East Price Hill shooting puts focus on ‘vacant’ residential buildings

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CINCINNATI (WXIX) - Armed officers and inspectors returned to an East Price Hill building Wednesday, where just a day before a child was shot.

The officers returned to ensure the “vacant” home was empty after the property manager said no one should have been there, but neighbors say people have been in and out for years, and complained again just days before the shooting.

There was an hourslong standoff outside the East Price Hill building Tuesday evening after a child was shot just feet away. Neighbors said the child was throwing rocks when a gunman opened fire.

“We have seen over the handful of years issues with retaliation. Where things just escalate — and because of easy access to guns, things where people get upset, and maybe it would’ve been a verbal altercation, escalate really quickly because a gun is so easy to access,” council member Anna Albi said.

Police haven’t named a suspect. But they did confirm no one was found inside — and no arrests were made.

Records show this home is a rental, owned by Second Avenue, an out-of-state company that owns more than 100 single-family rentals in Cincinnati.

The city sued Second Avenue last August for substandard living conditions.

On Friday, the city got a complaint that this property was blighted.

Second Avenue told the city it believed the home was vacant and would be secured. City officials say that doesn’t appear to have happened.

An employee told FOX19 NOW that tenants were evicted just last month — but he knew others had been staying there since then.

An attorney for the company told me they’re looking into it and had no further comment.

There are 5,000 vacant buildings across Cincinnati.

Council member Mark Jeffreys said a new vacant building registry, now being rolled out, is designed to keep properties like this one from becoming safety hazards.

“The vacant building registry — not only are these buildings registered, but they are closed off. We shouldn’t have squatters. We know these are a source of crime,” Jeffreys said.

Officers and building inspectors were back today for another walk-through — making sure no one’s inside who shouldn’t be.

The investigation into the shooting continues. Anyone with information is urged to contact police.

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