WalkerEvans

I always forget about the first day of classes at CSCC, and Spring & Long streets are my primary roads in and out of Downtown. Quite a bit of traffic & congestion in that area during that first week. Which isn't a bad thing. ;) The area could use quite a bit more in terms of cars, busses, pedestrians, and other types of after-school activity.

Looking forward to Little Palace getting the Rossi/185 revamp. Should be pretty sweet!

Some more photo updates from today. The East Side looks very much complete on the outside except for a few finishes here and there. I'm really liking the streetscaping done along Front. Benches and bike racks and shrubs and planters and trees. Will really make the sidewalk feel cozy once everything starts turning green next spring. <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc1.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc2.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc3.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc4.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc5.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc6.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc7.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc8.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc9.jpg">

Some new photo updates from earlier today (below). A lot of the southside grounds have been cleared and leveled off, while the north end of the mall continues to be dismantled. <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc1.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc2.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc3.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc4.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc5.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc6.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc7.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc8.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc9.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/cc10.jpg">

Two new construction photos from today. These are going up fast! <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/kld1.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/kld2.jpg">

Thanks for the linkage! ;) Has anyone here on UO tried out Yellow Brick yet? (I know Columbusite has.) I've only had it once so far, but it's really tasty pizza. Happy to have this place in my neck of the woods. Only a 12 minute walk from my house here in the King Lincoln District. I imagine I'll be making that walk much more often when it's a little warmer out. ;)

<b>Everything that you Need to know about Knead</b> By Walker | December 23, 2009 <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/knead.jpg"> Rick & Krista Lopez are no strangers to Columbus diners. The duo opened Crescendo Pastaria in Shawnee Hills in the mid-nineties, and later opened Trattoria La Tavola, which closed earlier this year after a solid 10-year run. Prior to their own ventures, Rick worked at Tapatio, a memorable spot for many on Columbus Underground. Last month, the Lopezes announced their plans to return Downtown with Knead, a new made-from-scratch dining experience that aims to be open in February at 505 N. High Street. We recently sat down with Rick and Krista to find out more about what we can expect from their latest restaurant concept. READ MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/everything-that-you-need-to-know-about-knead

Yep.

Ha! Thanks for posting it up here. :D I'm really excited about the move into the new office space, and proud to have what I consider the most desirable street address (and coolest neighbors) in the city! Looking forward to a great 2010!

Sounds like it's on the backburner until further notice. The city budget issues really gave it a back seat this year.

No worries! We did it without you! ;)

As a Columbus resident, I totally agree that it would have been a more optimal situation to have this located within the city of Columbus. But did NRI ever have plans to build Grandview Yard on another site inside Columbus? If not, then that preference is purely imaginary. A great "what if" scenario... but unfortunately not one that is grounded in any sort of reality. As for the claim of lost tax revenue, I don't see any of the new jobs being located at Grandview Yard coming from direct relocation outside of the city of Columbus. At least not <b>yet</b> anyway. I imagine that over the course of the next 10 years, there may be some job shifting going on. It's just as likely that some jobs may come from other cities/suburbs as well. I think that in the short term it may have a detrimental effect on office rates Downtown, just as we've seen the Arena District pull jobs out of older office towers in the center of Downtown... but in the long term, I think urban infill is a good policy, no matter what city boundary it actually falls inside of. Replacing brownfield sites and filling in denser development will only lead to proximate growth, which will have a positive impact on the area surrounding Grandview Yard (which includes land located within Columbus).

Yeah, I don't think any development is going to be sustainable for the long term when "newer, shinier" competing developments are built down the road. It's cannibalistic. We've seen this not only with our large shopping malls, but to a smaller extent with big box stores and strip malls along specific retail corridors. Sadly, I don't think developers really care about this sort of thing. They get in, they make their money, then they move on and leave a trail of blight in their wake. Tuttle Mall opened in 1997. It's middle aged in 2009. It will be torn down within the next 15 years. Possibly 10.

Huzzah! Very exciting news today. Already working on my thank you letters! :D

Huh? I think Rosendales/Details was the only Short North restaurant to close in 2009. Meanwhile, Sushi Rock, Level Dining Lounge Bakery Gingham, and Basil Thai all opened in the past year. To me it would appear that the restaurant openings in the neighborhood are currently outpacing the closings.

Here is the link to our online petition: http://www.petitiononline.com/c4ccg/petition.html Please pass this link along to as many people as possible! Below is a sample message that you can copy & paste to send out via twitter or as a facebook status update: Sign the petition to show your support for a smarter approach to the parking meter rate increase: http://bit.ly/88Hcx2 Please let me know if you have any questions on how best to circulate this information.

From Here: http://www.columbusunderground.com/oteros-food-bar-has-closed-their-doors <b>Otero’s Food Bar Has Closed Their Doors</b> By Walker | December 11, 2009 <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/oteros1.jpg"> Otero’s Food Bar, located at 50 North High Street, has closed their doors, adding one more restaurant casualty to what we had hoped was a finalized list of 2009 closures. This lunch spot has been in business since 2005 and the cause for closure is not immediately known. Their website is still live, but multiple visual reports confirmed that the space was closed up today, and their phone number has been disconnected.

<b>2009 Year in Review: Urban Development</b> By Walker | December 5, 2009 5:30pm <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/best-jobs.jpg"> With the economic recession being fully realized in late 2008, many expected 2009 to be a slow year in terms of urban development. Several projects had been delayed or canceled due to financing issues, but many others were able to continue with seemingly little difficulty. It’s been said that cities that continue to develop during recessions will come out ahead when the economy turns back around. Judging by the number of projects either under construction or in development, it would seem that Columbus is well posed to thrive in the near future. Below is a rundown of the urban development projects that were completed, under construction, or announced in 2009. READ MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/2009-year-in-review-urban-development

Some more photo updates from The Annex at Riversouth. Looks like most all of the exterior work on the east half of the development is wrapping up. Not sure what the insides are like, or when people will start moving in to that side. Gotta be fairly soon. <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc-1.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc-2.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc-3.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc-4.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc-5.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/lc-6.jpg">

Construction update photo from Tuesday: <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/courthouse-1.jpg">

I've been meaning to post another photo update for the past few weeks. These were taken on November 14th. The underground water work started first sometime in September and the Condo work started up shortly after. It looks like they've already got most of the underground foundations finished, and the units themselves should be going up relatively soon. Glad to see this project finally happening after it's been in and out of the limelight for several years now. It's also really cool to see the skyline in the background and know that these places are spitting distance from Downtown. <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/whitney-condos-1.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/whitney-condos-2.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/whitney-condos-3.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/whitney-condos-4.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/whitney-condos-5.jpg">

Some more demolition photos from Tuesday. Looks like the mall is maybe 75% gone now... <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/city-center-1.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/city-center-2.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/city-center-3.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/city-center-4.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/city-center-5.jpg"> <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/city-center-6.jpg">

Here's a photo of the future site of the hotel from the lower grade. Goodbye parking lot! <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/hotel-1.jpg">

Figured it was time for an update ove here. Pretty drastically different from those last two photos up top. ;) <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/buckingham-1.jpg">

Great news! Hopefully the Pearl Winter Market can find a new home for next year! They're currently set up in the ground floor of the building on Tuesdays and Fridays. http://www.downtowncolumbus.com/pearlmarket/