Eastern Hills Journal 11/06/19

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EASTERN HILLS JOURNAL Your Community Press newspaper serving Columbia Tusculum, Hyde Park, Mariemont, Mount Lookout, Oakley and other Northeast Cincinnati neighborhoods

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2019 ❚ BECAUSE COMMUNITY MATTERS ❚ PART OF THE USA TODAY NETWORK

$10 million gift to Cincinnati Ballet is its largest ever Sharon Coolidge Cincinnati Enquirer USA TODAY NETWORK

Margaret Valentine fondly remembers going to the Cleveland Ballet when she was a child, sparking a lifelong love of the ballet. A longtime Cincinnati resident, Valentine wants to make sure the Cincinnati Ballet is around for generations to come. So as the ballet announces its move to Walnut Hills to a new, larger building designed to meet the growing Cincinnati Ballet’s needs, Valentine and her husband, Michael Valentine, gave the dance company $10 million – the ballet’s largest gift ever. “It was evident the Cincinnati Ballet was growing and that their location was not going to be able to sustain the ballet in the manner in which it needed to be sustained,” Margaret Valentine said. “(This project) would be one that would benefi t the entire Cincinnati community.” The move is going to cost $30 million, according to the ballet. A fundraising drive began a little more than a year ago. Valentine’s $10 million donation, combined with a gift from Rhonda and Larry A. Sheakley, are the fi nal pieces to make the move possible. The ballet center will be named the Cincinnati Ballet Margaret and Michael Valentine Center for Dance. And the premier, or largest, studio will be named after the Sheakleys. “Peg (Margaret) and Michael have been dear friends for many years,” said Victoria Morgan, the ballet’s artistic director. “Several years ago, I had the great pleasure of working closely with Peg when they led sponsorship of our premiere production of ‘King Arthur’s Camelot’ during our 2013-2014 season. I learned fi rsthand how truly committed Peg is to guiding an idea into reality. I am honored and thrilled that our new home will be called the Cincinnati Ballet Margaret and Michael Valentine Center for Dance.”

The Mickey Jarson Kaplan Performance Studio on Central Parkway in the West End sits across from Music Hall and borders what will be the new FC Cincinnati stadium. Margaret Valentine and her husband Michael Valentine have donated $10 million to the Cincinnati Ballet, the ballet’s largest gift ever.

The Cincinnati Ballet is a mid-size ballet compared to others across the country, with a $10.4 million operating budget last season. But as some ballet companies struggle – Cleveland’s closed and re-opened as a smaller company four years ago – the Cincinnati Ballet is scheduled to hold nearly 60 performances this season, drawing around 70,000 people. That’s up from 58,000 during the 2015-2016 season. And student enrollment at the ballet’s Otto M. Budig Academy has grown 21 percent since the 2017-2018 school year and is on pace to get even bigger during this year. See BALLET , Page 2A

Margaret Valentine in the wardrobe room in the Mickey Jarson Kaplan Performance Studio on Central Parkway in the West End. LIZ DUFOUR/THE ENQUIRER

1 fi refi ghter injured in Oct. 27 Madeira fi re Amber Jayanth Fox19

A fi refi ghter is suff ering from injuries after a fi re occurred at a Madeira business and apartment complex early Sunday, Oct. 27. The Chief of the Madeira/Indian Hill Fire Department, Steve Oughterson, says the fi re broke out around 2:30 a.m. on Laurel Avenue at behind the Madeira Choice Meats building/apartment complex. When crews arrived, they found heavy smoke in the rear of the building, said Fire Chief Oughterson. One fi refi ghter from the Little Miami Joint Fire and Rescue suff ered minor injuries as a result of the fi re. Oughterson says the fi re was so intense that he had to pull crews out of the building for a while. The building that Madeira Choice

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Meats resides in has been in the community since the 1920s. They share the building with the Curious Garden Flower shop. “He’s been in business 40 years,” said Oughterson. “It’s a blow to the local community. Several people have walked by expressing their condolences saying I shop here. The owner has expressed he doesn’t know what to do. Hopefully, the community will rally for him and his family.” The Curious Garden Flower shop also has extensive damage. Oughterson says the injured fi refi ghter was taken to Jewish Hospital. The cause of the fi re is under investigation. Enquirer media partner Fox19 provided this report. Editor’s note: Information refl ects this article’s publication date – Oct. 27.

To submit news and photos to the Community Press/Recorder, visit the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Share website: http://bit.ly/2FjtKoF

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A fi re occurred at a Madeira business/ apartment complex early Sunday morning leaving one fi refi ghter injured. PROVIDED/ FOX19

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Vol. 39 No. 42 © 2019 The Community Recorder ALL RIGHTS RESERVED $1.00

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