NorthShore64

From the Brecksville Planning Commission Meeting:

Columbus will close Scioto Downs grandstand after new engineer's report Jim Weiker - The Dispatch - Aug. 26, 2021 "The city of Columbus plans to prohibit the use of the Scioto Downs grandstand after a new engineer's report found the grandstand's roof to be dangerously deteriorated. A track spokesperson said the owners will take action to address the problem. The South Side racetrack stopped using the grandstand for spectators four years ago, following a report from the engineering firm Burgess & Niple that the concrete roof over the structure was so unsound that it risked falling onto spectators. ... Katie Miller, a spokesperson for Caesars Entertainment, which owns Eldorado Gaming/Scioto Downs, said the company is "fully committed" to the racetrack and expects to have a plan in place shortly to address the grandstand roof."

**Edit** My bad, missed the "Brecksville: Sherwin-Williams Research & Development Center" thread. Moved comment there:

Hill Farm approved; construction slated to begin next spring A. Kevin Corvo - ThisWeek News - Aug. 24, 2021 "Construction of 229 M/I Homes residences at the northwest corner of Scioto Darby and Elliott roads is expected to begin next spring. Hilliard City Council on Aug. 23 voted 5-1, with Kelly McGivern absent, to rezone 160 acres of the 205-acre site and allow M/I Homes to develop what will be known as the Hill Farm neighborhood. ... The original rezoning application also called for 229 single-family residences. Although the revised application still lists 229 residences, 60 now would be empty-nester “quads,” with the remainder being single-family residences on lots of two sizes, according to Barkan."

Ohio airbase chosen as preferred site for cyber warfare center Kim Palmer - Crain's Cleveland Business - Aug. 26, 2021 "An Ohio Air National Guard base in Richland County is the preferred site for the new Air Force Cyber Warfare Wing, Gov. Mike DeWine's office announced Wednesday, Aug. 25. The Mansfield Air National Guard base is likely to house the military branch's initial expansion into cybersecurity, pending the results from a required environmental impact analysis. The project is expected to bring 175 STEM and IT jobs to Richland County, about one hour south of Cleveland. The air base, home of the 179th Airlift Wing, was one of two locations under consideration; the other was the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in Minnesota."

Metroparks buys buildings on Columbus Peninsula Stan Bullard - Crain's Cleveland Business - Aug. 26, 2021 "The pair of squat industrial buildings in the Flats don't look like much and lack much history. But their locations and size made them worth a total of $1 million to the Cleveland Metroparks. The buildings at 1045 French St. and 1725 Fall St. are on the north edge of the district's Rivergate Park, which makes them ideal locations for a service center owned by the parks system, replacing nearby leased buildings on Columbus Road. ... Sean McDermott, Metroparks chief planning and design officer, said in an email that the buildings will provide a home for operations associated with Rivergate Park and will enhance the system's ability to serve the Lakefront and Ohio & Erie Canal reservations."

New Civic Theater Mural from Lock 3 (8-20-21) University of Akron - Ayer Hall Demolition for the Crouse Hall Consolidation and Renovation Project Classes started this past week. Its nice to see more activity downtown with the return of students to campus.

Ohio Democratic Party finds new buyer for its East Fulton Street HQ Bonnie Meibers - Columbus Business First - Aug. 26, 2021 "The Ohio Democratic Party has sold its building on East Fulton Street to an affordable housing developer. Fairfield Homes purchased the building for $1.95 million, said Matt Keyes, spokesman for the Ohio Democratic Party. ... 'We are still exploring the best options for the site and putting together a plan,' Greene said. 'We are incredibly excited about the acquisition and this helps us fulfill our mission of building community.' ... The party had previously made a deal to sell the 13,300-square-foot building to urban developer Borror for $2.7 million. Back in 2019, Borror confirmed the sale and said it would likely close in 2020. Keyes said the Covid-19 pandemic caused the sale to fall through." 340 E Fulton St, Columbus, OH 43215

GE Current looking to exit Nela Park for Beachwood Stan Bullard - Crain's Cleveland Business - Aug. 25, 2021 "In the latest twist of the legacy General Electric lighting group, GE Current, a Daintree company, is looking to set up its global headquarters in Beachwood and exit Nela Park in East Cleveland. About 120 employees would exit Nela Park if GE Current concludes lease negotiations with Industrial Commercial Properties LLC of Solon to occupy 42,000 square feet at 23550 Commerce Park Drive, according to Joe Cenin, GE Current's chief operating officer. Cenin said the move would allow GE Current to set up its own offices instead of continuing to lease at Nela Park from GE Lighting, now a unit of Savant Systems Inc."

Bursting with color: MidTown to bring in 19 murals, live entertainment during Cleveland Walls! event Karin Connelly Rice - TheLand - Aug. 24, 2021 "For two years now, officials at MidTown Cleveland, LAND Studio, and Pow! Wow! Worldwide have been working on a mural and arts program to bring a slew of murals and a week of arts programming to the neighborhood. The coronavirus pandemic delayed the event last year, but now the week-long event is happening. Next week, from Monday, Aug. 23 through Saturday, Aug. 28 CLEVELAND WALLS! International Mural Program will finally get underway. The event will bring 23 world-class artists—11 of them local artists—to the MidTown neighborhood to create 19 dynamic public murals. ... At CLEVELAND WALLS! headquarters, 7113 Euclid Ave., visitors can get event information, see painting demonstrations, participate in hands-on activities, meet local vendors, and participate in a diverse array of film, musical, and educational programming." Midtown Cleveland - Cleveland Walls Cleveland Walls murals location map:

The Gallery at The East End to open Aug. 25 in former Goodyear headquarters building in Akron Megan Becka - Cleveland.com - Aug. 24, 2021 "Art EverySpace and Industrial Realty Group are hosting a grand opening event Wednesday for The Gallery at The East End, a permanent art display featuring works by local artists in the former Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. headquarters building in downtown Akron at 1200 E. Market St. ... The event features art tours, and additional tours are available by request. The Gallery at The East End will offer quarterly rotating exhibitions, art tours, artists’ talks and other cultural programming. The grand opening is free to attend, but online registration is required."

FWIW most cities in Ohio rely on income taxes much more than property taxes. This includes Lancaster which was recently looking at making budget cuts due to lost income tax revenue. New Albany gave AWS a 15 year, 100% property tax abatement in exchange for 35 jobs making ~$70,000/ year. Google had a deal like that in New Albany as well. Google only just acquired the land in Lancaster so there aren't any details on what the deal is for the future data center, but I would expect it to be pretty similar. There likely won't be more than 30/50 new jobs in Lancaster.

BrewDog to open New Albany taproom on Aug. 25 Patrick Cooley - The Dispatch - Aug. 18, 2021 "Scottish beer maker BrewDog plans to open its New Albany location on Aug. 25, the company announced this week. ... The upcoming craft beer bar will be BrewDog's seventh location in the United States and its fourth in central Ohio. The Columbus-area locations include taprooms in Franklinton and the Short North, along with a massive facility in Canal Winchester that includes a hotel, a brewery, a museum, and an expansive taproom."

Atlanta firm Stonemont Financial buys Columbus Castings property from Reich Brothers Holdings Jim Weiker - The Dispatch - Aug. 17, 2021 "Stonemont Financial Group of Atlanta paid $8.5 million for the 74-acre site on the west side of Parsons Avenue north of Frank Road. 'We are extremely excited about the Castings site purchase and for expanding our presence in the Columbus market,' said Stonemont CEO William (Zack) Markwell in an email, adding that 'our plans aren’t complete for the site.' ... According to its website, the private investment firm Stonemont Financial manages more than $2 billion in real estate assets. The company specializes in industrial and warehouse development."

Wexner Medical Center to acquire two east side properties for future development Hayleigh Colombo - Columbus Business First - Aug. 18, 2021 "Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center pans to acquire two properties on the east side near University Hospital East and Outpatient Care East for future development purposes. OSU trustees tentatively approved plans on Tuesday for Wexner Medical Center to buy 1.5 acres of land adjacent to the east outpatient center, at the intersection of Taylor Avenue and Atcheson Streets. The 1544 Atcheson St. property contains a two-story brick residential multi-family home that was built in 1920, according to the Franklin County Auditor’s Office." 1544 Atcheson Street

There isn't any information about locations beyond "Ohio and California" so far, but Cincinnati (Amazon Air at CVG) or "test market" Columbus would seem likely. Amazon Plans to Open Large Retail Locations Akin to Department Stores Sebastian Herrera, Esther Fung and Suzanne Kapner - Wall Street Journal - Aug. 19, 2021 "Amazon.com Inc. plans to open several large physical retail locations in the U.S. that will operate akin to department stores, a step to help the tech company extend its reach in sales of clothing, household items, electronics and other areas, people familiar with the matter said. The plan to launch large stores will mark a new expansion for the online-shopping pioneer into bricks-and-mortar retail, an area Amazon has long disrupted. Some of the first Amazon department stores are expected to be located in Ohio and California, the people said. The new retail spaces will be around 30,000 square feet, smaller than most department stores, which typically occupy about 100,000 square feet, and will offer items from top consumer brands."

Google to invest $1 billion, buy more land as part of Columbus region data center expansion Mark Williams - The Dispatch - Aug. 19, 2021 "In Lancaster, Google has bought a farm at 104 Whiley Road, west of U.S. 33. If Google develops a data center there, it would be the first for Lancaster. 'We've been working on this for over a year,' Mayor David Scheffler said. 'City staff has spent thousands of hours on this project. We've been excited for a long time and happy to see it announced.’' The site has about 120 acres, and Scheffler said it could be the largest commercial development in the city's history. Scheffler said the project is one of several in that area of Lancaster, including the new Magna Seating of America plant, and that it could lead to more projects nearby." 104 Whiley Road, Lancaster

Google to invest $1 billion, buy more land as part of Columbus region data center expansion Mark Williams - The Dispatch - Aug. 19, 2021 \ "Google will invest an additional $1 billion into its data center operations in New Albany while buying land in Columbus and Lancaster for more data centers. The Columbus site is the home of the old Hartman Farm off of South High Street. ... Rising demand is behind Google's $1 billion expansion in New Albany that will triple the size of those operations. The site broke ground in 2019 and is already in operation, the company said. Google said its purchase of 618 acres in Columbus and Lancaster will be for future potential development for data centers, and will give the tech giant more than 1,000 acres of land in the Columbus region." 5076 S High St - Columbus 104 Whiley Road - Lancaster

Fundraising continues for section of Ohio to Erie Trail in Delaware County Paul Comstock - ThisWeekNews - July 29, 2021 "The project’s website – ohiotoerietrail.org – says that as of November 2019, 274.8 miles of the trail's eventual 326 miles were completed. Most, but not all, of the trail's section in Delaware County also is completed. To help fund the remaining costs, Delaware County Friends of the Trail held its 18th annual Community Ties Bicycle Tour on July 24 as a fundraiser. ... 'We've been diligently acquiring right of way and slowly building trail over the last several years,' he said, adding that Preservation Parks uses grants, park-district funds, contributions from groups including DCFT, and in-kind volunteer work. Last year, we built 2.5 miles and this year we're going to build another 1.4 miles. That will bring us down to Hartford Road, which is just outside of Sunbury,' he said. Also next year, a 1,500-foot section between Harford Road and Sunbury will be completed."

The Columbus Downtown Development Corporation's apartment project at 497 East Town Street is set to go before the HRC at its August meeting. The project includes 98 units and 51 parking spaces in a 5 story structure (same as the CDDC's RFP from earlier in the year). The lot is within the East Town Street Historic District so it needs approval from both the HRC and Downtown Commission. Here are some updated renderings and site plans for the project Topiary Park Crossing: East Town Street Elevation

West Side Market diversifies tenant mix with new pop-up stalls Michael Indriolo - TheLand - Aug. 16, 2021 "West Side Market shoppers accustomed to the usual produce stalls in the arcade just northwest of the main building found something new this past weekend: Bonsai trees, Puerto Rican-style ice cream, and organic urban-farmed veggies. Those new stalls popped up as part of an effort to diversify the West Side Market with new entrepreneurs and local businesses. Spearheaded by the city of Cleveland with support from The FARE Project (Food Access Raises Everyone), the new Day Stall Vendor program grants local entrepreneurs temporary spots in the produce arcade on weekends. Although this free program only runs from Aug. 7 to Aug. 28, the city has eyes on a future long-term day stall program."

State board OKs $100 million loan for Cleveland Clinic pathogen center Michelle Jarboe - Crain's Cleveland Business - Aug. 16, 2021 "On Monday, Aug. 16, the Ohio Controlling Board signed off on funding for the estimated $445 million project. The building will serve as an anchor for the nascent Cleveland Innovation District, a public-private push to create 20,000 jobs and spur billions of dollars of investment. ... A project summary submitted to the controlling board shows that the loan will carry a 25-year term and an interest rate of 1.12%. The state will forgive the debt entirely if the Clinic lives up to its commitments to create 1,000 full-time non-clinical jobs by 2029; maintain more than 17,000 non-clinical jobs; and bring an additional 7,500 jobs to Ohio by 2034 in connection with the innovation district. The outside positions could be jobs at startup businesses or established companies that move to the area to be close to the Clinic and other institutions."

Here is a county population change map for all municipalities:

For an better visualization, here is a map of County municipality (for pop. >5000) population change from 2010 to 2020 I quickly threw together: