Cinccy = KC?

[TheDude]

any of this sound familiar?

City failed with Maison project
-- Cincinnati Business Courier -- 1998-06-08: selected excerpts:

It must have been extremely frustrating for Cincinnati Economic Development Director Andi Udris and others negotiating for a Maison Blanche department store downtown to hear the news about Mercantile Stores' sale to Dillard's Inc. Years of negotiations were negated in an instant -- with nothing to show for them but a nearly empty building at Fifth and Race streets.
The city knew back in 1994 that it wanted to build a new department store for McAlpin's. The original idea was to have the store move from its Fourth Sreet location directly into the new digs, but as we all know, McAlpin's and parent Mercantile got tired of waiting and pulled
out of downtown in early 1996....

...But as the old saying goes, you make your own luck. And Cincinnati's history is one of interminable yakking, delays and directional switches. Getting the Lazarus store at Fountain Square West was the equivalent of completing a triathlon with a ball and chain attached to your foot. In that decade-long debacle, numerous development ideas bit the dust, leaving that prime real estate to serve as a parking lot for several years.

And we cringe at the thought of long-pending projects still undone -- an enlarged convention center, a Kroger store to serve the growing residential population downtown, a T.J. Maxx in the former Gidding Jenny building. The specter of what might ensue on the riverfront -- where a pell-mell rush to mega-retail was halted by city council -- is too painful to contemplate.

Cincinnati speaks wistfully of being a "gazelle" city -- but gazelles know how to run. This city is more like a hippopotamus ensconced in a major mud puddle. How to get moving? It would be helpful if city council would cooperate in changing its make-up so that someone would be in charge and have the power to make deals happen quickly. But that, too, is stuck.

Someone had better toss the hippo a rope, before we all sink.

[KCPowercat]

Can we have their 3 new facilities along the riverfront since we're the same?

Every city has delayed projects.....

[Good2Great]

I believe at one point the Cincy Biz Journal referenced him as "Andi Useless."

[Good2Great]

Udris failing to deliver on high hopes
City economic development director Andi Udris has come under fire in some circles for his lack of results, and an analysis shows he failed to meet 13 of his 14 goals.
Dan Monk
Courier Senior Staff Reporter
When he was Cleveland's top development official, Andi Udris was called "No problem Andi." He seemed to have a knack for steering projects around obstacles and making them work.


Jacobs Field. The Flats. New housing. New retail. All were launched during Udris' tenure in Cleveland. The city's recovery became a national story and Udris a hot property.

But within two years of his 1994 arrival in Cincinnati as the city's economic development director, Udris had a new moniker.

"I used to call him `Andi Useless,' but I sort of don't do that any more," said Dan Staton, whose Cincinnati Development Group partnership is the city's Fountain Place developer.

The true Andi Udris apparently lies somewhere in between his two nicknames, according to a Courier review of Udris' performance evaluations and interviews with local developers, business leaders, members of city council and others.

Except for submitting a list of accomplishments, Udris chose not to comment on his record.

While he gets high marks from neighborhood business districts and some members of council, Udris has a spotty record at best when it comes to developing downtown.

A review of Udris' performance on downtown development shows he's failed to meet nearly every goal he set for himself in each of the last three years.

And in Udris' performance evaluations and several interviews, the following criticism repeatedly emerged:


While praised for his energy and creativity, Udris gets low marks for handling details. For example, to those who have had trouble getting Udris to return their phone calls -- "Don't worry," quips Towne Properties LLP principal Arn Bortz, downtown's most active developer, "you're not alone."

In his February 1996 review of Udris, City Manager Shirey noted: "Chronic inattention to details and lack of follow-up continue to plague an otherwise strong performer."



» Continued
Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4


© 1997 American City Business Journals Inc.

[KCPowercat]

yeah looks like he was pretty rough in Cinci.....but pretty damn successful in Cleveland.

[TheDude]

yeah, they finally put the fires out on the Cuyohoga (sp). Cleveland Rocks!!!!

[Good2Great]

I've heard rumors that the Drew Crey series is loosely based on AU.

[KCPowercat]

granted Clev. was rock bottom.....

I'm just more of an optomist.

[TheDude]

G2G you are cold blooded. At least Drew Carey ended up w/ a hotty; i do see the similarity between AU and DC