March 5Mar 5 17 minutes ago, Pablo said: I think it would be a difficult building to adapt to anything other than office. The floor plate is too wide. I have a vague recollection that President Ford was at the ribbon cutting for this building in 1976. Not to mention it would probably take a massive amount of money to make the ground floor attractive to any potential businesses. It’s just a really ugly building and doesn’t really need saved.
March 5Mar 5 The building is currently undergoing some minor work on the Spring Street side, though I'm not sure for what exactly.
March 5Mar 5 46 minutes ago, PizzaScissors said: The building is currently undergoing some minor work on the Spring Street side, though I'm not sure for what exactly. It’s being renoed so the bankruptcy court can move in. One of the “cost-cutting wins” DOGE had bragged about, even though it’s been in the works for years…
March 5Mar 5 Columbus federal building that houses IRS, Social Security offices could be targeted for sale A Columbus government building faces an uncertain future after being targeted for "disposal" in a since-deleted list published by U.S. General Services Administration. The John W. Bricker Federal Building at 200 N. High St. was one of seven Ohio facilities the GSA described on its website as a "non-core property" that could be sold to ensure "taxpayer dollars are not being spent on vacant or underutilized spaces." The nearly 230,000-square-foot Bricker building is home to offices housing workers at the Social Security Administration, the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. A 1,000-square-foot parking facility for federal employees attached to the building also was included. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/03/05/bricker-federal-building-columbus-gsa-doge.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
March 5Mar 5 ^Probably should read 1000 space parking garage. 1000 SF is just over 6 parking spaces...
March 19Mar 19 Wasn’t quick enough to snap a pic, but fencing is up around the United Way site and equipment starting to arrive. I hate what the project turned into, but at least they’re moving quick I guess.
March 19Mar 19 2 minutes ago, amped91 said: Wasn’t quick enough to snap a pic, but fencing is up around the United Way site and equipment starting to arrive. I hate what the project turned into, but at least they’re moving quick I guess. Yeah, it’s a huge disappointment but at least it’s bringing more residents downtown.
March 19Mar 19 5 minutes ago, VintageLife said: Yeah, it’s a huge disappointment but at least it’s bringing more residents downtown. This part of downtown is also pretty barren. I’m hoping with this and Estrella, more developers will start building here, especially when (if?) the Rampup project winds down.
March 20Mar 20 Charmy's Market aims to be downtown's neighborhood grocery Sherry Bayegan knows the grocery business is tough, but it’ll never be as hard as a previous gig. “We owned a restaurant for seven years in Iran,” she said. “That’s a bigger challenge than this. We survived that.” Bayegan and her wife Rezi Bayegan immigrated to the U.S. in 2013, fleeing a government that not only is restrictive to women, but also punishes same-sex relationships with death. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/03/14/charmys-market-aims-to-be-downtowns-neighborhood.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
March 20Mar 20 15 hours ago, ColDayMan said: Charmy's Market aims to be downtown's neighborhood grocery Sherry Bayegan knows the grocery business is tough, but it’ll never be as hard as a previous gig. “We owned a restaurant for seven years in Iran,” she said. “That’s a bigger challenge than this. We survived that.” Bayegan and her wife Rezi Bayegan immigrated to the U.S. in 2013, fleeing a government that not only is restrictive to women, but also punishes same-sex relationships with death. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/03/14/charmys-market-aims-to-be-downtowns-neighborhood.html I think they will be finding out that running an entire grocery store is much much more difficult than running a restaurant. Good luck to them though, this is much needed.
March 26Mar 26 Riverfront property in downtown Columbus listed for $3.5M this property has been listed for a few years, so I wonder why there has been a new push for it? Is it because the highway work is starting to wrap up in that area so might be a more attractive location? it would be great for another tower, with parking below to get above the highway.
March 26Mar 26 23 minutes ago, VintageLife said: Riverfront property in downtown Columbus listed for $3.5M this property has been listed for a few years, so I wonder why there has been a new push for it? Is it because the highway work is starting to wrap up in that area so might be a more attractive location? it would be great for another tower, with parking below to get above the highway. Ideal situation - 5 story parking garage with condo's/apartments/commercial in front of the garage facing the river. The tower can be vertical and expand on top of the parking garage to be preferably 16+ stories tall. Something similar to the Miranova Condominium building.
March 26Mar 26 6 minutes ago, KyleofColumbus said: Ideal situation - 5 story parking garage with condo's/apartments/commercial in front of the garage facing the river. The tower can be vertical and expand on top of the parking garage to be preferably 16+ stories tall. Something similar to the Miranova Condominium building. That’s 100% what I have thought anytime I see the listing. It would be a great spot for a little cafe facing the trail and river. I love the Scioto mile, but I do think Columbus needs to add some type of dining right along the river front.
March 26Mar 26 Agree with everyone that this would be a great spot for another residential high-rise with a parking garage podium. Unlike what's proposed in the Brewery District, a multi-level parking structure would mostly be hidden by and protect potential residents from the I-70 highway boondoggle. 8 minutes ago, VintageLife said: That’s 100% what I have thought anytime I see the listing. It would be a great spot for a little cafe facing the trail and river. I love the Scioto mile, but I do think Columbus needs to add some type of dining right along the river front. RIP Milestone 229.
March 26Mar 26 7 minutes ago, CMHOhio said: Agree with everyone that this would be a great spot for another residential high-rise with a parking garage podium. Unlike what's proposed in the Brewery District, a multi-level parking structure would mostly be hidden by and protect potential residents from the I-70 highway boondoggle. RIP Milestone 229. I want it even closer to the river than milestone 229
March 26Mar 26 42 minutes ago, VintageLife said: I want it even closer to the river than milestone 229 Let's get a pier on the river with a coffee shop. Problem solved.
March 26Mar 26 If a developer does decide to do a high rise condo/apartments building, it would cool to see some walk up 2 story units along the river/park.
March 27Mar 27 15 hours ago, KyleofColumbus said: Let's get a pier on the river with a coffee shop. Problem solved. Even closer. Put it in the river.
March 27Mar 27 2 minutes ago, PizzaScissors said: Even closer. Put it in the river. This would be great up at alum creek, let’s get it done hahah
March 27Mar 27 Columbus increases funding by 50% for program bringing local shops downtown A city of Columbus initiative that brought a coffee shop, bakery, clothing store and soon other merchants downtown is getting a funding boost for another round. Columbus City Council Monday approved a 50% increase, to a total of $1.55 million, for the Ground Floor Growth initiative to help local businesses move to brick-and-mortar locations by funding renovations and subsidizing rent. "(The initiative) helps reduce the barriers that small businesses have to getting into great, brand new spaces," a council spokesman said via email. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/03/27/downtown-columbus-retail-city-support.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
March 27Mar 27 55 minutes ago, ColDayMan said: Columbus increases funding by 50% for program bringing local shops downtown A city of Columbus initiative that brought a coffee shop, bakery, clothing store and soon other merchants downtown is getting a funding boost for another round. Columbus City Council Monday approved a 50% increase, to a total of $1.55 million, for the Ground Floor Growth initiative to help local businesses move to brick-and-mortar locations by funding renovations and subsidizing rent. "(The initiative) helps reduce the barriers that small businesses have to getting into great, brand new spaces," a council spokesman said via email. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/03/27/downtown-columbus-retail-city-support.html Love this, and would love to see it used in other parts of the city.
March 27Mar 27 44 minutes ago, CbusOrBust said: Up to four at Elevate From Grant Ave This is going up super fast!!
April 1Apr 1 45 minutes ago, columbus17 said: Demo equipment on site tonight at Aspire As terrible as this building is, I’m happy to see more affordable housing come downtown.
April 1Apr 1 12 hours ago, VintageLife said: As terrible as this building is, I’m happy to see more affordable housing come downtown. Probably some of the last given what I've found out about incoming rents...
April 3Apr 3 Snatched a quick one from Elevate 340 yesterday evening, as work has started on the fifth and final floor
April 5Apr 5 Downtown special improvement district to shrink boundaries due to funding cuts The Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District will reduce its service territory downtown because of funding cuts following a proposed merger with Downtown Columbus Inc. that was backed by the city but ultimately abandoned. Marc Conte, executive director of the organization that oversees both the Capital Crossroads and Discovery Special Improvement Districts, said this week the area covered by the Capital Crossroads SID will shrink by 26% while the Discovery SID will increase slightly. The districts represent areas in which property owners pay an assessment to finance public improvements and safety initiatives that supplement city-provided services. These include security, landscaping, homeless outreach and community events. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/04/04/special-improvement-district-sids-boundaries.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
April 7Apr 7 On 3/31/2025 at 9:44 PM, columbus17 said: Demo equipment on site tonight at Aspire Hopefully demo starts this week
April 8Apr 8 I know that I'm probably alone on this, but I like those types of buildings from the 50s and 60s. I also don't like how much post war buildings are so easily erased. I like seeing the mixture of eras in cities.
April 8Apr 8 21 minutes ago, ohpenn said: I know that I'm probably alone on this, but I like those types of buildings from the 50s and 60s. I also don't like how much post war buildings are so easily erased. I like seeing the mixture of eras in cities. This one is pretty bland as they go (and just makes the cutoff being built in 1969!), but I agree --- they're underappreciated as a whole. Obviously we don't need to preserve everything but I too want to keep at least a few good examples of buildings from previous eras. While this one is definitely a goner, we're fortunate to have a near-twin across the street at 4th and Mound, which was built only a year later in 1970. Also a TON of similar era builds on Town between 4th and 6th.
April 9Apr 9 15 hours ago, Zordon Shumway said: This one is pretty bland as they go (and just makes the cutoff being built in 1969!), but I agree --- they're underappreciated as a whole. Obviously we don't need to preserve everything but I too want to keep at least a few good examples of buildings from previous eras. While this one is definitely a goner, we're fortunate to have a near-twin across the street at 4th and Mound, which was built only a year later in 1970. Also a TON of similar era builds on Town between 4th and 6th. Good points.
April 10Apr 10 Downtown Special Improvement District Votes to Revisit Merger Conversations An emergency board meeting was called today by the Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District (SID) to face some tough decisions. After voting to downsize the organization back in February — following a contentious process some have described as a “hostile takeover” by the City of Columbus — the organization again lost a majority support of Downtown property owners required to get approval to continue operations next year. “The board did vote to submit petitions with a smaller boundary for the city to renew the SID, and we were at 60.77 percent of approval within that boundary,” explained SID Executive Director Marc Conte during this afternoon’s meeting. “But last Thursday, we had two property owners rescind, so that dropped our support to under 60 percent.” Conte then proposed three options for the board to consider at this juncture. One would be for the SID staff to try to convince or reconvince property owners to sign the current petition. A second option would be to redraw the maps a second time to shrink the service boundary further to regain 60 percent approval. A final option would be to opt out of the renewal process entirely, which would effectively wind down SID services by the end of the year. More below: https://columbusunderground.com/downtown-special-improvement-district-votes-to-revisit-merger-conversations-we1/ "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
April 10Apr 10 Downtown's Capital Crossroads SID reopening talks with city in bid to remain viable The Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District will seek a thawing in its relationship with the city of Columbus as the organization works to find a way to remain viable. The Capital Crossroads board voted in an emergency meeting Wednesday evening to "re-engage with the city and (Downtown Columbus Inc.) leadership" over public funding levels and a city-backed plan to merge the organization into DCI. The move came after two more property owners within the SID boundaries last week pulled their support of the SID's annual assessment for services. Without the buy-in from those two owners, the organization determined it couldn't reach the 60% approval rate from affected property owners required by Columbus City Council to continue collecting assessments. If the SID can't collect further assessments, it would cease to exist after 2025, officials said. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/04/10/capital-crossroads-special-improvement-district.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
April 13Apr 13 I couldn't find a full article yet, but the Dispatch has this slideshow up today stating the Leveque Tower apartments are being converted into condos as leases expire https://www.dispatch.com/picture-gallery/business/real-estate/2025/04/13/downtown-columbus-leveque-towers-69-apartments-converted-into-condos/83071016007/
April 13Apr 13 17 minutes ago, NW24HX said: I couldn't find a full article yet, but the Dispatch has this slideshow up today stating the Leveque Tower apartments are being converted into condos as leases expire https://www.dispatch.com/picture-gallery/business/real-estate/2025/04/13/downtown-columbus-leveque-towers-69-apartments-converted-into-condos/83071016007/ It was already partially condos, so I’m happy to see it become full condos. Wish I was wealthy enough to buy one ha
April 14Apr 14 LeVeque Tower apartments converting to condominiums The apartments at LeVeque Tower are converting to condominiums, developer Brett Kaufman announced Monday. The 69 apartments that will become condos are across 15 floors of the historic tower at 50 W. Broad St. Condos will sell for $240,000 to $650,000 for one- and two-bedroom units between 750 square feet and 1,750 square feet. All residences are 100% tax abated until 2032. More below: https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2025/04/14/leveque-tower-brett-kaufman-apartments-condos.html "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
April 14Apr 14 This shrinks Kaufman's portfolio to just Gravity and GreenHouse. I'm curious what's next for them with all of these recent moves.
April 14Apr 14 1 minute ago, PizzaScissors said: This shrinks Kaufman's portfolio to just Gravity and GreenHouse. I'm curious what's next for them with all of these recent moves. Nothing. Maybe another GreenHouse in a different city but he's not really in a position where he's going to get funded again
April 14Apr 14 2 minutes ago, PizzaScissors said: This shrinks Kaufman's portfolio to just Gravity and GreenHouse. I'm curious what's next for them with all of these recent moves. Gravity A and D. The other stuff more recently completed sold at auction.
April 14Apr 14 36 minutes ago, columbus17 said: Nothing. Maybe another GreenHouse in a different city but he's not really in a position where he's going to get funded again Are you saying one of the top developers in the city has worn out his welcome or is he just finally going to live out his dream and be a yoga instructor? Personal growth and looking inward seems to be very important to you? Kaufman: I'm a self-proclaimed growth junkie. I love that kind of work. When I was little, my mom took me to a therapist, and I loved it and have been in and out of therapy my whole life. It's making me a better person. I learned [transcendental meditation], and it's still with me 25 years later. In more recent years, I've gotten into breath work and yoga nidra [a form of yoga that helps relieve stress]. What's next for you? Kaufman: I'm starting to diversify into other things [such as Besa and Rhove and doing some venture capital funding]. I don't feel I'm as needed in in the real estate side of things anymore. There are a lot of people doing good work, and I want to help the human side of things more, help the human experience in more ways. https://www.dispatch.com/story/business/2020/12/13/brett-kaufman-sees-growth-franklinton-arena-district-urban-areas/6507892002/ As an aside, I'd love to see LC take stab at some more land downtown. Especially seeing as they created one of the most beautiful pair of buildings downtown since... I dont know how long. They seem like they'd do some incredible work in the 'red brick district'. Edited April 14Apr 14 by DTCL11
April 14Apr 14 20 minutes ago, DTCL11 said: As an aside, I'd love to see LC take stab at some more land downtown. Especially seeing as they created one of the most beautiful pair of buildings downtown since... I dont know how long. They seem like they'd do some incredible work in the 'red brick district'. Yeah that wouldn’t be a bad thing. I wish they would have developed the building that Crawford Hoying did on high st. That thing is a massive disappointment, especially compared to what LC did next door. They also would have been a better developer for the commons apartments.
April 14Apr 14 10 minutes ago, Luvcbus said: Today's Dispatch has a picture of United Way's downtown demolition
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