Bowdeya Tweh, and Patrick Brennan

Cincinnati

It's all about being ready for the call.

While Futbol Club Cincinnati has no immediate plans to "veer away" from Nippert Stadium as its home field, Major League Soccer's interest in franchises having their own stadium is driving the organization to identify sites where one could be built.

By month's end, the franchise is expected to provide a list of Greater Cincinnati sites to MLS where a new soccer stadium and related facilities could be built. Jeff Berding, team president and general manager, has declined to comment on the sites that will appear on the short list.

But one Cincinnati site – the former home of Milacron in Oakley – is likely to get a long look from team officials based on its potential to meet MLS requirements, according to an Enquirer analysis of property records.

In previous interviews with The Enquirer, Berding said the stadium site search will not detract from the franchise's investments in Nippert at the University of Cincinnati.

FC Cincy's largest obstacle on path to MLS

A more than $2 million project is underway at the stadium to reconfigure its lower bowl so the field can meet standards set by soccer's international governing body FIFA. FC Cincinnati is in the second year of a three-year deal to play its home matches at Nippert, a contract that could be extended until 2030. Berding told The Enquirer the Nippert site works because it supports fan engagement, features enough parking and its urban college campus location has the demographic of fan the league would want to attract.

“We have our eyes wide open here," Berding told The Enquirer in November. "We have said, 'OK, here's a map of Greater Cincinnati. Here's the river. Here's UC. New stadiums are approximately 20 acres. We live in a pretty dense urban environment, a historic urban environment. Where would 20 acres even exist?' "

Stadium site evaluations can take months, if not years, to complete. The FC Cincinnati group started its preliminary site evaluation process in November and it's not immediately clear whether it will publicly reveal sites that have made the final cut.

When the Cincinnati Reds were scouting for a new home, the team publicly revealed the two final sites under consideration as Broadway Commons, which is an area near Jack Casino Cincinnati and the "Wedge" of land along Cincinnati's riverfront next to the old Coliseum. Eventually, the stadium opened at its current location in 2003.

Large tracts of land for commercial development are hard to find in Cincinnati, but late last year, The Enquirer analyzed local property records and active real estate listings to develop a list of potential stadium sites. Here's what we found:

Former Milacron site (3000 Disney St.)

Pros: A 29-acre site (more than 16 acres available for sale now) along Interstate 71 in a growing neighborhood that has a significant commercial base.

Cons: The site's $10.6 million price tag for 16.3 acres of land may be pricey, especially if more land is needed as part of stadium development plans.

"Absolutely, it meets all the criteria," said Bill Poffenberger, manager and executive vice president of Jones Lang LaSalle's Cincinnati office. "It has wonderful frontage along I-71. It's centrally located in the city for easy access for the fans. It has the acreage. You could put practice and community fields all in one location."

Poffenberger said he has sent site information to team officials, but isn't sure where the group stands in its evaluation process.

The original Milacron site has been subdivided into what's now home to big box retailers at the Center of Cincinnati development and a mix of commercial and residential buildings part of Oakley Station. The site features more parking lots and less green space than what residents initially wanted in the redevelopment, but they say there's an opportunity to do more with the remaining land.

"We hope the site is developed by a good neighbor that engenders as much pride for the city of Cincinnati and the Oakley community as Milacron has for the past century," according to a statement provided by the Oakley Community Council. "We look forward to working with our new neighbor to make sure that happens."

Spinney Field (800 Evans Road)

Pros: The Lower Price Hill site has a sports heritage being the former practice field home of the Cincinnati Bengals. The site is close to Downtown and closer to the University of Cincinnati than some other properties the team will likely consider.

Cons: The site would likely need more land to help complete stadium development plans. It's also the home of the Cincinnati Police Academy and the city may not be interested in relocating it. Infrastructure improvements may also be needed to support higher levels of traffic to the site from Eighth Street.

Queensgate South

Pros: The 17-acre site northeast of Mehring Way and Freeman Avenue in Queensgate has a list price of $3.3 million.

Cons: The site had been envisioned for office, industrial or high-tech development. The site is likely too far from UC to interest the team. The area also is primarily geared toward light or heavy industrial uses and stadiums tend to work better in areas with more commercial development opportunities and easy for pedestrians to traverse.

Riverside Yard

Pros: With more than 46 acres of land being marketed for sale in Sedamsville, it's more than large enough to meet the needs of a new stadium.

Cons: It is among the largest industrial sites available in the city of Cincinnati, which means officials and regional economic development groups likely want to reserve the site for high-employment and high-wage industrial or office development opportunities. It's also in an industrial zone that doesn't allow for much adjacent tourism-related commercial development opportunities and isn't very pedestrian friendly.

3241 Spring Grove Ave.

Pros: The 17-acre site in Camp Washington is vacant and ready to accept new development.

Cons: The land is zoned for industrial development and a manufacturing plant or industrial development fits better with the site's profile than a soccer stadium. The site also has direct rail access, which will be more attractive to that type of tenant.

MLS expansion for FC Cincy could hinge on new stadium

Reporter Sharon Coolidge contributed.