July 16, 200816 yr Troupe to leave Easton, build home in Brewery District Wednesday, July 16, 2008 - 3:18 AM By Michael Grossberg THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH After a decade at Easton Town Center, Shadowbox will return to the central city. The comedy-music-theater troupe plans to announce today that it will build a home in the Brewery District to accommodate larger crowds and more performances. The site, to be redeveloped from the Brewmasters Gate entertainment complex on S. Front Street at a cost of $5 million to $7 million, will include a 350-seat theater (compared with the 214-seat venue at Easton). Shadowbox, which expects to attract 55,000 patrons this year, thinks it can attract about 72,000 visitors during its first year in the Brewery District. Already operating 52 weeks a year but usually only Thursdays through Sundays, the troupe plans to offer shows six days a week -- including more weekend matinees. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/life/stories/2008/07/16/1A_SHADOWBOX_MOVE.ART_ART_07-16-08_D1_9RAMN28.html?sid=101
July 17, 200816 yr Awesome! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
July 20, 200816 yr That is really impressive. Great for the district and great for the city in general.
September 29, 200816 yr Fitch seeking tax incentive for scaled-down move to Brewery District Friday, September 26, 2008 Business First of Columbus - by Brian R. Ball Fitch Inc. will seek approval of tax incentives from Columbus City Council on Sept. 29 to cement the product branding and design firm’s planned move of at least part of its North American headquarters to the Brewery District. The three-year Jobs Growth Incentive agreement calls for the city to return 25 percent of the income taxes generated by 52 jobs expected to move from Fitch’s offices in Powell. City officials estimate the deal will repay the firm $57,000 over three years based on Fitch’s $3.8 million estimated annual payroll at the 585 S. Front St. operation. Fitch in early July said it would move 100 workers into 19,800 square feet from two buildings with a combined 38,000 square feet in Powell. Company executives did not return calls about the reduced number of jobs now included in the move. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/09/29/newscolumn1.html
November 25, 200816 yr Metro Parks budget includes work on new park, trail Monday, November 24, 2008 1:52 PM By Mark Ferenchik, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Franklin County Metro Parks plans to spend $35.6 million next year, a 24 percent increase over this year's budget. Major projects are to include continuing to develop the Scioto Audubon Metro Park and constructing a 7-mile trail in western Franklin County. Metro Parks will spend $1.5 million on the new Scioto Audubon Metro Park south of Downtown. Projects could include a new boat ramp, shelters, more trails and a climbing wall. The property tax, the single largest source of revenue, is expected to generate $12.7 million next year, a 12 percent drop from 2008. Grants and state money are other main sources of income. Read more at http://dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2008/11/24/parkbudget24.html?sid=101
November 25, 200816 yr Here's the latest rendering of the Scioto Audubon Metro Park: I think it looks fantastic. It would be nice to have such a varying range of activities so close to the center of town.
November 26, 200816 yr That is pretty cool - A disc golf course downtown??? Awesome... Right next to the train tracks??? Awesome... Won't have to drive all the way out to the suburbs to play a little Frisbee golf anymore.
November 26, 200816 yr are we seeing the new 70/71 configuration here? The only thing I do not like about this park is that it doesn't seem too accessible, it seems to be out of the way.
April 2, 200916 yr Some photos and a update on the Grange Insurance Audubon Center at the Whittier Peninsula from Columbus Alive... Whittier Peninsula construction update http://blog.columbusalive.com/RiotAct/2009/03/nature_notes_whittier_peninsul.shtml Front view of center from Whittier Street The rear view from Whittier Street Wetland cells to the east of the building were put in last year
April 7, 200916 yr Grange Insurance Audubon Center on track to open this summer Business First of Columbus - by Jeff Bell Saturday, April 4, 2009, 12:01am EDT Heather Starck is counting the days until windows are installed in the library on the north side of the Grange Insurance Audubon Center. “It’s an awesome view of downtown,” said Starck, the center’s director, as she peeked through the covered window frames. Besides the city skyline, the library will offer visitors views of wetlands, a nature trail, geothermal well field and green space in the new Scioto Audubon Metro Park when it opens this summer. The view opens the window on what the park is meant to be: An 84-acre nature area anchored by an educational center only a mile from the concrete and steel of downtown. The park will be one of the first in National Audubon Society history to bring a nature conservation area and education center into the core of a major city. It‘s being built on a former industrial site on the Whittier Peninsula along the Scioto River and next to the city’s vehicle impound lot, which will be relocated to clear more space for the park. “It’s a neat place to talk about stewardship of the environment,” Starck said, “because the two – nature and an urban setting – coexist on the site. That’s really a strong message for us.” Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/04/06/story2.html#
May 8, 200916 yr SLIDESHOW Here's a close-up view of the "bird pattern detail" on the Audubon Center's windows. Caption: Looking as if he’s surrounded by birds in flight, glazier Michael Comer seals windows on the Grange Insurance Audubon Center. The windows are actually etched with images of birds. The $7.8 million center will anchor the Scioto Audubon Metro Park on the Whittier Peninsula, which is scheduled to open on Aug. 28.
May 8, 200916 yr Autos still on the Audubon Columbus can't move city impounding lot before park opens Thursday, May 7, 2009 - 3:14 AM By Mark Ferenchik, The Columbus Dispatch When it opens Aug. 28, the new Scioto Audubon Metro Park will offer visitors spectacular views of birds, aquatic wildlife and the Downtown skyline. And rows of dented, rusting cars in the city's impounding lot. That view might last a while. The city doesn't have the $4.6 million to build a new lot south of Rt. 104 between the Scioto River and S. High St., Joel S. Taylor, finance and management director, said yesterday. The $7.8 million, 18,000-square-foot Grange Insurance Audubon Center that anchors the park is nearly finished, said Heather Starck, the center's director. Audubon Ohio raised $14.5 million for the center, Starck said. Beyond construction, the money will pay for start-up and operating costs. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/05/07/audubon.ART_ART_05-07-09_B1_PFDPJBP.html?type=rss&cat=&sid=101
May 8, 200916 yr Replying to the "Autos still on the Audubon: Columbus can't move city impounding lot before park opens" article I posted above. I am normally sympathetic toward to the difficulties government has in getting big projects done, like the Whittier Peninsula Park. But I am not willing to give the City of Columbus a free pass on this news. The construction of the Audubon Center and the planned relocation of the city impound lots have been known for years. The City has already purchased the new impound lot property. But now they can't scrounge up the cash to move the lots when the Center and Park are finished! I know the City's got budget problems, but were aren't talking about I-70/71 split costs for a new impound lot. A new impound lot consists of a gravel parking lot, a chain-link fence and a utilitarian building. For this the City estimated $4.6 million. That seems way too much. But even if we accept the City's high-ball estimate, they still should live up to their commitment. The other groups involved with this project lived up to their commitments. Audubon Ohio came through with $14 million. Franklin County Metro Parks came through with $10 million. They've got limited budgets to work with too. But they got the job done. The City has the least to do. They just need to move the cars off the property. They don't even need to clean up the old impound lots. Metro Parks will be doing that. All the City needs to do on this project is to get out of the way. And the City couldn't even manage that! Plain and simply, the City of Columbus screwed up on this one!
May 19, 200916 yr Area projects win Clean Ohio awards Two central Ohio projects have won 2009 Clean Ohio Fund Impact Awards, the Ohio Department of Development announced last week. The Gowdy Field-Time Warner Cable regional headquarters project won the award for best site redevelopment in a major city. The second award, for best environmental stewardship, went to the Whittier Peninsula project, a Metro Parks effort in Columbus. The city and Metro Parks included the property in the 2000 Riverfront Development Plan that included commercial and residential development as well as a park project. Five years later, Metro Parks received a $742,500 grant to help clean up the site. Now, the peninsula is being developed into an urban park. Read more at http://www.columbusdispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/05/18/monday.html?sid=101
May 25, 200916 yr Haven't seen an update on the Grange Insurance expansion project down in the Brewery District. But in this recent Business First article about the Grange CEO announcing his retirement there was this sentence . . . "Grange also is months away from finishing an 11-story, 240,000-square-foot addition to its Brewery District headquarters." Looks like now is as good a time as any to catch up on the project. So here goes. This is a rendering from the website of the construction company. Here's an under construction photo from September 2007. And here's some photos from an AIA tour of the construction site in August 2008.
May 25, 200916 yr Great photos! I'd say the addition looks even better than the original rendering. And if you haven't been by lately, the front entrance area from High Street is looking really fancy now that they've got a lot of the concrete poured. Also, big props to Grange for the giant new parking deck built next door. I'm willing to give them a pass on the skybridge connector because they actually spent the time and energy added ground-floor retail space to their parking garage (facing Front & Sycamore Streets) as well as making the parking structure kind of cool looking on its own. ;)
June 12, 200916 yr Shadowbox holds out hope for move to Brewery District Business First of Columbus - by Doug Buchanan Friday, June 5, 2009 The rock ‘n’ roll comedy troupe Shadowbox Cabaret fell short of its fundraising goal for relocating to the Brewery District, but isn’t giving up hope of moving from its cramped quarters at Easton Town Center. Shadowbox only raised half of its $900,000 relocation fundraising goal. It’s working with a consortium of about 20 lenders to come up with the rest, said spokeswoman Katy Psenicka. The prospective lenders, which include some small banks, are reviewing Shadowbox’s financials and haven’t made a decision, she said. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/06/08/tidbits1.html
July 18, 200915 yr <b>New Audubon Center Nears Completion</b> By Walker | July 14, 2009 <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/audubon1.jpg"> Construction on the area around the new Grange Insurance Audubon Center has been over three years in the making, and the long wait is about to finally pay off. The new conservation and nature center will be hosting their Grand Opening on August 28th. The 18,000-square foot center marks just a small piece of the larger ongoing redevelopment of the Scioto Audubon Metro Park that will eventually take up nearly all of the land west of the railroad tracks on the Whittier Peninsula. We recently chatted with Heather Starck, Director of the Audubon Center, to find out more about what to expect from this new urban amenity. READ MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/new-audubon-center-nears-completion
July 30, 200915 yr New jewel on S. High Grange expansion drawing attention to south side of town, Brewery District Thursday, July 30, 2009 - 8:52 AM By Marla Matzer Rose, The Columbus Dispatch With a sparkling $100 million expansion of its headquarters, Grange Insurance has gone from nondescript to front-and-center in the Brewery District. Grange will officially unveil its remade headquarters today. The building combines modern and environmentally friendly elements while still fitting in with the many historic brick buildings surrounding it on S. High Street. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2009/07/30/grange_building.ART_ART_07-30-09_A8_0VEKCQA.html?sid=101
July 30, 200915 yr Grange expansion drawing attention to south side of town, Brewery District ABOUT GRANGE CEO: Phil Urban Revenue: $1.35 billion Headquarters: 671 S. High St. Employees: 1,500, including 1,000 in central Ohio ABOUT ITS EXPANSION • Green features: High efficiency glass with exterior sun shades; light fixtures that adjust based on the amount of sunlight coming in; rooftop gardens that serve as insulation • Size: Headquarters office space has grown by 250,000 square feet. • Land: Grange also bought adjoining properties, which have increased its footprint in the Brewery District from 8.25 acres to 15.5 acres, including its building. • Cost: $100 million • Employment: Grange expects to add about 700 jobs at its headquarters over the next 15 to 20 years. Source: Grange Insurance
July 31, 200915 yr <b>Grange Insurance Expansion Project Completed</b> By Walker | July 30, 2009 8:00am <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/grange3.jpg"> Grange Insurance is officially holding the dedication ceremony of their completed $100-million headquarters expansion project in the Brewery District today. Their new development includes 250,000 square feet of additional office space that will accommodate 700 new jobs to be added gradually over the next 15-20 years. They’ve also added a new 1,000-space parking garage next door that features 15,000 square feet of new retail space along South Front Street. More info & photos here: http://www.columbusunderground.com/grange-insurance-expansion-project-completed
August 28, 200915 yr Grange Insurance Audubon Center opens Business First of Columbus Friday, August 28, 2009, 11:08am EDT The 18,000-square-foot Grange Insurance Audubon Center in Columbus’ Scioto Audubon Metro Park opened Friday, following years of development and fundraising. City, state and private-sector officials, including Gov. Ted Strickland, Mayor Mike Coleman and Grange Mutual Casualty Group CEO Phil Urban, were set to attend a grand opening celebration at the center Friday morning. The education facility is the anchor of the 84-acre Scioto Audubon park, a former industrial site on the Whittier Peninsula along the Scioto River. Plans for the park and the center have been in the works for much of this decade, a major milestone coming in 2006 when Grange donated $4 million to the project to secure naming rights to the center. Other major donors to the $14.5 million project include American Electric Power Company, Franklin County and Limited Brands. The project was devised by Audubon Ohio, Franklin County Metro Parks and the city. Its key focus is on educating children in area schools with the help of classrooms, nature exhibits and outdoor programming. More details on the center are available at its Web site http://grange.audubon.org/. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2009/08/24/daily34.html?surround=lfn
August 28, 200915 yr That's a neat-looking facility, and completely accessible from the bike path. Very cool.
August 29, 200915 yr Nature's new showcase: Scioto Audubon Metro Park, visitors center open to public Saturday, August 29, 2009 - 3:09 AM By Mark Ferenchik, The Columbus Dispatch The new Scioto Audubon Metro Park and Grange Insurance Audubon Center opened yesterday along the Scioto River. Metro Parks has spent more than $11 million on the park, including $8.5 million to clean up the former industrial site, demolish buildings, renovate the boat ramp and clean up the wetlands. The remaining $2.5 million was used to buy property. There's still work to do. Metro Parks plans to finish a climbing wall by fall. Other attractions, including teaching areas, are pending. But there are trails and an observation deck where visitors spotted nine herons yesterday. And the center's gift shop and library are open. It's unclear when the city will move its impounding lot off the peninsula. Parks officials hoped it would be gone by the end of next year, but Mayor Michael B. Coleman said yesterday that he wasn't sure. Grange Insurance spent $4 million for the naming rights to the Audubon center. Franklin County provided $1.5 million for the $14.5 million project, as did American Electric Power. Limited Brands contributed $1 million, and the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio, $810,000. Read more at http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/08/29/SCIOTOAUDUBON.ART_ART_08-29-09_B1_7QETH8K.html?sid=101
August 29, 200915 yr Nature's new showcase: Scioto Audubon Metro Park, visitors center open to public Photos from the above article: A ceremony marks the opening of the new Metro Parks site on the Whittier Peninsula. The Grange Insurance Audubon Center includes a library, gift shop and observation deck. Nick Yocca plants a green roof at the Grange Insurance Audubon Center. GRANGE INSURANCE AUDUBON CENTER 505 W. Whittier Street - http://www.grangeinsuranceauduboncenter.org HOURS: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays ADMISSION: Free SCIOTO AUDUBON METRO PARK 395 W. Whittier Street - http://www.metroparks.net/ParksSciotoAudubon.aspx HOURS: Open daily from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. through September and 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. in October. ADMISSION: Free
August 30, 200915 yr The completed building looks great; even better than the renderings. I'm anxious to check the place out in person. Looking forward to when the grounds of the entire park is completed.
September 1, 200915 yr Some more photos of the brand new Grange Insurance Audubon Center. Two views of the Center's signage and entry from Whittier Street. Two views of a low stone wall leading to the Center's entrance walkway. Two views of the entrance walkway leading to the front door. Two types of unique rain downspouts at the Center. Interior views of the Center. Views from the interior toward downtown through two different types of windows. View toward Downtown Columbus from the Center and an observation deck over the Scioto River next to the Center.
September 24, 200915 yr Thanks. The Scioto Metro Park and the Grange Audubon Center are really great places to visit. If anyone has business downtown or is visiting downtown, the Audubon Center and the Metro Park are now wonderful nearby sites that offer a change of pace. Fascinating views back to the downtown and a place to enjoy nature. It's good now, but I only see this getting better in the future. It is managed by Central Ohio Metro Parks. Metro Parks is arguably the highest quality public organization in central Ohio. The Scioto Audubon Park is one of 15 parks managed by Metro Parks in the central Ohio region. For more information on Metro Parks see this thread. This is their first "urban-style" park. But they are getting this park started using their standard pattern for all their other parks. It's a methodical step-by-step process that starts with land acquisition, fund raising, long-range planning, building initial facilities and then is followed up with continued maintenance and continued improvements and additions to the park. That's why I'm so positive about the future of this center and this park. Metro Parks is a top notch professional organization that takes care of their properties and is always looking to improve their properties and the public experience. As good as this park is now, it will be even better in 10 years.
September 24, 200915 yr And one more piece of good news for the Scioto Metro Park and Grange Audubon Center. As was reported earlier, the City of Columbus was not able to move its impound lot before the park opened. However, it now looks like the City is getting their act together and has announced a date for the impound lot to move from the Whittier Peninsula. See the excerpt from yesterday's article below. Impound-lot move is back on February 2011 new target for exit from Whittier Peninsula Wednesday, September 23, 2009 By Robert Vitale, The Columbus Dispatch Six months after the original target to open a vehicle-impounding lot on the South Side, Columbus officials are beginning to plan the move. The new timeline to vacate the Whittier Peninsula, home to the recently opened Scioto Audubon Metro Park and Grange Insurance Audubon Center, is February 2011. On Monday, City Council members approved a $4.6 million construction contract for the new impounding lot, which will be about 2 miles south. The move will allow the Audubon park to more than double in size from its current 70-plus acres. Full story at http://dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/09/23/impoundlot.ART_ART_09-23-09_B1_8HF5K8I.html?sid=101
September 25, 200915 yr I can't believe they STILL haven't moved that impound lot... rediculous. Very happy though to see Whittier Peninsula getting fixed up, and I agree that Metro Parks is an amazing organization!
November 3, 200915 yr From http://www.columbusunderground.com/forums/topic/whittier-peninsula-climbing-wall-to-open-next-week-nov-7th-maybe Whittier Peninsula climbing wall to open next week
November 11, 200915 yr AIA Columbus 2009 Design Awards Each year, the Columbus Chapter of the American Institute of Architects recognizes outstanding design capabilities of local architects with their annual design awards program. The expansion of the Grange Insurance Headquarters received a merit award. Architect: NBBJ Project: Grange Insurance Headquarters Expansion Owner: Grange Insurance Project Description: Grange Mutual Casualty Group commissioned a 274,000-square-foot addition to its existing headquarters to create space for several hundred workers from satellite offices. The addition, the first phase of a multi-phase master plan to transform Grange into a corporate campus, also includes 10,000 square feet of green roofs, ground-level retail and multipurpose meeting spaces that can be used by the community. Instead of tint-covered windows in the original building, the new space incorporates clear windows connecting the inside with the outside. To continue that openness, the 10-story expansion is outfitted in a glass curtain wall. The main entry was relocated to High Street from the rear of the building. The green roofs (broken into three sections) are accessible and incorporate deck space and seating for employees. From http://www.aiacolumbus.org/component/content/article/113-designawards
December 12, 200915 yr An update to a residential project first announced in 2007. Embedded within an article about state historic tax credits going to another downtown Columbus project was information about the former Salvation Army thrift store building in the Brewery District. Here is the info from "New hotel coming near Broad and High": "The other Columbus project, the Born Capital Brewery Bottle Works, is at 570 S. Front Street. It received a $1.25 million historic tax credit for a $10.3 million project to convert the 114-year-old vacant brewery into residential rental property." Below is the original post from 2007 and two photos of the building. The Grange Parking Garage was recently completed on the former surface parking lot next to the building. Former Salvation Army thrift store going condo Business First of Columbus - by Adrian Burns Business First Grange last fall disclosed it was buying the 1.4-acre Salvation Army property and said it wanted to sell the warehouse to condo developers. The company has followed through with those plans despite a slow housing market, said Grange Chief Administration Officer Mark C. Russell. The deal is complex and involves Grange sharing some of the project's costs since it is building an adjacent parking garage that would provide about 61 spaces for the condo development, Edwards said. That means the developer hasn't nailed down a final cost for the project, he said. Plans call for an underground tunnel to connect the former warehouse to the 1,050-space parking garage Grange will build next door. The garage as well as a 230,000-square foot Grange addition, which will include an office tower and data center, are expected to be completed by January 2009, Russell said. Read more at http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2007/10/01/story5.html?page=1
May 19, 201015 yr Powell winery to relocate to old Ludlow's site in Brewery District Tuesday, May 11, 2010 - 1:13 PM By Gary Seman Jr., ThisWeek Staff Writer Via Vecchia Winery is trading in a suburban basement for new - well, make that old - urban digs in the Brewery District. The small producer of artisan wines is taking over the former Ludlow's spot at 485 S. Front Street. The new 8,300-square-foot space, once part of the Hoster's Brewery complex, has a rustic-meets-industrial look, with a blend of brick, stone and concrete. "It works for us," founding partner Paolo Rosi said. "You couldn't ask for anything better." The bi-level space, which can accommodate nearly 500 people, has plenty of room for oak-barrel aging, retail business and private parties. Full article: http://www.thisweeknews.com/live/content/food/stories/2010/05/12/tabletalk.html
June 4, 201015 yr <b>Via Vecchia Winery Relocates to Brewery District</b> By Walker | June 2, 2010 <img src="http://www.columbusunderground.com/archives/viavecchia1.jpg"> Via Vecchia Winery was founded in a Powell basement in 2005 by three guys with a passion for wine making. Five years later, the business is moving into a much larger facility located at 485 South Front Street in the heart of the Brewery District. The new building will serve as a production facility, a weekend wine bar, a retail shop and a rentable special event location. “We’re keeping the speakers and lighting systems for entertainment, bands, poetry readings, weddings, corporate events and whatever else we want to do,” said co-founder Michael Elmer. READ MORE: http://www.columbusunderground.com/via-vecchia-winery-relocates-to-brewery-district
July 6, 201014 yr SCIOTO AUDUBON City clearing clunkers to make way for park expansion Columbus is preparing to move hundreds of abandoned vehicles to a new impounding lot by February Tuesday, July 6, 2010 02:50 AM By Mark Ferenchik THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH A green Volkswagen Jetta has been on the city's impounding lot for so long that a tree has grown in front of it - and died. "I sprayed it to kill it," said Sgt. Dan Hale, who helps run the operation and whose duties, yes, include weed control. The car has been held as evidence in a homicide since May 15, 2004, and is one of hundreds of vehicles that sit on the lot - at least until the city begins moving them later this year to a new South Side lot off Rt. 104. The city is to clear the Whittier Avenue lot by February to make way for an expanded Scioto Audubon Metro Park. Entire article @: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/07/06/clearing-clunkers.html?sid=101
July 6, 201014 yr Good to see the City is still keeping with their Feb. 2011 deadline to vacate the impound lot. They should've been out before the Metro Park opened. But better late then never. BTW - that was a sweet aerial photo that accompanied the article.
July 7, 201014 yr If a tree can grow out a vw then save the 200k grant money and just let mother nature take back the reigns on the lots since I'm sure after the 200k study is done there will be another substantial bill for environmental remediation
July 7, 201014 yr Here's an aerial photo of the Whittier Peninsula from 2008: Here's a current aerial photo of the Whittier Peninsula: Want to go back to 2008?
July 7, 201014 yr Judging by the pics (keep in mind one is winter and one is summer/spring, improving the lushness) they've already taken back some of the north lot without much fanfare, I never heard anything about itemized cleanup costs. Such an improvement
July 7, 201014 yr WHITTIER PENINSULA Cleanup for park gets EPA approval Wednesday, July 7, 2010 - 2:54 AM By Spencer Hunt, THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has approved a third environmental cleanup on the Whittier Peninsula south of Downtown. The City of Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks cleaned up a 13-acre site where a Lazarus warehouse once stood and replaced it with a park. Previous cleanups were of 18 acres adjacent to the former Lazarus warehouse and a 26-acre parcel now occupied by the Audubon Center. Full article: http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/07/07/copy/cleanup-for-park-gets-epa-approval.html?adsec=politics&sid=101 they've already taken back some of the north lot without much fanfare Two previous cleanup grants and years of hard work from the Metro Parks organization. All you need to do is read the previous news articles posted in this thread to realize that the Scioto Audubon Park and the environmental cleanup on the Whittier Peninsula did not just happen by themselves.
July 7, 201014 yr I'm not trying to downplay the incredible job that has already been done by metro parks or any other party involved, I live just around the block from the park and it is wonderful addition to the neighborhood and the entire city - I just wanted to make the point that mother nature can reclaim some of the trouble on her own, thought it was worth mentioning since the dispatch eluded to it already happening.
July 7, 201014 yr I'm not trying to downplay the incredible job that has already been done by metro parks or any other party involved, I live just around the block from the park and it is wonderful addition to the neighborhood and the entire city - I just wanted to make the point that mother nature can reclaim some of the trouble on her own, thought it was worth mentioning since the dispatch eluded to it already happening. That's an odd thing to say. So you suggest just leaving the rusting cars and have trees and vines growing all over them till they disappear? The point is to clean the area, not have the scrap hidden.
July 8, 201014 yr I think I've heard someone else mention it here before, but I wish we could allocate some of the cleanup funds toward improving the entrance to the Audubon Center at Whittier & Front. It's very nondescript and borderline ugly. There are only sidewalks on the south of Whittier which means pedestrians have to enter only on one side of the street or walk in the grass. I imagine that a little bit of beautification (maybe an archway at the entrance) would go a long way.
September 13, 201014 yr Does anyone know what is going on at the Police Vehicle Maintenance Complex (I think that is what it is) on Short St. in the Brewery District? It looks like they're tearing the whole thing out. It's a big eyesore so no complaints I just hadn't heard anything about it happening or what, if anything, will be replacing it.
September 16, 201014 yr I would have guessed more of the new park, but this is on the east side of the tracks...
September 16, 201014 yr Ask a cop. Most of them wound up there a lot before they tore it down and would probably know what's replacing it.
September 16, 201014 yr I emailed the division of economic dev. and got the response that it wasn't division's project but he was going to check with the other divisions... stay tuned.
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