^There's only been three other buildings completed this century even close to that range.  The James Cancer Hospital (297 feet) in 2014, the North Bank condos (267 feet) in 2007, and the Miranova building (314 feet) in 2001.

 

The (North) Market Tower is expected to be in the range of 400 feet and completed some time in 2019 (as of now).

A height increase? Still have doubts about it happening. But if it does, at 330 feet it will be number 15 in buildings over 100 meters in Cbus, and the North Market tower would be # 16. Hope it happens...but WHY did they not address the parking garage wrap around issue????-makes me suspicious.

 

I'm looking at you also Kaufman, the only good thing they have done was the Leveque and that's because it's existing structure was already in place.

 

Sorry, but are you kidding me? Kaufman has been very consistent with getting things they propose done. 250 High, 600 Goodale, Leveque, and their complexes in New Albany and at Polaris are all completed. 225 Commons and Gravity (500 W Broad) are under construction with steel rising as we speak. The VV project has moved through a lot of big design changes and finally won approval. Kaufman have shown themselves very quickly to be one of the most capable developers in the city. That you would even mention them in the same breath as Arshot is nuts.

 

He's probably talking about design. WPCC doesn't even want the VV project to happen. But to your point, yes, Kaufman moves quick! Hopefully the VV project is rising by year's end. Excited to see what else they have in store after the handful of large projects they're currently working on. Similarly Crawford Hoying gets things done too. Bridge Street is a multi-hundred-million dollar project they're just flying through. Then the RiverSouth tower and the Short North Moxy tower will be putting up steel within the end of the year. Wish one of these two could take over this project.

 

I'm looking at you also Kaufman, the only good thing they have done was the Leveque and that's because it's existing structure was already in place.

 

Sorry, but are you kidding me? Kaufman has been very consistent with getting things they propose done. 250 High, 600 Goodale, Leveque, and their complexes in New Albany and at Polaris are all completed. 225 Commons and Gravity (500 W Broad) are under construction with steel rising as we speak. The VV project has moved through a lot of big design changes and finally won approval. Kaufman have shown themselves very quickly to be one of the most capable developers in the city. That you would even mention them in the same breath as Arshot is nuts.

 

He's probably talking about design. WPCC doesn't even want the VV project to happen. But to your point, yes, Kaufman moves quick! Hopefully the VV project is rising by year's end. Excited to see what else they have in store after the handful of large projects they're currently working on. Similarly Crawford Hoying gets things done too. Bridge Street is a multi-hundred-million dollar project they're just flying through. Then the RiverSouth tower and the Short North Moxy tower will be putting up steel within the end of the year. Wish one of these two could take over this project.

 

I was commenting more on the quality of Kaufman and Schottensteins product.  You look at 600 Goodale which is now 4-5 years old and it absolutely terrifies me at what they will produce on the lot in VV.  Which also I'm not opposed to development there but I do think that it is far too large for that area to handle. Something like Truberry on Second would be more appropriate for that area.

 

Crawford, Elford, Wagenbrenner, Wood, Pizzuti, Casto, Borror all produce a good and even at times great products.  Compared to Schottenstein who built on old cornfields in Hilliard and New Albany without properly draining and the roads were cracking as they put them in; 600 Goodale was built with cheap materials and looks terrible already.  Attention to detail and longevity is not their top priority and it absolutely should be there.  Sorry for expecting better finished products for our neighborhoods.

http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2017/06/27/millennial-towers-led-video-board-at-issue-before.html

 

That pesky wrap-around board came up in today's meeting.

 

I hope some sort of compromise can be reached - either down to 3-4 stories, or perhaps on just two sides of the building instead of four.  We'll see.

 

Fwiw, this is not an entirely unique concept - https://archpaper.com/2017/01/led-walls-downtown-la-public-art/#gallery-0-slide-0

I'm very on the fence with the LED board...

 

On one side I think it's excessive considering the housing directly across the street as well as its location just feels odd for even a 3 story video board. However the other half of me understands and respects the "life" they are trying to connect high and the riverfront with, plus these are residents downtown and should not expect dark and quiet suburban nights.

 

I don't know, I feel the best compromise at this point may be a ribbon style LED installation thats less of a video board and more of a public art piece. These pieces can be toned down in brightness due to far fewer LEDs per foot and diffusers sometimes... plus it could guarantee this will never be used for ad space.

 

Much like this....

 

 

 

Ultimately I hope this project does come to fruition because I think it has potential and would do wonders to boost density and our skyline.

Read that the holdup was Arshot added a hotel component and that they expect to break ground this year and construction to take 18-19 months.

 

http://www.dispatch.com/news/20170628/millennial-tower-proposal-downtown-now-includes-3-more-floors-hotel

 

“We now expect to break ground later this year.”

 

The hotel would occupy three floors of the 330-foot building, proposed for an empty lot on the southwest corner of Front and Rich streets Downtown.

 

In addition to the hotel, the building would include two floors of retail, six floors of parking, five floors of offices, eight floors of apartments and three floors of condominiums. In all, 138 residences are planned, Schottenstein said.

 

A conference center, fitness center, outdoor pool and game lounge are among other building amenities.

Looks like tomorrow morning's Downtown Commission meeting is going to be jam-packed with projects.  Including this update to the Millennial Tower:

 

http://www.columbusunderground.com/millennial-tower-proposal-gets-new-updates

 

"The ambitious Millennial Tower proposal returns to the Downtown Commission tomorrow morning with another round of updates and changes for review.  Developer Arshot Investment Corporation turned in a submission packet that includes floor plans for the full building that reveal more details on how the site would be used throughout the 28-story building."

 

"Most notably, the LED video display wall that was originally designed to screen the six stories of parking on floors three through eight is being reduced to just one floor (third), and would only be placed on the east facade of the building, facing South Front Street."

Looks like tomorrow morning's Downtown Commission meeting is going to be jam-packed with projects.  Including this update to the Millennial Tower:

 

http://www.columbusunderground.com/millennial-tower-proposal-gets-new-updates

 

"The ambitious Millennial Tower proposal returns to the Downtown Commission tomorrow morning with another round of updates and changes for review.  Developer Arshot Investment Corporation turned in a submission packet that includes floor plans for the full building that reveal more details on how the site would be used throughout the 28-story building."

 

"Most notably, the LED video display wall that was originally designed to screen the six stories of parking on floors three through eight is being reduced to just one floor (third), and would only be placed on the east facade of the building, facing South Front Street."

 

Awesome! Great to see the reduced video screen size. I'm beginning to feel pretty confident that this will actually happen. It's pretty crazy that we might have a 28-story building and a 35-story building added to the skyline within the next ~3 years as well as a couple 20 to 30-story buildings added within the next ~10 years, and that's just what we know about so far.....

I was torn on the video screen portion.  It seemed unique and much better than looking at levels upon levels of parking or plain ads.  I would have liked to see multiple stories stay if it was only going to be on one side, or a full wrap-around if it was only going to be one story.

 

Either way, it's a very minimal portion of the project now.  Hope it gets final approval!

Debate Continues over Millennial Tower’s LED Billboard Plans

 

How do you balance advertisements with architecture? That continues to be the heart of the discussion with the 28-story Millennial Tower proposal as it made its way in front of the Downtown Commission for its third round of reviews this morning.

 

When the new building was first proposed in May 2016 for the southwest corner of Rich and Front Streets, it featured wrap-around advertising measuring six-stories tall that were designed to conceal the interior parking deck, and promote retail tenants and other advertisers, adding to the financial viability of the project.

 

More below:

http://www.columbusunderground.com/debate-continues-over-millennial-towers-led-billboard-plans

I will say that while I agree the original proposal was too much video board, I really don't see this latest proposal as an issue let alone a "non starter" as the commission is still claiming. It seems strange that they are so hell-bent on ending the LED board on this building when the developer has honestly taken it down to the minimum in comparison.

 

Anyway, my real question is what will they use as the facade treatment for the garage? Are we getting 360 degree 7 story ad space (Kill me now)? Public murals? Matching glass/steel screening to the rest of the structure? or an open garage? Living green walls?

 

I very much want this tower to happen so this may be my biggest concern because the garage podium structure right now looks like an entirely different piece and I think its a mistake to focus on one LED board at this point if were gonna end up with such a fragmented tower.

^^The downtown commission drawing a line in the sand over a one-story LED board is disheartening.  So many projects end up dying because of the commission and their lack of accepting some "progressive" projects.  I fear this might be another one based on their comments.

Millennial Tower is back

 

After months of silence, plans for the Millennial Tower downtown are back on the table.

 

The planned 28-story tower on the southwest corner of Front and Rich streets will go before Downtown Commission Tuesday morning, with developers seeking a certificate of appropriateness for the tower that promises retail space, offices, a hotel, residential units and parking.

 

And yes, it still includes an LED sign and marquee.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2018/01/19/millennial-tower-is-back-this-time-with-a-smaller.html

 

I still won't believe this is anything but typical Schottenstein vaporware until it's topped out, but it certainly would make a statement on the skyline...

 

Millennial Tower Project Returns to Commission Seeking Approval

 

http://www.columbusunderground.com/millennial-tower-project-returns-to-commission-seeking-approval-we1

 

 

 

Not much of a fan of the design.  From the pic on the right, the back tower portion looks for all the world like a 1970's condo tower on the beach somewhere mashed with a glass office tower in front.  Serious value engineering compared to the original render...

Not much of a fan of the design.  From the pic on the right, the back tower portion looks for all the world like a 1970's condo tower on the beach somewhere mashed with a glass office tower in front.  Serious value engineering compared to the original render...

 

The first ~6 floors of the view on the right will be covered up by the 6-story red brick building which fronts Civic Center Dr.

 

I, personally, am open to a 'unique' architectural design rather than a generic design. It's going to be a noticeable building either way.

The interesting part, to me, is the height:

 

If constructed as currently planned, Millennial Tower would add 720,000 square feet of office, retail, hotel, residential restaurant and parking garage space to the RiverSouth neighborhood in Downtown Columbus. At 412 feet tall, the building would become the 10th largest in the city, and second tallest residential building.

http://www.columbusunderground.com/millennial-tower-project-returns-to-commission-seeking-approval-we1

 

With this and the North Market Tower, Columbus is finally actually growing up (past 400 feet, that is) since the early 90's.

^I want to say late '80s.

Columbus has done it right by focusing on mixed use midrises all around town.

^I want to say late '80s.

 

I was thinking about the Franklin County Courthouse built in 1991 as the last 400+ footer.

^I want to say late '80s.

 

I was thinking about the Franklin County Courthouse built in 1991 as the last 400+ footer.

 

Yep, the Franklin County Courthouse building was finished in 1991 and is 464 feet tall. A year earlier, in 1991, the William Green building was finished at 530 feet tall. In 1989, the Vern Riffe State Office Tower (504 feet) and Three Nationwide Plaza (408 feet) were both finished. This was obviously a huge three-year span in terms of growth of our skyline. Perhaps the next 3-5 years will be the next big change in our skyline if we see both Millennial and Market Towers built (both over 400 feet) and maybe one more if we are lucky.

So...they're just balking at the idea that the LED board was the reason for the veto?

 

EDIT - it looks like they're going with LED "blade signs" instead of the wraparound board.  I think it got rejected because of "light pollution" so I don't know if this will fix that.

 

Also, the new design looks hideous, imo.

 

Previous rendering:

 

What exactly do they mean by blade sign? In my mind, it would be a tall, skinny sign that would give off much less light pollution, but I could be wrong. Any LED sign experts out there?

^I want to say late '80s.

 

I was thinking about the Franklin County Courthouse built in 1991 as the last 400+ footer.

 

I didn't have the height of that one memorized but thought it could be the one that pushed things into the early '90s.

What exactly do they mean by blade sign? In my mind, it would be a tall, skinny sign that would give off much less light pollution, but I could be wrong. Any LED sign experts out there?

 

Blade signs are usually vertical signs (tall and skinny) that attach perpendicular to the side of a building, an LED blade would likely have LED displays on both sides.

 

A blade is likely being preferred because this would face the light and visuals up and down the street vs directly across the street. A board like this would reduce the light pollution and intensity for basically all surrounding properties while enhancing visibility from the street.

 

Here is an example of a standard blade sign.

 

 

 

 

What exactly do they mean by blade sign? In my mind, it would be a tall, skinny sign that would give off much less light pollution, but I could be wrong. Any LED sign experts out there?

 

Blade signs are usually vertical signs (tall and skinny) that attach perpendicular to the side of a building, an LED blade would likely have LED displays on both sides.

 

A blade is likely being preferred because this would face the light and visuals up and down the street vs directly across the street. A board like this would reduce the light pollution and intensity for basically all surrounding properties while enhancing visibility from the street.

 

Here are two examples of standard blade signs.

 

 

 

 

 

^ Awesome, thanks. That's exactly what I was picturing. I kind of side with commissioners in not wanting any LED signs at this location, but I think a blade sign on that side of the building is pretty good compromise.

 

I don't blame Arshot for fighting to keep the LED sign because it will be a good revenue generator, however if this project is solely dependent being able to use LED signs, I don't think it was ever feasible in the first place.

You can see the blade sign in the new rendering on the left. It's on the east facade facing Front St from floors 2-7

Can we confirm that ANY of Arshot's proposals have ever been built?

Well it is proposed at over 400 feet so I want it *sigh*.  I think the kindest way I could describe it would be by saying it is "charmfree" and completely free an  unhindered by any aesthetic considerations.  *Must think of the how it will function and fill things in instead of how this "Bertha" of a building looks*

Can we confirm that ANY of Arshot's proposals have ever been built?

 

Yea, they built the 25-story Fifth Third Building. They also built the 6-story building next to the proposed Millennial Tower location. They've also built or renovated numerous buildings in the Brewery District.

 

The only high profile project I know of that has been a failure by Arshot is SPARC, which was an incredibly ambitious project from the start. I"m not sure it's fair to take their failure with the SPARC project and assume they are completely incapable of completing Millennial Tower if they gain approval. SPARC was a bit outlandish for the area. Millennial Tower fits perfectly in the area it is proposed for, at least in terms of use.

Can we confirm that ANY of Arshot's proposals have ever been built?

 

Arshot built the taller, tower addition to the 5/3 building at State and High in 1998 (but no longer own it), and renovated the former Woolworths across High St into CVS/Subway and offices (topped with an LED screen) around that time as well. They also built the brick office building facing Bicentennial Park (directly behind the Millennial Tower lot, though they also no longer are the owner) I want to say around 2002. Before that they were active in the Brewery District and still own the Worley Building and much of the renovated Hoster Brewing complex there (and freeway adjacent LED screen). Most recently they redid the smaller brick office building at State and High and connected it into their neighboring Woolworths project (while also of course adding a massive LED ad screen wrap)

 

edit: cbussoccer beat me to it! :)

Can we confirm that ANY of Arshot's proposals have ever been built?

 

Arshot built the taller, tower addition to the 5/3 building at State and High in 1998 (but no longer own it), and renovated the former Woolworths across High St into CVS/Subway and offices (topped with an LED screen) around that time as well. They also built the brick office building facing Bicentennial Park (directly behind the Millennial Tower lot, though they also no longer are the owner) I want to say around 2002. Before that they were active in the Brewery District and still own the Worley Building and much of the renovated Hoster Brewing complex there (and freeway adjacent LED screen). Most recently they redid the smaller brick office building at State and High and connected it into their neighboring Woolworths project (while also of course adding a massive LED ad screen wrap)

 

edit: cbussoccer beat me to it! :)

 

Just barely lol.

 

Do you know of any failed high profile projects by Arshot, other than SPARC? SPARC is the only one that comes to mind for me. If that's the case, I find it quite humorous that the general consensus seems to be there is no way Millennial Tower happens because SPARC never happened. Millennial Tower is a mixed-use tower in a quickly growing part of downtown. SPARC was an extremely ambitious race track based idea in a dead part of town. I'm not sure the two are comparable. 

Do you know of any failed high profile projects by Arshot, other than SPARC? SPARC is the only one that comes to mind for me. If that's the case, I find it quite humorous that the general consensus seems to be there is no way Millennial Tower happens because SPARC never happened. Millennial Tower is a mixed-use tower in a quickly growing part of downtown. SPARC was an extremely ambitious race track based idea in a dead part of town. I'm not sure the two are comparable.

 

I would say that Arshot (Bill Schottenstein) has a history of dreaming maybe a little too big and having a tendency to bite off more than he can chew (not the worst qualities at all btw)

 

Other than SPARC, the most high profile project of his I can remember that never came to fruition at all was the proposed second phase of Bicentennial Plaza (brick office building), that would have been a large, residential tower across Cherry St from phase 1 at the corner of 2nd and Main

 

Most of his other stuff maybe didn't fully live up to its original billing or have enough real staying power, but he did build it in some form eventually

 

In addition to the vacant Cooper Stadium wasteland, skepticism of Arshot probably comes because he's lost some high profile property to repossession by lenders in recent memory (5/3 building, Bicentennial Plaza), and some of his other stuff has been plagued by vacancies (retail in Brewer's Yard, Brewmaster's Gate, 5/3 building) or maintenance issues (LED screens atop CVS half missing, other half almost always broken)

 

That said, even though I take anything he proposes with a grain of salt, I really hope he can get Millennial Tower off the ground in some form. Arshot certainly doesn't have the polish of Pizzuti, or the reliability of NRI, but he does propose and take on projects that probably no one else would. This hasn't always been totally successful, but overall he's added a lot more to the city than detracted from it

I attended the Downtown Commission meeting - the tower was approved. No word on retail tenants, hotelier or groundbreaking. I think the project looks pretty good.

I attended the Downtown Commission meeting - the tower was approved. No word on retail tenants, hotelier or groundbreaking. I think the project looks pretty good.

 

My body is ready.

 

Any comments on the dreaded LED signs?

Confirmation from a CBF reporter on twitter:

I attended the Downtown Commission meeting - the tower was approved. No word on retail tenants, hotelier or groundbreaking. I think the project looks pretty good.

 

My body is ready.

 

Any comments on the dreaded LED signs?

 

The giant LED screen is gone, replaced by a steel mesh and tinted windows to hide the garage portion. There is a marquee sign with a blade extending up 80' or so. That's all LED but it's designed to be a part of the building rather than a wrap. The commission didn't have any issues with it. There are LED strip lights delineating some of the floors.

It looks modern too me. It may look strange because there isn't a ton of new mid-rise construction in Ohio but they're building similar angled stuff all around the DC burbs that allow mid-rise building heights.

The LED sign can be easily seen in this rendering: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DUPSmpYU0AA1E9L.jpg:large

It reminds me of something that would be built in Toronto, albeit much shorter.

I won't say I like it, but I think it's much improved from the original render

 

^ Columbus Underground reported it as being 412 feet tall, but I have a hard time seeing that based on the rendering. Perhaps the rendering is just selling it short (pun intended).

I attended the Downtown Commission meeting - the tower was approved. No word on retail tenants, hotelier or groundbreaking. I think the project looks pretty good.

 

Any word on their thoughts on the Borror and LC projects?

 

As for this tower, I think it is much improved. Hopefully they really do have tenants and financing lined up and can start ASAP!

I won't say I like it, but I think it's much improved from the original render

 

I'll say it - I like it!  It's not a world beater and likely won't be what people think of when they think of Columbus, but its impact will be large and I believe very positive for that area.

I attended the Downtown Commission meeting - the tower was approved. No word on retail tenants, hotelier or groundbreaking. I think the project looks pretty good.

 

Any word on their thoughts on the Borror and LC projects?

 

As for this tower, I think it is much improved. Hopefully they really do have tenants and financing lined up and can start ASAP!

 

The Borror project was approved. LC said they are trying to "move from red to black" by lowering the cost of materials in Matan and eliminating a floor on the Beatty. Both changes were approved.

I attended the Downtown Commission meeting - the tower was approved. No word on retail tenants, hotelier or groundbreaking. I think the project looks pretty good.

 

Any word on their thoughts on the Borror and LC projects?

 

As for this tower, I think it is much improved. Hopefully they really do have tenants and financing lined up and can start ASAP!

 

The Borror project was approved. LC said they are trying to "move from red to black" by lowering the cost of materials in Matan and eliminating a floor on the Beatty. Both changes were approved.

 

Sounds like LC bit off more they could chew.

27-Story Millennial Tower Approved by Downtown Commission

 

 

The Downtown Commission voted to approve the Millennial Tower project today, meaning the 27-story mixed-use building at the corner of Front and Rich streets is now free to move forward.

 

Commissioners were overwhelmingly positive in their comments about the latest design, which features a very different approach to the building’s LED signage.

 

While previous iterations had envisioned a screen that would wrap around the entire building at a height of six stories, the new proposal calls for two smaller signs, both on the Front Street side – a vertical one that would extend nearly 90 feet up the side of the building, and a horizontal marquee that would measure about 86 feet in length.

 

More below:

http://www.columbusunderground.com/27-story-millennial-tower-approved-by-downtown-commission-bw1

$150M Millennial Tower (now with a smaller LED sign) gets green light from city

 

The proposed 27-story Millennial Tower, which had neighbors in downtown's RiverSouth neighborhood screaming "not in my backyard," has gotten the green light from the Downtown Commission.

 

But this isn't the same building that once promised a six-story wrap-around LED board.

 

The 750,000-square-foot building proposed by developer Arshot Investment Group finally landed a certificate of appropriateness for the southwest corner of Front and Rich streets by refining the designs. Specifically by slimming the marquee to 7 feet tall, 14 feet off the ground and facing only Front Street.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2018/01/23/150m-millennial-tower-now-with-a-smaller-led-sign.html