Pete Rose is now eligible for acceptance into Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame.

Rose, who holds multiple MLB records, was banned by the MLB in 1989 after having lied about gambling on the game. That got him placed on a permanent ineligibility list for the Hall of Fame and from holding any job in in the MLB as punishment.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred on Tuesday said permanent bans end upon the death of the individual, and Rose died last September. He says ineligibility is meant to protect the integrity of the game and with Rose's death there's no longer a threat.

"Obviously, a person no longer with us cannot represent a threat to the integrity of the game," Manfred wrote. "Moreover, it is hard to conceive of a penalty that has more deterrent effect than one that lasts a lifetime with no reprieve. Therefore, I have concluded that permanent ineligibility ends upon the passing of the disciplined individual, and Mr. Rose will be removed from the permanently ineligible list."

That means sports writers will now be able to put Cincinnati's "Hit King" on the Hall of Fame ballot.

"Pete is one of the greatest players in baseball history, and Reds Country will continue to celebrate him as we always have," reads a statement from Bob Castellini, principal owner and managing partner of the Cincinnati Reds. "We are especially happy for the Rose family to receive this news and what this decision could mean for them and all of Pete’s fans."

Tuesday's news came a day before the Reds' plans to honor Rose during a home game against the Chicago White Sox. Wednesday also would have been Rose's 84th birthday.

Pete Rose's legacy

Rose, dubbed “Charlie Hustle” for running to first base on walks, played in four World Series in the 1970s as part of the Reds’ Big Red Machine — in 1970, 1972, 1975 and 1976. In five seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies (1979-83) he played in two more World Series in 1980 and 1983.

After starting the 1984 season with the old Montreal Expos, Rose was traded to his hometown club on Aug. 16, 1984, to become Reds player-manager. In his second stint in Cincinnati, he broke Ty Cobb’s all-time hit record with a single to left field on Sept. 11, 1985, and retired as a player in 1986 with 4,256 hits.

He also holds the Major League Baseball record for playing the most games (3,562), plate appearances (15,890) and at-bats (14,053). Rose also holds the Reds’ record for games played (2,722), plate appearances (12,344), runs (1,741), hits (3,358), singles (2,490), doubles (601) and walks (1,210).

Rose was a National League All-Star 17 times at six different positions: first, second and third base, and left, center and right fields.

— additional reporting by John Kiesewetter

Read more:

• Special coverage planned for Reds' Pete Rose Night' Wednesday
• Pete Rose leaves behind lifetime fans and a complicated legacy
• "Charlie Hustle" chronicles the historic and tumultuous career of Pete Rose

A Hamilton County judge says Rodney Hinton, Jr. could stand trial as early as November this year or as late as February 2026 on accusations he hit and killed Hamilton County Sheriff's Deputy Larry Henderson with his car.

Hinton was arraigned in Hamilton County Court Tuesday on two aggravated murder charges, an additional murder charge, and two felonious assault charges for the May 2 incident. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

Hinton has pleaded not guilty to the charges. His attorney Clyde Bennett II has said Hinton has a history of mental health struggles and was under extreme emotional duress the day of Henderson's death. Just hours prior, Cincinnati Police showed Hinton and his family members body camera footage of a CPD officer shooting and killing his son, Ryan Hinton.

Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Jody Luebbers said during the arraignment Tuesday that if Hinton is convicted, a jury must unanimously suggest the death penalty during sentencing for her to consider it. But even then, that doesn't mean Hinton will get the death penalty.

"It is then incumbent on me ... to determine whether death is the appropriate sentence," she said.

Bennett has indicated he'll seek a mental health evaluation to determine whether Hinton is competent to stand trial. In the meantime, he's being held in the Clermont County Jail without bond.

A supporter in Georgia named Antoinette Holloway has alleging he faced excessive force and intimidation by law enforcement officers following his arrest. The suit seeks $25 million in damages.

Luebbers said she'll hold another hearing next week to set a date for Hinton's trial. That trial must take place by February of next year unless Hinton requests a speedier proceeding. That could push the trial date up to November this year.

Read more:

• People gather outside Hamilton County Courthouse in support of Hinton family
• Family launches independent investigation after Ryan Hinton police shooting death
• Man charged with hitting deputy with his car could face death penalty

Anyone signed up to receive emails and notices from Indiana state agencies and offices was sent phishing scam emails overnight after the state said the private company that used to manage the email subscription services was hacked.

The emails appear to come from dozens of state agencies and offices, including the Indiana Department of Revenue, State Comptroller and Department of Transportation.

There were a few different versions, but all of them falsely informed recipients that they had an outstanding TxTag balance, with a link in the email to pay the purported bill. TxTag is a toll system in Texas.

Join the conversation and sign up for . Text "Indiana" to 765-275-1120. Your comments and questions in response to our weekly text help us find the answers you need on statewide issues.

The Indiana Office of Technology said the scam emails are linked to a private vendor whose contract with the state ended last year, but apparently did not remove the state’s account from its system.

The state said there is no evidence of malware if anyone clicked on the link in the scam emails. But if anyone put in credit card or payment information, they will need to contact their bank or credit card company, halt the payments and replace their credit card.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at .

A project working to reduce energy costs for people living in low-income housing is on hold after the federal government cancelled the grant funding it.

In 2023, Green Umbrella received a from the Environmental Protection Agency to study energy efficiency and air quality in affordable housing units through a partnership with Over-the-Rhine Community Housing and the city of Cincinnati.

Executive Director Ryan Mooney-Bullock says the initiative also included installing energy-saving technology, like insulation, electric stoves and heat pumps, in about 35 homes.

Now, that work is on pause. Green Umbrella learned last week its grant had been terminated because it is “no longer in alignment with the EPA’s priorities.”

“The loss of these funds means that we have to stop work on projects that were really designed to benefit community members that have been historically underserved, and it's also preventing us from completing a research study that could then be used to inform how this type of energy efficiency work is rolled out in communities across the country,” Mooney-Bullock said.

She says Green Umbrella was about to make a major purchase of heat pumps when they learned about the grant termination.

“It came at a really bad time in the sense that we were about to do a ton of implementation that is really going to benefit the residents living in these buildings and their nonprofit landlord Over-the-Rhine Community Housing that is managing these buildings,” Mooney-Bullock said.

The Cincinnati-based nonprofit is not the only organization seeing its funding cancelled. The Trump administration is clawing back tens of millions of dollars for environmental research across the country, .

Green Umbrella is looking for ways to continue the data collection that is already underway. It’s working on the study with three research partners: Indiana University, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pennsylvania.

“We have a group of residents who are participating in this and are helping us collect data, and we don't want to just drop the ball on them,” Mooney-Bullock said.

The nonprofit also is disputing the grant termination with the EPA and seeking final reimbursements. Mooney-Bullock says she doesn’t know how long it will take to get that money back since the payment system no longer shows the grant.

To keep the project moving forward, Green Umbrella is looking to community members and businesses for support.

Loss of two grants is ‘very destabilizing’

This is the second grant Green Umbrella has lost since Trump took office.

The first was a $500,000 EPA grant helping Greater Cincinnati community members address environmental risks in their neighborhoods.

“It is very destabilizing for a nonprofit to have significant funding pulled out at the last minute or while projects are underway,” Mooney-Bullock said.

She says the organization is not currently in a financial position where it needs to lay people off or make staffing changes.

“That is certainly something that is a concern if grants continue to get frozen and we're not able to raise the support we need from our local partners,” Mooney-Bullock said.

She says Green Umbrella has started to see an increase in community support.

Read more:

• Trump administration claws back money for local arts program for teen summer jobs
• Green Umbrella loses $500K federal grant for environmental justice work
• Ohio rural libraries struggle to plan amid federal and state funding uncertainty

With apologies to Beyonce, 2018 University of Cincinnati graduate Sylvana Ross is the Queen Bee on �ʵ���’ Bugs That Rule The World.

The entomologist — who appears in all four hours of the documentary series about endangered insects that pollinate everything from flowers and fruits to vegetables, almonds and avocados — introduces national TV viewers to the in Lick Run Greenway along Queen City Avenue in South Fairmount. She’s a co-founder and board member of the nonprofit organization that mentors gardeners, beekeepers and young entomologists.

“If you love to eat, and you love pretty things, we need pollinators,” says Ross, a UC track team recruit who developed a love of bugs her senior year at UC. After earning a biology degree, she taught several years for , the Greater Cincinnati enrichment program, before enrolling in a five-year doctoral program at Cornell University in 2022.

The “Lifegivers” episode on Wednesday, May 14 (10 p.m., Channels 48, 16, 54, PBS) explores the diminishing number of bees, butterflies and moths in the past decade, which has been dubbed the “insect apocalypse” by scientists. NBC News reported in 2015 that

“It was a warning bell for something happening in the ecosystem that’s impacting the insects that we really need,” Ross says.

“Without all the honey bees that are pollinating all the crops, our food would be very, very expensive or very, very bland, because we wouldn’t be able to grow enough to feed ourselves. We have come upon a reliance on honey bees to help feed us,” Ross says.

About 10 minutes of the May 14 episode is devoted to the Queen City Pollinator Project that Ross helped form with co-founders Carrie Driehaus and Jenny O’Donnell in 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown. Ross got caught up in their efforts after seeing that Driehaus always carried a butterfly net in the trunk of her car.

The public TV series provides amazing close-up photography of bees, butterflies and months from around the world. The “Lifegivers” episode also features segments from Japan, France, Kenya and Mexico. Ross appears throughout each episode commenting about various insects from an interview taped a year ago on the Cornell campus in Ithaca, N.Y.

When Bugs That Rule The World explains how it takes four generations of butterflies to migrate annually from Mexico to northern Canada — while a single butterfly can make the return trip — Ross marvels: “How does an organism that’s less than a gram, and less than four inches, make it 2,000 miles in a couple of months? And then arrive in a place they’ve never been to before? In fact, that their parents have never been to before? And their great-grandparents have never been to before?”

In the May 7 premiere, Ross was filmed searching inner city Baltimore for tapinoma sessile, the “odorous house ant” that’s the subject of her five-year doctoral study. That hour also featured reports filmed in Panama, Costa Rica, Denmark and Tanzania. Her Cincinnati and Baltimore scenes were filmed in 2023.

The Colorado native wasn’t bitten by an interest in insects until after she accepted a scholarship to sprint for the Bearcats track team.

“I liked bugs as much as other kids when I was younger, but at some point you go from ‘bugs are cool’ to ‘bugs are gross.’ I knew I liked biology and science in high school. I presumed I’d either be pre-med or go into veterinary medicine,” she says.

But Ross “fell in love with science and nature” while volunteering to help UC associate biology professor Nathan Morehouse with his lab project studying jumping spiders. It was a huge surprise to her Bearcat track teammates who saw her on PBS last week.

“I wasn’t interested in bugs when I was running track, so all my teammates texted me and said, ‘We didn’t know you were into bugs!’ ” Ross says by phone from Cornell.

At Cornell, Ross participated in a program called “Superheros in Science: Women in Entomology.” TV producer Doug Schultz saw Ross on YouTube and contacted her academic advisor. He invited her to participate in his four-hour documentary about the insect apocalypse.

“It sounded amazing, and it turned out to be better than I ever imagined. They did such a quality job. This is really, really big! It’s going to be really impactful," she says.

“We don’t know what we’re losing, because we don’t know what we have.”

And it’s really, really cool to show off the Queen City Pollinators Project to a worldwide television audience.

“It’s amazing. Jenny, Carrie and I have put our heart and soul into it,” says Ross, who wants to return to Cincinnati next month, possibly for a screening of the “Lifegivers” episode followed by a panel discussion.

“We love our city. We love what we do, and we really hope more people appreciate the outdoors and volunteer to come join us,” she says.

�ʵ���’ Bugs That Rule The World airs 10 p.m. Wednesday on Channels 48, 16 and 54 in May. The “Eat or Be Eaten” episode airs May 21. The four-part series concludes with “Beetle Mania” on May 28.

Reds fans will have two chances to catch the pregame tributes to the late Pete Rose, the club’s greatest hitter who died last September, if they can’t attend Wednesday’s game against the Chicago White Sox.

In honor of Rose, who wore No. 14, the game on May 14 will start at 7:14 p.m. — instead of the usual first pitch for a night game at 6:40 p.m. or 7:10 p.m.

On-field according to the Reds website.

FanDuel Sports Network will expand its Reds Live pregame show to one hour. Starting at 6 p.m., the network “will cover the Reds’ festivities at Great American Ball Park as the team honors the life and career of the legendary ‘Hit King’ in front of his hometown fans,” says Kate Zelasko, FanDue Sports Network communications director.

Part of the special coverage will be Hall of Fame Reds radio announcer Marty Brennaman doing a question-and-answer session on the field with Reds greats George Foster, Ken Griffey Sr., Barry Larkin and Eric Davis sharing stories and memories about Pete.

Reds flagship radio station WLW-AM also will broadcast the on-field ceremony live at 6:30 p.m., says Dave Armbruster, sports operation director for iHeart Media Cincinnati.

Pete Rose Jr. will be among the guests when WLW-AM broadcasts the Eddie & Rocky Show from the Holy Grail 3-6 p.m. Wednesday, says Eddie Fingers. Rocky Boiman, Mo Egger and Fingers also will have several other guests, Fingers tells me.

The Reds announcement said the pregame events will include a video tribute by manager Terry Francona and others; a 14-second moment of silence; Rose family members delivering the game ball to the pitcher’s mound; and the National Anthem sung by 14 students from Western Hills High School, Rose’s alma mater.

During inning breaks, “iconic Pete Rose moments” will be shown on the ball park video boards, says Michael Anderson, Reds public relations and photography director.

The Reds have said that “all fans in attendance will receive a #14 Pete Rose replica jersey featuring a commemorative ‘Pete Rose Night’ patch,” the team announced.

From the release: “Adult size XL will be given to fans at ball park gates. XL jerseys can be exchanged for Adult M or Adult 2XL at exchange tables near Gapper’s Alley (Terrace Level behind section 120) and the First Star Fan Zone, while supplies last.”

On Nov. 10 last year, Pete’s daughter Fawn and other family members hosted a 14-hour visitation at Great American Ball Park which was attended by thousands. Baseball’s all-time hits leader died of natural causes Sept. 30 last year, in Las Vegas. He was 83.

Born Peter Edward Rose on April 14, 1941, in Cincinnati, he played 24 seasons in the Major Leagues, including 19 for the Reds. He was the National League Rookie of the Year for the Reds in 1963 and the Most Valuable Player in 1973, when he led the National League with a .338 batting average and 230 hits. He also won NL batting titles in 1968 (.335) and 1969 (.348).

After graduating from Western Hills High School, Rose in 1960, according to MLB.com. He debuted with the Reds at age 21 on Opening Day 1963.

Rose, dubbed “Charlie Hustle” for running to first base on walks, played in four World Series in the 1970s as part of the Reds’ Big Red Machine — in 1970, 1972, 1975 and 1976. In five seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies (1979-83) he played in two more World Series, 1980 and 1983.

After starting the 1984 season with the old Montreal Expos, Rose was traded to his hometown club on Aug. 16, 1984, to become Reds player-manager. In his second stint in Cincinnati, he broke Ty Cobb’s all-time hit record with a single to left field on Sept. 11, 1985, and retired as a player in 1986 with 4,256 hits.

He also holds the Major League Baseball record for playing the most games (3,562), plate appearances (15,890) and at-bats (14,053). Rose also holds the Reds’ record for games played (2,722), plate appearances (12,344), runs (1,741), hits (3,358), singles (2,490), doubles (601) and walks (1,210).

Rose was a National League All-Star 17 times at six different positions: first, second and third base, and left, center and right fields.

In 1989, Rose accepted a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball for betting on baseball while managing the Reds. He was placed on the permanently ineligible list by Commissioner Bart Giamatti. Subsequently, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America ruled that anyone permanently banned from the game was ineligible to be on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. The MLB on Tuesday removed Rose and other deceased players from the league's permanently ineligible list, opening the door to the Hall of Fame, a.

Rose served five months in a federal prison in 1990 after pleading guilty to tax evasion for not reporting his earnings from gambling, personal appearances and memorabilia sales.

Two months ago, President Donald Trump announced on March 3 on social media that he would issue … over the next few weeks.” But that has not happened. Trump also has not explained why he didn’t pardon Rose during his first term as president.

Stacks and stacks of plastic storage bins fill the closets, cupboards and corners of Casey Daulbaugh's home in Bowling Green. She keeps them neat and orderly, tucked away out of sight, but their presence on her mind is heavy.

They're full of medications and medical supplies. The bins are packed to the brim with everything from lidocaine pain patches and knee braces to prescription Zofran to treat nausea and Gabapentin for seizures and pain.

Daulbaugh, 33, has Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, or POTS. With federal cuts to Medicaid expansion looming, she’s fearful she’ll lose coverage. So she’s been rationing her medications – keeping as many doses as possible on reserve in case of emergencies.

“You feel like you have to do this with everything that's going on,” she said. “It's kind of going between, do I feel like I'm being irrational? Am I being in survival mode? That's not rational. Am I hoarding? Am I panicking?”

The proposed federal budget from U.S. House Republicans would cut $880 billion from Medicaid over the next decade. Should the budget pass, and if the Ohio Senate declines changes to trigger language in the state budget, about 800,000 Ohio adults enrolled in Medicaid expansion, like Daulbaugh, could lose coverage.

Ohio's role in Medicaid

The federal government pays 90% of the costs for Ohio’s Medicaid expansion enrollees under the Federal Medicaid Assistance Percentage (FMAP), or the rate at which the federal government matches state spending on Medicaid.

Gov. Mike DeWine’s budget bill included a trigger clause that would “immediately discontinue all medical assistance” for Ohioans under Medicaid expansion if the federal government’s contribution were to fall below that 90%.

The Ohio House has made several changes to that trigger language, according to the . That includes requiring the state to implement a phased transition plan if the FMAP falls below 90% during fiscal years 2026 and 2027. The plan would require assistance for individuals who lose Medicaid eligibility by facilitating their enrollment in private insurance premium subsidy programs or charity care initiatives.

The budget proposal does not mention how the transition plan would occur, according to the Center for Community Solutions.

The state budget bill currently sits with the Ohio Senate. Public testimony is scheduled for late May and a Senate vote is expected in mid-June.

Preparing for cuts

Though there are unknowns surrounding the future of Medicaid expansion in Ohio, Brandy K. Davis, a policy expert with the Center for Community Solutions, encouraged people to educate themselves on their Medicaid qualifications.

“It's important to not panic and to make a plan,” she said. “That's really, really important for people to know and be aware of their qualification status. Because if something happens, they'll be able to make an appeal, or know that they should make an appeal."

Davis said she’s most concerned for babies, children and people living in rural communities. Medicaid covers more than 40% of births in Ohio and more than 30% of children in rural areas. She also expressed concern for hospital emergency departments, which could become inundated with patients who forego primary and specialty care after losing Medicaid coverage.

That’s part of why on Trump’s plan to make cuts. But for now, the Trump administration has held firm, saying major cost cutting is needed for federal tax cuts.

Davis said it won’t be much longer until the picture becomes clearer and the federal and state budgetary process is complete. In the meantime, she suggested working with a doctor to prepare.

“You want to make sure that you express those concerns that you're having with your providers to see [if] you can do a 90-day prescription or something just to sort of stay on top of things,” she said.

She also noted that people on disability should maintain their Medicaid coverage under the proposed budget.

Daulbaugh said she’s cautiously optimistic, but continues to prepare for every possibility. After a previous lapse in her Medicaid coverage, she says it took months for approval due to bureaucratic miscommunication. That has her fearful of more clerical errors and delay.

“There's so many lapses and obstacles between the programs,” she said. “It's crazy and it creates so much more chaos.”

People gathered in front of the Hamilton County Courthouse Monday to show support for Rodney Hinton Jr. and his family.

Hinton is being held without bond at the Clermont County Jail after allegedly striking and killing Deputy Larry Henderson with his car days after a Cincinnati Police officer shot and killed Hinton's 18-year-old son Ryan during a chase on foot.

The Black Panther Movement was one of the groups in front of the courthouse.

“Cincinnati and America have victimized Black people for a long time with police brutality,” said Elder Mmoja Ajabu, senior director of Pan Afrikan Affairs, in a release. “This is critical to understanding local and national empathy for Brother Rodney. Rodney Hinton, Jr. was tired of being tired. We are too!”

The Hinton family has retained attorneys to conduct an independent investigation into the younger Hinton's death.

Cincinnati Black United Front Project Manager Iris Roley was outside the courthouse and says her organization has put forth several recommendations to the city of Cincinnati and the Hamilton County prosecutor to ensure a fair process for the family.

"CBUF urges Hamilton County Prosecutor Connie Pillich to faithfully review all evidence and make charging decisions that are both appropriate and just," Roley said.

CBUF also says it expects an investigation by the Cincinnati Citizens Complaint Authority to proceed concurrently with criminal and internal investigations. It also recommends that the Citizens Complaint Authority retain an independent expert to conduct an additional review of all relevant body cameras and other available footage.

Candace Minor was one of several people passing by who joined the demonstration. She says she stands behind Rodney Hinton Jr.

“It's time for us to take a stance and come together and stand behind our own, just like having the police stand behind their own,” Minor said.

The demonstration took place blocks away from where annual Police Memorial Week ceremonies were happening with Deputy Henderson's death top of mind.

Read more:

• CPD: Driver who struck and killed deputy is father of person shot by Cincinnati Police
• Family launches independent investigation after Ryan Hinton police shooting death
• Man charged with hitting deputy with his car could face death penalty

Police Memorial Week is underway across the country. In Cincinnati, it's being observed with the recent death of a deputy in mind.

Hamilton County Special Deputy Larry Henderson was killed May 2 while directing traffic. The man accused of hitting him faces charges including aggravated murder.

Cincinnati Police Chief Theresa Theetge says people are searching for meaning in Henderson’s death.

“Deputy Henderson, your life was a reflection of selfless dedication to the communities you served. Your watch may be over, but ours continue,” she said. “We carry you with us and we will hold your family in our hearts and prayers always.”

Theetge says Henderson’s death is a reminder of the cost of the job.

“To protect and serve is not just a job. It is a calling. Each day we choose to put on this uniform to stand ready knowing the risk we face may bring life-altering or even fatal consequences, but still we show up.”

Local law enforcement officers marked Police Memorial week with a flag raising at City Hall, and speeches at Fountain Square, where Mayor Aftab Pureval says the entire area is mourning along with the family of Deputy Henderson.

“What I hope we can reaffirm on this day is that while our police and public safety professionals are taking on the sacred task of keeping us safe, we will also be here for them, every step of the way.”

Pureval says policing is not only not an easy job, it’s dangerous and deadly sometimes.

“And yet you continue to step up and serve,” he says. “When our community is going through the worst of it, our officers are the ones who respond.”

The keynote speaker at Fountain Square was the CEO of Fifth Third Bank. Tim Spence thanked first responders for their actions on September 6, 2018. That morning, a man entered the bank lobby at Fountain Square and started shooting. He killed three people and wounded two before he was shot and killed.

Spence thanked the officers who responded. “From the first shot, you were there for us. When you secured the area, less than four minutes later you ran toward danger, offering protection and reassurance to my fellow employees when it mattered most,” he said. “We thank you. You were there for us in our moment of greatest need, and you saved untold numbers of lives.”

Following the event at Fountain Square, officers, retirees and family members marched to a wreath-laying ceremony at the Police Memorial on Ezzard Charles.

Read more:

• Memorials held for fallen Deputy Larry Henderson
• Bond denied for man accused of hitting, killing Hamilton County deputy
• Fifth-Third shooting responders honored for bravery

Cincinnati City Council will vote Wednesday on a 30-year property tax exemption for a developer working to convert Carew Tower into apartments.

Council's Budget and Finance Committee on Monday approved the agreement, with several members praising the project.

"Since I've been here, this is one of the most exciting votes and exciting projects," said Jeff Cramerding. "To see it converted from its underutilized state to 375 units — hundreds, maybe a thousand new tenants right in the Central Business District — is a sign of our commitment to housing and the business district moving in the right direction."

The project is expected to cost about $162 million and will result in 375 market-rate apartments:

• 246 one-bedroom units (average rent $1,950)
• 109 two-bedroom units (average rent $2,700)
• 20 three-bedroom units (average rent $3,300)

The developer is Victrix Investments, a New York-based company that recently completed renovations of the former Macy's headquarters building, another office-to-residential conversion.

"Yes, this is amazing for housing, but I think this also just really shows the vision that the city and this Council and our partners have when it comes to what Downtown can be," said Council member Anna Albi. "I think years after we are no longer in these seats this will be one of those things that outlast us and this part of our legacy."

Officials from the city's Department of Community and Economic Development say the project would not move forward without the incentive.

The 30-year property tax exemption does not apply to the current value of the property, only to the improvements. It's expected to save the developer a total of almost $33 million over three decades. The city's portion of forgone property taxes is about $7.1 million.

In exchange, the developer will pay Cincinnati Public Schools about $560,000 a year, for a total of about $16.7 million. They also will pay about $34,000 a year to the VTICA for operation of the streetcar, a total of about $1 million.

The project also is supported by a $6.4 million state grant for environmental remediation and interior demolition, state historic preservation tax credits worth $10 million, and state transformational mixed-use development tax credits worth $4.25 million.

Read more:

• Former Macy's HQ office building now open with 341 apartments
• LISTEN: The future of office space in Cincinnati
• Cincinnati Council awards $1.8M to low-income senior housing Downtown