the urban news for the week ending Sunday, February 24, 2008
There is so much background information to cover when it comes to telling the story about why the City of Columbus is even contemplating the creation of a modern streetcar system here in Columbus, never mind the education that will have to take place if we actually receive a green-light from Mayor Coleman and the Columbus City Council in late March or early April. After seeing an updated presentation on the proposed streetcars by the mayor's Chief of Staff Mike Reese last week, I know that he would agree when I say that a lot of education needs to take place so that every citizen in the City of Columbus, and our surrounding suburban cities for that matter, has an opportunity to understand why we may be building a streetcar system and what it means. I have yet to see anyone tackle the "streetcar education" issue, and with good reason. It's no small chore. But, as with any monstrously complex or burdensome task, the best approach is to break it down to digestible chunks. That being said, I have an idea...
Paul Bonneville  
 ..."We go into these downtrodden buildings," said Kay Kenny, a photographer and painter in Jersey City,"and we live with the crumbling walls, the darkness and the pigeons, and we succeed in making these places vibrant and we succeed too well. Then, we get pushed out."
Although fees for city services bring in less than one-sixth as much as local income taxes, Columbus residents are charged for everything from parking their cars at Downtown meters to parking their boats at Griggs Reservoir.
...the Bicentennial Commission is holding five neighborhood meetings next week: two on Tuesday, at Centennial and Eastmoor high schools; and three on Thursday, at Mifflin High School and Parsons and West Mound elementary schools. All are from 6 to 8 p.mââ¬Â¦
In honor of Columbus' upcoming 200th birthday, Coleman has hired an urban planning firm to study residents' attitudes. ACP Visioning & Planning is the same urban planning firm that helped New Yorkers decide what to put in place of the World Trade towers.
On Tuesday, the second in a four-part series of "pm" programs will focus on the city's image -- "Columbus Identity Crisis" -- and how to better brand the action in Cow Town.
Columbus needs to distill what makes it special before it can effectively sell itself to the outside world, an expert told those attending the annual meeting today of Experience Columbus, the city's convention and visitors bureau.
Creating a single, distinct brand for more than 700,000 clients sounds like a marketing nightmare, but it's the task Columbus' tourism and convention business is faced with as the city moves closer to its bicentennial.
Broad Street from High looking East
Even the best nightclub has a bit of a lull after the initial grand-opening buzz, and countless other disposable Columbus clubs have closed after the crowds (and their wallets) have moved on to newer, fresher places to see and be seen. But BoMA is another beast entirely: One doesnâââ‰â¢t throw in the towel when such a high-concept, multimillion-dollar investment shows signs of slowing.
...But retailing became tougher downtown with the decline of Columbus City Center mall, once a magnet for pulling shoppers to the city, and the closing of the landmark Lazarus department store. The difficulties weren't lost on Lynchââ¬Â¦
The Fifth by Northwest Area Commission has begun the process of creating a neighborhood plan.
In the America of big-city housing markets, especially on the coasts and in the struggling industrial Midwest, the huge run-up in values in recent years has given way to big drops in prices and sales volume. Millions of people owe more than their houses are worth.
With the credit markets once again deteriorating, the nationâââ‰â¢s two top economic policy makers acknowledged Thursday that the outlook for the economy had worsened, as both came under criticism for being overtaken by events and failing to act boldly enough.
Even Federal Reserve policymakers recognized it: Their huge double dose of medicine for the sickly economy was not a cure.
Keely Croxton finds it telling that about a quarter of the corporate job recruiters who interview students at Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business are looking for logistics majors.
It's not likely to rival London's Piccadilly Circus or New York's Washington Square Park, but Dublin's proposed town center concept, approved last night, will be a hub of commerce and culture, city planners say.
If a time of "economic recession" is truly upon us, that also means that there exists a potential for recreating existing economic markets for developing wealth and/or potentially creating new ones.
Columbus schools will need to pass another bond issue by November 2009 to avoid increasing the tax rate for their school-construction project and dismantling the staff that runs it, advisers told a district committee today.
Elegant Imports at 650 N. High St that had replaced Anew Consignment Furnishings has closed after a 3 month leaseââ¬Â¦
Possible new restaurant coming to the Short North according to "Lisa the Waitress" over at RestaurantWidow.com
Fibres at 791 N. High Street in the Short North is up for sale.
$750,000. 8 apartments, 2 commercial spaces in rapidly developing Short North.
As SuperValu Inc. shuts its Sunflower Markets in Central Ohio this week, the company has confirmed it is also moving other jobs out of state from an Ohio distribution center.
A new executive order signed by Ohio Governor Ted Strickland creates a more efficient and effective business regulation process for the state of Ohio. The âââ¬Ã
âcommon senseâââ¬ì³Šapproach to a state regulatory process will help retain jobs and make Ohio a more attractive place to do business, according to the Ohio Business Development Coalition (OBDC), the nonprofit organization that markets the state for capital investment.
Governor Strickland says the apparent loss of a proposed steel mill is a sign the state must pass an energy bill.
Ohio is in talks with an automaker from India that wants to build tens of thousands of light trucks annually in the state starting next year.
Schwieterman said introducing Skybus into an already volatile industry has probably hastened some cutbacks by major airlines at Port Columbus.
Buffet and his conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway Inc., have a proven track record of investing in successful companies. So his acquisition of stock in railroad company Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. has made those in the transportation industry take notice
I was attended the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce's YP Exchange on the Streetcars today at the offices of the Columbus Dispatch and thought I'd share some points from the presentation. This is the third time I've seen the presentation and each time it evolves a little more. The city is truly doing their due dilligence from where I sit.
Columbus is planning to synchronize its traffic lights with more of its neighboring communities.
Construction of the new $18 million 1000+ space parking garage will likely start in June 2008 and be finished a year later
A group of more than 70 students, university area residents and University Area Commission members are working on a plan to improve the environment of the University District.
As Columbus and its suburbs sprawl beyond the Outerbelt, the trend suggests that it's only a matter of time before a once-bustling shopping district falls victim to the next hot spot.
Talk about a homerun argument for more aggressively seeking means to revitalize and reutilize our existing inner-city infrastructure and housing stock. The more we leave to rot in favor of the easy path of building new, the more it costs us in the long run.
By now, many Americans have heard the presidential candidates talk about issues close to the heart of rural America. They fell all over themselves to praise ethanol in Iowa and condemn nuclear storage in Nevada. But as important as rural problems are, they're not nearly as big as the task of helping the nations struggling cities where most Americans live or work.
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