Music Hall and Over-the-Rhine

Janelle Gelfand of the Cincinnati Enquirer has just posted a blog entry titled Music Hall and Over-the-Rhine in which she shares a number of reader comments about perceptions of safety issues and other things which may deter patrons from attending events at Music Hall. There were some interesting points made; among them:

Anonymous male, an engineer, writes: "I sometimes find it sad that you will find a police officer present to direct traffic arriving, and someone at the door of Music Hall. But rarely do I see an officer when I'm leaving after a performance.

"...Also, I think the advertising campaign is anemic. I only hear ads on WGUC, which is like preaching to the choir. The Concerts in the Park series has fallen off, and I think this generated a lot of interest. After many years, we have a first class Symphony, but I don't think the community really knows this."

Shirley Ekvall of Wyoming suggests: "I would suggest the police be around the parking garage, too. Maybe more officers should be visible. Could an escort be available if some desire?"

Sergio Baranovsky e-mails: "Crime in OTR is a concern. That said, we do not make concert attendance decisions based on local crime statistics. On the other hand, we always allow ourselves sufficient time to park in the CET/WGUC lot. The $5 fee is well worth our peace of mind.

"Perhaps symphony tickets could include parking as an additional incentive. Some upscale downtown restaurants offer complimentary valet parking to make security conscious patrons feel safer."

So what do you say?