Biohazard and Death Cleanup in Walnut Hills and Evanston

District 2 and the Blue Ash coroner

Walnut Hills moved from District 4 to District 2 in Cincinnati's 2023 police redistricting, so both neighborhoods now fall under District 2 along with East Walnut Hills and O'Bryonville. Officers hold the property until the case is cleared.

If a death is investigated, the Hamilton County Coroner takes custody and later releases the person to a funeral home. That office, which left Corryville for Blue Ash in 2021, also returns personal effects. It does not clean or recommend cleaners, so the owner, landlord or estate chooses a provider.

45206 and 45207 block by block

ZIP 45206 centers on Walnut Hills, including Peebles' Corner and the Gilbert Avenue and McMillan Street corridors, plus East Walnut Hills and the southern edges of Evanston and Avondale.

ZIP 45207 is the Evanston and Xavier ZIP. It covers the university campus off Dana Avenue, the residential streets north toward Norwood, and small edges of North Avondale and Hyde Park. Norwood itself is a separate city with its own ZIP and is not covered on this page.

A near-east-side ridge with long roots

Walnut Hills takes its name from the Rev. James Kemper's farm, called Walnut Hill, and joined Cincinnati in 1869. It is home to the Harriet Beecher Stowe House and to the city's first Carnegie library, designed by Samuel Hannaford. Peebles' Corner, at the heart of the business district, was once the busiest shopping area outside downtown.

Evanston, first called Idlewood, took its current name in 1893 and was annexed in 1903. Xavier University anchors it, and the O'Bryonville shops along Madison Road are part of the neighborhood. The 2020 Census counted about 6,344 people in Walnut Hills and 8,838 in Evanston.

Apartment blocks, big old houses and student lets

Walnut Hills, one of Cincinnati's older hilltop neighborhoods, mixes brick apartment buildings from the late 1800s with row structures along Gilbert and McMillan, many of them recently renovated. In multi-unit buildings, cleanup touches hallways and shared systems, so the building owner has to be in the loop from the start.

East Walnut Hills holds larger single-family homes on tree-lined streets, while Evanston has a mix of older houses, doubles and rentals leased to Xavier students. A rental near campus may have a lease-holding student, worried parents out of state and a landlord who all need the same information.

Next steps for families and building owners here

In a Walnut Hills apartment building, tell the property manager before the cleanup company arrives, because hallways, the elevator and the trash area are shared. Other tenants may need notice if work affects a common space near Peebles' Corner or along McMillan Street.

For a house in Evanston or East Walnut Hills, the executor or next of kin can approve the work. Ask the provider for a written scope that lists rooms, materials to be removed and how regulated waste will leave the property. Out-of-town heirs settling an Evanston estate often find that written scope useful when they deal with the Hamilton County probate court.

If a crime caused the injury, staff at the Attorney General's victim office, reachable at 614-466-5610, can explain whether a household near Peebles' Corner or Dana Avenue qualifies for help with scene cleaning costs.

How the area connects

I-71 cuts through both neighborhoods on its way north from downtown, and Dana Avenue crosses it near the Xavier campus. Gilbert Avenue and Victory Parkway link the ridge to Eden Park and downtown, and Montgomery Road heads north through Evanston.

Apartment entries on the slopes above Gilbert Avenue may have long inside stairs, and residential streets near Xavier can fill with parked cars during the school year. A heads-up about stairs, elevators and curb space helps the provider plan the job.