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Redevelopment of this property may rejuvenate Bond Hill

Greater Cincinnati's development arm is zeroing in on a piece of Bond Hill history to rejuvenate the area. 

Walking in what was Swifton Commons, now Jordan Crossing, you can see it's in need of a lot of attention. The concrete sidewalks are cracked. The shrubbery is overgrown. The paint on the benches is peeling off and only about a dozen stores remain open. But this property could breathe new life into Bond Hill.

Port AuthorityVice President of Real Estate Development Darin Hall has a good idea how to do that. He was successful in Atlanta in a similar role doing deals the market didn't want to do.

"So say that it needs to be demolished and the market developer would not do it and you would find lower quality stores than what the neighborhood wants. We are prepared to be creative in how we structure and how we work with communities to get real vibrant development that is good for the community."

That could include sit-down restaurants, upscale shopping, a hotel and possibly even a grocery store. The Port Authority is in negotiation to buy the property from the Allen Temple Real Estate Foundation and could
close by July. The church would remain on the property. The Port Authority's Deborah Robb says this would be the latest investment in Bond Hill.

"In the past 5-7 years there's been over 300 million dollars in investment. There's Eurostampa, Graeters, Links Unlimited."

The University of Cincinnati Economics Center is doing a market study on the mall property providing data to developers and businesses. Initial findings are due out in November.
 

Ann Thompson has decades of journalism experience in the Greater Cincinnati market and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her reporting.