Former Beverly Hills Supper Club site now home to luxury apartments

The first residential housing is open at the former Beverly Hills Supper Club site.

The 200-unit luxury apartments, coined Vicinity Apartments, officially open Sept. 19. They are part of a larger development called Memorial Pointe. The $65 million project also features 85 upscale single-family homes being developed by Fischer Homes and a for-profit assisted living facility of 79 units.

In the 1970s perched on that same hill in Southgate was The Beverly Hills Supper Club which today is best known as the site where a 1977 fire killed 165 people.  

An oral history of the site, done by LINK nky content sharing partner WCPO, described the supper club as part Las Vegas, part Hollywood and to the Greater Cincinnati region, all-enticing. The club drew in acts like James Brown, the Righteous Brothers and Rich Little, to name a few.

According to the oral history, entertainment entrepreneur Richard Schilling and his family, from Newport, developed the Beverly into an “architecturally confusing complex” of 54,000 square feet, with 19 rooms on two floors.

“It was the place to go not only for a show but for weddings, awards banquets and all manner of special events,” the WCPO story said. “By 1977, it was considered less than prudent to count on having a big event at Beverly Hills with fewer than two years’ notice.”

The night of May 28, 1977, saw a death toll highest of any disaster in the Greater Cincinnati region’s history.

The oral history reports that the cause of the fire was never clearly determined, with rumors of faulty wiring to arson by mafia members. The one thing that was agreed on was the overcrowding, inadequate numbers of exits and lack of firewalls that led to a change in nationwide standards.

Fast forward to August 2022, the Southgate City Council approved an IRB exclusively for the apartment portion of the Memorial Pointe project. Developer North American Properties received $34 million to finance the cost of acquisition, construction, equipping and installation of the project, according to the order.

Memorial Pointe covers 80 acres, and in addition to residential development the community will maintain greenspace and include a park and connections to Highland Country Club across Blossom Lane from the site.

A memorial for the fire victims was placed toward the bottom of Memorial Pointe Drive, which is the front entrance to the development. The memorial was dedicated in May 2023 with an estimated 300 people in attendance.

Alongside the victim’s names on stones, a two-sided memorial exhibits photos of the club, “Through the Eyes of a Firefighter” history of that night and the etched names of more than 50 Kentucky and Ohio fire departments that battled the blaze. One side explains the history of the club, which opened in 1935 as the Beverly Hills Club. Another section entitled “The Positive Impact of the Tragedy” lists the lessons learned in the wake of the fatal night.  

A ribbon cutting was held on Sept. 19 to officially open the new apartments.

“We could not be more pleased with how this community has turned out truly a thing of beauty,” Partner and Vice President of development, with NAP Cincinnati Jim Hobson, said. “As I always say, it takes a village to build a village.”

The apartment community features:

• One bedroom, one bedroom with dens and two-bedroom units.
• A 5-minute commute to Downtown Cincinnati.
• Close to shopping, restaurants and entertainment venues.
• Controlled building access.
• EV charging stations.
• Heated saltwater pool and sundeck.
• Resident lounge.
• Gazebo with outdoor kitchen.
• 24-hour fitness center.
• 24-hour maintenance.
• Pet friendly.
• Bark Park.
• Complimentary resident coffee bar.
• Outdoor fire pits.
• Fiber optic Internet ready.
• Community-wide recycling.

 “Atop our picturesque hillside, we’re bringing luxury living to new heights,” said Vision Realty Group Managing Partner Matt Olliges. “Whether you’re making a quick, five-minute trip downtown or opting to indulge in the full range of our luxury amenities, prepare to have your expectations elevated when moving to Vicinity.” 

The Vicinity Apartments are located at 3949 Vision Circle in Southgate.