During public comment at the joint meeting, parents and a 10-year-old student called for a marked crosswalk on Twelfth Street between SCPA (School for Creative and Performing Arts) and Washington Park and asked the city to repaint the Rothenberg crosswalk with high-visibility yellow paint.

Alexis Marsh said she and her son Errol, a 10-year-old SCPA student, cross daily to get to Washington Park and described risky crossings "in the middle, which is dangerous, or we go around, which takes much longer." Errol told council, "I would, usually I would 1, look both ways and go through the middle because it is faster."

Parent organizer Andy Schark described parked cars that limit sightlines on Twelfth Street and said SCPA’s principal supports a crosswalk; he asked the city and Cincinnati Public Schools for action so families can reach the park and school safely. "That spot...is where all of the elementary school kids come out at the end of the day," Schark said.

City and CPS responses
CPS transportation staff and the city Department of Transportation and Engineering (DOTE) were asked to review both requests. CPS staff told council the Rothenberg repaint was on the DOTE list and officials hoped it would be completed before school starts. On the SCPA–Washington Park crossing, CPS said adding a new crosswalk in the requested spot would require removing parking and installing curb cuts for handicap access; the department does not have that project on its immediate docket.

"The reason...we've been talking with DOTE at length about this is we would then also have to eliminate the parking in that area because you cannot see around the parked cars...so it is, able to be handicap accessible. So there's some challenges to that," said a CPS transportation official.

Why this matters
Council members and CPS leaders said school-zone signage, flashing beacons and crosswalk visibility are priorities for the start of school; CPS reported a comprehensive review of signage at every school campus and a plan to work with DOTE to install signage, crosswalks and flashing signs where feasible. CPS said it will push to have five or six schools' requests completed before school begins and named Rothenberg among those under review.

Next steps
CPS transportation staff said they would check with DOTE on timeline and would continue monthly discussions. Parents requested printed information and encouraged visibility for the repaint request so the work would be prioritized before classes resume.