In Cincinnati, city leaders will work to reduce barriers to new construction, said Mayor Roxanne Qualls. One objective is to work with home builders to increase the number, quality and affordability of new housing. Other cities selected for the pilot program include Buffalo, Chicago, Houston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Sacramento, Tampa, San Antonio, St. Louis and Washington. Firefighters were called to the 13th Street blaze shortly before 1 a.m. and found smoke and flames shooting from the second floor of the four-story building, said District 1 Fire Chief Will Jones. The building was evacuated, and no injuries were reported.
Officials think the blaze started in the living room of an apartment.
A cause had not been determined. Twenty-five firefighters extinguished the blaze in about two hours, Chief Jones said. The resident who was displaced is being assisted by the Red Cross. He also will be on probation for two years. Medina County Common Pleas Judge Christopher Collier ignored the prosecutor's recommendation for house arrest and denied Mr. Herrin's claim that he would be held to a different standard.