Herzog Ghost Sign in Covington, KY

This terrazzo ghost sign for Herzog is located at 806 Madison Ave. in charming, sleepy downtown Covington, Kentucky, just across the Ohio River from Cincinnati. Herzog Jewelers still exists, albeit in nearby Fort Mitchell.

A Perfect Weekend in Cincinnati

This question has come up in conversation and, when I’ve had the pleasure of hosting visitors to Cincinnati, as I have numerous times over the past eight years, I’ve faced this challenge myself: how best to introduce an outsider to the Queen City? Here is my ideal itinerary for a weekend visit.

The Roots of Vision by Tina Westerkamp

Located at 1136 St. Gregory St. in the hilltop neighborhood of Mount Adams, The Roots of Vision by Tina Westerkamp honors the people who shaped this historic Cincinnati neighborhood’s early development.

Elsewhere

Historic Brewery Demo ‘Would Be a Terrible Loss’: the Bavarian Brewing Co. in Covington, KY is at risk.

Businesses Get Custom Made Signs: Cincinnati’s CoSign works its magic on Covington businesses.

Put Back the Hole into the Fence on the Davis Sq. Bike Path: in my old stomping ground of Cambridge, MA, a petition to break something that was recently fixed, as well as the city’s response.

Federal Judge Rules Detroit Residents Have No “fundamental right” to Water: sliding toward the Third World, I guess.

‘Hi, Do You Have Water?’ In Central Calif., the Answer Is Often No: more on water.

Silicon Valley’s Newest Dating App Is ‘Tinder Without the Poor People’: also from California, “With the rise of high-speed digital dating, it’s about time somebody introduced a filter to weed out low-income prospects by neighborhood.”

Notes for Things to Not Forget: a lovely read from Walkers in the City.

Cincinnati Cityscapes by Mike Maydak

Last Friday, I had the pleasure of attending a Creative Mornings talk by Mike Maydak. Though best known for his comic- and pop culture-based fan art paintings and giclée prints, Maydak also occasionally focuses his vivid, twisty aesthetic on Cincinnati-area scenes, which I’ll show you here. Above is the ubiquitous Florence Y’All water tower in Northern Kentucky.

The Migration of Tradition by Tina Westerkamp

The Migration of Tradition by Tina Westerkamp and a group of ArtWorks apprentices is located on the side of the Rookwood Pottery headquarters at 1920 Race St. in Over-the-Rhine, Cincinnati.

A Perfect Weekend in Cincinnati

This question has come up in conversation and, when I’ve had the pleasure of hosting visitors to Cincinnati, as I did just a few weeks ago, I’ve faced this challenge myself: how best to introduce an outsider to the Queen City? Here is my ideal itinerary for a weekend visit.

Elsewhere

Building Cincinnati: an invaluable online resource has turned to crowd-funding to ensure its future.

New Artist Live/Work Homes Coming to Covington’s Lee-Holman Historic District: Northern Kentucky on the up and up!

Save the Pavilion: an effort is underway to save the New York State Pavilion in Queens, built for the 1964 New York World’s Fair.

Gentrification May Actually Be Boon to Longtime Residents: not sure I can agree with this, but it’s an interesting read.

Defining the Worst Type of Street Design: world, meet the stroad.

Snake on a Train: A Long Exposure Photo of a Train Roaring through the Canadian Rockies: beautiful; via Chris Glass.

Transit Maps: just a ton of eye candy.

Elsewhere

Scribble Jam 2014: a crowd-sourcing effort to bring back Cincinnati’s own Scribble Jam, once the largest hip hop festival in the US.

Duke Energy Holiday Trains at the Museum Center: 5chw4r7z checks out the awesome holiday display.

Northside’s SoapBox: Community Infoshop with Progressive Mission: a cool new place in Cincinnati.

Local Chef Turns to Crowdfunding, Community Gardens and Collaboration for New Covington Eatery: an interesting development across the Ohio River.

25 Awesome Stocking Stuffers for Kiddies: Chez Beeper Bebe likes our 10 Seed Bombs with Slinger!

Holiday Gift Guides for All: and so does My Paradissi!

Inequality and New York’s Subway: a fascinating interactive infographic charts median household income around every subway station in NYC.

Elsewhere

Cincinnati’s New-Found Buzz Helping Attract Retailers to Region: more chains; hurray for progress!

Mural and Impact: over in Covington, a sad, messy and confusing debacle took place this week around a legal mural that was suddenly painted over.

No Other Place on Earth Like It: UC’s Wilson Auditorium Comes Down, Taking Ghosts, Dreams and the Love of Students and Faculty with It: the demise of an Art Deco building on the University of Cincinnati campus.

Despite Bankruptcy, Momentum in Motown Builds for Streetcar: interesting to watch the streetcar development in Detroit in light of Cincinnati’s precarious state of affairs.

Downtown Louisville Is Getting a Trippy Hunter S. Thompson Memorial: just that.

A Police Chief Tries To Reform The System From Within: over in Salt Lake City, policing that actually makes sense.

Bauhaus Opens Its Dorms to Paying Guests: wow!