Columbus Projects & Developments

[aboutmetro]

Correct to say that Columbus has merely been "keeping up." But consider this. The city has been dealing with its ties to a dying industry -- textiles. Under the circumstances, keeping up is pretty remarkable. The city has had to replace jobs on a one-to-one basis for each that was lost when the mills closed. Hard to name any other city which has had to deal with a dying industry and not actually fallen sharply. Of similar cities in the South that have risen from the ashes of the death of textiles I can think of only one that has actually grown and prospered -- Greenville SC. And that is because -- in my opinion -- Greenville is in an ideal location between SE and NE -- and has excellent transportation connections via interstate. Things which we lack. Not a fluke that Columbus has emulated Greenville -- ie, RiverCenter -- in seeking to bounce back from the textile debacle. Greenville sets the bar. In Georgia, Augusta and Macon had ties to textiles (tho maybe not as great as here) and neither of them has boomed to the same extent as Raleigh (state capital), Knoxville (UT) or other cities which had more diversified economies and did not have to cope with a loss of its major industry. When compared to -- say Detroit MI or Gary IN, keeping up looks pretty good. When textiles left the NE for cheap southern labor, the textile towns there (Lowell, Mass etc) never really recovered their former glory. Now that textiles have left the south for cheap foreign labor, it remains to be seen where the former textile cities here will eventually grow or decline. But stabilization is a good start for an eventual recovery.

While the city may have just been keeping up economically and population-wise, there can be no doubt that it is now a very different place in terms of infrastructure. Other cities now come here to take a look at the RiverCenter, Riverwalk, etc with hopes of emulating. Dont know what it is about fixation on tall buildings -- I am more in the Prince Charles -- keep it classic -- school than the sterile glass box camp. IMHO -- the 20-story AFLAC building -- which I can see from my front porch -- is an eyesore, whereas the 5-story Empire Building is a jewel. However, there will probably be taller buildings built here in the next decade -- but I hope they are mostly on the PC side (which does not have that many historic sites to conserve) or on empty lots which can accomodate a classic building -- think architecture of the Chrysler Bldg or Empire State (not AFLAC) -- like the lot @ 13th and Broad next to Country's. AS I have said before, if it were up to me, I would leave DT for "classic" (re)development and encourage more modern and taller buildings to the north along the 2d Ave corridor to Bibb City. That is a blighted area which cries out for teardown and rehab. Consider Atl -- which has lots of tall buildings (many of which are now empty shells) and empty lots where there were once beautiful old buildings which could have been preserved and refitted. Trading the Fox for another highrise -- as was once proposed -- is not my idea of progress. When compared to "what progress has destroyed,""what progress has preserved" looks pretty good to me.

Believe that a mayor can make a HUGE difference in a city's progress. Look at Guilliani in NYC or Hartsfield/Allen in Atl. If the people of Columbus were dead set on keeping things exactly the way they were, then they would not have built a new library, convention center, rivercenter, etc and passed almost every call to increase taxes to build the intrastructure that now exists. I firmly believe that with the right leadership the next years could be a time when Columbus plays catchup with other cities that admittedly passed it by in the last decades.

One of the best discussions on this board I've seen in a while. Should be debated in public. In towns the size of Columbus, the City Manager is as, if not more important, than the Mayor in providing a vision. The mayors have tended to be shorter-term and not long enough to see a vision come to fruition. But the City Management has to bring it to fruition, and sometime create the vision. Michael Brown was the key to getting the improvements in place that lead to Columbus being in the right place at the right time to host the '96 Olympic Softball venue. Still, the Civic Center was built far too small to attract top shelf entertainment. But that's another story. The notion of the bike trail/tram, trolley or local rail from downtown to CSU was first envisioned back then.

[aboutmetro]

Dont know what it is about fixation on tall buildings -- I am more in the Prince Charles -- keep it classic -- school than the sterile glass box camp. IMHO -- the 20-story AFLAC building -- which I can see from my front porch -- is an eyesore, whereas the 5-story Empire Building is a jewel. However, there will probably be taller buildings built here in the next decade -- but I hope they are mostly on the PC side (which does not have that many historic sites to conserve) or on empty lots which can accomodate a classic building -- think architecture of the Chrysler Bldg or Empire State (not AFLAC) -- like the lot @ 13th and Broad next to Country's.

I know the traditional perspective for 'conservation' is for old brick buildings, but many cities are beginning to see the value in also preserving mid-century modern buildings like the government center and AFLAC. Beauty is certainly in the eye of the beholder, but at this stage, it could be just as tragic to loose those examples of architecture now as it was to lose the old courthouse in the 70's. Let's not let history repeat itself, lest a few years from now we could be lamenting the loss of the only examples of those styles we have. For the record, I'm right there with you on the Empire Building. I'm so glad it's being preserved.

The fixation with tall buildings is, for one thing, their ability to compact a lot of usable real estate into a small footprint. For another, they are iconic and define a city. Usually, when most think of a city - and I mean a c-i-t-y, those iconic structures are typically one of the things that first come to mind - the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, the Sears Tower, the Space Needle... and the list could go on and on. Sure, other landmarks come to mind. That's the point, though, Columbus has no perceptible 'skyline'.

To my mind Columbus needs atleast one more gigantic infusion of public money -- getting us on the interstate hwy system. It makes NO sense to me why there is not an allout push to get a short connection to I-85 in Tuskeegee and I-16 in Macon ASAP. Long range we NEED connection to B'ham-Brunswick, extension of I-185 south to Fla. and a new connection between I-75 at Cartersville and I-185 in La Grange to provide a trans-Ga route to Fla that bypasses Atl. I simply cannot understand why the CofC and our federal and local representatives do not make this a urgent priority. Makes NO sense to have expended all the money on local infrastructure when it is still a pain in the butt to get here from there!!!! Not to mention the security aspects of connecting Ft Benning with the rest of the country.

Bottom line -- I suspect that the missing parts of the puzzle are: end of the Great Recession; new interstate connectionS (plural); intense mkting; and new dynamic mayor who will jump start the next phase of growth.

Really wish lurkers on this site would join in the discussion and add to the debate. Would be interesting to see what other Columbusites -- and other Georgia/Alabama folks think of present and future outlook for CSG.

AaaaMEN.

[nimsjus]

What has been the private response to public infusion of cash in the past? I havent been here long enough to tell. It seems to me that public funding on Broadway/Riverwalk has helped lead to some private investment (obviously not equal to what was spent by local government on street scapes and CSU for their downtown campus). South Commons improvements over the last couple of decades are nice, but have done little to improve that part of town. Newer public investments Wynnton Streetscape Projects and Sears property purchase/public building projects have not really had any impact on private investment yet in Midtown. So the question is do you all feel like the public investment eventually spurs development here, or will things just continue to move further out to the "newest and best places". Just curious since several publicly funded projects (Veterans/13th project and Hilton/Wynnton project) are all getting started near my area.

Edited May 3, 2010 by nimsjus

[xivinrah]

Columbus should have looked more like Winston-Salem, NC. Both cities have almost exactly the same population numbers. Only difference... Winston-Salem looks and feels more urban. Definitely check out its downtown on Google Maps and do a street view on any of the downtown streets or the highway adjacent to it. Just thought I'd throw that into the mix. It's rather irritating and discouraging to see how slowly it's taking city leaders to catch on to the concepts of New Urbanism.

[gah]

Th believe that columbus would look more like WS -- if it were more like WS. Unless I am mistaken, however, WS is not so close to a military establishment as we are. A LOT of the infrastructure that would be located in town (ie, urban area) is actually located on post out of sight and out of mind of most of us civilians. Like the hospital, PX and Commissary. If those and othe post facilities were private or non-military then they would be a part of the Columbus landscape as they are in WS. Long story short, altho Columbus has same population as WS, a large part of it is military-oriented and has nothing to do with the town per se. Columbus does not have a civilian population nearly as large as WS and does not, therefore, seem as large or urban. As such it cannot and does not support the same type of new urbanism as WS

Also I am beating a dead horse but WS has better transportation, ie interstate, connection and this too adds to the urban ambiance and encourages the type of development that has become fashionable of late.

In addition I am not discounting the cultural factor. Columbus is certainly less "hip" than similar sized cities, especially those in NC which has a large educated class in and around the Triangle-area. New ideas take longer to get here and even longer to become accepted.

[xivinrah]

Th believe that columbus would look more like WS -- if it were more like WS. Unless I am mistaken, however, WS is not so close to a military establishment as we are. A LOT of the infrastructure that would be located in town (ie, urban area) is actually located on post out of sight and out of mind of most of us civilians. Like the hospital, PX and Commissary. If those and othe post facilities were private or non-military then they would be a part of the Columbus landscape as they are in WS. Long story short, altho Columbus has same population as WS, a large part of it is military-oriented and has nothing to do with the town per se. Columbus does not have a civilian population nearly as large as WS and does not, therefore, seem as large or urban. As such it cannot and does not support the same type of new urbanism as WS

Also I am beating a dead horse but WS has better transportation, ie interstate, connection and this too adds to the urban ambiance and encourages the type of development that has become fashionable of late.

In addition I am not discounting the cultural factor. Columbus is certainly less "hip" than similar sized cities, especially those in NC which has a large educated class in and around the Triangle-area. New ideas take longer to get here and even longer to become accepted.

Wow... you make really great points. You explain a lot of things I have been having a difficult time understanding. So basically if we were to factor out Fort Benning, Columbus city population numbers would be more like 140,000 versus nearly +/- 192,000? Columbus has spread out SO much over the years... its unbearably frustrating to always have to drive to the other side of town for everything.

[gah]

Wout benning columbus would be city of 140k -- or less. Explains why dt so small, bldgs so short, etc. Of all nc cities columbus most like fayetteville. Big military presence explains a lot for both. Even at that fville may have advantage of being close to hipper triangle ambiance

[xivinrah]

Wout benning columbus would be city of 140k -- or less. Explains why dt so small, bldgs so short, etc. Of all nc cities columbus most like fayetteville. Big military presence explains a lot for both. Even at that fville may have advantage of being close to hipper triangle ambiance

I sure wish Columbus had better ways of diversifying its economy. Too much of one thing (Ft. Benning) and half of Columbus will look like a ghost town if the federal government decides to shut it down. A sprawling ghost town at that.

[gah]

Diversification a must. Thank god for aflac and tsys. If not for them columbus would already look like ghost town after demise of mills. Need hi tech mfg. Huge chip maker like intel or amd would be god-send. Hope ncr is start of flood of similar job creating concerns moving in. Doubt benning ever closed. But could be downsized and will be great if and when military is simply one of economic engines and not predominent one

[aboutmetro]

I would think there is just as much private spending as there is public - the RiverCenter is owned by CSU, is it not? the Coca-Cola Space Science Center is funded by CSU and private funding. The whole downtown campus was built with privately funded money that CSU raised-- not Regent money from the state. They take up ALOT of downtown columbus: http://www.colstate.edu/maps/campusmap.pdf#page=2

Like I said, I wouldn't completely write off private spending in Downtown, because there has been alot of it in the last 10 years.

BTW, part of the RiverCenter is owned/operated by CSU. The end with the classrooms. The venues are all operated by the non-profit, RiverCenter.org. I believe that end is owned by the state, but I'm not sure about that. It was set up like that for a few reasons. One big one was so that they could serve alcohol at concerts.

[Columbus1984]

Wow... you make really great points. You explain a lot of things I have been having a difficult time understanding. So basically if we were to factor out Fort Benning, Columbus city population numbers would be more like 140,000 versus nearly +/- 192,000? Columbus has spread out SO much over the years... its unbearably frustrating to always have to drive to the other side of town for everything.

Same could be said for any city. What would Atlanta be without the airport? Columbus has a diverse economy. Home to big companies like Aflac. TSYS, Synovus, Carmike Cinemas, large medical base, Blue Cross Blue of Shied of Georgia, etc. Fort Benning does is a huge factor for Columbus, but the city does have other major businesses to keep it going. No other city in the state can say that.

[xivinrah]

<br>Same could be said for any city. What would Atlanta be without the airport? Columbus has a diverse economy. Home to big companies like Aflac. TSYS, Synovus, Carmike Cinemas, large medical base, Blue Cross Blue of Shied of Georgia, etc. Fort Benning does is a huge factor for Columbus, but the city does have other major businesses to keep it going. No other city in the state can say that.<br>

What would Columbus be without the airport? You also have to consider that because if it wasn't for the presence of Atlanta's airport, AFLAC, Synovus, Carmike, and TSYS would either be the local bank/insurance company down the street or not even present here. Hartsfield Jackson is an economic driver for the state. Not just Atlanta. Only Savannah can say that it can fully sustain itself without co-dependence.

Atlanta had always been growing even before that airport. And Atlanta would have grown more so than Columbus because of all of its railroad connections. This is prior to the interstate system established in the 60's. Not to mention when the interstate system was established Columbus decided NOT to have adequate interstate access. Atlanta Metro probably would have only been half its size - 2,500,000 or so, but compare that to what Columbus is and what it would be without Fort Benning.

I believe that Atlanta's economy is so much more diversified than what you are giving it credit for. Much more so than Columbus. Columbus is relying on Fort Benning to continue its growth. But other than that it has poor interstate access, very few major attractions, and only enough private corporate business to count on one hand. It has a very healthy mix of just about any job you can think about --- the best jobs in manufacturing, commerce, transportation, services, banking, etc in addition to having a military presence. Blue Cross Blue Shield has a much larger headquarters in Buckhead. Government jobs are PLENTIFUL - Sam Nunn Federal Center, MLK Federal Center, IRS Offices, GA Tax Office headquarters, Georgia Legislature, Fulton Co, City of Atlanta, GDOT... MARTA makes resident and business growth even more sustainable, lucrative, and attractive - and is also a major employer. In terms of medical base, Grady, Piedmont, Emory, Northside, Scottish Rite, St. Josephs, Atlanta Medical Center... It has ten times the banking/credit business presence just inside the inner city - Bank of America, Wachovia, BB&T, Bank of North Georgia... There is so much more outside of the airport. There is just no way that Columbus has a more diversified economy than Atlanta.

However... aside from "the Engine" of the state, I believe Columbus tops the rankings when compared to the other second and third tier cities of the state. People don't flock to Columbus because of it's diversified economy. They flock because of the jobs created by the military presence here. The soldiers come, we build and create retail, hotels, restaurants, and an expansion of government services (very few high paying positions) to entertain and accommodate them. Columbus does not provide an adequate transportation network to support the growth of industry. Hence the reason why I believe Kia chose West Point over Columbus to build its facility. Better interstate access.

Edited May 15, 2010 by xikartu

[nimsjus]

Three great articles about projects/development in Columbus from the LE today...

First just a general article quoting some agents about the thawing of the local retail/restaurant market.

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2010/05/23/1132371/columbus-market-thaws-as-new-stores.html

Secondly a good article on the added benefits/impact of having the Aflac games in downtown. Did anyone make it down there? Was there a good crowd?

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2010/05/23/1132416/move-downtown-spices-up-games.html

Lastly, and most importantly in my mind, an article suggesting that an out of town developer is going to convert the Swift Denim Mill on 5th into lofts and office space, with later phases potentially including some retail too. In my short time here, I have thought that the mills between 5th and the railroad yard are really cool and could make for a street filled with great renovated old mills serving as residential, retail, office space, etc. Swifts Mill and the Golden factory further down are some of the most architecturally interesting buildings left downtown. Maybe this will be the start of somethign big. If they could get the railyards removed/moved that would help a great deal as well. Hoepfully this goes well. Can't complain about 50million dolars in investment however it comes.

http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/2010/05/22/1131552/swift-mill-slated-for-50m-face.html

[xivinrah]

Three great articles about projects/development in Columbus from the LE today...

First just a general article quoting some agents about the thawing of the local retail/restaurant market.

http://www.ledger-en...new-stores.html

Secondly a good article on the added benefits/impact of having the Aflac games in downtown. Did anyone make it down there? Was there a good crowd?

http://www.ledger-en...s-up-games.html

Lastly, and most importantly in my mind, an article suggesting that an out of town developer is going to convert the Swift Denim Mill on 5th into lofts and office space, with later phases potentially including some retail too. In my short time here, I have thought that the mills between 5th and the railroad yard are really cool and could make for a street filled with great renovated old mills serving as residential, retail, office space, etc. Swifts Mill and the Golden factory further down are some of the most architecturally interesting buildings left downtown. Maybe this will be the start of somethign big. If they could get the railyards removed/moved that would help a great deal as well. Hoepfully this goes well. Can't complain about 50million dolars in investment however it comes.

http://www.ledger-en...r-50m-face.html

The first article: Great. More sprawling developments like Columbus Park Crossing and five more drugs stores to add on to the existing... 15, 16, 17, 18... oh I lost count.

The second article: I've always thought it was wonderful when AFLAC, Synovus, and TSYS host major events like that. Those are things you would typically see in the major cities... only on a much larger scale, but it's great for a city this size.

The third article: The comments on the last one are well... so much like my own personal opinions and feelings that it is deliberately ironic. I always thought that I was the only one who felt that way. But at least someone is finally planning to do something new that ISN'T confined to Broadway and Front Avenue. All of downtown should be revitalized not just two and a half thin strips of land closest to the river.

[xivinrah]

Has anyone noticed the road work going on at Veterans Parkway downtown? I truly hope that the streetscape project will stimulate some interest in creating a more urban or walkable retail/office/residential and hotel corridor.

[nimsjus]

Has anyone noticed the road work going on at Veterans Parkway downtown? I truly hope that the streetscape project will stimulate some interest in creating a more urban or walkable retail/office/residential and hotel corridor.

I hope that turns out well. The drawings look nice. That intersection at Veterans and 13th and the surrounding areas are very interesting. There are several businesses in unattractive/suburban style buildings (midas, the car accessories store, Gateway Mitsubishi etc), a few in nicer looking/more urban buildings (AT&T), and then some vacant properties. The streetscape improvements will make the dumpier looking things a little more pleasant and hopefully will encourage some upgrades on exsiting buildings in the area. I also hope it will spur some development to fill some of the vacant lots and buildings. I travel through downtown on my way to work evrey day, so I won't complain about any visual improvements to the drive.

[kendal 8]

May I ask where the streetscape project on veterans parkway is happening at. I ride up veterans parkway everyday but I dont see know street scape project happening.It could be that Im not riding all the way down veterans parkway because I turn up by the quality inn hotel and go across the white bridge into phenix city.So maybe I need to go further on down veterans parkway to see the new streetscape project.

[kendal 8]

The columbus city council will be moving out of the government center and will be moving to the new city service center once its built the new city service center is still being design right now and will be a two story building.The new city service center will be built off macon road where the old columbus square mall was.There also is going to be a parking garage built on the site with the new city service center.

[mitchella81]

Here's a little news from East Columbus construction is nearing completion on buena vista rd @hunt Avenue on a new CB&T bank as well as a new Columbus Police eastside substation

[kendal 8]

i was riding in north columbus today on veterans parkway and noticed that they are building a walgreens in north columbus.

[gah]

Work on Macon Rd City Center to start next year. The Center includes:

$12.5M Citizen Service Building -- Council Room, tax and voting offices, etc

$10.5M Natatorium (pool)

$9.5M Parking garage

Altho three separate buildings are considered as one project. At completion will join the Library as evidencing major civic commitment to mid-town area.

[aboutmetro]

The new Smiths Station High School is on schedule to be completed in 2011.

[Columbus1984]

The new Smiths Station High School is on schedule to be completed in 2011.

Can you see the new school from highway 280/431?

[aboutmetro]

I've seen activity and signs on 280 at Smiths Station where Flournoy's building 'luxury' apartments. Anyone have any idea how many units, etc?

[Columbus1984]

I've seen activity and signs on 280 at Smiths Station where Flournoy's building 'luxury' apartments. Anyone have any idea how many units, etc?

Haven't heard anything about the number of units. Didn't even know they were building out that way until I drove by. I figured the media would have picked up on it by now.