for some areas of Cincinnati, this proposed zoning change is completely inappropriate for the historic neighborhoods of North Avondale.
Meg Keim
Meg Keim Interiors, Inc.