General Electric is making a big investment in The Banks, a mixed-use development in downtown Cincinnati — nearly $90 million big.
The company announced this month that it will build a 338,000-square-foot 10-story office building at the Cincinnati development along the downtown riverfront. The $80 million to $85 million building is scheduled for completion by Sept. 1 of 2016.
The new office tower is an important victory for The Banks. Planners and developers have high opes for this mixed-use development, a development that when complete will become Cincinnati’s largest such project.
Phase 1A of the project is already complete, a phase that includes a parking facility, 300 apartments and 96,000 square feet of retail. Construction crews broke ground in May on Phase IIA. This phase will include 291 apartments and nearly 20,000 square feet of retail. Construction on this phase of the development should wrap by the fall of 2015.
Real estate investment, development and advisory firm Carter, in partnership with equity partner NIC Riverbanks, is overseeing the development of the project. Construction on Phase IIB of hte project is expected to begin soon.
The General Electric office building will house about 1,400 to 2,000 employees and will be located just west of the Freedom Center on the eastern portion of Phase IIB.
“This is a game-changer for The Banks development,” said Jim Shelton, vice chairman of Carter, in a statement. “GE provides the first office component, helping to make The Banks a truly mixed-use development.”
The retail portion of Phase 1A of The Banks is now 91-percent leased, with only one space still available. The residential portion of Phase 1A is 100-percent leased and occupied.
Retailers already doing business here include The Holy Grail, Tin Rooof, Rut’s Chris Steak House, Toby Keith’s, Crave and Mahogany’s.
