Big plans offered for 12 miles of Dayton riverfront

Some new apartments in the Water Street District overlook the river, and people can sip on cocktails and dine along the riverbank downtown at Basil’s on Market.

But the riverfront can offer so much more, planners say, such as a beer garden, new housing, restaurants, recreation and retail, as well as new open space, trail connections, pedestrian bridges and other crossings.

Dayton’s riverfront master plan is nearly complete, and it proposes some big ideas and big investments for 12 miles of waterways snaking through different sections the city, which converge downtown.

The Banks, Cincinnati's vibrant and popular riverfront destination, started with a strategic plan in the 1990s. Can Dayton replicate some that success?

A synopsis of the final draft of the long-term master plan was presented to the Dayton City Plan Board this week.

MORE: Dayton River: ‘How can we take that next giant step?’