CMH_Downtown

Arena District restaurants enjoy the thaw Eateries rebound with hockey's return, and look forward to next year Business First of Columbus - April 21, 2006 by Dan Eaton, Business First With an overtime victory April 18, the Columbus Blue Jackets closed the book on its fifth season, one that began with disappointment, but ended in promise - a ride not unlike the last two years of business for Arena District restaurants. The lockout that canceled the 2004-2005 hockey season put a dent in the bottom lines of many area eateries, but what a difference 44 nights of hungry and thirsty fans makes. Restaurants are heading into the offseason happy to have hockey back and hoping for a fruitful season on the ice next year to drive more crowds to their establishments. More at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/

^Agreed. It's too bad Casto didn't re-evaluate his plans to include a signature building on the land where the Roy Jewelers building was before it collapsed. The original plans called for the building to have the video wall on top, but now that it's gone, Casto will have to build a new structure on the land. It would be nice to have a mid-rise, maybe 14-16 stories on the plot instead of the likely 4-5 story building which will be built in its place.

I forgot to mention Buckeye Lake. However, if you're going to be residing in the Marysville/Dublin area of the city, Buckeye Lake is essentially in the opposite direction in Licking County. Here's some information about it anyways: Buckeye Lake: http://www.ohiodnr.com/parks/parks/buckeye.htm Buckeye Lake, constructed as a canal feeder lake in 1826, is Ohio's oldest state park. The park has long been a popular vacation spot and today offers endless water-related recreational opportunities including swimming, skiing, boating and fishing. The 3,100-acre Buckeye Lake is designated as an unlimited horsepower lake, but pontoons, sailboats, canoes and rowboats are also common. Access to the lake is available at several public launch ramps.

Boating should be no problem in Central Ohio. Alum Creek Lake and Hoover Resevoir are both located in Columbus' northern suburbs and boast a large amount of water activities, parks and recreation, and camp grounds. Alum Creek Lake: http://www.ohiodnr.com/parks/parks/alum.htm The lake features the largest inland state park beach with a length of 3,000 feet. Alum Creek Lake and State Park is Ohio’s 2nd most visited park within the 74-state park system. Alum Creek Lake is a highly popular central Ohio boating destination as it affords many opportunities to enjoy different types of boats that include sailboats, runabouts, bow riders, cruisers, pontoons, bass boats and other fishing boats, JetSkis and ski boats. The lake has a large expansive area south of Cheshire Road that offers unlimited horsepower and plenty of room for water skiers. The area of the lake north of the Ohio Route 36 Causeway is a no-wake zone and contains tree-lined shores, shale cliffs and sheltered inlets highly suitable for paddlers. Alum Creek Lake also is a popular destination for sailboats and is home to the Alum Creek Sailing Association. In partnership with the Central Ohio Safe Boating Council and Ohio Department of Natural Resources the sailing association co-sponsors the annual Alum Creek Boating & Fishing Festival held each June. Hoover Reservoir: http://recparks.columbus.gov/rentals/docks.asp

Sounds great, especially the Audobon Center. They need to move those impound lots ASAP.

Bah indeed, I love Lord Hall; especially the way it sits diagonally on its plot. It's really a nice old building, it's too bad OSU let it deteriorate into such a state. Oh, but there's pleanty of money to build a Taj Mahal recreation center... :roll:

Oooooh, ColDay got TOLD! *snaps fingers in a "Z"*

Pataskala? Whodathunkit! Oh well, hooray for Japanese money!

^That's correct.

The Dispatch article had a pretty graph accompanying it:

The growth of the region as a whole has slowed down since the go-go 1990s and the ensuing recession, which hit Columbus particularly hard in the retail and research fields. Interestingly enough, growth has been much more apparent over the last 1 or 2 years in the city core than essentially in the entire previous decade. Foreign immigration too has helped the city chug along as well, spearheaded mostly by Somoli and Mexican movement into the city. And yes, we cannot Ohio's flagship school, The Ohio State University.

Don't forget insurance.

No problem, glad I could help! Now, back to Bloomingdales... :-P

It's been a COSI mainstay since the original location on E. Broad St. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COSI

The area being talked about for development is pretty massive. I wonder how many floors this proposed "low-rise" would be? As much as I desperately want the majority of these surface lots gone, it would be nice to have something with a little bit of height to it. Maybe the garage mentioned could comprise the first several stories with the residential built on top...

Waitwaitwaitwaitwait...not to steer the topic of conversation in an other direction, but people drive to Indianapolis from the Cincinnati area to patronize these locations, when both can be found right up I-71 in Columbus? :cry:

I was just about to mention Ikea. They definitely are a retailer that draws people from anywhere from 1 to 4 hours away, but that's because they seem to have a cult following and cater to those looking for designer furniture at reasonable prices, hence the willingness to make the trip to the closest Ikea in the region. Something tells me that Bloomingdale's clientele is not the same as those that patronize Ikea. For that reason, I think those that have mentioned that the retailer would likely locate in an area with a high concentration of affluent citizens, rather than try and attract people from a region in general. Granted, if Bloomingdales were to locate in Cincinnati or Cleveland, some affluent residents of Dayton and Akron respectively would likely make a trip down there, which would help the bottom line. So I still think the Cincinnati area would be the most capable to supporting Bloomingdales, followed by Cleveland, then Columbus.

Unfortunately, a line of storms hit in the midst of Delta's international push at CVG, sending planes diverting all over the region. CMH got DL45 from Amsterdam, as well as several Comair jets.

Hopefully along with a graphics change comes a studio change also. All NBC O&O stations have the same graphics packages with a few subtle changes. For example, the NBC 4 WeatherPlus theme and graphics are exactly the same for every NBC-owned affiliate across the country, which in my opinion gives WCMH a bland and uninspired look. Since WCMH will no longer be an O&O station, they will have to adopt a new graphics package. I hope they also go back to using their call letters. I hate it when stations try to standardize themselves by becoming "NBC 4" or "ABC 22."

I think the fact that the Lord&Taylor space was replaced rather quickly is a good sign for the local retail market. Granted, Von Maur isn't as well-known of a name nationwide, however the store's calibur is of similar style to Nordstrom and other upscale stores. As far as Bloomingdales goes, I don't really know much if anything about the store. I would imagine that if they wanted to invest in mid/large-sized Midwest cites for whatever reason, that Cincinnati would be the best choice, since the parent company it headquartered there and the region could likely support another upscale retailer. I don't know enough about the store and its offerings to speculate whether it would fit in the Columbus market. If their products are similar to Von Maur and Nordstrom, then I doubt it would be needed here.

:-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap: :-D :clap:

Born and raised in Columbus, actually. My parents moved stateside several decades ago and settled in Columbus. Though I remember traveling to Cleveland many times to go to the Puerto Rican markets on the near west side to get Old Colony Grape soda (don't know why it's so popular in PR) and macaroons :-P. LOL, I wouldn't call it a "power struggle" per se; it's more of an in-depth discussion on the many intricacies of Latin culture infused in the two metropolises :wink:.

I can't say I'm a big fan of this prospect either, but it's a possibility nonetheless. I doubt the city would just "hold on to it," as that would be a horrible waste of money. Also, considering the demographic that currently lives in the downtown area, I doubt that most of them would patronize a Wal*Mart, even if it did locate in the heart of downtown. If anything, it would cater to a demographic that is not too prevalent in the center of the city, the budget-minded family. It could also be of interest to downtown office workers, so they could pick out whatever foodstuffs they need before heading home. Again, this is putting a VERY positive spin on this, but it could happen. It would looks pretty bad, but no more tacky than a Target downtown, like in Minneapolis.

That quote has earned you a spot on my respected users list, couldn't have said it better myself! To add to what cincinnatizach said, a computerized cockpit has become the norm in commercial aviation, however you still need someone skilled enough and competant enough to manipulate said automation, as well as maintain a constant visual check of the space in front of him/her, so that any quick reation necessary can be executed in the quickest and safest manner possible. Cockpit crews must still be trained to cope with the loss of electrical power, meaning a loss of all automated flying capabilities. Granted, 99.9% of the time, a captain spends his/her time staring at clouds at 35,000 ft., however when that 00.1% of the time occurs, where the lives of a hundred or so people depends on the skills and knowledge the cockpit crew has developed, the money spent on attracting competant and skilled flight crews makes it all worth while. As far as Delta's situation is concerned, I think it's still up in the air (no pun intended). It's extremely hard to predict what the pilots will decide, since it comes down to a vote, but given the concessions repeatedly given at other airlines that have since plunged into and emerged from bankruptcy (United and USAirways), as well as the complete lack of any effect that the strike issued by Northwest's mechanics, would lead me to believe that the Delta pilots will ultimately come to a decision at the 11th hour, and will not strike...that is, if they want to have a job at all in the end.

And the plot thickens... URBAN RETAIL FOCUS Is City Center in Wal-Mart sights? Wednesday, April 05, 2006 Jeffrey Sheban THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Could Columbus City Center’s savior be wearing a Wal-Mart smiley face? That possibility, remote though it might be, got a boost yesterday from the world’s largest retailer. Wal-Mart Chief Executive Lee Scott unveiled plans to build more than 50 stores during the next two years in neighborhoods with high crime or unemployment rates, on sites that are environmentally contaminated, or in vacant buildings or malls in need of revitalization. The latter describes City Center, a Downtown mall with a occupancy rate below 50 percent and a majority owner, Mills Corp., in dire financial straits. "That’s interesting," said Bob McLaughlin, the city’s Downtown development director, when told of Wal-Mart’s plans. "It’s clearly the market that needs to be served Downtown. Having a Wal-Mart would be a great thing." Robert Milbourne, president of the Columbus Partnership, a group of central Ohio business leaders, said he wasn’t surprised that Wal-Mart is showing interest in urban centers. "I have always expected discounters to replace major department stores in downtowns, especially as residential development reached larger numbers," he said. "Would it work in Columbus? Maybe." Read more at http://dispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/04/05/20060405-D1-00.html