May 17, 20169 yr This map was posted with today's Dispatch article about the RiverSouth area of downtown: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/05/17/riversouth-transforms-downtown-wasteland-to-vibrant-district.html The map included a new project (#9) that is across the river in the Scioto Peninsula district for an unnamed proposed five-story mixed-use building on a vacant parcel just south of COSI:
May 18, 20169 yr This map was posted with today's Dispatch article about the RiverSouth area of downtown: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/05/17/riversouth-transforms-downtown-wasteland-to-vibrant-district.html The map included a new project (#9) that is across the river in the Scioto Peninsula district for an unnamed proposed five-story mixed-use building on a vacant parcel just south of COSI: This is interesting. I have not heard anything about that parcel since the downtown zoo thing fell through.
June 14, 20168 yr COSI is starting something new this year called "City View Patio" to activate and better take advantage of their front plaza space which faces onto the new Scioto Mile park. On most Friday and Saturday nights from now through Labor Day there will be beer, wine, and food for sale, as well as additional seating set up in the normally empty hardscape area looking out over the river. I think this is a pretty great idea, since it adds another activity generator and food/drink option right on the new park space - especially one on the West bank of the river. Right now, there's really only Milestone 229... Hopefully additional opportunities for vendors/concessions can be found elsewhere as well. More info here, http://www.cosi.org/visit/calendar-of-events/icalrepeat.detail/2016/06/17/2332/10/new-city-view-patio-at-cosi
June 14, 20168 yr It's a great idea. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
June 15, 20168 yr Outstanding. Next step: Building a glass pavilion in which COSI can locate a restaurant/bar.
June 23, 20168 yr View from the LeVeque Tower of the Ohio Veterans Memorial & Museum construction site on the Scioto Peninsula and median streetscaping work along W. Broad Street from http://www.columbusunderground.com/leveque-apartments-to-start-pre-leasing-in-july-condos-soon-to-follow:
July 18, 20168 yr Close-up of the aerial image of the Ohio Veterans Memorial & Museum construction site taken in the previous post and two additional mid-July views from http://www.columbusunderground.com/construction-roundup-july-edition: Mid-July view from W. Broad Street of the Ohio Veterans Memorial & Museum construction site looking north: Mid-July view from the lot behind the Ohio Veterans Memorial & Museum construction site looking east toward the downtown skyline - which includes the LeVeque Tower, where the aerial photo was taken from:
August 20, 20168 yr COSI parking plan closer to reality Replacing the surface parking lots at COSI with a 600-space underground garage topped by a park will cost an estimated $37 million, according to Capitol South Community Redevelopment Corporation. The nonprofit development group, which has overseen a major Downtown redevelopment push for the city of Columbus, will go before the Columbus Downtown Commission on Tuesday to seek approval for the garage plan, which it hopes to launch in September and complete within 14 months. The land in front of COSI, which was built on the site of the long-closed Central High School, is owned by the city of Columbus, and Capitol South is working with the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department on the project, which would include themed gardens, a plaza with a cafe, a central fountain and a children's fountain. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2016/08/20/1-cosi-parking-plan-closer-to-reality.html#
August 21, 20168 yr COSI parking plan closer to reality Replacing the surface parking lots at COSI with a 600-space underground garage topped by a park will cost an estimated $37 million, according to Capitol South Community Redevelopment Corporation. The nonprofit development group, which has overseen a major Downtown redevelopment push for the city of Columbus, will go before the Columbus Downtown Commission on Tuesday to seek approval for the garage plan, which it hopes to launch in September and complete within 14 months. The land in front of COSI, which was built on the site of the long-closed Central High School, is owned by the city of Columbus, and Capitol South is working with the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department on the project, which would include themed gardens, a plaza with a cafe, a central fountain and a children's fountain. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2016/08/20/1-cosi-parking-plan-closer-to-reality.html# This will be huge in getting $$$ into the part of the peninsula west of Belle. Once this is approved and a done deal and construction starts the developers will know that another big attraction will be right across the street from all of that land. I hope this park does what Columbus Commons did(minus the bad design of 'High Pointe at Kaliningrad' and all.)
August 22, 20168 yr I would hope that the city is already working with developers regarding the further development of the peninsula. Frankly, I'm hoping to hear some announcements in the next 6 months, assuming the timetable holds in terms of the garage completion.
August 23, 20168 yr Looks like the Garage and Green space is moving forward. As a former COSI team member we had been hearing about this for years up until I recently left. Its insanely better than the current setup but its going to be a rough year of construction for an organization that depends on gate admissions to function. However the end result will be well worth it and drive attendance once a neighborhood is complete around it. My only other comment is I am now noticing just how much green space the city has devoted to this central area... I really would like to see some of this utilized as a sculptural, cultural, or even global gardens space like other cities. Either way, exciting times for Franklinton and Downtown.
August 23, 20168 yr Looks like the Garage and Green space is moving forward. As a former COSI team member we had been hearing about this for years up until I recently left. Its insanely better than the current setup but its going to be a rough year of construction for an organization that depends on gate admissions to function. However the end result will be well worth it and drive attendance once a neighborhood is complete around it. My only other comment is I am now noticing just how much green space the city has devoted to this central area... I really would like to see some of this utilized as a sculptural, cultural, or even global gardens space like other cities. Either way, exciting times for Franklinton and Downtown. Welcome to Urban Ohio and great first post!
August 23, 20168 yr ^ The new park and underground garage in front of COSI got its formal approval today from the Downtown Commission. Columbus Underground has a report with renderings at the link below: CU: New Park and Underground Garage Approved at COSI The project designer said the park is organized into three pieces: A central activity plaza with two buildings for a cafe and restrooms; plus a north green and a south green. This rendering shows the under-construction Ohio Veterans Memorial to the north and conceptual outlines of future development to the west: The Downtown Commission approved the park and garage plan today - which is a two-level underground design for 620 spaces (slightly more than the 602 existing surface spaces it replaces). The Commission wanted the cafe and restroom buildings within the central plaza (shown below) to return with an architectural revision for a future review:
August 23, 20168 yr I am not exactly thrilled with the park design(even what was proposed informally earlier is better IMO), but the park itself overall will be huge for the area IMO and will be an asset when getting that infill built between Belle and the tracks and certainly a huge improvement over the surface lots there now. I just hope there is sufficient density(yes that includes some height) in the upcoming infill. If it is nothing but cheap stickbuilt stuff it will be almost criminal. They had better not waste that downtown view.
September 24, 20168 yr Columbus will be home to the National Veterans Memorial & Museum as backers expand scope Columbus could be home to the country’s first official national veterans memorial. A name change is in store for the museum being constructed on downtown’s Scioto peninsula, with support from a bill introduced in Congress to designate it as such. More below: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2016/09/23/columbus-will-be-home-to-the-national-veterans.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
September 24, 20168 yr ^ A little bit surprising to hear about this. The initial expansion from local veterans memorial to an Ohio veterans memorial made perfect sense (Columbus being Ohio's state capital and all). But expanding the scope from a state to a national veterans memorial is not an obvious move. Nevertheless, it sounds encouraging. The greater scope should mean greater attendance and more interest for the memorial/museum. And it does dovetail nicely with the recent announcement that COSI is partnering with the American Museum of Natural History in NYC to host a dinosaur gallery within COSI by late 2017: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2016/09/16/cosi-unveils-dinosaur-exhibit-in-partnership-with.html http://www.columbusunderground.com/cosi-and-amnh-team-up-to-bring-dinosaurs-to-columbus-jb1
September 24, 20168 yr Some current construction photos for the veterans memorial and museum from http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2016/09/23/columbus-will-be-home-to-the-national-veterans.html: Aerial view showing the memorial/museum next to COSI and the recently remade Scioto River greenway: Closer aerial view showing the memorial/museum and the median work being done to Broad Street: Exterior wall of the memorial/museum: Closer view of the exterior wall: Interior of the memorial/museum: Panorama of the memorial/museum interior:
September 24, 20168 yr Are dinosaurs just the beginning? In an interview with Columbus Monthly late last year, the Wexners revealed that negotiations were underway to bring satellites of both the American Museum of Natural History (one of the largest museums in the world) and the Smithsonian (the world’s largest museum and research complex) to the Scioto Peninsula. Bureaucratic challenges have made the Smithsonian deal more challenging to nail down, but Les Wexner says it still remains a possibility. He also says city leaders have talked to the Ohio History Connection about establishing a presence on the peninsula and suggests other possible partners could include the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Royal Shakespeare Company in the U.K., which already has a strong relationship with Ohio State University. “We’re a compelling partner for any national or international organization,” he says. “We want this to be a true cultural destination, similar to what they have in Chicago with the Cultural Mile,” adds Worley. “This is our version of that, if you will.” http://www.columbusmonthly.com/content/blogs/the-latest/2016/09/cosi.html
October 17, 20168 yr National Veterans Memorial update: Wexners, Wolfe and Crane foundations among those contributing to $60M campaign Making Columbus home to a national veterans' memorial won’t be inexpensive, but some of the city’s most visible businesses and residents are stepping up to help make it happen. As we reported in September, the memorial being constructed on downtown’s Scioto Peninsula will be known as the National Veterans Memorial & Museum, broadening in scope from a tribute exclusively to Ohio’s military veterans. More below: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2016/10/17/national-veterans-memorial-update-wexner-crane.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
November 6, 20168 yr Today's Dispatch had a nice photo-tour of the Veterans Memorial & Museum construction site - which is currently a dizzying array of temporary scaffolding and concrete forms along with masses of prop poles and rebar. The accompanying article also had a good overview of the plans for the neighboring Scioto Peninsula: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2016/11/05/1-veterans-memorial-project-expected-to-ignite-interest-in-scioto-peninsula.html More photos at http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2016/11/05/1-veterans-memorial-project-expected-to-ignite-interest-in-scioto-peninsula.html
December 2, 20168 yr Columbus inking agreement to develop Scioto Peninsula near COSI, Vets Memorial A 21-acre piece of the Scioto Peninsula will be redeveloped into a $500 million mixed-use site that combines housing, retail, office space and potentially hotels. The development will be one of the largest in the city’s history and local officials say it will help bridge the Downtown central business district into the Franklinton neighborhood west of the Scioto River. That includes between 1,575 and 1,800 apartments and 560,000 to 840,000 square feet of office space. It also accounts for retail, restaurant and entertainment space that takes up about 180,000 square feet and two to three hotels with about 240 rooms. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/12/02/Scioto_Peninsula_development_agreement.html
December 2, 20168 yr EDIT: ^ Snuck it in on me, casey! :wink: This looks like a formalization of the big development news announced back in 2013 - and posted here previously in this thread. But it is very good news, and its the current trending headline at dispatch.com: Columbus inking agreement to develop Scioto Peninsula near COSI, Vets Memorial By Rick Rouan, The Columbus Dispatch Friday, December 2, 2016 - 1:38 PM A 21-acre piece of the Scioto Peninsula will be redeveloped into a $500 million mixed-use site that combines housing, retail, office space and potentially hotels. The development will be one of the largest in the city’s history and local officials say it will help bridge the Downtown central business district into the Franklinton neighborhood west of the Scioto River. ( . . . ) The nonprofit Columbus Downtown Development Corp., that has developed Columbus Commons (former City Center Mall site) and Scioto Greenways parkland will oversee the mixed-use development. Guy Worley, president of the development organization compared the development to Columbus Commons, a CDDC-managed project that took about seven years to build and lease. The scale, though, is much different. A consultant’s study pegs the cost to build out the development at $307 million to $560 million. That includes between 1,575 and 1,800 apartments and 560,000 to 840,000 square feet of office space. It also accounts for retail, restaurant and entertainment space that takes up about 180,000 square feet and two to three hotels with about 240 rooms. ( . . . ) Both the City and CDDC will have to sign an economic development agreement that would empower CDDC to oversee recruitment of developers for 14 acres of city property south of W. Broad Street between COSI and the Norfolk Southern railroad tracks. City Council likely will vote on that agreement this month. MORE: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2016/12/02/Scioto_Peninsula_development_agreement.html
December 5, 20168 yr Glad that this is moving forward but 5 story buildings with some free standing commercial seems weak and non-ambitious. Taller structures would take advantage of the view over COSI towards the Scioto Mile and downtown.
December 5, 20168 yr Glad that this is moving forward but 5 story buildings with some free standing commercial seems weak and non-ambitious. Taller structures would take advantage of the view over COSI towards the Scioto Mile and downtown. I wouldn't be surprised to see taller structures at some locations. If we look back at the 2013 conceptual plan (shown below) it looks like a baseline rather than a cap. There's nothing regulatory to prevent taller buildings, only the downtown residential market. That market is red-hot right now and might push developers into taller towers. Plus, it seems like taller than 5-story buildings would make sense at the back of the Scioto Peninsula next to those elevated tracks anyway:
December 5, 20168 yr It's been 3 years since the initial Scioto Peninsula development announcement until this latest formal development agreement between the CDDC and the City. Back in 2013, I looked at the five proposal projects related to the Scioto Peninsula and their progress (shown below). Of those five projects, one is finished (Narrowing of the Scioto River / Scioto Greenways project); two are underway (New Vets Memorial, Underground Parking Garage); and one is part of this latest development agreement (New Residential Neighborhood). Only one will not happen - the Columbus Zoo satellite project (Zoo Indoor Adventure next to COSI) - which might end up being for the best anyway. So all in all, very steady and decent progress: After the reports earlier this summer about some of the reports to redevelop the Scioto Peninsula, I was prepared to be underwhelmed by yesterday's announcement. But I have to say that I'm pleasantly surprised by the vision being shown and really can't argue with anything being proposed here. The next questions are - How likely are these proposals to being built and what is the timeframe? Here's my take on the various parts of the Scioto Peninsula Master Plan from that prespective: 1) Narrowing of the Scioto River - This is definately happening. This was announced last year (and discussed here in the Scioto Mile thread). The removal of the Main Street dam is funded and scheduled to be removed later this year. Another lowhead dam to facilitate a similar river narrowing was done in Fall 2012 upstream at Fifth Street on the Olentangy River. 2) New Vets Memorial - This also looks like its definately happening. A $25 million pledge from Limited Brands founder Leslie Wexner would fund this. According to the Dispatch report, the final architectural designs of the New Veterans Memorial would begin this fall and demolition of the existing Vets would begin in Spring 2014. 3) Columbus Zoo Indoor Adventure - This looks very likely to happen. However, it's still in the conceptual stage. According to the Dispatch report, it would be a 50,000 square foot indoor site that could include an aquarium, rainforest and interactive educational components and would sit just southwest of COSI. A possible opening date of 2017 has been mentioned. The Columbus Zoo would likely fully fund this, possibly thru a new levy. 4) Underground Parking Garage - The existing surface parking lots west of COSI have been proposed to be replaced by an underground parking garage topped by a park. The new underground garage would serve all three Scioto Peninsula attractions, COSI, New Vets and the Zoo. It seems likely that would need to be built on a similar timeline with the new Zoo facility. However, no funding or timeline is currently available. 5) New Residential Neighborhood - The most conceptual, but possibly most exciting part of the announcement, is a plan to add 1,200 residential units above ground-floor retail spaces. The area west of Belle Street to the elevated railroad tracks is reserved for this new development. According to the Dispatch report, this would be built by private developers. It will very likely be based upon the Columbus Commons development model - which was managed by the Columbus Downtown Development Corp. (CDDC). CDDC would also be managing this development plan.
February 10, 20178 yr High-rise apartments, restaurants, hotels envisioned on vacant land near COSI Two 30-story residential towers with sweeping views of the Downtown skyline are among the new buildings envisioned to be built on long-vacant lots west of COSI. A brand new city street lined with restaurants and shops and a boutique hotel or two also is planned for the 21-acre site on what's now called the Scioto Peninsula. More at: http://www.dispatch.com/news/20170210/high-rise-apartments-restaurants-hotels-envisioned-on-vacant-land-near-cosi
February 10, 20178 yr http://www.columbusunderground.com/master-plan-for-scioto-peninsula-unveiled-bw1 (For some reason I'm unable to see the image from the Dispatch - Here's one from CU)
February 10, 20178 yr Hopefully not another CDDC bait-and-switch. They get a good firm to do the master plan (Robert Stern here, MKSK for Columbus Commons), then execute with the worst developers possible (Carter...).
February 10, 20178 yr Hopefully not another CDDC bait-and-switch. They get a good firm to do the master plan (Robert Stern here, MKSK for Columbus Commons), then execute with the worst developers possible (Carter...). Cols. Commons was designed by EDGE, not MKSK.
February 10, 20178 yr Much more about this Scioto Peninsula news from Business First: - $500 million plan would bring 30-story residential towers, offices and retail to Scioto Peninsula: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/02/10/500-million-plan-would-bring-30-story-residential.html - Here’s why officials think downtown can handle another 3.1 million square feet of development: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/02/10/here-s-why-officials-think-downtown-can-handle.html - Q&A on Scioto Peninsula plan: 'This is a once in a 100-year opportunity': http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/02/10/q-a-on-scioto-peninsula-plan-this-is-a-once-in-a.html
February 10, 20178 yr Hopefully not another CDDC bait-and-switch. They get a good firm to do the master plan (Robert Stern here, MKSK for Columbus Commons), then execute with the worst developers possible (Carter...). Cols. Commons was designed by EDGE, not MKSK. Correct. But MKSK (or MSI at the time) did the original plan, which was much stronger.
February 10, 20178 yr Hopefully not another CDDC bait-and-switch. They get a good firm to do the master plan (Robert Stern here, MKSK for Columbus Commons), then execute with the worst developers possible (Carter...). Cols. Commons was designed by EDGE, not MKSK. Correct. But MKSK (or MSI at the time) did the original plan, which was much stronger. It was a pretty picture not based in reality or budget. Their plan didn't take into account keeping the parking garage below fully functional. It would have been physically impossible to bring Town St. through the park as MSI suggested and keep the garage below as CDDC required and within the budget. I agree that the Carter project is awful.
February 10, 20178 yr Here's the full site plan of the development proposal. Overall I think it's very strong!
February 11, 20178 yr If they do even half of that, I'll be pleased. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 17, 20178 yr Scioto Peninsula plan's architect on finding inspiration in the site's tight footprint The architect behind the Scioto Peninsula design guidelines says the 21-acre site is ideal for urban development. More below: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/02/16/scioto-peninsula-plans-architect-on-finding.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 20, 20178 yr Business First had this recap graphic of the Scioto Peninsula Master Plan in their Friday print edition:
March 28, 20178 yr Came across these two recent construction pics of the New Vets Memorial (night-time shot and daytime shot) at And this mid-March shot of the New Vets Memorial is from http://www.columbusunderground.com/construction-roundup-italian-village-downtown-more
March 28, 20178 yr Business First's instagram feed also had this older overhead shot of the New Vets Memorial: https://www.instagram.com/columbusbiz1st/ Last Saturday's Dispatch contained this chopper photo showing the New Vets Memorial and the COSI Underground Parking Garage across Broad Street under construction. Couldn't locate a digital image, so I scanned the print photo: And CU had this ground level view of the COSI Underground Parking Garage from February: http://www.columbusunderground.com/construction-roundup-february-2017
April 3, 20178 yr 10 developers in 4 teams named finalists for $500M Scioto Peninsula project The $500 million plan to redevelop the Scioto Peninsula is closer to having a master developer. CDDC has winnowed the list of potential partners to four development teams, made up of 10 companies based from New York to Los Angeles. More below: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/04/03/10-developers-in-4-teams-named-finalists-for-500m.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
April 4, 20178 yr Georgetown, Daimler, and Kaufman look like the best pick to me as far as first impressions go, with Crawford Hoying second. Carter should be banned from the city for life after HighPoint, and Buckingham from Indy seems very cheap/meh from a quick glance at their work.
April 5, 20178 yr Georgetown, Daimler, and Kaufman look like the best pick to me as far as first impressions go, with Crawford Hoying second. Carter should be banned from the city for life after HighPoint, and Buckingham from Indy seems very cheap/meh from a quick glance at their work. Yes! -especially the last part!!!!!
April 5, 20178 yr I like the new-urbanism chops of Crawford Hoying and SunCal. I like the design chops of Daimler and Kaufman, and the financing chops of Georgetown.
April 10, 20178 yr Some image updated form the flurry of work happening around COSI right now too. How many cranes can you spot? Too bad COSI blocks at least 3 more in RiverSouth.
May 23, 20178 yr Veterans Memorial project taking shape on Scioto Peninsula The country’s first National Veterans Memorial & Museum is taking shape on the western edge of downtown. With construction about halfway through, I toured the site on Columbus’ Scioto Peninsula where the former Franklin County Veterans Memorial building stood until 2015. More below: http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/05/23/photos-veterans-memorial-project-taking-shape-on.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
June 28, 20177 yr Found this new photo of the Veterans Memorial project on reddit. Nice view from W. Broad Street, now that the concrete structure has been freed from all the props and forms. Funny thing about the reddit post was that the poster thought the building looks like a new X-Men HQ:
July 3, 20177 yr Hard Hat Tour: National Veterans Memorial & Museum The National Veterans Memorial & Museum is starting to take shape on the Scioto Peninsula. The unique building’s concrete shell is now in place and the surrounding land is being shaped to eventually hold 250 trees, a reflecting pool and a network of walking paths. Amy Taylor of the Columbus Downtown Development Corporation (CDDC), which is managing the project, recently gave Columbus Underground a hard hat tour of the site. More below: http://www.columbusunderground.com/hard-hat-tour-national-veterans-memorial-museum-bw1 "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
July 18, 20177 yr Aaannnddd... It appears the winner is Crawford Hoying! https://www.goscioto.com/ All of the images below are from the rendered fly-through video at the project's link,
July 18, 20177 yr Aaannnddd... It appears the winner is Crawford Hoying! https://www.goscioto.com/ WOW! That really looks good! Crawford Hoying would be a good choice. This looks like a more contemporary version of their outstanding Dublin Bridge Park project.
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