Cincinnati is a beautiful city; cheerful, thriving, and animated. I have not often seen a place that commends itself so favourably and pleasantly to a stranger at the first glance as this does.
― Charles Dickens
Cincinnati is a mid-sized city with the amenities of a big one, without being crowded. There are a lot of Fortune 500 companies with plenty of high-paying jobs along with a low cost of living. Those companies attract people of all ages, and at all wages. The great jobs vs. low costs is an incredible appealing draw to the city.
A description of what's great about Cinci from a local: Cincinnati has a lot of history. We have a lot of wonderful Art Deco and Victorian architecture. We have the second largest cemetery in the country and it is also a historic site and botanical garden (a favorite place to bike and jog) we also have one of the largest urban forests in the country. The water treatment and groundwater management is progressive. This fall I had a wonderful day canoeing the Mill Creek, a former dump site for industrial waste that cuts through the city and has been reclaimed. The parks and the river are lovely. We have a great zoo.
Cincinnatians bemoan the lack of a central subway system and a poor transit system overall. Car ownership is a given, but parking is also hard. And despite the lack of crowds, traffic can get snarled and cumbersome. While you get the amenities of a bigger city it is missing the public transport of one.
Locals pov on the transport issue: Will Cincinnati ever have a decent transit system? I feel like a big limiting factor in Downtown/OTR/West End development is the fact for every desk at an office, table at a restaurant, or seat at a concert space you basically need a parking spot. This means for everything that’s built at least half the space is dedicated to parking. Maybe more depending on the density of use (eg Resturants have a greater people density than apartments)
This greatly limits the amount of stuff in Central Cincinnati. Since unless you’re building some mega project it’s going to be a surface lot. And that’s going to waste a lot of space. And I think after Coronavirus a lot of outdoor spaces are going to stay since for 8 months a year it’s really nice. This means competition for street space between Parking and Dining will likely increase. Cincinnati has an amazing urban fabric it’s just can’t really be infilled much without transit.
The city of Cincinnati is much like any other big-ish city. Lots of young people, going out and enjoying a good social life at a growing bar/club, restaurant scene. Downtown is also home to the shocking, to some, world-class performing arts culture. A Symphony, Pops, Orchestra, Contemporary Arts Center and Art Museum means you can get your fill of culture downtown when you’re in the mood, and you can get your fill of partying if that’s your mood. https://wandercincinnati.com/2019/09/17/gaslight-district-cincinnati/
If you want to get more details on what locals get up to for fun and culture check out the calendar of events: https://www.visitcincy.com/events/
First of all, know that Cinci is “booming”. Other cities like Austin and Nashville get a lot of attention but if you’re looking for work Cincinnati is a great option. An outsized number of Fortune 500 companies (including Proctor & Gamble), major retailers, and two massive hospital systems keeps the economy jumping. Terrible driving is apparently a thing here and there is virtually no strong public transport system, so if you have to commute that will probably be painful. On the other hand many of the companies here as everywhere are going hybrid or wfh so the inexpensive housing and cost of living will make up for those days you do have to make the drive.
Cincinnati is in acceleration mode. The population is growing, the job market is growing, the downtown social and cultural scene are growing. If there is a reason to move here it is centered around the incredible energy and enthusiasm for the city that comes with that growth. Come here because the people that live here love it.
The Clifton Gaslight District, just north of downtown, is a cool spot to start your search for a neighborhood to live in. It’s near the UC campus so there’s plenty of bars, good interesting eats, a movie theater and boutique shopping. The housing off of the main commercial streets are really interesting as well. Historic homes that house students, professors and young professionals mean you don’t have to live in a high rise apartment building to call this area home. https://wandercincinnati.com/2019/09/17/gaslight-district-cincinnati/
Downtown is another interesting option. Close to a lot of the companies in the city, so walking to work becomes your new best friend. It’s also surrounded by bars, restaurants and the stadiums and ballparks of the sports teams, so good choice if you want the social scene but also want an extremely high walkscore for your apartment/condo.
East Walnut Hills is a good spot for those who still crave a social scene but are looking for something a bit more upscale and a bit less noisy or crowded. Just ten minutes from downtown, the area has nice restaurants, cocktail bars and breweries, and more chill coffee and neighborhood hangouts when it’s one of those lazy days.
Northside is the neighborhood in Cincy most noted as welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community. It really started in the 80’s when historic but aging homes in Northside were depressed in prices and LGBTQ+ community started buying them up, renovating and creating infrastructure and support events and groups in the neighborhood. This led to the area hosting the Pride Parade and Festival, and a number of different boutique shops, restaurants and bars that are owned by and cater to the community. https://www.lesbianrealestateagents.com/blog/northside-cincinnati-ohios-progressive-gay-village/
Mount Lookout is a great place to start a search for families. The homes are beautiful, but by national city standards, reasonable. It has some of the best schools in the city and maybe more interestingly it has seemingly nonstop festivals for kids and grownups including the big Fall Festival - with pumpkin carving, costumes and prizes! There is also a massive park with trails for biking, hiking and running, playgrounds, ball fields, gardens and stunning views of the city. Right next to Mount Lookout is Hyde Park - another great option for families. Incredible schools, a great mix of big historic homes and modern condos if you’re looking for something that takes less work, and tons of things for families to do at the parks, playgrounds and Observatory that are all walkable within the neighborhood.
