CINCINNATI (March 3, 2017) – The final piece of steel was set at the future home of Empower MediaMarketing earlier this week – a key milestone in the construction process, which began last July.

“As we’ve watched the construction of our OTR office these past few months, there’s an overwhelming excitement for our new company headquarters,” said Jim Price, CEO of Empower MediaMarketing. “2016 was one for the record books for Empower – we were named agency of the year and we had our best year ever in terms of revenue. We’re moving that kind of energy and enthusiasm to OTR, which is a perfect fit for the neighborhood.”

With the last piece of steel now in place, the structure of Empower’s new four-story, 65,000 square-foot office building has been formed. Crews will now begin work on the interior of the building, focusing on tasks like pouring concrete for all floors and framing the walls, as the project moves closer to its fall 2017 completion.

To mark the occasion, the general contractor on the project, Oswald Company, hosted a “topping out” party for crew members Thursday afternoon. The celebration was held at The Eagle Food and Beer Hall, located just around the corner from the construction site, which is on E. 14th Street near Vine Street.

“The folks at The Eagle have been very cooperative with the inconvenience we have caused them with the shutdown of Boots Alley,” Oswald Construction Manager Mike Olding said, in reference to the location of the large crane that had been on-site to place the steel. “They have not complained a single time and have always greeted me with a smile. We thought this was a nice way to say, ‘Thank you.’”

The project, which is being overseen by Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC), combines the integration of an existing historic building with new construction. With a roughly year-long timeline, construction is currently moving forward according to schedule.

“This is an exciting project for OTR and our community,” Bob Wassler, President and Project Director of Oswald Construction said. “Through the collaboration of Empower representatives, 3CDC, Bellweather,

the design teams and all of our subcontractors, the building is coming out of the ground and we look forward to an on-schedule delivery in the fall.”

Although all the steel has been set, one more key item still needs to be implemented into the structure – a piece of metal signed by every Cincinnati-based Empower employee. The piece, which was signed during Empower’s 32nd anniversary lunch earlier this week, will be added at a later date in an undetermined location. But it will serve as part of the fabric of the building, just as Empower and its 160 employees hope to contribute to the fabric of Over-the-Rhine when the company officially moves its headquarters to the neighborhood later this year.

“Our company has seen three decades of success and we’re looking forward to many more in our new OTR home,” said Price.

To view a time-lapse of the construction so far, visit Empower’s Facebook page.