The Growth of a Cincinnati Suburb: How Cincinnati is Expanding

Cincinnati is, compared to some other big names, a rather strange city. Our claims to fame here are the Bengals, the Reds (Pete Rose... or Joe Nuxhall, I prefer the latter to be associated with the city) and chili. However, if you don't live in a downtown area, there are still plenty of things happening to make you think that you might be someday.

One place in particular is West Chester. I not only say this because it is my current place of residence, but it's because of the unbelievably fast construction going on around here. Of course, a major source of news and fame for our city was the IKEA built just recently. Not only do people know it from all around the city, but people from all over Ohio know it. Some people I spoke to had driven out all the way through Pennsylvania to get their furniture from the mega store. IKEA has brought people from all over the tri-state area. I have had many experiences in which, driving, people pull up next to me and yell "Hey, where's the IKEA!" into my window. At first I was able to, in my mind at least, politely respond with the directions, but it's just crazy now. The parking lot is always full with traffic conductors in reflective safety vests waving cars around.

West Chester also can boast its very own Mercedes-Benz dealership. It's not just any dealership either - cars bought from this place even get the fancy plastic border that goes around the license plate that says "MERCEDES BENZ OF WEST CHESTER" on it. Snazzy. Not only are people driving around to get to the Benz dealership now, but people are driving cars from the dealership, too. The automobile scene is rather homogeneous around here presently, but that's not any real problem... just a lack of variety is all.

However, there are more interesting things now that West Chester is being cultivated by entrepreneurs and other sources. For instance, there are plenty of new strip malls being erected with a vast array of stores in them. We have a store completely dedicated to running. This running store is next to a smoothie and health food store. We have a wine specialty store and a framing store. On top of all the vendors that deal with material goods, a lot of restaurants are opening up here. Granted, they're mostly the family style or upper (read: expensive) dining, it's good to see something besides a Wendy's on the street corner. Mexican, Asian, Italian, American, and other cuisines are around if you look hard enough. That's something I've been grateful for. It's not always just Indian or Chinese as found near the campus of my school in the more "urban" part of Cincinnati.

West Chester, actually, is a rather interesting place to live. In some of the more affluent subdivisions, you'll find graffiti on the electric boxes and stories of kids accidentally killing their friends. As with any neighborhood that can house people with money and teenage kids, there are plenty of customized cars and loud, booming bass notes around to disturb the air in traffic. The high school populations are staggering, but don't necessarily believe in all the things you hear about the statistics (just read my review on Lakota West for instance.)

However, if you're looking for a relatively quiet place to live that has a number of stores to buy things in and restaurants to eat $30 medallions of Kobe beef in, West Chester is a decent place to live in... that is, if you can deal with all the Bourgeois-ness floating around when you park next to some guy with a newly acquired Benz SUV putting in 93 octane gas in and you have to settle for your lowly 89.