Project No. 10-6301.001 Cincinnati Streetcar: Phase I Cultural Resources Investigations Lead Agency: Federal Transit Administration Prepared for: Parsons Brinckerhoff 312 Elm Street, Suite 2500 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Contact: Jennifer Graf (513) 639-2145 Prepared by: Douglas Owen, M.A., Architectural Historian Gray & Pape, Inc. 1318 Main Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 287-7700 _____________________________ Patrick O’Bannon, Ph.D. Project Manager February 2011 ABSTRACT This report presents the results of a Phase I History/Architecture survey conducted by Gray & Pape, Inc., of Cincinnati, Ohio, on behalf of Parsons Brinckerhoff of Cincinnati, Ohio, for the proposed Cincinnati Streetcar project in Hamilton County, Ohio. The City of Cincinnati is sponsoring the development of a streetcar transit system to serve as an urban circulator for the downtown area and adjoining neighborhoods. The City has identified streetcar transit as a potential tool for improving local circulation, supporting sustainable community and economic development, and complementing other components of the local and regional transportation system. The project will be partially funded by federal grants, administered through the Federal Transit Administration, therefore requiring compliance with the Section 106 consultation process, as defined in 36 CFR 800. Gray & Pape defined an Area of Potential Effects (APE) for the undertaking that encompasses all parcels fronting the proposed streetcar routes. The APE is characterized by a dense, urban concentration of commercial and residential buildings located in Cincinnati’s Central Business District and the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. The literature review for this project entailed an examination of the Ohio Historic Preservation Office’s Online Mapping System and the City of Cincinnati’s CAGIS mapping system. This review identified properties that are listed, or eligible for listing, in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), as well as previously identified and surveyed historic period (pre-1960) resources located within the APE. Historic map research was conducted at the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County in Cincinnati, Ohio. The literature review revealed 17 properties listed in the NRHP, including the large Over-the- Rhine Historic District, as well as two other historic districts. Ten resources have been previously determined eligible for listing in the NRHP. Additionally, 104 resources previously documented in the Ohio Historic Inventory were identified within the APE, eight of which are no longer extant. One additional resource within the APE, Inwood Park at 2326 Vine Street, is recommended eligible for inclusion in the NRHP. As a result of consulting party comments, 16 properties were reexamined to determine NRHP eligibility. Four of these 16 properties are recommended eligible for listing in the NRHP. In total, 32 resources within the APE are listed or recommended eligible for inclusion in the NRHP. The proposed undertaking will affect some historic properties within the APE by introducing new elements into the existing streetscape. These elements have the potential to affect the setting, feeling, and association of the historic properties. The new elements consist of streetcar tracks, placed within existing streets; overhead catenary poles that support the wires providing power to the cars; 22 stops, consisting of three curved posts supporting a simple canopied roof constructed on new concrete bump-out pads within the existing streets; four electrical substations, consisting of small utility buildings, and a streetcar maintenance and storage facility. Gray & Pape applied the criteria of adverse effects outlined in 36 CFR 800.5 to the various elements that comprise the permanent infrastructure of the proposed streetcar system (tracks, catenaries, stops, substations, and the car storage facility). Gray & Pape concluded that the effects associated with the proposed undertaking will not “alter, directly or indirectly, i any of the characteristics of a historic property that qualify the property for inclusion in the National Register in a manner that would diminish the integrity of the property’s location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, or association” (36 CFR 800.5(a)(1)). The proposed undertaking will result in limited ground disturbance, and that disturbance will be largely confined to city streets, which will be excavated to a depth of approximately 18 inches. The undertaking, including the streetcar tracks, overhead catenary poles, shelter stops, and substations, will have no adverse effect upon subsurface archaeological resources in these locations. One of the three alternative sites (Location 2) for a maintenance and storage facility (MSF) will require ground disturbance. Should this location be selected, a Phase I archaeology study will be required to determine whether there is a potential for significant subsurface archaeological resources. The other alternative sites for the facility will not require ground disturbance, and therefore, archaeological investigations are not warranted in these locations. Due to the nature and schedule of the project, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) is currently being developed between the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the City of Cincinnati and the Ohio Historic Preservation Office (OHPO) regarding coordination of detail design features associated with shelters, catenary poles, electrical substations and the MSF. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... i Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................... iii List of Figures .......................................................................................................................... iv List of Tables ............................................................................................................................ v 1.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 1.1 Description of Project .................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Alternatives .................................................................................................................... 1 1.2.1 Build Alternative ..................................................................................................... 3 1.2.2 Maintenance and Storage Facility Alternatives ...................................................... 3 1.2.3 No Build Alternative ............................................................................................... 3 1.3 Area of Potential Effects ................................................................................................ 4 1.4 Cultural Resources Coordination ................................................................................... 4 1.5 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................ 5 2.0 Project Methods ................................................................................................................. 7 2.1 Literature Review and Background Research ................................................................ 7 2.2 Architectural Field Survey ............................................................................................. 8 2.3 National Register of Historic Places Evaluation Criteria ............................................ 18 2.3.1 Criteria Considerations ......................................................................................... 18 3.0 Historic context ................................................................................................................ 20 3.1 Hamilton County .......................................................................................................... 20 3.1.1 City of Cincinnati – Establishment ....................................................................... 20 3.1.2 Cincinnati's Rise to Prominence: 1820–1860 ....................................................... 21 3.1.3 The Industrial City: 1860–1914 ............................................................................ 22 3.1.4 Passenger Rail: Horsecars, Incline Planes, Streetcars, and Interurbans ............... 24 3.1.5 The Modern City: 1914–Present ........................................................................... 26 3.1.6 Over-the-Rhine Historic District ........................................................................... 27 4.0 Project Results ................................................................................................................. 29 4.1 Results of Literature Review and Background Research ............................................ 29 4.1.1 Previous Work in the Area of Potential Effects .................................................... 29 4.1.2 State Site Files....................................................................................................... 30 4.1.3 National Register of Historic Places ..................................................................... 30 4.1.4 Locally Certified Historic Districts and Landmarks ............................................. 31 4.1.5 Historic Map Research .........................................................................................