Maybe it wasn't the best day for South Linden to work it's charm on me, since my impression lacked the optimism I have for other unloved commercial streets. Aside from the sun beating down on me there were numerous cop cars, a few sirens here and there, drivers tending to barrel down behind me despite there being a wide open left lane, then the fact that although Cleveland Ave is the heart of the neighborhood, it's mostly residential with only a tiny bit of urban commercial buildings here and there. I'm guessing it was a bit more substantial before several were torn down for grass and parking lots. In fact, a good number of homes have been converted to commercial use for either a church or barber shop, usually a couple of the same kind right next to each other (couldn't they have made it more interesting with a church and then a barber shop instead of a church and a church or a barbershop and a barber shop?). Every time I head back into the Short North from one of these large neighborhoods out east I get reverse culture shock. It's as if N High St is in it's own bubble and totally oblivious/unconnected to the rest of the city. Welcome to the other side of the tracks; this is more of what the majority of urban Columbus looks like.

 

MAP

 

Coming up from the south is Linden's Gateway, a new development.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Much too car-oriented.

 

 

Yay retail!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heading up here there was religious music being which later turned into fire and brimstone screeching, "The only thing worse than going to hell is going to hell with your children and your grandchildren!!!" Just what the neighborhood needs: religious fanaticism. Forget about education, that's not what's seriously needed here.

 

 

I stopped in on the way back (the woman screaming about damnation was an interesting contrast to the Caribbean music in the restaurant).

 

 

 

 

The jerk chicken and festival (lightly sweet fried dough) was tasty and I chatted a bit with a couple of the friendly employees there who are in fact Jamaican. I was even given a taste of the oxtail which was even better than the chicken. I should have asked about the increase in a Caribbean presence on Cleveland Ave. It's too bad that native locals who were here before them haven't done as much to improve the street in comparison.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poor mural.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sprawl makes everything better.

 

 

 

The skinniest sidewalk in Columbus?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wait a minute; what exactly is open during these hours?

 

 

 

Bonus Hamilton Ave pics!

 

 

Failed attempt at traffic calming. The whole stretch is very awkward on a bike with vague painted lines suggesting parking, but aren't used so you just feel like you should ride there.

 

 

Yup.

The dark underbelly of Columbus. It seems that this makes up more of the region than folks realize. The difference between Cbus and the rest of Ohio - in the rest of the state this becomes of the symbol of the city, in Cbus its High Street and Easton.

 

Nice pics.

Even though the Transit Center is car-oriented, it looks good.

Your close-ups of food always get me hungry...

 

 

 

  "Crack House Ministries."  :|

 

 

 

 

"Crack House Ministries."   :|

 

I guess that's uplifting?

Yes and no I suppose. They may do good work and have the spiffiest building in the neighborhood, but they are not helping the perception with the name choice and that negatively affects improvements that can be made in the neighborhood. Island Vibes is probably the most uplifting place in that it's good for residents and attracts visitors from outside of the neighborhood, like myself.

You'll have to try the Cowfoot and Beans next time!

Ah, my morning (bike) commute. There's a whole lot of reality going on there.

I don't know how you do it. I was pretty pooped just getting up to Hudson, but as you can tell I stopped several times and of course had to start back up again. And like I mentioned I noticed that motorists in my mirror would zoom up behind me before passing around in the other lane. Signaling and getting over without making me think I better hop off the road would be nice, but that's par for the course in lower-income neighborhoods whose drivers can be as hostile towards cyclists as OSU students and suburbanites.  :?

Not altogether the happiest-looking place, but thanks so much for the tour! Don't think I've ever really seen this neighborhood.

It actually is not that different than Cleveland. I mean, you have your new little Shaker Square with the Point of Pride, your wood frame houses, and plenty of abandonment thrown in for good measure. Save the Terminal Tower, Great Lakes, and a corrupt county government and they could be twins.

 

 

(Oops, sorry)

I don't know how you do it. I was pretty pooped just getting up to Hudson, but as you can tell I stopped several times and of course had to start back up again. And like I mentioned I noticed that motorists in my mirror would zoom up behind me before passing around in the other lane. Signaling and getting over without making me think I better hop off the road would be nice, but that's par for the course in lower-income neighborhoods whose drivers can be as hostile towards cyclists as OSU students and suburbanites. :?

 

Guess I'm just a badass on multiple levels. Seriously though: compared to the pictures of the hills in Cinci, everything in Columbus is downhill with a tailwind.

I think the skinniest sidewalk in Columbus is along Neil Ave. just north of Lane Avenue, especially when you take into account the trees and sign poles.

I don't know how you do it. I was pretty pooped just getting up to Hudson, but as you can tell I stopped several times and of course had to start back up again. And like I mentioned I noticed that motorists in my mirror would zoom up behind me before passing around in the other lane. Signaling and getting over without making me think I better hop off the road would be nice, but that's par for the course in lower-income neighborhoods whose drivers can be as hostile towards cyclists as OSU students and suburbanites. :?

 

An odd driving phenomenon that I only noticed in Columbus after I lived other places is that cars coming up on your tail, no matter what your mode, wait until the very last second to get over. They always nearly clip you -- odd considering how much extra space there is almost everywhere in town.

It's a little more harrowing when you're on a bike. I shouldn't have to point at a big empty left lane for them to take, but Cleveland Avenue is like other major urban corridors that aren't High St. which are very unfriendly for pedestrians with very long walks between lights and of course, few lights and wide roads result in fast driving just like the traffic engineers wanted. Streets like these already have a hard enough time attracting businesses, so it's just adding insult to injury for these mostly down-and-out business districts.