Cincinnati Skywalks
Most people seem to have strong feelings about Cincinnati's skywalks. I have a love/hate relationship with them. As an urbanist I hate them, but when the streets reach 90f+ or drop below freezing I love them.
The Cincinnati Skywalk was built in segments starting in 1971 and at its height stretched for 1.3 miles around downtown. No more segments were added after the last one was completed in 1997. The skywalks were first envisioned for downtown economic development and a way to compete with suburban stores. Almost immediately people began to realized the skywalks were a big mistake as streets were emptied of pedestrians and the perception that no one went downtown became widespread. I always think back to when I first moved to Cincinnati and Fountain Square was always empty but crowds of people could be seen using the skywalk from the Fountain Place Bldg to the 5/3rd Building. When Fountain Square was redone and that section of the skywalk came down it seemed like magic when just like that there were hundreds of people on the square at any one time.
The Cincinnati Preservation Collective hosted a walk to view some of the remaining portions of the skywalk, I wasn't able to follow them across all the segments but I documented some of the sights.
The tour began where Cincinnati's 6th St Market once stood. It was torn down and replaced by a parking garage. The plaque on the market bell called it a simple brick building. I'll let you be the judge of that simple brick building.
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