Hamilton’s progress, Spooky Nook updates of high interest for development on Great Miami River
About 160 people who live and work along the 99-mile stretch of the Great Miami River between Sidney and Hamilton gathered late last week for the 2021 Great Miami Riverway Summit, spending much of their time learning what’s been happening in Hamilton and at Spooky Nook Sports Champion Mill.
The Riverway is an effort to create a cohesive tourism region that focuses on the river and communities built along its banks. Advocates hope the region can lure tourists from Ohio and other states to canoe, kayak, bicycle, hike, surf (in Dayton) and camp along the river. They also hope those visitors will spend time and money in the communities’ restaurants, shops and bars.
Dan Foley, director of the Riverway effort and a former Montgomery County commissioner, said a prime reason for the Hamilton visit was to show the $165 million Spooky Nook project to business people and other leaders from upriver what can be done with sites like the former Champion Paper mill in Hamilton, as well as abandoned factories and coal-fueled electric plants.
Hamilton’s 2nd Chipotle to open this year, company says
Hamilton’s second Chipotle Mexican Grill will open in the fall, a company spokesperson has told the Journal-News.
“We are planning to open a new Chipotle restaurant at 1510 S. Erie Blvd. in early fall,” company spokeswoman Erin Wolford said about the former Hardee’s location.
Like the city’s first Chipotle, which opened in October 2019, the new restaurant will have a “Chipotlane,” a pickup window for people who order online, Wolford said. Hamilton’s first restaurant was the second in Greater Cincinnati to have that feature.
Memorial Day parades in Butler County: What’s planned with COVID-19 restrictions relaxed
Relaxed COVID-19 restrictions mean there will likely be two Memorial Day parades stepping off in Butler County this year in Middletown and West Chester Twp.
The West Chester Twp. trustees have been discussing the annual event —staged by the local VFW post — to honor the military for weeks. Now it appears the on-again-off-again parade is back on.
Butler County Vet Board President Chuck Weber, who is a township resident and VFW member, told the trustees last week the parade will proceed.
‘Icing on the cake’: New Krispy Kreme opening part of $14 million renovation project in West Chester
Doughnut lovers started arriving at Butler County’s first Krispy Kreme location 11 hours before it opened and customers were wrapped around the business Tuesday morning, an official said.
Two campers arrived at Krispy Kreme at 7 p.m. Monday and they were rewarded with the honor of turning on the store’s “hot” sign at 6 a.m. and given free doughnuts for a year, said Keith Katz, district manager for Ohio and Kentucky.
Larry Burks, West Chester Twp. administrator, said the opening of Krispy Kreme is “icing on the cake” for the shopping center.
Phase 1 of Fairfield’s Harbin Park reconstruction set for summer: What comes next
Credit: Michael D. Pitman
Credit: Michael D. Pitman
It’s been talked about for several years, but the first signs of new construction at Harbin Park are set for this summer.
Fairfield City Council approved a $29,000 contract with Brandstetter Carroll, Inc. to complete the final engineering and structural design plans for the first of three phases of improvements at Harbin Park, the city’s largest and most-used park.
“It’s very exciting that we’re finally to this point,” said City Councilmember Leslie Besl, chair of the council’s park committee. “Obviously, this is something we’ve been working toward, and I think our residents are going to be excited to finally see something happening.”
AND, for an extra sixth story of the day ...
After quiet spring, Butler County to see host of candidates, election issues this November
A very slim portion of Butler County’s voters were eligible to vote in Tuesday’s special election.
Just two school districts outside the county had issues to decide, so only the 185 out of the county’s nearly 257,000 registered voters who reside within the College Corner and Preble Shawnee school districts, which are mostly in Preble County, had issues to decide.
In odd-year elections such as this year, races are nonpartisan and often occur in November. Much of the May special election news on Tuesday, though, involved the Cincinnati and Dayton areas, where both major cities had runoff elections for mayor, and outlining communities had funding measures.