Blue Rock St, Northside

Blue Rock St. in Northside got a lot of attention a few years back. The former American Can building (americancanbuilding.com/history) at the Spring Grove end of the street was on the list to receive stimulus money to help revitalize that little corner of Northside. It was such a big deal, Vice President Joe Biden came to town to talk about it.

I was fortunate to be in that small gathering of people who were allowed to sit in that worn out parking lot to hear what he had to say. The street was lined with well-wishers, protesters and a Metro bus barricade. (I got a great photo of a sharpshooter on top of the building and a fabulous photo op with VP Joe.) All that fanfare meant that sometime in the future, that old abandoned building will be converted into residential units and small shops. It's something to look forward to.

Blue Rock is a small street, although it used to be a rather long street until highway construction dissected it from the western section some years ago. If you head west you'll come to the busy Northside intersection at Hamilton Ave where you'll find restaurants, a pharmacy, a library and some unique stores. Hoffner park is on the corner as well.

Continue westward and you'll see a few businesses mixed in with older homes. The SPCA is nearby on Colerain Ave. and there's lots of rush hour traffic; but once you cross Colerain, things gets pretty quiet. There you'll find an all residential section with older, well maintained homes It's not a bad place to live. It's set apart yet close to everything you need.

Blue Rock St. is a side street off of Hamilton Ave. in Northside. On the other end, it intersects with Colerain Ave. Blue Rock St. is essentially your average street in Northside. You'll find the beautiful old brick buildings that are customary in this neighborhood, many of which are two-family homes.
Best of all, these homes are affordable. Any students or young adults looking to live independently might have luck searching through Craigslist for apartments and homes on the street. What I like best about this street is its location. It's a quiet street, with hardly any noise from traffic or nightlife, yet right off of Hamilton and therefore very close to all of Northside's great cafés, restaurants, and unique storefronts. A few minutes' walk will take you to Save-a-Lot, UDF, or Sidewinder, while a walk over the bridge leading to Ludlow will take you into Clifton. For those with cars, I-75 and I-71 are a short drive away, as are College Hill and Clifton, other great neighborhoods to explore.

One potential problem is the fire station, both convenient and inconvenient for people living on Blue Rock. Sure, on the one hand you have firemen right down the street in case something goes wrong, but on the other hand, the blaring of sirens might drive you crazy. You'd be surprised how alarming (pun intended) it can be to hear the sirens in the middle of a peaceful afternoon on such a quiet street. Additionally, as many Cincinnatians know, the first Wednesday of every month is dedicated to the testing of alarm sirens and tornado sirens throughout the area. This fire station is no exception! Most people get used to the noise, but it might not be ideal for those with young children.