March 11Mar 11 Aha! My viewpoint dream has come true! You can see The Merchant Tower rise as you head down Front St. You can also see it rise above the Chipotle Office as you're coming down Vine, but I didn't get a picture of that because I'm usually driving and you know...safety.
March 11Mar 11 4 hours ago, PrestoKinetic said: Aha! My viewpoint dream has come true! You can see The Merchant Tower rise as you head down Front St. You can also see it rise above the Chipotle Office as you're coming down Vine, but I didn't get a picture of that because I'm usually driving and you know...safety. I love seeing this this building rise over the Short North! Edited March 11Mar 11 by sono4315
March 11Mar 11 Nice day to check out progress at the Merchant! Snatched a few random ones earlier this afternoon
March 12Mar 12 Question for the group: Is it weird to have strong romantic feelings for a construction project? Asking for a friend obviously.
March 12Mar 12 Uh... "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
March 12Mar 12 4 hours ago, TIm said: Question for the group: Is it weird to have strong romantic feelings for a construction project? Asking for a friend obviously. Nah I do too just not this one
March 13Mar 13 9 hours ago, TIm said: Don't you dare shame me! I mean my friend. I wouldn't dare! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
March 13Mar 13 I noticed the elevator core peaking out between the Hyatt and Hilton towers while driving over the Mound Street bridge into downtown this morning.
March 19Mar 19 17 hours ago, PrestoKinetic said: Here's Merchant Tower again from Front St just outside Nationwide Arena. Nice to see Merchant really starting to make its presence known.
March 20Mar 20 2 hours ago, cbussoccer said: Waiting at the light at Cleveland and Naghten. Aren't you glad you had to wait?
March 24Mar 24 This building is really starting to rise pretty quickly it seems you can now start to see it all the way down 670 heading west. This was taken heading east towards Neil Ave exit. I heard somewhere this is supposed to be completed by the end of 2025, maybe its possible? Edited March 24Mar 24 by sono4315
March 24Mar 24 4 minutes ago, sono4315 said: This building is really starting to rise pretty quickly it seems you can now start to see it all the way down 670 heading west. This was taken heading east towards Neil Ave exit. I heard somewhere this is supposed to be completed by the end of 2025, maybe its possible? Their website says 2Q of 2026. I would guess the outside would be mostly done by the end of the year though.
April 1Apr 1 Couple random shots from earlier this morning From Grove St Just beginning to peek over Abbott... From Cleveland Ave
April 2Apr 2 3 hours ago, CbusOrBust said: The Merchant rises in the distance from the Main Street bridge Gap filler
April 3Apr 3 I just noticed this from the pictures I posted yesterday, the building cladding is being attached to the middle size section.
April 3Apr 3 17 hours ago, 614love said: Gap filler I never thought of looking at it from that angle! That's great, especially if it peaks above the Police Building 😃 Edited April 3Apr 3 by PrestoKinetic
April 3Apr 3 Pretty good write up about the north market in this business first article. North Market Downtown will expanded into Merchant Building It’s a long article, but here are some good portions. The project will add 15,000 square feet to the market (a nearly 60% increase), creating space for more merchants, a late-night bar and a dedicated year-round event space. The project also should spur additional development along Vine and Spruce streets such as at the old Granero space, which is controlled by the Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority. The bar-centered expansion will stay open until 11 p.m., giving the six merchants there the opportunity to appeal to a late-night crowd. The market currently closes at 7 p.m., but that will be pushed to 9 p.m. once the expansion opens. There also will be an indoor/outdoor plaza with a variety of seating options for everyday use and for events, such as farmers markets. The hotel doesn’t just benefit the North Market with visitors. The market also will get a percentage of the bed tax the hotel generates. That will go into a capital fund to support maintenance and improvements at the market. “Support that previously came from the city now can be self-generated through this project,” Wolfe said. “That won’t happen overnight, but that will be new revenue and it’ll reduce our reliance on the city.” And an annual payment of $300,000 from the developers for revenue lost from the surface lot is a commitment in perpetuity.
April 3Apr 3 Just now, VintageLife said: The project also should spur additional development along Vine and Spruce streets such as at the old Granero space, which is controlled by the Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority. This section annoyed me a bit, because if it was a goal the parking garage of the new tower should have ground floor retail. That restaurant space will always struggle, because it isn’t very appealing for walkers.
April 3Apr 3 26 minutes ago, VintageLife said: This section annoyed me a bit, because if it was a goal the parking garage of the new tower should have ground floor retail. That restaurant space will always struggle, because it isn’t very appealing for walkers. Granero was open for about 8 years. The location might be tough but with an 8 year run, I wouldn't put it in the same category as a retail spot with new concepts every couple of years. Heck, it has a better track record than the old Rigsbys space which has been 3 or 4 different things in about the same amount of time. It's all about the business. It's not a perfect location but not the worst.
April 3Apr 3 8 minutes ago, DTCL11 said: Granero was open for about 8 years. The location might be tough but with an 8 year run, I wouldn't put it in the same category as a retail spot with new concepts every couple of years. Heck, it has a better track record than the old Rigsbys space which has been 3 or 4 different things in about the same amount of time. It's all about the business. It's not a perfect location but not the worst. How long has it been empty?
April 3Apr 3 16 minutes ago, VintageLife said: How long has it been empty? A yearish, maybe more? But I don't anticipate anyone moving in while the tower is being built. But if a business, (with a shady owner) can be around that long before the tower, it's not a bad spot for after the tower either. I dont have many concerns over its longevity when hole in the walls exist everywhere in imperfect locations. And if it's becomes a rotating cast of businesses, it's no different than the perpetual changes within the market itself.
April 3Apr 3 44 minutes ago, DTCL11 said: A yearish, maybe more? But I don't anticipate anyone moving in while the tower is being built. But if a business, (with a shady owner) can be around that long before the tower, it's not a bad spot for after the tower either. I dont have many concerns over its longevity when hole in the walls exist everywhere in imperfect locations. And if it's becomes a rotating cast of businesses, it's no different than the perpetual changes within the market itself. That’s very true, I had no idea it was open that long. I just wish they would have added some little outside retail along the garage. It would be a cool spot for bigger concept mom and pops that wanted a little more room than the market could provide. In the end, it will be an improvement over a parking lot.
April 4Apr 4 Designs Unveiled for Downtown North Market Expansion This morning, representatives with the North Market unveiled a first look at the vision behind the expansion while naming GRA+D Architects as the lead designer of the new two-story space. The North Market expansion is slated to include several new vendor stalls, a Market-owned bar — similar to the one found at the Bridge Park location — additional seating and restrooms, and an event space on the second floor that will overlook the new plaza entrance. The Merchant Building is scheduled for completion sometime in the fourth quarter of 2026.
April 4Apr 4 Was visiting North Market last night before the Blue Jackets match and snagged these closeups...
April 4Apr 4 7 minutes ago, Gnoraa said: Was visiting North Market last night before the Blue Jackets match and snagged these closeups... Amazing, it’s going to look great by summertime. Haven’t been down in the area for a bit, I’ll have to get lunch one of these days It also looks like it’s only on about floor 13-14?
April 4Apr 4 I'm a little surprised that the new expansion feels so enclosed and they didn't prioritize making it feel open and airy like the current markets. There's nothing inherently wrong with it. Just different feel.
April 4Apr 4 1 minute ago, DTCL11 said: I'm a little surprised that the new expansion feels so enclosed and they didn't prioritize making it feel open and airy like the current markets. There's nothing inherently wrong with it. Just different feel. Yeah, the renderings seem to make the ceiling feel pretty short, but that just might be because it’s a drawing. It will be weird to have it not open and roomy
April 4Apr 4 20 minutes ago, Gnoraa said: Was visiting North Market last night before the Blue Jackets match and snagged these closeups... These photos are fantastic! Thank you for sharing. It really gives perspective on how far along the project is. Regarding the market expansion, I like the idea and look of the central bar and the additional stalls. I thought there would be room for more than 5-7 new vendors, though. But as long as there is functional outdoor space to allow for pop-ups, food trucks, and seasonal harvest setups, it should complement the interior vendors well. It looks like the ceiling height is several feet above the vendor signage, so it should have somewhat of an open feel. I actually like the close together feel of the vendor corridor. Kinda gives it a Reading Market in Center City Philly feel to it.
April 4Apr 4 The fact that GRA+D is doing it gives me a lot of hope for the final result. They do great work.
April 4Apr 4 8 minutes ago, PizzaScissors said: The fact that GRA+D is doing it gives me a lot of hope for the final result. They do great work. Good to hear, the renderings aren't super impressive but their work I’ve seen does look good, so I’m sure it will be great.
April 4Apr 4 1 hour ago, CMHOhio said: These photos are fantastic! Thank you for sharing. It really gives perspective on how far along the project is. Regarding the market expansion, I like the idea and look of the central bar and the additional stalls. I thought there would be room for more than 5-7 new vendors, though. But as long as there is functional outdoor space to allow for pop-ups, food trucks, and seasonal harvest setups, it should complement the interior vendors well. It looks like the ceiling height is several feet above the vendor signage, so it should have somewhat of an open feel. I actually like the close together feel of the vendor corridor. Kinda gives it a Reading Market in Center City Philly feel to it. Reading Terminal in Philly is by far my favorite market!! My company is headquartered in Philly and I do an annual trip there and always hit up this place!!! When you go down to the construction site now, it really is impressive how much of an impact this building has already, the scale is very bold when you're in the area.
April 4Apr 4 Forgot to add this part from the business first article I posted yesterday. “Since work began on the expansion and tower, total merchant sales have been down – but not by much. Sales in the first year of construction in 2023 fell 3% to $16.4 million from a record of $16.9 million in 2022. That dropped 0.8% in 2024 to $16.3 million. That’s a 3.8% decline across two years. For one, convention traffic remains strong. Roughly 50% of sales are credited to people attending conventions, tourism and events including concerts in the area and Columbus Blue Jackets and Columbus Crew games.” it’s great to see that it didn’t affect sales much at all, and that there is money to help if a shop does go down in sales. Later in this section it does say a few of the shops aren’t paying any rent during construction, the mini-super being one.
April 4Apr 4 57 minutes ago, VintageLife said: Forgot to add this part from the business first article I posted yesterday. “Since work began on the expansion and tower, total merchant sales have been down – but not by much. Sales in the first year of construction in 2023 fell 3% to $16.4 million from a record of $16.9 million in 2022. That dropped 0.8% in 2024 to $16.3 million. That’s a 3.8% decline across two years. For one, convention traffic remains strong. Roughly 50% of sales are credited to people attending conventions, tourism and events including concerts in the area and Columbus Blue Jackets and Columbus Crew games.” it’s great to see that it didn’t affect sales much at all, and that there is money to help if a shop does go down in sales. Later in this section it does say a few of the shops aren’t paying any rent during construction, the mini-super being one. I would take a decline of income of 3.9% if that meant not paying rent, who wouldn't take that deal?
April 4Apr 4 1 hour ago, Gnoraa said: Reading Terminal in Philly is by far my favorite market!! My company is headquartered in Philly and I do an annual trip there and always hit up this place!!! When you go down to the construction site now, it really is impressive how much of an impact this building has already, the scale is very bold when you're in the area. Same. Reading Terminal is iconic. Such an amazing buzz of activity, sights, and smells. Stepping foot in there for the first time as kid is a core memory.
April 7Apr 7 11 hours ago, CbusOrBust said: Bunch of randoms from earlier at the Merchant I like the photos showing how the building's massing interacts with those around it. Seems like it's adding a lot to the cityscape in that area of downtown. Thanks as always for these updates.
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