Most American suburbs happened gradually. A farm got sold, a road got paved, a subdivision went in, and thirty years later there was a city.
Forest Park did not happen that way. It was drawn on paper before anyone lived there, on land the federal government had set aside two decades earlier for an experiment that was later abandoned. That origin still shapes how the city thinks about its built environment, and it is worth understanding before you deal with the department that administers it.
This guide covers the Forest Park Building Department: who runs it, where it sits, what it is responsible for beyond permits, and how the city’s planned origins inform the standards it applies.
A City That Was Planned Before It Existed
In 1935, the Resettlement Administration under President Franklin Roosevelt set aside acreage north of Cincinnati for one of three planned communities known as Greenbelt towns. The idea was to relocate struggling urban and rural families into deliberately designed towns rather than let them settle wherever the market allowed.
Greenhills, the neighboring Greenbelt town, opened in 1938. The wider federal concept was abandoned in 1949, leaving thousands of undeveloped acres beside it. In 1954 the Warner-Kanter Corporation, led by private developers Marvin Warner and Joseph Kanter, purchased 3,400 acres of that land and spent two years planning what to put on it.
The first homes went on sale in March 1956, in what the developers called the C section. By 1960 the population had reached about 4,800. When neighboring Greenhills moved to annex a portion of the still undeveloped land, residents responded by voting overwhelmingly in 1961 to incorporate as a village. City status followed in 1968 as the population passed the threshold Ohio law sets for it.
One further piece of the history is worth stating plainly, because it is unusual. Forest Park deliberately established itself as an open city, adopting resolutions and ordinances welcoming residents regardless of race, creed or national origin. In 1978 the Housing Commission went further and adopted a formal strategy for maintaining diversity, aimed squarely at discriminatory practices by realtors, builders and corporations. That is a policy choice, not an accident of demographics.
Today Forest Park has 20,189 residents across roughly 7,900 households, making it the second most populous city in Hamilton County, with around 350 businesses.
About the Building Department
The Building Department operates out of the municipal building on West Kemper Road. It carries its own direct line, separate from the city’s general number, which is a small convenience that saves a transfer.
| At a glance | Forest Park Building Department |
| Address | 1201 West Kemper Road, Forest Park, Ohio 45240 |
| Phone | (513) 595-5264 |
| Led by | Rafic Nakouzi, Director of Building and Property Maintenance |
| Scope | Building permits, plan review, and city wide property maintenance standards |
| Website | the building department contact page |
That job title is worth reading closely, because it describes a scope wider than most people assume.
Location, Directions and Access
The Building Department is at the municipal building, 1201 West Kemper Road, Forest Park, Ohio 45240. Direct line: (513) 595-5264, which reaches the department rather than the city switchboard.
From Interstate 275
Take the Winton Road exit and head south. Winton Road runs south through Forest Park, and West Kemper Road crosses it near the civic buildings.
From Springfield Pike
Springfield Pike is State Route 4. From Springdale, head west toward Forest Park and Greenhills. West Kemper Road runs east and west through the city and carries the municipal address.
- One building, several departments. The municipal building houses more than the permit desk, so say which department you are there for when you arrive.
- Call before you design. Because the city has been revising its housing and maintenance codes, a call to the direct line is worth making before drawings are finalized rather than after.
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More Than Permits
A building department that also carries property maintenance is doing two jobs. The first is forward looking: reviewing plans for work that has not happened yet. The second is ongoing: administering the standards that apply to property already standing.
In a city built largely in one era, that second job matters more than it would elsewhere. Forest Park’s housing stock went up over a compressed period, which means large numbers of homes reach the same maintenance thresholds at roughly the same time. Roofs, drives, siding and outdoor structures across a whole neighborhood can age in step.
The city has been reviewing its housing and maintenance codes to bring them up to date, and has sought resident feedback in doing so. For a homeowner planning exterior work, that is useful context. The standards are not static, and checking the current version beats relying on what a neighbor did five years ago.
Why a Planned City Administers Standards Differently
There is a real connection between how Forest Park was made and how it is regulated now.
A city that grew organically inherits a patchwork: different lot sizes, different setbacks, different eras of construction sitting side by side. A city drawn at once starts with consistency, and the administration tends to be oriented toward preserving it.
- Lot geometry is regular. Streets and lots were laid out to a plan, so setback and coverage rules apply more uniformly than in an older, pieced together suburb.
- Housing stock is of an era. Much of the city shares construction methods and materials, which makes property standards easier to write and easier to enforce evenly.
- The civic culture is deliberate. A community that voted itself into existence and later adopted a formal housing strategy is not one that treats its built environment casually.
None of that makes building here harder. It makes it more predictable, which is generally what a homeowner wants.
Permits Across the Northwest and West Side
Forest Park sits in a part of the county where jurisdiction changes quickly. Within a short drive you can pass from a planned city into unincorporated township land, then into a small independent city, each with its own rules and its own front counter.
For the application steps specific to this city, the full application walkthrough for this city covers the process end to end. Just outside the city limits the picture changes, and how county review differs from city review explains what applies on unincorporated land.
Further south and west, requirements in a smaller west side city shows how a compact older municipality handles the same work, while the process out toward the river covers the far western end of the county.
Platinum Deck and Patio works across all of these jurisdictions. In a city like Forest Park the practical advantage is consistency: once you know how the department reads a plan, the next project on the next street tends to go the same way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Forest Park Building Department?
At the municipal building, 1201 West Kemper Road, Forest Park, Ohio 45240. The department has its own direct line at (513) 595-5264, separate from the city’s main number.
Who runs the department?
Rafic Nakouzi, whose title is Director of Building and Property Maintenance. The role covers both permit review and the city’s property maintenance standards.
What does the department handle besides permits?
Property maintenance standards for existing buildings, alongside plan review for new work. The city has been updating its housing and maintenance codes and has sought resident input on the revisions.
How big is Forest Park?
The 2020 census recorded 20,189 residents, making it the second most populous city in Hamilton County. The city reports roughly 7,900 households and around 350 businesses.
Why is Forest Park called a planned community?
Because it was designed before it was built. The land came from a federal Greenbelt town program set aside in 1935, and private developers spent two years planning the community before the first homes went on sale in 1956.
When did Forest Park become a city?
Residents voted to incorporate as a village in 1961, and the community achieved city status in 1968 once its population passed the threshold set by Ohio law.
The Bottom Line
The Forest Park Building Department administers a city that was designed rather than accumulated, and that shows in how consistent the ground rules are. A named director, a direct line, and a scope covering both new work and existing property standards make it a straightforward department to deal with.
The practical next step for any exterior project is a call to that direct line before the design is settled, particularly given that the city has been revising its housing and maintenance codes. Current beats remembered.
And it is worth knowing the history. A community that voted itself into existence, then wrote a formal strategy to keep itself open, tends to care how it looks and how it is maintained. Meeting that standard is not an obstacle. It is most of the reason the place holds its value.