Amberley Green

At the Candidate's Forum hosted by the Amberley Women's Forum, council candidates were asked the question "do you support multi-family housing?"  My answer then, and now, is that, with the proper zoning, developer and plan, multi-family housing on Amberley Green would be a good amenity to our current and future residents. We are a community with an aging population who have made it known that they would be very interested in luxury condos or lifestyle homes on Amberley Green. Also, the same kind of housing would appeal to young professionals. Built in the context of the mixed-use development recommended by the Amberley Long Range Planning Committee  and as part of a larger development that is safe and walkable, we would be adding value to our community by providing more choices for living.

This evening I attended a meeting of the First Suburbs Consortium, which I wrote about in an earlier post. The topic of housing happened to be addressed. One thing that the majority of older, built suburbs, such as Amberley, have in common, is a lack of available housing for our aging population. The advantage that Amberley has, over Blue Ash (where this is the MAIN issue of concern), is that we have available land for rectifying this situation. Luxury condos, lifestyle homes, or apartments featuring universal design features might be just what Amberley needs in order to attract new residents and keep empty-nesters in our community. At the request of the attendees, this issue will continue to be addressed and meetings are open to everyone. If you would like to be notified of the next meeting of First Suburbs, please let me know and I'll be happy to get you the information.

"Green"

Running on Amberley Green

When I was campaigning for council, I was derided a couple of times for my green signs. Although the signs, in my mind, depicted how I felt about Amberley -- green, rolling hills -- they were seen as being an indicator of another kind of "green." The green of someone who cares about the environment. Did this interpretation of  a one dimensional yard sign hurt my feelings? Absolutely not! On the contrary, I welcomed it, and if I happened to lose those two votes (I did), I hope that the passage of time has proven that green is a sign of foresight and progressiveness when it comes to economic development and the future of Amberley and Cincinnati.

Recently, Amberley Village Council voted in favor of an agreement that would give The Walnut Group the exclusive right to conduct a due diligence investigation into the feasiblity of developing Amberley Green consistent with Amberley's Long Range Plan. The agreement, Resolution 2013-09, requires that The Walnut Group develop detailed site plans, including street and utility diagrams, street layouts, specific designs, as well as possible tenants, timing, and economics. Because the concept plan of The Walnut Group is consistent with Amberley's published Long Range Plan, it includes strong references to Amberley's Vision Pillars that require sustainable and ecological practices as well as connectivity.

Which brings me back to "green." According to this morning's Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati is ten years ahead of other municipalities in terms of sustainablility. Last week, I wrote about our recycling program. We have been gardening at Amberley Green for a year. Tomorrow at 6:00PM, Amberley is celebrating nine years of being a Tree City, USA community. Next month, on May 19th, we will be hosting "One Stop Drop," a large-scale recycling event at Amberley Green where residents can bring documents for shredding, small electric appliances for recycling, and any kind of shoe to give to foundations that will reuse them.

A strong componant of building a greener community is the ability of residents to commute within the area without the use of cars. Cycle trails, sidewalks, and walking paths make a community more friendly and, from an economic standpoint, a more desirable area in which to buy a house and raise a family. The Walnut Group's concept plan includes a town square, Univeral Design housing, a corporate tenant, plenty of green space and walking paths. It is up to us, the citizens of Amberley Village, to insist on a safe means to connect to Amberley Green, French Park, and our other myriad amenities, without needing to resort to our cars.

If you haven't yet connected with your neighbors on Amberley Village Nextdoor, please accept my invitation to do so now. Stay informed! CLICK HERE.

Imagine...

A two lane rural road is made safer by adding a bike lane.

It's no secret that my vision for Amberley is a community that is not only accessible to pedestrians and cyclists, but also a community where the places we go to meet our friends, shop, and relax over a glass of wine, are right here in our own neighborhood. To that end, I have been attending sessions devoted to the concept of "Complete Streets" and "Form Based Codes" given by the Hamilton County Planning Partnership and the City of Cincinnati. Briefly, Form Based Codes require a community to decide what they want their built community to look like. Mixed use is more desirable than, say, platting a zone to be either strictly residential or strictly business. Parking lots are not determined by square footage of office or store, but by accessibility and how best to encourage shoppers to enter the facility. In the City of Cincinnati, the focus is on revitalizing and re-imagining neighborhoods that have been built over the years in conformance with out-of-date zoning codes and in deference to the automobile. Streets have become too wide and speed limits too fast to encourage drivers to slow down, stop, and get out of their cars to shop. Giant offices, warehouses, and high rise apartments have been built in once historic and unique neighborhoods with no consideration to the overall look and feel of the neighborhood. In Amberley, many of our neighborhoods are isolated platted subdivisions offering only one way in and out, with no easy access to main roads other than by car.  Under Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls leadership, the City of Cincinnati is trying to change the look and feel of its neighborhoods with the adoption of Form Based Codes in place of traditional zoning.

Last week, I attended a seminar at the Cincinnati Bar Association focusing on Local Government law. Topics included zoning and fair housing, but most interesting to me was that one of the topics was Form Based Codes. I asked Vice Mayor Qualls specifically about Amberley Village and Amberley Green in particular. Could Form Based Codes be used to plan a large, currently undeveloped property? In fact, we are in an ideal position to be proactive in terms of what we want the Amberley of the future to be and look like. An Amberley resident and fellow attorney sitting in front of me turned around and said, "I want three restaurants, a bar, and an ice cream parlour." This resident is a young mom and is representative of what young families want -- walkablity and complete streets. An opinion piece in today's New York Times confirmed that this is the trend throughout the country. Previously, home values in strictly suburban communities like Amberley have been higher than urban counterparts. But the trend has shifted dramatically, around the country and in Amberley Village.   According to Rick Hall, president of Hall Planning & Engineering, complete streets which include access to transportation options and safe, walkable convenient communities are happier communities. The time is now, when the need for new revenue is of paramount importance,  for Amberley to be thinking about and planning for the future of Amberley Green and Amberley Village.

Be sure to stay informed: subscribe to news from Amberley Village at www.AmberleyVillage.org.

Spring in My Step

Is it really March already? Whatever happened to winter? Pretty soon the grass will be turning green and I haven't done anything about contracting to have it mowed this year. Whoops. But, while I may have neglected my own lawn, lots of cool things are in store for Amberley residents beginning this spring.

First of all, let's start with the new Ordinance allowing egg-laying chickens to be raised by residents in their own backyard. Consistent with the trend toward locally produced food and home gardening, it shouldn't come as a surprise that homeowners are desiring to raise their own chickens for their eggs. I have studied the current zoning in Amberley Village, and although it is my belief that our zoning did not prohibit backyard chickens, our solicitor, Kevin Frank, felt it was better if the Village had a separate ordinance pertaining to keeping chickens. I agree, as this way, there is no question as to whether residents can or cannot have chickens, and there are restrictions as to number of hens, and setbacks. Currently, Amberley -- with its large lots and bucolic atmosphere -- is one of very, very few local communities that don't allow chickens. Several residents have asked over the past few years if chickens were permitted, but were never given a definitive answer. I think that is because the zoning code was not clear on the issue. With the passage of this Ordinance, the answer will be very clear. Additionally, allowing backyard chickens allows our residents who so desire to follow the most current and healthy food trends as well as reducing their own carbon footprint and providing their families and friends with the experience of producing their own food. If you would like to read more about the history of prohibiting chickens in suburban communities, a wonderful resource can be found at Chickens for Montgomery, where the zoning code was revised in 2009 to specifically allow for chickens to be raised by residents. The first reading of Amberley's new chicken ordinance will be Monday, March 12th at the regularly scheduled Council meeting. By-the-way,  residents who live in neighborhoods with restrictive covenants, such as Rollman Estates, will not be permitted to have chickens in their yards, even with the passage of this ordinance, if their HOA specifically prohibits them.

Another sign of spring is that the new community garden at Amberley Green is staked out and ready to plow. The Amberley Green Garden will consist of garden plots that are 9x15' in size. Up to thirty-six plots can be accommodated and will rent at $50 per growing season (April to November). The entire garden will be fenced with 7 1/2 foot high deer fencing and water will be available as well as a garden cart and experienced gardeners willing to share their knowledge.  The garden will be an organic garden and there is already interest from some of our local non-profit neighbors in renting plots for educational and philanthropic purposes. The Amberley Green Garden committee will sponsor social events at the garden as well as educational presentations related to everything garden. Please be on the lookout for a flyer in your email that will be headlined "Amberley Green Garden." You will then be directed to instructions for applying for a plot and a welcome packet for gardeners. The garden is made possible from a grant from We THRIVE! which is an important initiative of the Hamilton County Dept. of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control. The purpose of We THRIVE! is to make the healthy choice the easy choice, thereby decreasing incidences of obesity and related diseases, as well as reducing smoking and increasing physical activity. It all begins at the local level, which is why grant funding was provided to a total of 12 local Cincinnati communities who are at the forefront of this movement.

Garden location "before" plowing and staking

Finally, Amberley will be championing a new, cutting-edge, initiative by Jewish Family Service of Cincinnati which is called "Community for a Lifetime." According to the most recent census, 22% of Amberley's residents are age 65 or older and the population of residents aged 50 and older is 49% higher than the national average. Due to the demographic of our community, care of our elderly population sometimes requires our police and fire department to assist our seniors in their day-to-day tasks. I recently attended the annual meeting of the Hamilton County Health District, and learned of a new and very vital and useful program called AHEAD. From this data, you can see that injuries from falls that require hospitalization among seniors in Amberley aged 65 and older are among the highest in the health district, with our neighbor, Deer Park, being even higher. Community for a Lifetime aims to take some of the pressure off our police and fire department by establishing a concierge service with our seniors so that they can form relationships with JFS social workers and, in addition, receive referrals for services they otherwise might resort to calling the police to assist with.

Don't forget to subscribe to the Village e-news at http://www.amberleyvillage.org/. E-mail is Amberley's primary means of communicating Village news to the residents. You can also sign up for meeting notices at the same time. Look for "subscriptions" on the left-side of the Village website. Also, the easiest way to read this blog is to subscribe by email and have the content delivered directly to your inbox.

Amberley Green

Amberley Green is 133 acres of gorgeous rolling hills, old cart paths, and mature, beautiful trees. The day it opened to residents I was able to add another 2.5 miles to my neighborhood runs. They are hilly miles, I'll give you that, but there is nothing better than being able to stay close to home and get my workout in.

This post will explain why I support allowing non-residents of Amberley Village to purchase parking stickers in order to park in the Amberley Green parking lot:

1. Safety

As a woman, when I go to Amberley Green and I see cars in the parking lot with AV identification decals, I know that 1) I may encounter another person there and 2) that person is an easily identifiable Amberley resident. If there are no other cars in the parking lot and I encounter someone, I have no idea who that person is, where they came from, or if they are there for a walk or for mischief. Certainly, a person who lives close by Amberley Green can walk there and I wouldn't know they were there prior to my encounter, but most people don't live within walking distance of the Green. Or if they do, they are Amberley residents.

Great Blue Heron at Amberley Green

Our current ordinance allows only residents to use the AG parking lot. In practice, non-residents park freely on nearby Fairhaven, Burning Tree, or at Adath Israel synagogue and walk across Ridge Road to the Green. This is a ridiculous situation -- the residents don't like it and I don't like being surprised by a stranger on what are usually deserted pathways.

2. Law Abiding Citizens Do Not Pose a Risk

Think about it... Who do I have to fear at Amberley Green? The person who goes to Village Hall and provides their identifying information and license plate and vehicle information to our police in order to buy a parking sticker or the person who enters Amberley Green from Lakeshore Drive apartments in Reading? The person who buys the sticker is not the person who is going to cause mischief on Amberley Green. By limiting parking to residents only, we are creating the parking problem on residential streets and doing nothing to deter crime and mischief on the Green. Criminals will enter Amberley Green either way -- neither more nor less. And, to get back to number 1: Safety -- I would much rather know who is using the Green than not.

3. Amberley Green is an Asset to our community

We have just completed Phase I of the We Thrive! grant process and prepared an invoice to Hamilton County Public Health for $7000. We are now ready to enter Phase II which includes the community garden at Amberley Green, a possible walking path connecting French park to Amberley's Village Hall walking path, and maybe even a Metro bus stop at the JCC, all projects paid for by the remainder of the We Thrive! grant up to $24,000. These are all areas that were identified by a working group of Amberley citizens who have put in countless hours since December in order to improve the quality of life here in Amberley Village by bringing residents together in a gathering place, increasing walkability, increasing access to fresh foods, and identifying ways to reduce smoking and chronic diseases. None of this could have been done without the grant. A condition of the grant is that we develop shared usages with other communities of our assets in ways that will promote physical activity. The most obvious solution identified by the committee is to open up parking at Amberley Green to non-residents. By opening up the parking, we allow others to enjoy walking, running, and other sports-related activities on Amberley Green -- all activities that were identified by our residents as providing enjoyment, exercise, and increased physical activity. We could allow frisbee golf to be played on the old fairways. Arborists could conduct walking tours of our trees. Children could enjoy gardening camp. When we allow land to remain vacant, it becomes attractive to people who want to conduct illegal activity. It becomes overgrown and blighted, thereby decreasing its value to the community. Amberley's long range plan includes development of Amberley Green, so it is in our best interest to keep it attractive and safe so as to obtain the highest value in the marketplace. By using the property we make it safer and also attract people to our community where they may very well choose to live.

What are your thoughts? You can either comment here or send me an email at WolfonCouncil@gmail.com.