I think Oxford could really use a gym with child care, either at the rec or other gym. It is so hard for moms to find time to go to the gym, and this would make it so much easier, benefitting our physical and mental well-being.
Traffic lights at intersections should have a "leading interval" for pedestrians before cars start to move. This will give pedestrians a head start when crossing at an intersection and will improve pedestrian safety.
My vision for the future includes diversity, equality and accessibility for all residents. I am especially concerned about capturing the voice of low income and homeless people who do not have access to the internet or knowledge of how to make sure their voices are heard.
Oxford is a college town in a rural setting, but people -- especially those without cars -- shouldn't feel isolated here. We need to strengthen transportation connections with the rest of SW Ohio and the Midwest. We should connect to Amtrak and advocate for enhanced service. We should support BCRTA in better connecting Oxford to area cities, especially to Cincinnati. And we should pursue additional intercity bus services.
I think Oxford can grow its year-round population and economy while maintaining our community character. We should recommit ourselves to traditional, compact mixed-use development, while preserving open spaces at our edges. We should focus on economic development that leverages our quality of life and highly-educated population, recruiting and supporting employers and developers who share this vision. And we should strive to diversity our population, economic base, and housing in the process.
More accessible parking permits for residents who live on high street.
We need a bit more for people who wish to stay in town for people
a miniature golf course '
a movie theater Are my suggestions
There also needs to be a little more diversity for 70 year olds.
What the city has done in terms of improvements for other model getting around has been very good and is much appreciated.
The town is not attractive for working parents, but it is ideal in a lot of ways.
The mix of opportunities thru the university, local nature, and a few different types of food are big pluses.
But in terms of childcare, preschools, before and after school care, no transportation options limiting after school activities for older kids… that’s not so great.
Those are the things that make life so much more stressful and during this phase of life, we don’t need anymore of that!
My vision for Oxford is that it can be an unexpected oasis in its isolation. We have ripe conditions for trying out cutting edge social programming to address needs in really creative ways.
My vision is also that people could take risks here. Like the risk of starting a business like the generation before us. The cool stores that used to be in Oxford… Kemphus Jewelers, Act 1, The bead shop, movie theater.
1) Replace Parkview Arms with 1+4 story, sec 8, client-to-owner condos subsidized by commercial leasing on the first floor, preferencing traditionally marginalized owners.
2) Protect all of uptown from sprouting yet more 4 story eyesores with net negative parking, reversing 20 years of abject incompetence.
3) Seize the trailer park, use it for affordable housing, and connect it to the streets across the tracks.
4) Merge with Oxford Twp, then ban new single family residential permanently.
Soccer lights. Youth soccer interest has exploded in Oxford, similar to national trends. The OCP original master plan did not foresee this shift. In prior years, the TRI has provided soccer fields on baseball fields to help with the abundance of demand and need to use the fields at night. This actually attracts many teams to Oxford as a destination. Families love the experience. Please add lights onto the “normal soccer fields” to continue the trend and prevent schedule conflicts. Thanks
Need a multiage community center for physical and social activities so all of us, any and every age, can be involved in healthy activities together
Build a natural playground/playscape. Preferably near the new trail so it has increased accessibility. A draw for families with children.
The drive through line to Dunkin Donuts gets very long and wraps around the parking lot, limiting access to the library and other businesses. Can something be done to re route the drive through line?
Continue with efforts to complete the walking/bike path around Oxford. In other communities, having access to the path out your back door is an advantage, and adds to the property's value.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
Help make it easy to recycle hazardous materials such as e-Waste, lightbulbs, paint, oil, etc. So often I see our neighbors decide to throw that broken printer in the trash or pitch the garage chemicals in the garbage because they (1) don’t KNOW what to do with them or (2) can’t be bothered to haul it to Cincinnati, Middletown, or Hamilton for proper disposal.
Improve the Locust Street Corridor. It is not very pedestrian-friendly and is not a pleasant place. It is rich in commercial properties, let's clean it up and treat it as a valuable space and improve walkability there.
Please plan and make note on the needs of various communities within Oxford. To say that over 80% of people live walking distance to a park is a statistic for the students, it does not take into account a large number of the children and families in our community do not live walking distance from a well-equipped park, especially not our poorest children who often do not have transportation. The pool is not walkable for all. Mary Day Park is lacking in good equipment. We must care for poorest!
During the Christmas break this year one could have chosen to park nearly anywhere. Once January 15th arrived (when Miami began offering class's) It became difficult in areas that students live in Oxford. Our planning commission only requires 2 off street parking places. Given the affluent nature of Miami students' parents nearly all students have cars. We typically limit student rentals to 8 or less occupants. It is past time to initiate off street parking as a % of occupants.
1. Get that Amtrak station. Incentivize this sooner rather than later.
2. Invest in social workers to work with Oxford PD and Miami PD.
3. Lower the speed limit on US-27 to 25 mph through the red light at Southpointe Parkway. Simply too much development and lights now for a 45 mph speed limit.
4. Increase bike infrastructure.
5. Affordable housing.
6. Reduce large trucks going through campus - this is a health, safety, and infrastructure hazard for the city and University.
Need to reroute state route 23
Water. Treatment/Conditioner/Softener.
It’s long past due…
Oxford needs a multi-purpose indoor sports/events venue. Inside would be a gym and field, preferably with capability to provide indoor batting cages, for use by the community. We can’t use Miami’s facilities without huge rental fees, the high schools currently struggle to schedule teams all in those spaces, and a gym that is larger than the TRI and more affordable than the Miami Rec Ctr would be ideal…
Oxford needs a full-service BMV.
Oxford also needs to clean up the traffic headache at the Locust/High/27 interchanges.
Additionally, to reduce response times for safety services, Oxford needs to invest in underpasses at Spring and Locust train crossings.
Oxford also needs to invest in correcting the streets that ding wheels and swallow cars. There may very well be a schedule of streets to fix (of some sort), but patching holes isn’t fixing the problems….
I’d like to see incentives and strong communication regarding two areas of sustainability, as well as city regulations that increase participation/buy in.
*Address Light pollution
*Encourage native planting and green sections that attract bees and birds.
Oxford is a wonderful city for seniors--programming, transportation, local hospital etc. The aging population is growing. The other side is that the number of young families is going down. To me, the answer is simple. The services and recreational programming is limited. Sports programs and the aquatic center are expensive. There is no before and after school care The City Recreation could be doing more to address our youngest community members, and Oxford needs a community center.
Would it be possible for City Council to create a formal policy regarding the prohibition or legality of smoking on the sidewalk, city park, and business entry areas in the Uptown district? The existing law is ambiguous, and it would be helpful to have formal policy in place that either permits or prohibits smoking.
Overall, there should be greater financial support of Enjoy Oxford (beyond the 3% hotel tax) and a succinct 10-year tourism development plan. Dedicated professionals and active PR/media outreach will result in more activities and events for locals as well as benefit businesses. It only takes one viral event or unique activity to receive pick-up on a national level. Similar college towns (Athens, OH & State College, PA) are examples of tourism as a key initiative on economic diversification.
A larger furniture recycling program during Miami’s move-out could benefit everyone through a more comprehensive model. The city could purchase gift cards from local businesses and use this as an incentive to entice someone to donate an item for pick-up. The item could then be sold to companies who focus on the resale of these items at a 100% mark-up, covering the cost of the gift card and supporting the organization responsible for the program.
With the addition of an Amtrak station, increased commercial development in the Chestnut area would help reduce congestion Uptown both in foot and car traffic and create a more robust community. With intended train access from Cincinnati, it would encourage day visits without the need for a car especially if there were additional shuttles put in place between a developed Chestnut area and Uptown.
Oxford should obtain stats/information from Miami regarding graduates and target this segment. While Alumni/Homecoming weekends are great, there can be more encouragement for a return to #whereitallstarted. I would think at least 50% of graduates currently live within a 5 hour radius of Oxford and their reason for returning isn't Miami academics, rather the environment the City of Oxford provided.
The City should receive more funding from Miami to elevate and maintain infrastructure. While the town is heavily reliant on Miami and the students, the decision to attend Miami is not solely based on the education or the university. With Oxford providing a safe and quaint “college town” experience, that’s part of the appeal for students to come to Miami, so the reason for some of Miami’s success is because of the environment the city has created.
With imminent plans for the city to convert the landfill into a solar farm, I’m hopeful this will reduce usage through other means. With individual solar panels permitted for residences, it would be great if the city could assist residents in the acquisition of subsidized panels in conjunction with instructions on obtaining federal credits for such investment. This could be in the form of bulk purchases on behalf of community residences to help reduce purchase/installation costs.
Economic development needs to be made a priority for the survival of Oxford as a city. It’s imperative that non-Oxford funds are brought into the city and used for either investment of infrastructure or supports local businesses. Diversification, particularly with food establishments would be ideal, but a dedicated professional or team should specifically focus on economic development with external investment rather than activities that just move money within the community.
It’s great to see efforts toward community composting, but it need to be easier than taking it to the Maintenance garage facility. If participation were more accessible, it would be utilized in a greater way especially as the next generation places more focus on sustainable efforts. Perhaps bins could be placed on every other block’s corner one day and picked up 24 hours later. With little knowledge on the process, a bag with instructions on the benefits should be given/sent to each household.
I would love to see the paved recreational path, from Peffer Park to the Dewitt Parking Lot, be plowed after snow fall in the winter months. This path is so wonderful for stroller use but becomes unusable once snow accumulates and subsequently freezes. Thanks!
We would like to see Oxford's Water Processing plant updated in order to better address the issues with calcium and sediment in the water.
Oxford is a lovely city, but something needs to be done about affordable housing. I understand that this is a college town with many students that also need housing, but as a student myself as well as a long-time resident of Oxford I simply cannot afford the majority of housing here. I know for a fact that I am not alone. Even if affordability weren't the issue, next would be the portion of housing that is exclusive to students renting on a by-semester basis. Regular people need housing, too.
The city of Oxford needs a modern community recreational facility for children, seniors, and families to use during the winter months. We owe it to our children to provide a healthy and safe place to recreate. This is critical to the health of our great community. There is a plan to seek donations for the possible construction of a facility at the TRI, but this will take many years. We ask that the City make it a priority to both finance and fast-track this fantastic project.
City should annex areas near the City limits such as Springwood and the areas between Fairfield Rd. and Contreras Rd. Better still annex the whole Oxford Township and simplify governance and bring all area financial resources under City oversight.
Everyone needs to share in both the benefits and the costs of progress and change.