Norwood International Art Show September 16

It is good to love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs
much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is well done.
” – Vincent Van Gogh


On September 16, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m., you can experience the love of 30 artists from
various countries as part of the International Art Show that will take place in Victory Park in Norwood.
For some, the art show is more than just an opportunity to display their work. It is their opportunity to
experience healing while sharing their expressions with the world. Read the testimony of one such
artist: “I started on the path of art as part of a healing process and found in the pointillism technique to paint
mandalas my sensitive and authentic space to heal my inner wounds and when I began to see the
wonderful creation of my hands in a natural and progressive way, I was giving answers to my concerns
and desires. In my new journey, friends and organizations played a fundamental role in my life, helping
me make my art visible, welcoming me into artist collectives, motivating and driving me to keep moving
forward and, above all, to recognize myself as an artist.”

In addition to the various artists, you can experience performances by Anaya Belly Dance, Natural
Progression, and Mike Wade & The Nast Nati Brass Band. Natural Progression exhilarating sound derives from each individual’s roots in Jazz, R & B, Soul, Neo-Soul, and Gospel. Music will also be provided by DJ cLean.
Food trucks will be available to soothe your appetite while enjoying the performances and displays. Be
sure to bring family and friends to this wonderful event! We can’t wait to see you.

Continue ReadingNorwood International Art Show September 16

Fifth Annual Norwood Historic Home Tour, October 21, 2023

The Norwood Historic Home Tour joins with the Fall Festival (12–6P) with free live music, activities for the kids, craft vendors, and Off Pike Market (12–5P) with treats, drinks, and food trucks at Victory Park.

The tour starts at Victory Park, at Montgomery Road and Mills Ave, in Norwood, Ohio. A bus and guide will take you on a tour of Norwood including an inside tour of 3 beautiful historic homes. There will be some walking.

Tours are kept to a max of 14 people per bus, last 75 -90 minutes, come rain or shine.

The fifth annual Norwood Historic Home Tour is organized by Norwood Together in partnership with the Norwood Historical Society to highlight the history and character of Norwood. Other community partners that make the tour possible include the City of Norwood, Off Pike Market and Northwood Cidery.

Continue ReadingFifth Annual Norwood Historic Home Tour, October 21, 2023

Welcome Ron Mosby!

We are so excited to have Ron as our new Executive Director. 

One of Ron’s most unique attributes is that he has served at every level of government. Most recently, he served as City Administrator for the City of North College Hill. His public service experience also includes being a chief of staff for three different members of Cincinnati City Council, serving as a board member for the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority, serving as a member of North College Hill City Council, Public Information Officer for the Ohio Department of Transportation and an elections official for the Hamilton County Board of Elections.

He is currently enrolled in North Kentucky University’s Master of Public Administration program. As part of that program, Ron had the privilege of being able to make a presentation in front of the Norwood Economic Development Committee in 2022.

Look for Ron around town as he reaches out to get to know more about the city. Not only does he have a ton of experience, but he also has a great personality and a contagious laugh. We are enjoying getting to know him and are sure you will too! 

Continue ReadingWelcome Ron Mosby!

2023 Norwood International Art Show

To celebrate Welcoming Week (September 8 – 17, 2023), Norwood Together, in partnership with Queen City Clay and Off-Pike Market is organizing the Norwood International Art Show, September 16, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

We are inviting local artists and artists with diverse backgrounds and media to join us. Registration information will be announced soon.

We are also inviting local organizations and businesses to support the art show. For details on how to sponsor this event, please email norwoodtogether@gmail.com.

Welcoming Week is a network of events throughout communities in the U.S. and abroad where communities bring together neighbors of all backgrounds to build strong connections and affirm the importance of welcoming and inclusive places in achieving collective prosperity. Read more about Welcoming Week from Welcoming America.

Norwood Together is part of Welcoming America’s global network of nonprofit organizations and government members to transform communities into more welcoming places for all residents, including immigrants.

CHECK OUT THE WINNERS FROM THE 2022 ART SHOW!

Continue Reading2023 Norwood International Art Show

Fourth Norwood Historic Home Tour is a success!

The weather was beautiful for the Fourth Annual Norwood Historic Home Tour and Fall Festival and Off Pike Market at Victory Park. The day showcased not only Norwood’s gorgeous old homes, but also new developments and businesses, and our talented community, with performances from Norwood Orchestra, W Monty’s, and the Cable Guys; a storytime with the Norwood Library; and family games and crafts.

Norwood Together coordinated the event with a collection of partners: the Norwood Historical Society, Off Pike Market and the City of Norwood. The event also was sponsored by Jennifer McGillis Realtor, Duke Energy, Huber Lumber Co., Perry Contracting, Inc., Naegele, Kleb & Ihlendorf Funeral Home, and the Acanthus Group LLC. Special thanks to Northwood Cider Co. and The Valley Church, and the dozens of volunteers who kept the day running smoothly.

The tour began with the Norwood Historical Society and the Cincinnati Type & Print Museum before riding to Park Avenue to discover the neighborhood’s history and architecture. We had the unprecedented opportunity to tour an exquisite Queen Anne Victorian home thanks to Linda Prues. Her iconic Norwood was once the Y.W.C.A. 

The walking tour included the history and architecture of Immaculate Conception Church, corner stores, and Dorl Field, originally built for printing employees and families and named for Theodore C. Dorl. “Teddy” was a general superintendent of U.S. Printing & Lithograph Company and president of the Craftsman Club.

We visited the site of the former U.S. Printing & Lithograph Company and the U.S. Playing Card Company, including the Samuel Hannaford and Sons designed brick facility at Park Avenue. The companies shared a restaurant, the land which became Dorl Field, and multi-family units for employees. 

The tour included the police training facility and canine officer, as well as the Happy Hollow Inn, featured in the Bruce Willis movie, Hard Kill, which was mostly shot at the U.S. Playing Card buildings before being demolished.   

Finally, Salvation Army, originally Kemper-Thomas, known for their advertisements, colorized calendars, Vienna art plates, thermometers, and brewery products. The company could arrange room and board for employees at the aforementioned Queen Anne Victorian Y.W.C.A nearby. 

Continue ReadingFourth Norwood Historic Home Tour is a success!

The Inaugural Norwood International Art Show

To celebrate Welcoming Week (September 9 – 18, 2022), Norwood Together, in partnership with Queen City Clay and Off-Pike Market is organizing the inaugural Norwood International Art Show, September 17, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

We are excited to welcome artists new to America (Bhutan, Syria, Peru, India, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Bolivia) as well as local artists. Our goal is to provide space for emerging artists to showcase their talents and tell their stories.

If you’re interested to sponsor this event, please contact norwoodtogether@gmail.com.

Welcoming Week is a network of events throughout communities in the U.S. and abroad where communities bring together neighbors of all backgrounds to build strong connections and affirm the importance of welcoming and inclusive places in achieving collective prosperity. Read more about Welcoming Week from Welcoming America.

Norwood Together is part of Welcoming America’s global network of nonprofit organizations and government members to transform communities into more welcoming places for all residents, including immigrants.

Tickets are FREE, GET YOURS!

READ MORE

Continue ReadingThe Inaugural Norwood International Art Show

Strongest Town Contest Sister Cities Come Together

By Alisha Loch & Mary C Miller (published on Strong Towns, August 18, 2022)

Representatives of both Norwood, OH, and Jasper, IN, meet up in person after facing off in the finals of this year’s Strongest Town Contest.

Dozens of aspiring towns entered the competition to be named 2022’s Strongest Town. The two finalists—Norwood, Ohio, and Jasper, Indiana—are both midwestern towns of similar population, the former an urban place surrounded by the metropolis of Cincinnati, and the latter a rural county seat in the farmlands of Indiana. Both towns are moving in a similar trajectory, revitalizing their downtown areas, creating events that bring residents together, building collaboration between city entities, and being mindful of their financial futures.

Those of us in Norwood, Ohio, gathered on the steps of our historic middle school with music, our local coffee trailer, balloons, and face painting in April to celebrate the results of the Strongest Town competition, regardless of the outcome. 

Our advancement round after round had us elated to be able to come together and celebrate the resilience of our community, and it was clear that our co-finalist, Jasper, Indiana, was a worthy contender. Before the results were in, a connection had already been formed in the interest of the two towns moving forward together, learning from each other, and celebrating the good things happening in both communities.

READ MORE ON STRONG TOWNS

Continue ReadingStrongest Town Contest Sister Cities Come Together

Norwood Historic Home Tour returns in October

The Norwood Historic Home Tour returns on Saturday, October 15, with an afternoon walking tour around the historic Park Avenue neighborhood, including the rich history of the homes, churches, parks, and businesses. The Home Tour joins with the Fall Festival (1–6) and Off Pike Market (1–5P). Enjoy free live music, activities for the kids, craft vendors, treats, drinks, and food trucks at Victory Park and Mills Avenue.

Each tour group will have a maximum of 20 people. They will start at Victory Park, and a bus will take them to the Park Avenue, Floral, and Robertson Avenue neighborhoods.    

This fourth annual Historic Home Tour is organized by Norwood Together in partnership with the Norwood Historical Society to highlight the history and character of Norwood. Other community partners that make the tour possible include the City of Norwood and Off Pike Market.

Buy your tickets HERE.

Continue ReadingNorwood Historic Home Tour returns in October

The Northwood Cidery Makes Norwood Home

Joseph Klare walks me through the empty building, gutted of all the features that made it an auto shop, and explains how it will soon become a thriving craft cidery in the heart of Norwood.

Northwood Cider Co. will be  the first and only dedicated hard cider company in Greater Cincinnati when it opens in the summer of 2022. Klare’s enthusiastic descriptions fill the empty space for me: the storage areas up top, where the cider will be fermented in the back, and the bar running along the west side of the building.

“We’ll have a cold storage room where we’ll have all of our finished product and some of our stuff that hasn’t been fermented yet. And then there’ll just be a very small chain divider between the front house and back house,” Klare said. “We want people to be able to see… how it’s made and where it’s made. This’ll be a production area, so people can’t just wander back, but we will be doing tours and “How Cider’s Made” classes and things like that. We’re not going to be a huge operation, obviously, but we can hopefully get some information out to people that are curious about the process and how we’re trying to use as local ingredients as possible.”

Klare and his wife Rohan Krehbiel partnered with couple Darrin Wilson and Keyu Yan to bring their love of cider to greater Cincinnati with the aim of being inclusive and inviting to all the people of Norwood. Klare met Wilson at a brewery when grabbing drinks and dinner with a mutual friend. They discovered both had a passion for home brewing cider. Klare and his partner Krehbiel, had found craft cidery through a trip to Ireland in college despite not knowing each other at the time. After the two got married home brewing became a popular hobby, especially wines and ciders due to Klare’s gluten intolerance. Wilson, on the other hand, also discovered cider while abroad and living in England. He had an existing interest in home brewing and brought home to his wife, Keyu Yan, the art of cider brewing. Wilson previously owned a brewery, but sold the business when he and his wife moved. It seemed like the perfect encounter when the two met, and the next morning Wilson messaged Klare to ask about his thoughts on starting up a brewery together. Klare describes that they “brought [their] spouses into the mix and everyone hit it off as friends”.

Greater Cincinnati’s market didn’t have breweries specialized in craft cider despite its growing popularity in the United States following the popularity of craft beer. Searching for the right location within the Interstate 275 loop, Klare and Wilson, who both work in economic and community development in their day jobs, knew they wanted a place near both residential and business areas.

“We were seeking locations where we could function as a neighborhood living room for residents, a great starting point for visitors to explore a community, and a community that had a great deal of passion and activism to make itself more vibrant,” Klare said. “Tom Perry, who previously worked for the City of Norwood, happened to be one of Darrin’s students and suggested the pair take a look at Norwood. A group organized by Norwood Together showed them around town and pointed out a few potential buildings and explained all of the great things happening in Norwood. They spotted the old Norwood Brake building, right next to Victory Park and across from Surrey Square and Kroger, and a few months later were under contract.”

The Northwood Cidery will feature classic cider flavors as well as experimental flavors that are crafted on a rotating basis, so there’s a drink for everyone. 

“The idea is that it’s going to become a flexible space so that we can hold community events. You could call us and reserve a table for some 20 people for your birthday party. You can bring your kids in and sit in the lounge and watch a basketball game with them. Or, you know, when Off Pike Market’s happening outside, and you’re out shopping. Maybe your husband or your son or your family is coming with you and you want to sit down for a while. [You want to] take a load off and grab a drink and people can keep shopping,” Klare said. “So we’re trying to make it a space that’s flexible, but accommodating and one that’s comfortable visually.”

The cidery plans to have five to six year round ciders on draft as well as five to six ciders that rotate seasonally based on what fresh ingredients are available at the time. In regards to the diversity of what the cidery/taproom has to offer Klare says this about the drinks available, which will range from various ciders, a few beers, and potentially a few wines,  

“Technically we are wine, and we want to try to convert wine drinkers into cider drinkers, but we will have two or three taps of beer for people that just can’t get into cider. Again, we want to accommodate people as best as we can. And if you just can’t get into cider and we’ll have a beer and try to talk you into trying one.”

The Northwood Cidery and Tap House plans to open in the summer of 2022 and will be located in the old Norwood Brake building at 2075 Mills Ave.

Continue ReadingThe Northwood Cidery Makes Norwood Home

Community Councils return March 24

Community Councils are monthly gatherings that give residents in each of Norwood’s four wards a chance to create productive and meaningful connections among their neighbors and with city leaders.

Community Councils always take place at 7 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of each month. Last year, to reduce the likelihood of covid spread, most meetings were outdoors and Community Councils went on hiatus through the winter months.

The gatherings return March 24 with a special opportunity to tour the new Norwood Recreation Center!

Beginning at 6 p.m., recreation center staff will be on hand to give tours and answer any questions people might have about classes or activities. Recreation Director Michael Gabbard will be the guest speaker for the Community Council gathering, which will begin at 7 p.m.

Attendees also will be able to connect with City Council members, talk with their neighbors, and ask questions and share ideas about the city.

Continue ReadingCommunity Councils return March 24