https://www.dispatch.com/business/20191011/last-vacant-property-on-capitol-square-to-become-offices-housing

 

IT'S HAPPENING!  NOT MANY DETAILS RIGHT NOW - BUT IT'S HAPPENING, APPARENTLY(!)

• The last large vacant property on Capitol Square would be developed into offices, residences, retail and a parking garage under a plan unveiled Friday by Capitol Square Ltd. and Elford Development.  The 3-acre development would encompass several properties near E. State and S. 3rd streets — a parking lot at the northeast corner of State and S. 3rd; a former bank building at 66 S. 3rd; a parking lot on S. 4th Street next to the YWCA; and a small parking lot at the northeast corner of State and S. Lazelle Street.

• Chris Ruess, president and CEO of Capitol Square, the real-estate arm of The Dispatch Printing Company (the former owner of The Dispatch) said in a news release, “We’re excited to see a high-impact, mixed-use development of this critically important block become a reality.”

• Elford Development President Mike Fitzpatrick said the plan still being developed and few details have been decided.  He said the development is expected to include multifamily housing, offices, retail and restaurant space, along with a parking garage, probably on the site of the S. 4th Street parking lot.  “It will be a dense development, but we don’t know exactly how tall or how many buildings,” he said. “We’re really in the preliminary planning stages.”

• Fitzpatrick said he did not know whether the former Unizan Financial Corp. building on S. 3rd Street, erected in 1955, would be razed or kept as part of the project.

• Capitol Square and Elford have hired the Columbus architectural firm Moody Nolan to design the project.

• Fitzpatrick said he hoped a plan for the property would be presented to the Downtown Commission in the first quarter of 2020. 

 

For a full readable article go to https://www.thisweeknews.com/business/20191011/last-vacant-property-on-capitol-square-to-become-offices-housing

 

19 minutes ago, Columbo said:

 

https://www.dispatch.com/business/20191011/last-vacant-property-on-capitol-square-to-become-offices-housing

 

IT'S HAPPENING!  NOT MANY DETAILS RIGHT NOW - BUT IT'S HAPPENING, APPARENTLY(!)

• The last large vacant property on Capitol Square would be developed into offices, residences, retail and a parking garage under a plan unveiled Friday by Capitol Square Ltd. and Elford Development.  The 3-acre development would encompass several properties near E. State and S. 3rd streets — a parking lot at the northeast corner of State and S. 3rd; a former bank building at 66 S. 3rd; a parking lot on S. 4th Street next to the YWCA; and a small parking lot at the northeast corner of State and S. Lazelle Street.

• Chris Ruess, president and CEO of Capitol Square, the real-estate arm of The Dispatch Printing Company (the former owner of The Dispatch) said in a news release, “We’re excited to see a high-impact, mixed-use development of this critically important block become a reality.”

• Elford Development President Mike Fitzpatrick said the plan still being developed and few details have been decided.  He said the development is expected to include multifamily housing, offices, retail and restaurant space, along with a parking garage, probably on the site of the S. 4th Street parking lot.  “It will be a dense development, but we don’t know exactly how tall or how many buildings,” he said. “We’re really in the preliminary planning stages.”

• Fitzpatrick said he did not know whether the former Unizan Financial Corp. building on S. 3rd Street, erected in 1955, would be razed or kept as part of the project.

• Capitol Square and Elford have hired the Columbus architectural firm Moody Nolan to design the project.

• Fitzpatrick said he hoped a plan for the property would be presented to the Downtown Commission in the first quarter of 2020. 

 

For a full readable article go to https://www.thisweeknews.com/business/20191011/last-vacant-property-on-capitol-square-to-become-offices-housing

 

Hopefully it will at least have some decent height. Anything above 10 stories.

50 minutes ago, Columbo said:

 

https://www.dispatch.com/business/20191011/last-vacant-property-on-capitol-square-to-become-offices-housing

 

IT'S HAPPENING!  NOT MANY DETAILS RIGHT NOW - BUT IT'S HAPPENING, APPARENTLY(!)

 

Wow! My thoughts exactly! Really can't wait for more details to be released! Could this be the ~ 700 footer that's been rumored around here and columbusunderground??? ??

I'll be curious to see what Moody Nolan comes up with. While I generally am ok with their work, this is a location that I believe needs to be iconic and not the standard modern architecture we see see around town. (I felt the same way about Market tower but ultimately resigned that the design revisions were worth it for the far better usage of space). I generally like the new standard but feel this demands something different. I'd be somewhat disappointed if it looked similar the Market Tower or Hilton 2.0 tbh. 

It's going to be...a Swensons!!!

Please please please let them save the bank or incorporate the facade someway into the new development. 

Let's hope they maximize the residential here. We could really use more residents on Capitol Square. As of now most restaurants in the area are only open for lunch.

40 minutes ago, FudgeRounds said:

Please please please let them save the bank or incorporate the facade someway into the new development. 

 

Part of me can't believe I'm going to say this but I'd be ok if it went away. Here's my ideal proposal for it though: deconstruct it and rebuild it it into whatever they build on the NE lot of Lazelle and State. It could be used as the transition from the classic construction of 4th and state buildings. Where it stands now, I'm not sure an incorporation would be doing it justice unless Moody Nolan extends the architectural style to the whole block with a modern section above. 

 

As a clarification, this seems to exclude the dispatch building parking lot, correct?

11 minutes ago, aderwent said:

Let's hope they maximize the residential here. We could really use more residents on Capitol Square. As of now most restaurants in the area are only open for lunch.

 

Downtown needs to get off the 30-minute lunch system very badly. It's anti-business. If lunch was longer many more people would go out every day rather than eating "The Downtown Special" -- a tub of cold stuff covered in mayo at their desks. With the increased sales the restaurants would be well-funded by lunch enough to at least experiment with later hours.

If they don't go very big(as in not just dense, but tall)with this I give up on the city. If there is ANY place in the city that calls for height and yes, drama it is this site. Go big(and tall)or go home on this one. I would rather it stay like it is than have to "settle" like happens so many times. C'mon Columbus! And I hope those "700 footer" rumors are somehow attached to this. Dump Millennial Tower if necessary and push everything to this site if needed. 

1 hour ago, Toddguy said:

If they don't go very big(as in not just dense, but tall)with this I give up on the city. If there is ANY place in the city that calls for height and yes, drama it is this site. Go big(and tall)or go home on this one. I would rather it stay like it is than have to "settle" like happens so many times. C'mon Columbus! And I hope those "700 footer" rumors are somehow attached to this. Dump Millennial Tower if necessary and push everything to this site if needed. 

 

What are these 700' tower rumors?  I've not heard any of these...

 

Also, does anyone recall Hilton being specified as the hotel at Millennial?

https://elfordrealty.com/property/millennial-tower/

Edited October 12, 20195 yr by Scott Krajeski

1 hour ago, Scott Krajeski said:

 

What are these 700' tower rumors?  I've not heard any of these...

 

Also, does anyone recall Hilton being specified as the hotel at Millennial?

https://elfordrealty.com/property/millennial-tower/

 

The 700 rumors have been all over for awhile. Just vague rumors that a 700' tower is in the works some place, some time.  That's about it. Lol 

 

As for Hilton, I dont recall them being named. @DevolsDance may be able to speak to that better as they watch the leasing information regularly. 

 

 

1 hour ago, Scott Krajeski said:

 

What are these 700' tower rumors?  I've not heard any of these...

 

Also, does anyone recall Hilton being specified as the hotel at Millennial?

https://elfordrealty.com/property/millennial-tower/

I know that Hilton was going to be the hotel partner at the millennial... they were hunting a few different prospects to fully lease out the office space before building.. that has been the challenge.. take it fwiw

A  700 foot Tower rumor is floating around in Cleveland also. An announcement is expected by the end of the month concerning a new HQ for  Sherwin Williams.

Does anyone know if Moody Nolan has the experience to design an urban tower? The portfolio on their website doesn't inspire confidence. Outside the 26 story OSU hospital expansion, it looks like the tallest buildings they've done are the Short North Moxy, and the Bridge Park AC Hotel. It just doesn't seem like the firm you'd hire if you were really interested in something with significant height. 

13 hours ago, drtom1234 said:

Does anyone know if Moody Nolan has the experience to design an urban tower? The portfolio on their website doesn't inspire confidence. Outside the 26 story OSU hospital expansion, it looks like the tallest buildings they've done are the Short North Moxy, and the Bridge Park AC Hotel. It just doesn't seem like the firm you'd hire if you were really interested in something with significant height. 

 

I was thinking the same exact thing when browsing their site.  I believe expectations for a tower on this site are unrealistic.  I see more of a midrise surrounded by 3-4 floor buildings on these lots....

Edited October 14, 20195 yr by Scott Krajeski

I'd put money on a mid-rise all day before actually betting on something significant or that falls into the high rise category but hope that this might be a partnership allowing Moody-Nolan to expand their profile. Lol. 

Edited October 14, 20195 yr by DTCL11

First look!  J/K...  it will almost definitely not be a highrise.  3 acres is a fairly big site, so I'd expect at least a few separate buildings all 10 stories or less with a chunk of the site being taken up by a standard, single-use parking garage.  Hope I'm wrong.

 

 

I cannot for the life of me find it but, I know I have seen an article where Moody Nolan actually participated in a design exercise to imagine what a skyscraper would look like in this exact location. I believe they had envisioned some 50-story glass and steel tower with some intense angles and architecture, it wasn't the best design but it was interesting none the less. 

 

Anyway, I seriously doubt we will get anything skyline altering but, being it's possibly the most prominent piece of underutilized land in Downtown I don't believe it's too much to ask for some height and unique architecture. Cap Square Ltd has been a huge investor in the Arena District and Grandview Yard with NRI which means they have some serious capital backing but that also concerns me for just how willing they are to "go bold". I really just have no clue what to expect here but hey, maybe it will be the mysterious 700-foot secret we all keep hearing about. 

 

Regarding the Hilton piece of Millennial, yes @Scott Krajeski and @DTCL11, it has been listed as a Hilton Brand Hotel for quite a while but I have never seen any more detail than that about exactly what sub-brand it would be. Considering we are going to have a 1000 room Hilton about 15 blocks away, I don't see it being a flagship but likely a sub/boutique brand like Curio. However, I doubt they could keep an interested hotelier on the line for almost 4 years now and still have a commitment from them. The Columbus hotel market is on fire right now so while I think Millennial could get a hotel, any brand commitment they had lined up has likely expired for lack of movement. 

Edited October 14, 20195 yr by DevolsDance

10 minutes ago, DevolsDance said:

I cannot for the life of me find it but, I know I have seen an article where Moody Nolan actually participated in a design exercise to imagine what a skyscraper would look like in this exact location. I believe they had envisioned some 50-story glass and steel tower with some intense angles and architecture, it wasn't the best design but it was interesting none the less. 

 

Anyway, I seriously doubt we will get anything skyline altering but, being it's possibly the most prominent piece of underutilized land in Downtown I don't believe it's too much to ask for some height and unique architecture. Cap Square Ltd has been a huge investor in the Arena District and Grandview Yard with NRI which means they have some serious capital backing but that also concerns me for just how willing they are to "go bold". I really just have no clue what to expect here but hey, maybe it will be the mysterious 700-foot secret we all keep hearing about. 

 

Regarding the Hilton piece of Millennial, yes @Scott Krajeski and @DTCL11, it has been listed as a Hilton Brand Hotel for quite a while but I have never seen any more detail than that about exactly what sub-brand it would be. Considering we are going to have a 1000 room Hilton about 15 blocks away, I don't see it being a flagship but likely a sub/boutique brand like Curio. However, I doubt they could keep an interested hotelier on the line for almost 4 years now and still have a commitment from them. The Columbus hotel market is on fire right now so while I think Millennial could get a hotel, any brand commitment they had lined up has likely expired for lack of movement. 

I would kill babies for a 50 story 700 foot plus modern tower with intense angles and architecture at this site, but as many have pointed out, it will probably be a *midrise with some associated six story boxes and the(for Columbus)ubiquitous single use separated open concrete parking garage.

 

*midrise likely to start out at 15-20 floors and be downgraded to 12 lol.  I just can't get any expectations up-this is Columbus and all we are talking about.  I fear a repeat of what happened at Gay/Long and High.

 

*Anyone have any saved pics of that vision tower that was 1,000 feet for this site?-I know they had posted it long ago on Columbus Underground?

Edited October 14, 20195 yr by Toddguy

4 minutes ago, Toddguy said:

 

*Anyone have any saved pics of that vision tower that was 1,000 feet for this site?-I know they had posted it long ago on Columbus Underground?

 

I can't find it but that was the one that was somewhat massed like the nucleus project with the mid section that went all the way over the dispatch building? 

1 minute ago, DTCL11 said:

 

I can't find it but that was the one that was somewhat massed like the nucleus project with the mid section that went all the way over the dispatch building? 

It was right next to the Dispatch building and the top half was basically a tapering spire. There was a second phase that would have lined State between Third and Fourth with lower midrise buildings and parking. It might have had some massing over the Dispatch building but I can't remember and I also can't find it online. It was all shiny glass and they had renderings of it from different angles. It was on CU maybe Walker might be able to access it.

For those interested, below is a breakdown of the land and who owns it for these last pieces of Capitol Square. The proposal being discussed is the land owned by Capitol Square LTD. I believe which would actually leave a pretty large surface lot along the square still. I am curious to see how they piece together the development being that it's spread pretty uniquely on the block. Personally, I would like to see 25-35 story range on the 3rd + State Lot and something in the 12-15 floor range along 4th. Residential to boost the local population with office and hotel, maybe even a cultural arts or theatre space to round out the square. Hopes and dreams, hopes and dreams.

 

Blue - Owned by 34 South Third LTD. 

Red - Owned by Capitol Square LTD.

 

44 minutes ago, DevolsDance said:

For those interested, below is a breakdown of the land and who owns it for these last pieces of Capitol Square. The proposal being discussed is the land owned by Capitol Square LTD. I believe which would actually leave a pretty large surface lot along the square still. I am curious to see how they piece together the development being that it's spread pretty uniquely on the block. Personally, I would like to see 25-35 story range on the 3rd + State Lot and something in the 12-15 floor range along 4th. Residential to boost the local population with office and hotel, maybe even a cultural arts or theatre space to round out the square. Hopes and dreams, hopes and dreams.

 

Blue - Owned by 34 South Third LTD. 

Red - Owned by Capitol Square LTD.

 

Too bad they can't coordinate the whole thing using both areas(red and blue). The top parcel of the blue part(the Dispatch building itself)is the only part of the blue that can't be used anyway. The last thing we should want is any surface parking facing Third. *sigh*.  Probably won't be anything over 20 floors anyway, but as you said, hopes and dreams and all.

Edited October 14, 20195 yr by Toddguy

Here’s a couple ‘aerials’ of the site from apple maps.

1 hour ago, Toddguy said:

Too bad they can't coordinate the whole thing using both areas(red and blue).

 

If we are concerned about getting as much height as possible, it's probably a good thing they are only working with the red areas. Like I've said many times before, and as others have said in this thread, larger areas of development often result in a lower overall height. Parcel #010-011312, and the three skinny parcels north of it, is a good footprint size to force them to go vertical. 

 

 

20 minutes ago, cbussoccer said:

 

If we are concerned about getting as much height as possible, it's probably a good thing they are only working with the red areas. Like I've said many times before, and as others have said in this thread, larger areas of development often result in a lower overall height. Parcel #010-011312, and the three skinny parcels north of it, is a good footprint size to force them to go vertical. 

 

 

I guess I just have unrealistic hopes and expectations for Columbus. Sometimes I feel like just giving up for anything for Columbus that is more than mediocre. In other words, sometimes I feel like Jman on CU seems to feel all of the time lol. 

 

Development in this city just can seem so incredibly frustrating. ya know?  I just want something better for the city. 

Just now, Toddguy said:

I guess I just have unrealistic hopes and expectations for Columbus. Sometimes I feel like just giving up for anything for Columbus that is more than mediocre. In other words, sometimes I feel like Jman on CU seems to feel all of the time lol. 

 

Development in this city just can seem so incredibly frustrating. ya know?  I just want something better for the city. 

 

What I'm saying is you should be encouraged by the fact that they are working with a smaller area. This should hopefully force them to build up higher. I think a 25-story building at the corner of 3rd and State is a very realistic expectation. 

 

In terms of being frustrated, I understand it to a degree but I don't think you should be too down in the dumps. Columbus has a solid amount of buildings on the taller end of the spectrum. We have 10 of the 20 tallest buildings in the state. We have 5 buildings over 500 feet (Cleveland has 4, Cincy has 2) and 10 buildings over 400 feet (Cleveland has 10 and Cincy has 7). What we lack, and what make our city feel inferior from a skyline and urban feel perspective, is the number of buildings we have in the 250-400 foot range. We only have 12 buildings in that range, with 3 more on campus. Cleveland has 25 in that range and Cincy has 23. 

 

We currently have Hilton 2.0 and Market tower both in the 250-400 range that are about to go up. We have Millennial Tower (lol) that is still a possibility. We have a tower (~20 stories I believe?) that has been floated at the southeast corner of 4th and State. We have a 15-story tower that has been talked about next to the Holiday Inn which would be borderline 250 feet. If this development lands us at least a 20-25 story tower we could end up with a handful of towers in the 250-400 foot range all going up within a few years of each other, and that's just what we know of publicly right now. I don't know about you, but that's pretty encouraging. Even more encouraging is the fact that we are trending up instead of down right now. 

31 minutes ago, cbussoccer said:

 

What I'm saying is you should be encouraged by the fact that they are working with a smaller area. This should hopefully force them to build up higher. I think a 25-story building at the corner of 3rd and State is a very realistic expectation. 

 

In terms of being frustrated, I understand it to a degree but I don't think you should be too down in the dumps. Columbus has a solid amount of buildings on the taller end of the spectrum. We have 10 of the 20 tallest buildings in the state. We have 5 buildings over 500 feet (Cleveland has 4, Cincy has 2) and 10 buildings over 400 feet (Cleveland has 10 and Cincy has 7). What we lack, and what make our city feel inferior from a skyline and urban feel perspective, is the number of buildings we have in the 250-400 foot range. We only have 12 buildings in that range, with 3 more on campus. Cleveland has 25 in that range and Cincy has 23. 

 

We currently have Hilton 2.0 and Market tower both in the 250-400 range that are about to go up. We have Millennial Tower (lol) that is still a possibility. We have a tower (~20 stories I believe?) that has been floated at the southeast corner of 4th and State. We have a 15-story tower that has been talked about next to the Holiday Inn which would be borderline 250 feet. If this development lands us at least a 20-25 story tower we could end up with a handful of towers in the 250-400 foot range all going up within a few years of each other, and that's just what we know of publicly right now. I don't know about you, but that's pretty encouraging. Even more encouraging is the fact that we are trending up instead of down right now. 

I think another thing to keep in mind too is the urban area we have in a centralized location versus the other two C’s. 

 

We have campus all the way to Grange Insurance to the south, that is a vast area to be in our urban core. Included in that are several 10+ story buildings but also a lot of areas that need infilled. I would predict by 2030 we will be at or past the other two just simply based on the land available to do so. We haven’t even mentioned the two possible towers to complete the Jeffrey, the next hospital expansion or the Scioto Peninsula project.

 

That’s why in the previous 5-10 years I’ve never understood people demanding towers. We started with a good base, we’ve had good to great infill in the past decade and in the next we will see the skyline being added to, no doubt! Don’t believe me, look at the Short North 5 years ago compared to now.

Edited October 14, 20195 yr by wpcc88

 

3 hours ago, DevolsDance said:

For those interested, below is a breakdown of the land and who owns it for these last pieces of Capitol Square. The proposal being discussed is the land owned by Capitol Square LTD. I believe which would actually leave a pretty large surface lot along the square still. I am curious to see how they piece together the development being that it's spread pretty uniquely on the block. Personally, I would like to see 25-35 story range on the 3rd + State Lot and something in the 12-15 floor range along 4th. Residential to boost the local population with office and hotel, maybe even a cultural arts or theatre space to round out the square. Hopes and dreams, hopes and dreams.

 

Blue - Owned by 34 South Third LTD. 

Red - Owned by Capitol Square LTD.

 

So the Columbus Underground article says that the proposal includes the parking lots both north and south of the bank building: "Included within the footprint of the proposed development is a former bank building at 66 S. Third St., the two parking lots to the north and south of that building, and a large parking lot on South Fourth Street, north of the YWCA." It also says the development will be 3 acres (as does the Dispatch), which would have to include that parking lot.

 

(34 South Third is owned by Capitol Square)

4 minutes ago, wpcc88 said:

I think another thing to keep in mind too is the urban area we have in a centralized location versus the other two C’s. 

 

We have campus all the way to Grange Insurance to the south, that is a vast area to be in our urban core. Included in that are several 10+ story buildings but also a lot of areas that need infilled. I would predict by 2030 we will be at or past the other two just simply based on the land available to do so. We haven’t even mentioned the two possible towers to complete the Jeffrey, the next hospital expansion or the Scioto Peninsula project.

 

That’s why in the previous 5-10 years I’ve never understood people demanding towers. We started with a good base, we’ve had good to great infill in the past decade and in the next we will see the skyline being added to, no doubt! Don’t believe me, look at the Short North 5 years ago compared to now.

 

To your point about available area, that's a huge factor when comparing Columbus to Cincinnati and Cleveland. Cincinnati's CBD is much smaller than Columbus. It's essentially 8 blocks by 8 blocks. Cleveland's CBD is pretty long and narrow, essentially about 12 blocks by 6 blocks. The Columbus CBD is about 12 blocks by 15 blocks, much larger than Cincinnati and a decent chunk larger than Cleveland. 

 

We have seen a good base of ~6 story buildings go up in the past few years. Now we are starting to bump things up to 12 stories. The next step is to start adding in some 20-30 story towers like Hilton 2.0, Market Tower, and hopefully this one. 

2 hours ago, cbussoccer said:

 

What I'm saying is you should be encouraged by the fact that they are working with a smaller area. This should hopefully force them to build up higher. I think a 25-story building at the corner of 3rd and State is a very realistic expectation. 

 

In terms of being frustrated, I understand it to a degree but I don't think you should be too down in the dumps. Columbus has a solid amount of buildings on the taller end of the spectrum. We have 10 of the 20 tallest buildings in the state. We have 5 buildings over 500 feet (Cleveland has 4, Cincy has 2) and 10 buildings over 400 feet (Cleveland has 10 and Cincy has 7). What we lack, and what make our city feel inferior from a skyline and urban feel perspective, is the number of buildings we have in the 250-400 foot range. We only have 12 buildings in that range, with 3 more on campus. Cleveland has 25 in that range and Cincy has 23. 

 

We currently have Hilton 2.0 and Market tower both in the 250-400 range that are about to go up. We have Millennial Tower (lol) that is still a possibility. We have a tower (~20 stories I believe?) that has been floated at the southeast corner of 4th and State. We have a 15-story tower that has been talked about next to the Holiday Inn which would be borderline 250 feet. If this development lands us at least a 20-25 story tower we could end up with a handful of towers in the 250-400 foot range all going up within a few years of each other, and that's just what we know of publicly right now. I don't know about you, but that's pretty encouraging. Even more encouraging is the fact that we are trending up instead of down right now. 

Thanks for putting things in perspective. 

This is exciting! Didn't even know who owned these. This street (3rd) could be really awesome in a few years.

 

So I'm not expecting a super tall here, but what does give me hope for decent size and decent quality is that in the last few years the Wolfe family, who owns Capitol Square Ltd., has transitioned from a media focus to a real estate focus. I think this makes them interested in developing a signature building and has given them the cash (Dispatch $47M and WBNS $535M) to do so. 

^I can't remember who it was, but it was recently reiterated in the local media that land just is still too cheap here.

Dormant corner of Capitol Square gets development proposal

 

A development is in the works for a long-quiet corner of Capitol Square.

 

Capitol Square Ltd. is working with Elford Development on a 3-acre site on the northeast corner of State and 3rd streets. Capitol Square, which is controlled by the Wolfe family, has owned the land for years. The Wolfes were the former owners of The Columbus Dispatch, whose former home is next to the site but still carries its sign.

 

The project will be a "vibrant, mixed-use development including retail, restaurant, office, multifamily, and parking garage components,” according to a statement released Friday.

 

The land is today some of the last large empty space on the square. The project would include the parking lot at the corner and the former bank building at 66 S. 3rd St., and potentially some other properties behind it.

 

More below:

https://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2019/10/14/dormant-corner-of-capitol-square-gets-development.html

 

Chase is building a new supertall HQ in NYC. Maybe they're in the mood for skyscrapers ?

 

Pretty sure the original Capitol Tower was to house Bank One before they landed at Polaris with the 2,000,000 square foot McCoy Center.

^Someone posted this over on CU - the Capitol Tower

 

2 minutes ago, Pablo said:

^Someone posted this over on CU - the Capitol Tower

 

 

Two things... One, I'm impressed with how much I love the look of a tower that was proposed almost 30 years ago, and two, incredibly disappointed this never happened.

 

Can you image how Cap Square would feel surrounded by 30+ story buildings on all sides. I'm super curious how this would look in the skyline. 

Notice this appears to go between the dispatch building and bank building. It would still leave the empty lot on the corner. Really a classic design and I'd be happy to see it resurrected. 

On 10/14/2019 at 10:35 AM, DevolsDance said:

I cannot for the life of me find it but, I know I have seen an article where Moody Nolan actually participated in a design exercise to imagine what a skyscraper would look like in this exact location. I believe they had envisioned some 50-story glass and steel tower with some intense angles and architecture, it wasn't the best design but it was interesting none the less. 

You found the North Bank Condos parking garage info for me when I seemingly searched everything I could think of to find the info so here you go:

 

Is it just me, or does it look like it's giving the sky the middle finger?

 

^^^I legit don't like the middle finger tower, lol. I do, however, like the Capitol Tower one, though. I hope something just as tall can be built there and harken back to this design somehow. 

 

About when/what year(s) were each of these proposed?

Edited October 15, 20195 yr by Zyrokai

2 minutes ago, Zyrokai said:

^^^I legit don't like the middle finger tower, lol. I do, however, like the Capitol Tower one, though. I hope something just as tall can be built there and harken back to this design somehow. 

 

About when/what year(s) were each of these proposed?

 

The middle finger tower would certainly be....iconic.

Might as well go all out, come full circle, and just name it the "Ohio Against the World Tower", lol.

Just now, Zyrokai said:

Might as well go all out, come full circle, and just name it the "Ohio Against the World Tower", lol.

 

We could somehow project a picture of Anthony Precourt's face above it ?

8 minutes ago, Zyrokai said:

^^^I legit don't like the middle finger tower, lol. I do, however, like the Capitol Tower one, though. I hope something just as tall can be built there and harken back to this design somehow. 

 

About when/what year(s) were each of these proposed?

Capitol Tower was circa 1991/1992. The glass skyscraper looks like it's from the 90s, but that's from 2011/2012.

2 hours ago, aderwent said:

You found the North Bank Condos parking garage info for me when I seemingly searched everything I could think of to find the info so here you go:

 

Thanks for finding this as it is also the one I was thinking about. I really like the idea of this, just not so much the top tapering as it does to such a sharp point-maybe something at the top similar to Torre Verre in NYC?

 

(Not that I am trying to suggest that I know everything about how real estate and development works, or that I know what is economically feasible or warranted, nor am I griping and expressing "height frustrations" and all. smh.)

Edited October 15, 20195 yr by Toddguy

Development Planned for Capitol Square Parking Lots

 

A plan is afoot to redevelop three acres of prime real estate on Capitol Square, but details on what the project might look like are still scarce.

 

Elford Development and Capitol Square, Ltd. sent out a press release on Friday announcing their plans “to create a vibrant, mixed-use development including retail, restaurant, office, multifamily, and parking garage components” at the the northeast corner of Third and State streets.

 

“We’re excited to see a high impact mixed use development of this critically important block become a reality,” said Chris Ruess, President and CEO of Capitol Square, Ltd. in a statement. “The Elford team has led the development of several truly unique and highly successful mixed use projects here in Columbus, and brings the perfect blend of development and construction expertise that this site commands.”

 

More below:

https://www.columbusunderground.com/development-planned-for-capitol-square-parking-lots-bw1

 

20 hours ago, jeremyck01 said:

 

It's kind of silly to blame "Columbus" for your height frustrations.  It seems like you might not know how development and real estate work.  Just because you want something doesn't mean that it's economically feasible or even warranted.  You complain a lot about Columbus, but Columbus is booming and there has been so much construction it's actually quite mind-boggling compared to what it looked like even 10 years ago.  Columbus and the people who live there have a lot to be proud of, so considering where Columbus is now and where it's headed, perhaps less griping is in order.

 

There was just an article on Business First today talking about how both Columbus and surrounding cities are pushing against development now because none of them have bothered to prepare infrastructure or zoning for current and future growth.  Seems Columbus does indeed share some of the responsibility for underwhelming development.  Yes, there is lots of development, but compared to regional and national peers, Columbus is actually behind almost all of them in terms of the number of projects and housing units being added.  The anti-density, anti-transit, anti-development attitudes are going to hurt the city sooner or later, including significant increases in housing costs and traffic.

I really don't like the attitude that you should only be happy with the city.  There are problems and they should be discussed.