Explore Cincinnati

Metro announces first-ever layoffs, from the Enquirer

• Metro has laid off 19 full- and part-time workers, also eliminating 82 union jobs.
• Metro is facing a $17 million budget deficit for 2010.
• City Council will vote next week on fare increases and service cuts.

Cincinnati development agencies secure $75 million in grants, from Soapbox

• The Cincinnati Development Fund and the Uptown Consortium have received $75 million in New Markets Tax Credits from the U.S. Treasury Department.
• CDF, which was awarded $30 million, will use the funds for projects in downtown, Over-the-Rhine, and Uptown.
• The Uptown Consortium will use its $45 million award toward development on Short Vine.
• Jeanne Golliher, Executive Director of CDF, said: “Part of the allocation agreement, for the tax credits, was that the projects must be done within two years.”

Business leaders broke ground Friday for Sharonville Convention Center expansion, from Building Cincinnati and Soapbox

• The $30 million expansion will more than double the Center’s space, resulting in a total of 63,000 square feet and 19 rooms when work is complete.
• The Center having more than 1,000 free parking spaces upon completion.
• Returns from the Hamilton County hotel tax helped make the expansion possible.
• The new building will contain energy-efficient and water-conservation components, with the goal of attaining LEED Silver certification.
• The Sharonville Convention Center will remain open during construction.

Clean Ohio Report released, from Building Cincinnati

• Five state agencies have released the 2009 Clean Ohio Report (PDF), which outlines progress made this year through the Clean Ohio Fund.
• According to the report, the Fund has created or retained 15,000 jobs, leveraged $119 million in conservation investments, protected 26,000 acres of family farms, and led to the construction of 200 miles of multi-purpose trails.
• In its first four funding cycles, the Fund has paid for 52 projects in Hamilton County, 17 in Butler County, 6 in Warren County and 3 in Clermont County.
• The Fund was created in 2000 following a voter approval of a $400 million bond issue.

Cincinnati moves up in jobs & technology ratings, from the Business Courier

• In its annual study of job growth and technology, the Milken Institute has rated the Cincinnati-Middletown area 138^th out of 200 metropolitan areas, up from 173^rd last year.
• Columbus placed 108^th.
• The Milken study placed Austin, Texas 1^st.

Summaries by Emily Schneider.