Talking Down the City

Catching up on old news brings us Single in Cincy Part Deux. Much of what we've heard about the Forbes article was found in last Saturday's Cincinnati Post. What I don't get is how one of guys quoted in the article actually makes a living:

As the owner of Lava, a nightclub on Main Street, Chris Ongkiko makes his living on Cincinnati's singles scene. He agrees with the Forbes assessment -- times 10.

"Cincinnati is a desolate wasteland socially, culturally, economically, spiritually -- in every aspect of life," he said. "It has nothing to do with the people. It's completely on the shoulders of City Council and the mayor."

He opened his business a few months before the riots in April 2001. Three years later, he said, the city is worse off than it was right after the riots.

"When you have a half dozen bars in three blocks close in a 10-month period, that's not a good sign. I'm talking about Jump, the Have a Nice Day Café, Bar Cincinnati, Caverns, the Warehouse and others -- .

How can anyone really blame city government for this? Government can help, but they can't make people come to downtown. If the people and city are a wasteland, then why is Chris Ongkiko trying to make a living here? My suggestion to Mr. Ongkiko is to pack his bags and take a hike to New York or LA. If he wants to live in a megacity, then get going. Cincinnati is not a megacity and guess what, it never will be.

We are a big city. That fact seems to be lost on a great many people. Take if from a guy who grew up in a city of less than 40,000, Cincinnati is a big town. No matte how much people try and think otherwise, they can't deny reality.