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Downtown Cincinnati Improvement District (DCID)

 

Renewal Information

 

Dear Property Owners,

 

We are pleased to present the Services Plan for the 2026-2029 renewal of the Downtown Cincinnati Improvement District (DCID), which delivers services to stakeholders in three fundamental areas: Clean and Safe, Communications and Marketing, and Stakeholder Services. As property owners within the District, we all have an important stake in the success and growth of downtown Cincinnati as a vital hub of activity in the heart of our region. We hope that you will help us continue our commitment to downtown Cincinnati by signing the petition to renew the District for the next four years.

The DCID Board of Trustees has incorporated feedback from our stakeholders to develop this Services Plan. The Plan is designed to deliver significant return to all property owners by focusing on activities that enhance downtown as a sought-after place to live, work, shop, dine and be entertained. The Plan lays out a framework to:

  • Deliver a clean, safe, welcoming and green downtown environment;
  • Provide resources for social service outreach programs to offer assistance to those who are panhandling and experiencing homelessness;
  • Market and leverage the many retail, restaurant and entertainment investments that have transformed downtown; and
  • Build relationships and provide accurate, comprehensive data that promotes and enables downtown’s business and residential growth.

We have completed this year’s renewal, and owners representing more than 60% of the front footage in the District signed the petition, meaning the District has been renewed for another four-year term. The notice listed below has been mailed to all property owners, and additional communications will be shared when remaining details for the 2026 – 2029 term are finalized this fall.

NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNERS

OF THE DOWNTOWN CINCINNATI IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT SPECIAL DISTRICT ASSESSMENT

 

APPROVAL FOR THE 2026-2029 SERVICES PLAN AND NEED FOR ASSESSMENT

Notice is hereby given that the Cincinnati City Council adopted Legislative Resolution 51-2025 on June 11, 2025 (“Resolution”) approving a petition for the 2026-2029 Services Plan (“Services Plan”) for the Downtown Cincinnati Special Improvement District (“SID”) and declaring the necessity of assessing real property within the SID to pay for the costs of the Services Plan.  The approval of the Services Plan and the assessment will provide for the continuation of various services that benefit the SID including but not limited to the Ambassadors program.

 

ASSESSMENT CALCULATION

The Services Plan provides that each property within the boundaries of the SID, excepting those excluded by law, shall be assessed in the following manner:

By a combination of (i) the percentage of an assessed property’s front footage relative to the front footage of all assessed properties in the district (which, for purposes of the assessment shall include all property that abuts upon a street, alley, public road, place boulevard, parkway, park entrance, easement, or public improvement), which shall consist of 25% of the assessment, and (ii) the percentage of an assessed property’s tax value relative to the tax value of all assessed properties in the district, which shall consist of 75% of the assessment.

 

DOCUMENTS AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION

The Resolution, the petition, the Services Plan, and the estimated special assessments for each property are now on file in the office of the Clerk of Council (Room 308, City Hall, 801 Plum Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202) and available for inspection by any interested person upon request.

 

OBJECTIONS

Objections to the special assessments, amount, or apportionment thereof, must be received in writing in the office of the Clerk of Council (Room 308, City Hall, 801 Plum Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202) within 14 days from service of this notice. If objections are received, the Council will appoint an Assessment Equalization Board. The Board will conduct a hearing to review assessments and if it deems proper, equalize the assessments. Once the Assessment Equalization Board hearing is finalized and the Board's report is approved by Council, an ordinance to proceed will be considered for enactment, followed by an ordinance levying the special assessments.

 

PAYMENT

No payment of the estimated assessment is necessary at this time. Notice of the enactment of the ordinance levying the special assessments will be published following its enactment. The special assessments will be collected in eight semi-annual installments over four years, through your tax bills at the same time that real property taxes are collected, beginning with the tax year 2025 tax list and duplicate. The first such installment should appear on your first-half tax bill, which is expected to be sent to you in January 2026.