good news for the former Maisonette site

I'm so tired of seeing the former property of the Maisonette sit empty - i hope this goes through, because they could use some fresh development on that end of 6th. We need more places open for dinner and on the weekends! I never got to eat at Maisonette, but La Normandie had great food and a very intimate layout. I hope they are able to put in a restaurant/bar/whatever of equal caliber (no more Cadillac Ranches, ok?) but with more reasonable pricing.

Maisonette site may be restaurant again
By Lisa Bernard-Kuhn • lbernard@enquirer.com • July 8, 2009
DOWNTOWN - Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. says it is in talks with several restaurateurs for the vacant space that once housed Barleycorn's, La Normandie and Maisonette on Sixth Street.
By fall, the nonprofit development group hopes to finalize a deal that would include renovating the downtown buildings into seven upper level condos with about 16,000 square feet of street level space for a restaurant and entertainment user, said Stephen Leeper, president and CEO of 3CDC.
The nonprofit is working with Mount Adams-based Towne Properties, which is consulting on preliminary designs and might partner with 3CDC on a portion of the residential side of the project, Leeper said.
He declined to name the prospective tenants and said it's too soon to estimate the project's cost.
This week, 3CDC began interior "spot" demolition to scope out the potential layout options for the street-level space.
"We're making some pretty good progress," Leeper said, adding that it's likely that 3CDC will hand off the redevelopment project to a local developer and partner with them on the financing.
3CDC bought the properties late last year for roughly $2.4 million, a key acquisition that expanded the nonprofit's reach further into the downtown core.
Since completing Fountain Square's renovation last year, 3CDC also has led the redevelopment of the former Phoenix Café on Walnut Street into renovated condos and the incoming Righteous Room, a bar and lounge set to open this summer.
Other nearby venues include the recently opened Bootsy's, a restaurant and bar at 631 Walnut, and Nicholson's Tavern & Pub at 625 Walnut.
"This will really build on the progress that's been made so far and complement the area very nicely," Leeper said. "We're really trying to begin to use these buildings more densely than we have in the past, which will really help create a steady population downtown for a greater portion of the day."