Hamilton’s State of City address: Revitalizing neighborhoods, adding housing are priorities

While there have been many issues he’s addressed, from the controversy of the Miami Conservancy District’s proposed rate increases and the massive Beckett Paper fire, one of the constants in his first six months on the job has been answering the question “What’s your plan?” Since Day One they’ve worked on the plan, which aligns with three strategic priorities: people-centered, neighborhood-focused and development-driven.

One initiative of that plan is designed to eventually improve neighborhoods and is expected to have positive impacts on residents and development.

“Each neighborhood has it’s own unique character and charm, and it’s own challenges,” he said speaking to a crowd at the new Washington Event Center on the city’s west side.

The greatest challenge? Housing, Bucheit said.

“We’re short thousands of housing units of all price points. This shortage is most critical in affordable housing for working-class families in traditional neighborhoods.”

For traditional neighborhoods, Bucheit says “to raise up a community, you have to lift it up as a whole,” and to capitalize on the city’s continuing renaissance.

The downtown core is where Bucheit and his team feels they need to start.

“For sustainable growth, you can’t just raise up pieces and parts, you need to bring every area along. These traditional neighborhoods, they’ve left too far behind for too long,” he said.

New growth in Hamilton is limited — there is very little green space and a high cost of new infrastructure. Redeveloping traditional neighborhoods would have a cost, and there are hundreds of vacant lots and established infrastructure.

The city will start with focusing on the Jefferson neighborhood, just east and southeast of downtown Hamilton. The city manager said this neighborhood is “one of our hardest-hit areas” but also “presents our greatest opportunity.”

“Our local economy has evolved from our industrial past ... into advanced manufacturing, hospitality, healthcare and other service-related industry ,” said Bucheit. “We need to rebuild our working-class neighborhoods to support this new economy and workforce.”

The lessons learned and best practices used in redeveloping Jefferson will be applied across the city, he said.

Executive Director of Neighborhood Services Liz Hayden said there are a variety of different housing projects under construction right now, but the focus on Jefferson to start the revitalization of the city’s neighborhoods is because it’s “a wonderful neighborhood that needs help.”

“But it isn’t just being safe and clean, it is making sure there are amenities,” she said, adding they’ll work with community partners and businesses, like Garcia’s Market at the corner of East Avenue and Hanover Street. “This is a great walkable neighborhood, and we’ll need stuff to walk to.”

Bucheit said he has no doubt of Hamilton’s resilience and pride, and being a city of people “pulling together.” He said all that allows the city’s plan under his direction to continue to move forward to help Hamilton improve, as it’s the people that “makes this community, very, very special.”