A 162-page bound publication reveals details about the new Envision Columbus downtown strategic development plan.
Rick Johnson, who leads the Envision Columbus steering committee, and Jeff Bergman, city and county planning director, unveiled a copy of the final plan to the Columbus Redevelopment Commission Monday.
Led by DAVID RUBIN Land Collective of Philadelphia and initiated by the Heritage Fund — the Community Foundation of Bartholomew County, Envision Columbus provides a road map for the future of the commercial area of downtown Columbus, as well as nearby neighborhoods and parks.
The plan encompasses a geographical area bounded by farmland south of downtown to Donner Park to the north, and from Mill Race and Noblitt Parks on the west to California Street on the east.
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Initial focal points of the plan include a potential hotel/conference center with performance venue opportunities downtown, an urban grocer, townhomes, neighborhood revitalization, among others.
Johnson said the steering committee took the information garnered by the study completed by DAVID RUBIN Land Collective and broke into five teams: a hotel conference center, high-density housing, a grocery store, near-downtown cottage neighborhood and connectivity and activity.
The teams consist of city and community leaders steering it along.
“I think 2020 and the latter part of this year, you’re going to get some recommendations because there’s going to be quite a bit of activity coming around it,” Johnson said.
The goal is to spur additional investment and an active downtown environment, Johnson said.
“We’ve got a pretty good downtown, right?” Johnson asked the commission. “A lot of years with a lot of people doing some pretty fantastic work. Columbus is not in a position of weakness but in a position of strength.”
But Johnson encouraged the redevelopment commission to think of urban downtowns such as Broad Ripple, Fountain Square and Massachusetts Avenue in Indianapolis or Kirkwood in Bloomington. He said they’re places with a lot of vibrancy and the kind of places people want to go when they have free time.
“Typically those are high-density, mixed-use environments with a very critical mass and so that’s what we’ve been trying to work on, too, in that process,” Johnson said. “Think about a party — you can throw a party with 100 people and you put in a nice tight room, it feels like it has a lot of energy. If you have the same party and it’s in a giant room, well, it doesn’t feel the same. That critical mass is a really important element we believe to the downtown.”
Johnson and Bergman also talked about how Envision Columbus incorporates several other projects Columbus has underway, including the riverfront development and Fair Oaks Mall.
Johnson said the groups are fully aware of what each other is doing and working to balance the pieces. They are in some cases serving separate interests but they are always thinking about all the pieces.
“Whenever a new consultant team or a new citizen team takes on an effort, I think there really is intentionally a desire to have them review past planning activities and have an awareness of what’s going on in the community so that is folded into the work they’re doing,” Bergman said.
“I know in this Envision Columbus document, they did a review of the other plans. You’ll see in there a mention of the riverfront project within the context of Envision Columbus and a mention of the FairOaks Mall project within the context of Envision Columbus.”
Bergman said this plan acknowledges the city’s other plans and demonstrates these projects fit into this framework.
Redevelopment commissioners will convene for a special redevelopment meeting at 4 p.m. Nov. 7 to hear a recommendation for the selection of a developer for the hotel conference center, urban grocer and mixed-use concept. The meeting will be at Columbus City Hall council chambers, 123 Washington St.
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To read the complete Envision Columbus plan, visit columbus.in.gov/envision-columbus/.
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