Run 52: Lower Price Hill

Lower Price Hill, just two miles west of downtown, is a community with strong Appalachian roots.  Generations of migrants from Eastern Kentucky and West Virginia came to Lower Price Hill to work in its factories and raise their families in the tight-knit community.  Workers lived in two-and three-story brick walk-ups, always within walking distance of their jobs. The Ohio River to the south and the steep hill to the west created a valley of sorts, which the older generation says made the neighborhood reminiscent of the hills and hollers they had left back home. Today, Lower Price Hill is the last Cincinnati neighborhood to still put on an annual “Mini Appalachian Festival” with a weekend of bluegrass, traditional food, and storytelling contests.

When I first moved to Cincinnati, I eagerly took a job as a community organizer in Lower Price Hill.  I worked there for four and a half years, getting to know the people well.  When we pulled up in front of my old office on State Avenue, I was happy to see several familiar faces, including Guy, who sweetly filled me in on the news I had missed and then snapped this photo:

Look, we had company!  Donnie and I were thrilled when Emily and Alex agreed to join us for this run.  It gave me the chance to play tour guide and share a place that has been like a second home.

We started off by heading south on State Avenue.  You’ll notice in these photos that Donnie and I are wearing our “State Avenue Running Club” shirts, which were designed by a friend who used to work with me in Lower Price Hill.  We were training for a 5k together and would do our practice runs along State Avenue, hence the name. 

The housing and neighorhood layout in Lower Price Hill remind me of the Jane Jacobs ideal: homes close to each other and close to the street, perfect for keeping an eye on playing children and getting to know your neighbors. There are corner markets and jobs within walking distance.

The pride of Lower Price Hill is Oyler Community Learning Center, a pre-k through 12 grade school that was profiled this year on APM’s Marketplace in a feature called “One School, One Year.”  Oyler has received national recognition for its implementation of the Community Learning Center Model, which brings community services like dental and eye clinics inside the school walls. The school recently underwent an extensive renovation that beautifully preserved the building’s original architectural details: 

We also passed the Urban Appalachian Council and next door, this pretty garden. The Urban Appalachian Council is an advocacy organization that works to improve the quality of life in the community.

The garden by UAC is one of two community gardens that we passed on this route.  The other was across from the Lower Price Hill Community School on St. Michael’s Street and was constructed as part of a Public Allies Team Service Project.  Looks like the neighbor has offered their runoff water for plants!

After running through the residential section of the neighborhood, we ran halfway across the new 8^th Street Viaduct and back.  The viaduct was replaced in 2009 and connects the Price Hills to Queensgate and Downtown.  Mostly we included this little out-and-back for the view, but found that the viaduct is actually a very pleasant place to run—the sidewalk is sectioned off safely from the street traffic. 

This is the view from the viaduct facing south.  The water flowing under this plant is the Mill Creek and the hills behind are Kentucky.

Next, we ran under the viaduct, past the Police Academy, towards Evans Softball Field.  Running under the viaduct offered a different perspective:

This part of the route took us through the industrial portion of the neighborhood, past the plants and factories where many generations of Lower Price Hill residents have made their livelihood.  Some have closed, but others are still in operation. 

One of my favorite photos from our Lower Price Hill route was taken looking up the hill towards East Price Hill, from the site where Queen City Barrel once stood.  When I look at it a week later, I see it as a symbol for the world’s industrial future: the opportunity for healthy and environmentally friendly technologies, training programs for workers, and safe jobs that pay a living wage.  Inspiring things that I wish I had realized in the moment!

Emerging from the blocks of factories, we headed up North State a little ways, past the Kroger plant.  This part of the run wasn’t on our original route, but we were feeling good and wanted to add on a little bit.  Parts of North State have nice views of downtown and the Museum Center.  Check out this fence created out of repurposed doors and shutters:

At one point a dog barking at us from a porch slowed us to walk, which gave Emily the opportunity to pass along some horrible advice from a former cross country coach about how to fend off attacking dogs.  I won’t repeat this nugget of wisdom in its entirety, but it involves removing your shirt, wrapping the shirt around your arm, and letting the dog bite you while you implement an offensive move with the other hand.

(Donnie and Alex react strongly to Emily’s advice)

Okay.  I can’t really see Emily doing this.  Or anyone really.  But I’ll keep this move up my sleeve in the event of a worst case scenario. (Also, can you tell that I’ve become consumed by a fear of unfamiliar dogs?  I may need some professional help to get over this.)

How do I transition away from this topic?  How about I just say, "Moving on!"?

Coming back into the heart of Lower Price Hill from North state, we passed the beautifully restored West End Bank Building, home to National Marketshare Group, Inc.  Look at these perfect Corinthian columns:

This wrapped up our Lower Price Hill run, which was one of my favorites (I know, I’ve said that before). Having friends join us was great, and we really want to encourage more people help us finish out the remaining runs.  If you want to tag along--or have us tag along while you take us on a run through your neighborhood--leave a comment or send us an email.

And as a freebie, here is a shot of the four of us the evening before our Lower Price Hill run, so you can see what we look like when we’re not wearing dirty running clothes (okay, maybe it was just D's running clothes that were dirty) and sweating profusely (okay, maybe it was just me who was sweating profusely). 

For the record, I don’t know who the two dudes in the background are, but I did overhear them on the phone telling their friends to come to the Metropole because “some of the classiest people in Cincinnati” were there that night.  Ha!  I’m 88% sure they weren’t talking about us. Unless they saw Donnie valet the LeBaron, in which case they most certainly were. 


-K. 


(J/K, we didn't valet the LeBaron, we left it in an alley with the doors unlocked and the key in the ignition.)

(J/K, we drove the Subaru).