CMH_Downtown

I couldn't agree more. I was secretly hoping that Coleman would include a stipulation that these new jobs would at least partially have to go downtown. Oh well...

:? Easton, among others, killed City Center, not downtown (downtown was already dead before Easton). And Grandview Ave certainly is not City Center. I'd consider it more like a tiny Short North, which last I checked, still seems to be humming along despite Easton, Polaris, and Tuttle. While I'd PREFER this kind of momentum to be focused on the center of downtown (hey, Capitol Square Ltd, why not actually do something ON Capitol Sqaure), I don't think this proposed development will hurt the downtown area as whole. If anything, I'd imagine it could complement the development already taking place in the area, such as Gowdy Field, 5th Ave, 3rd Ave, Grandview Ave, and the Arena District. All we need is something to tie it all together, something that rhymes with "bright snail"... :wink:

...when they're accompanied by some hilarious social commentary provided by Mystery Science Theater 3000!

It's my sincere hope that is all taken into serious consideration as the design and construction phases of the aforementioned projects progress.

Breaking news on the Grandview Yard project in Grandview Heights Capitol Square acquires stake in Grandview Yard Company also boosts interest in Arena District Tuesday, May 19, 2009 2:03 PM By Marla Matzer Rose, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Nationwide Realty Investors' Grandview Yard project has attracted an investment from Capitol Square Ltd., the real-estate arm of The Dispatch Printing Company, publisher of The Dispatch. Capitol Square has acquired a 20 percent interest in the project, which is being developed on the site of the former Big Bear warehouse and will include a combination of office, residential and retail space. Capitol Square has also increased its ownership stake in the Arena District to 20 percent from the previous 10 percent, the companies announced this afternoon. Nationwide has built the $750 million, 75-acre Arena District over the past decade. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/05/19/dispatch_nationwide.html?sid=101

The Dispatch printed some great photos from atop one of the cranes currently rising over Children's new main hospital construction site. The two cranes do look pretty cool coming into the city from the highway. I also didn't realize the tallest stands at 300 ft. Link to the photos and audio slideshow: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/05/19/A1_crane_pix_combo.ART_ART_05-19-09_A1_H7DTG59.html?sid=101

Friday, May 1, 2009 | Modified: Tuesday, May 5, 2009, 8:00am EDT Dim view of area transit options drives young workers’ frustrations Business First of Columbus - by Jeff Bell Mike Easterday has a straightforward answer to community officials wondering what they can do to make Central Ohio’s transportation system more appealing to young workers. “I want to know I can use it to get somewhere,” said Easterday, an accountant and member of a young professionals group in Columbus. But that’s not the case sometimes, said Easterday and others who were part of a panel discussion during ColumbusChamber’s recent Government Day program. They talked about bus routes and bikeways that don’t get them where they want to go, and said they like the idea of building a passenger rail system in Columbus. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/05/04/story15.html?b=1241409600^1821548

Born and raised in Upper Arlington. Moved into the city limits during my tenure at OSU. Now residing in Westerville and anxious to move closer to downtown (Columbus, that is).

More news on Nancy's: Fan cooks up plan to help Nancy's restaurant Tuesday, April 21, 2009 3:05 AM By Ann Fisher, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH When a 26-year-old information-technology recruiter opened a Facebook page to raise money for the owner of soon-to-close Nancy's Home Cooking, he figured he'd attract 1,000 members, tops. Instead, more than 2,640 devotees had joined the page -- Save Nancy's Home Cooking!!! -- by last night. Conor Malloy has asked Nancy's fans to overpay their bills on Saturday to help owner Cindy King as she faces bankruptcy, $59,000 in medical bills and disabling illnesses. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/04/21/save_nancys.ART_ART_04-21-09_B1_S0DK824.html?sid=101

Weirdest...quote...ever. I wonder if this guy has even been to Upper Arlington.

UA might invest in Kingsdale Tuesday, April 21, 2009 9:04 AM By Dean Narciso, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH A new Giant Eagle that will serve twice as many customers, featuring food that most grocery shoppers don't see. A hardware store, spa and health club. And a public square for parents to rest and kids to prance. Those details for a new Kingsdale Shopping Center emerged last night in a development agreement presented to the Upper Arlington City Council. Under the proposal, Upper Arlington would buy 5 acres of the site for at least one office building that eventually should bring the city $400,000 a year in additional income taxes. That and other public improvements would cost the city $5.3 million. But there would be no immediate cost to the suburb, according to the proposed agreement, because the improvements would be paid for over time through tax-increment financing. Resident Paul Kreitler sat through half the meeting, disappointed that the plan sounded less like Easton Town Center and more like "a huge surface (parking) lot with a strip mall at the end." Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/04/21/uamall.html?sid=101

Huntington Park certainly lends itself to a lot of photogenic opportunities, as shown by The Dispatch:

Images of the location and rendering of the proposed housing from The Dispatch: While this development isn't as sexy as a new project aimed at young professionals or retirees, it's still a great addition to downtown. The organization leading the development is top-notch. As noted in the article, their first foray into low-income housing has been a great success, both in giving people looking to turn their lives around a good home as well as being a good neighbor. Also, as mentioned in the article, the site chosen for this project, a vacant lot by I-670, is an eyesore. And the building itself will be attractive; certainly not a design one might immediately relate to low-income housing.

More low-income housing set Downtown project to provide 100 units, half for homeless Tuesday, April 21, 2009 3:06 AM By Mark Ferenchik, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH A Downtown housing development for low-income and homeless people will soon rise from an empty, trash-strewn lot next to a freeway embankment. National Church Residences is to break ground May 20 on the Commons at Buckingham, an $11.7 million building along I-670 just northeast of Abbott Nutrition, a subsidiary of Abbott Laboratories. Read more at http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/04/21/copy/DTHOUSE.ART_ART_04-21-09_B1_S0DK828.html?adsec=politics&sid=101

I wonder if someone from The Dispatch has been reading this thread... Patios solve one problem, create another Noise complaints rolling in; city may require permits Saturday, April 4, 2009 5:43 AM By Mark Ferenchik, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The smoking ban forced folks to light up outside Columbus bars and restaurants. So business owners built patios to accommodate them. The smokers were happy. But residents in some older parts of the city, where houses and businesses are close together, were not happy, according to city officials who said they've fielded complaints. Outdoor patios can be noisy gathering spots, and people living nearby quickly tired of them, they said. "The smoke actually hasn't come up" as an issue, said Ian MacConnell, chairman of the University Area Commission. "It's usually about noise." Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/04/04/PATIO.ART_ART_04-04-09_B1_DHDF2MS.html?sid=101

Audio slideshow of the BRUSH experience: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/multimedia/audio_slideshows/2009/03/brush/index.html

This is so cool. Hopefully these kind of events continue to flourish as the Lincoln Theater is reborn and new investment continues to renew the area: Cultural Rebirth New Near East Side social event adopts hip urban attitude Saturday, April 4, 2009 3:02 AM By Kevin Joy THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH On an unseasonably warm night in early March, a smiling Donna Marbury stood outside the Urban-Spirit Coffee Shop on the Near East Side as well-dressed professionals strolled along the block and jazz music wafted from an upstairs window. To the 27-year-old, the scene seemed almost nostalgic. "Back in the day, it was jumpin' on Long Street," said Marbury, a North Side resident who owns a public-relations company. "It's a revival. I'm excited to see it." The catalyst for her enthusiasm: a budding event called the BRUSH Experience (Black Renaissance Urban Sophisticated Hip), whose social palette blends art, music, cocktails and conversation. Seeking an art-focused nighttime alternative, graphic designer Marshall Shorts founded the monthly BRUSH in February. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/life/stories/2009/04/04/1_BRUSH.ART_ART_04-04-09_D1_6FDDNPS.html?sid=101

For the most part. The same goes with Don Scott Field in Columbus, which is the base for the corporate aircraft of Wendy's, Cardinal Health, Worthington Industries, and others. While Lunken does get the majority of corporate air travel in the Tri-State, executives visiting Toyota's operations in NKY will likely fly into CVG, since it's a closer airport that also has a local Fixed Base Operation (FBO) available.

In many cases, yes, it is. And it's not just executives that make use of private jets for business purposes. For example, let's say you have a factory in Texas that makes colored widgets. The coloring machine breaks down. It's costing you $100,000 in lost revenue every hour that machine is down. You need to bring in a specialist from the widget coloring device manufacturer's facilities in Colorado to fix the machine. It's far more cost-effective to get the specialist down to Texas via a private jet than it is on a commercial carrier. Another example is sales. Company A and Company B have sales meetings scheduled in the same 6 cities. Company A charters a private jet, visits all 6 cities in 2 days, and has 3 days left in the work week to compile reports and also can conduct business while in flight. Company B flies a commercial carrier, schedules meetings over 3 days, misses a connection in Philadelphia, has to reschedule 3 meetings, and pay for extra overnight hotel stays. As you can see, on a private aircraft a company can hit up multiple destinations in far less time than flying a commercial carrier. Also, a company can usually get into smaller airports and avoid the hassles of security lines and delays by flying into non-commercial airports (i.e. flying into Burke Lakefront for a sales meeting with Key as opposed to having to fly into Hopkins). These combined conveniences usually end up saving the company money in the long run or give the company an edge over the competition. There are multiple other examples where time is such a large factor that flying via a private aircraft is the most effective means of transportation.

Awesome. Cannot wait for the second phase to begin (bye-bye surface lots)!

Thursday, March 12, 2009, 1:40pm EDT | Modified: Thursday, March 12, 2009, 2:05pm Zoo lands unexpected $5M windfall, largest gift ever Business First of Columbus - by Adrian Burns In his second month on the job last summer, Columbus Zoo & Aquarium Executive Director Jeff Swanagan got a call from a lawyer. “An attorney called me and said, ‘I want to come see you,’ ” Swanagan said. “I thought, ‘Boy, we’re in trouble. What had we done?’” When the lawyer arrived, however, he brought stunning news – someone had left the zoo more than $5 million. “When he told me I said, ‘Could you stop for a moment while I take this in,’ ” Swanagan said. “I actually shed a tear because it was pretty emotional on some levels with it being so much money and me being new.” “This is the largest planned gift ever at the zoo,” Swanagan said. The money will go to the zoo’s endowment, raising it to $13 million and allowing officials, if the market improves, to reap a larger return for eduction and outreach programs, operations and conservation initiatives, Swanagan said. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/03/09/daily36.html

Friday, March 13, 2009 Zoo officials considering hotel on expanding campus Business First of Columbus - by Adrian Burns The Columbus Zoo & Aquarium is considering adding a hotel as its expansion raises hopes among administrators that more visitors will come for multiday visits. Officials are hiring a firm to study the prospects for a zoo hotel and expect to have a report back by mid-year, said Jerry Borin, the former Columbus Zoo executive director who is working part-time on the hotel project. The report also is expected to shed light on the potential size and features of a lodge at the zoo, said Jeff Swanagan, who took over as executive director in July. Such findings would help decide whether to include the hotel in the master plan for the zoo’s 586-acre campus, which Swanagan has been developing since taking over. The idea of a zoo hotel had been kicked around for years, but recent improvements at the complex in southern Delaware County motivated officials to step up the consideration because the zoo is gaining popularity as a regional attraction. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/03/16/story1.html?b=1237176000^1793530

From Business First of Columbus: New casino pitch puts one in Columbus Business First of Columbus - by Jeff Bell A Pennsylvania gaming company and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert want to build four casinos in Ohio, including one on the edge of the Arena District in Columbus. The Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee, a political action committee, submitted paperwork to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office Wednesday seeking to place a constitutional amendment on the Nov. 3 ballot. It would ask voters to approve a plan to build casinos in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo in which Penn National Gaming Inc. and Gilbert would be the investors. Once petition language is approved by the attorney general, the committee would begin collecting signatures to place the issue on the statewide ballot. In a release, casino organizers said the projects would represent a $1 billion investment and provide $200 million in licensing fees to the state and $600 million annually in tax revenue. Most of the tax dollars would go to counties, cities and school districts, the release said. “These investments will help to revitalize struggling Ohio metropolitan areas while providing support for counties, cities and public schools across the state as well as Ohio’s horse racing industry,” Penn National Peter Carlino said in a statement. Full article at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/03/09/daily23.html

Pretty good story about Southwest Airlines, their culture, their future, and how it's intertwined with Columbus: Right on course Despite changes elsewhere, Southwest will fly steady path at Port Columbus Sunday, March 8, 2009 4:05 AM By Marla Matzer Rose, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH DALLAS -- Southwest Airlines is flying into the future, and that means change for the company that carries more passengers than any other U.S. airline. Fortunately for Columbus, where the airline has the largest market share of any carrier, the airport has been spared flight cuts. Southwest expects to remain "status quo" here, said Elaine Roberts, chief executive of the Columbus Regional Airport Authority. But how Southwest is changing to address challenges in the industry is being watched closely at Port Columbus because air service is important to a city's health and status. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/03/08/southwest_changes.ART_ART_03-08-09_D1_DDD4Q5I.html?sid=101

Does the CVB currently own the Hyatt Regency as well? If not, that wouldn't really be fair to the Hyatt to plunk the revenue they provide into a competing hotel.