More than 60 million people in 170 countries will be watching from August 10th through the 18th as the Western & Southern Open returns to the courts of the Lindner Family Tennis Center in the Cincinnati suburb of Mason, Ohio. This part of the ATP World Tour was originally known as the Cincinnati Open and the event has been bringing the best tennis players from all over the world.

Started in September of 1899 it was originally played at the Avondale Athletic Club where Xavier University now stands. It also has the distinction of being the oldest tennis tournament to be held in its original city in the United States with historic winners like Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lindl, Boris Becker, Brad Gilbert, Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Michael Chang, Margaret Court and Lindsay Davenport. “Due to our status as an ATP Masters 1000 event and the Premier 5 event for the WTA, we are guaranteed the top 40 ranked men’s players and the top 20 ranked women’s players. It’s not every day you get to see top players like Roger Federer or Maria Sharapova in Cincinnati, other than at our tournament”, notes Will Sikes the Director of Marketing.

To attract top notch players you need to have a top notch facility and for the past four years a $23 million expansion has been in progress at the Lindner Family Tennis Center. The expansion of the grounds to nearly 20 acres includes additional bars, a flourishing food scene with 14 local cuisine options and 20,000 square feet of retail space. The 2013 Western & Southern Open also introduces the Robert Mondavi Wine Garden featuring nightly visits from celebrity chefs. Will Sykes also shares, “Our goal as a tournament is to provide our guests with amazing experiences, whether they occur on or off the court. Over the past few years we have expanded our site by more than 40% to give our visitors the best in food, drink, entertainment and tennis.”

Not only does this event give visitors the best of food, drink, entertainment and tennis; it gives back to the community. Since 1974, the tournament has contributed more than $8.7 million to beneficiaries Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical

Center, Barrett Cancer Center and Tennis for City Youth. “Paul Flory, our past chairman of the tournament, always had a heavy focus on charity. Over the past 30 or so years we have worked on increasing our involvement with local Cincinnati charities as we look to give back to our city.” Will says enthusiastically.

The Western & Southern Open and its players entertain with great tennis while impacting the local economy by $62.5 million (according to a recent study conducted by the University of Cincinnati) and also giving to several local charities which really does put the ball on our court.

Ride, Splash, Quack!

The Duck tour is a fun way of touring the Greater Cincinnati area. Travel on land and water in one vehicle while touring the streets of Cincinnati and Newport and by making a big splash into the Ohio River. Ride the Ducks is truly a unique way to see the area.

Cincinnati, also known as the Queen City, is a city rich in history and culture with exceptional visual and creative arts, professional sports teams and top notch museums. Whether you are a resident or a visitor there is always something to learn, see and do in Cincinnati and our neighboring cities of Covington and Newport. For those reasons and many more, it’s no surprise that in 2012 Lonely Planet Travel Guide named Cincinnati number three of the top ten travel destinations in the United States.

Cincinnati offers all the benefits of larger cities like Chicago and New York while maintaining the small hometown hospitality. In this section we like to bring interesting facts and opinions. This is what we have for you in this month’s issue:

Washington Park

Select your favorite song from tne listed composers from your mobile device @
classicalwalkoffame.org
to be added to the Washington Park Fountain Jukebox queue.

Washington Park
In Over-the Rhine and surrounded by the largest collection of early Italian architecture in the U.S., Music Hall and the new School for Creative and Performing Arts is an eight acre park that has been a meeting place for the community since 1855. The park was renovated in 2012 with consideration to the features allowing them to add new amenities while preserving unique historic elements. Here are some of the old and new features available at Washington Park.

The Bandstand

The Bandstand
In the heart of the park is the bandstand that was originally constructed totally of wood. The Mission Revival style bandstand now in its place was built in 1911 and is constructed of concrete and has a tile roof. Tivoli lights illuminate the night while park goers enjoy live music and entertainment.

Cannon from Farragut Fleet at Mobile Bay

Cannon from Farragut Fleet at Mobile Bay
Donated by T.W. Seib of the Sixth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the cannon has been at the park since 1870. Used in the Civil war, it was used when Union Rear Admiral David Farragut successfully attacked Mobile Bay, Alabama blocking the last port in the Gulf of Mexico supplying Confederate troops. It serves as a commemorative monument to soldiers inducted in the park.

Children’s Playground
This safe and creative playground is 18,000 square feet of fun. Activities include a sandbox, climbing wall, dual slides, play castle and a canal boat
in a stream all inspired by Historic Cincinnati Structures.

Mosaic Art Bench

Mosaic Art Bench
The Mosaic Art Bench was a community project uniting the Art Academy of Cincinnati, Miami University’s Center for Community and the Peaslee Neighborhood Center. Lead artist Suzanne Fisher collected images of peace from area residents and local artists then taught the children the technique to create the functional work of art entitled “I Have a Dream of Peace”.

And Much More
An Interactive Water Park, Dog Park, the American Classical Music Hall of Fame, live music, plays, dances, movie nights and even fitness activities like Zumba and Yoga are a few more examples of how Washington Park has accommodated the needs of the community.