Right Now Downtown

If you are bored of Columbus, don’t move to Portland, Oregon.  Move to the Columbus High Five.  This stretch of the High Street corridor includes German Village, downtown, the Arena District, Short North and University District.

The sheer volume of great, urban experiences in this part of Columbus compares favorably to any other place in the U.S.  It has everything Boston has except urban rail, department stores and outrageously high housing costs.

Good public transit and city sidewalks will take you to 20 movie screens, a public market, Barnes & Noble and more than 200 high quality, independent retail stores.  It is home to an NHL arena, a AAA baseball park, historic theatres and one of the county’s most prestigious universities.

There are scores of nightclubs, beautiful city parks, charming neighborhoods, several world-class museums, great live music and 40 art galleries.  You can stay in one of 4,000 hotel rooms, quickly hail a taxicab and dine at 150 full-service restaurants.

The Columbus High Five is a magnet for highly educated people from throughout the world.  It is young, creative and entrepreneurial.  Best of all, it is in our backyard.

CAPITAL CROSSROADS SID ANNUAL AWARDS

Each year at its Annual Meeting in November, Capital Crossroads recognizes people and companies in a variety of categories.  Listed below are the winners in each category, including Ambassador of the Year, Outstanding Service, Aesthetic Contribution and Outstanding Achievement.

Marissa Ingram was awarded Ambassador of the Year, for her outstanding work and her wide range of experience and skills.  As an ambassador since 2002, Ingram has served in a variety of capacities and has a detailed knowledge of downtown which makes her a valuable asset as an ambassador and as a trainer for other ambassadors.

The SID’s Award for Outstanding Aesthetic Contribution recognizes a project in the past year which adds to the beauty, street life, energy, brightness and attractiveness of downtown.    The 2009 honoree is the new restaurant, Barrio Tapas Lounge.  In addition to being a great restaurant, the project humanizes an intersection that was lifeless.  The restaurant’s windows open, allowing the energy of the restaurant to spill out onto the sidewalks; they also offer sidewalk dining.  Jeff Mathes and Sam Horner accepted the award for their outstanding aesthetic contribution.

The Outstanding Service Award recognizes the public or private sector entity that makes a significant contribution to downtown.  The first-time winner of this award is Ric Rossetti of the Public Service Department.  As the man who runs the Public Service Department permit office, he is on the front lines every time someone needs a permit to work or place something in the public right of way.  Ric handles this demanding job with patience and grace, always providing responsive and excellent customer service.

A second award for Outstanding Service in 2009 was presented to the Columbus Downtown Dog Park Association, whose four founding members, Janet Berry, Suzanne DeWoody, Mary Jane Gerhardstein and Liz Leahy, shared a passion and commitment for dogs and for downtown.  They started with a mission to establish an off-leash dog exercise area close to urban housing, and this year with support from the City, the first Downtown Columbus Dog Park opened at the corner of Fourth and Spring streets.  The group continues their work and hopes to open additional dog parks downtown.

The final award presented was that for Outstanding Achievement for an accomplishment by a property owner, city division, tenant or civic organization that deserved special recognition.  This year that accomplishment was a real home run: the Huntington Ball Park.  This wonderful facility debuted in the spring, enhancing the Arena District and drawing more visitors to that growing area of our city.  Capital Crossroads isn’t the only organization to recognize this outstanding amenity.  Baseballparks.com named Huntington Ball Park the ballpark of the year, beating out the new parks opened by both the Yankees and the Mets.  The award was presented to the Franklin County Commissioners at a meeting in early December.

THE BOOM ZOOM

It’s Red White and Boom… and traffic doom.

While the annual celebration is a magnificent event in Downtown Columbus, it can be a little rough on residents and employees.  Suddenly, our comforting streets and walkways are swarmed by masses of humanity and festivities.  It’s tens of hundreds of thousands of firework-revelers, everywhere.

So, instead of staying for the fantastic show, we tend to make an early break for the exits.  The annual day-long traffic jam is worth avoiding at any cost, right?

Not really.  The folks at Red White and BOOM have added tons of events to keep you celebrating all day long.  The Midway opens at 11 am; you’ll find children’s activities at Battelle Park; live entertainment begins at 1 pm on the Genoa Park and Long Street BOOM stages; Taste of BOOM presented by the Arena District begins at 3 pm; Clippers BOOM opens at 6 pm with live music and a new spot to watch the fireworks; and the Independence Day Parade with Air National Guard flyover begins at 6 pm.

If you want to avoid the post-BOOM traffic, you could also consider staying at one of our downtown hotels.  The post-show commute then becomes a quick stroll to a safe air conditioned room.  While most of the Boom-only reservations have been spoken for, the travel Web sites still show some Friday availability for those who are willing to reserve a Saturday night too.  Translation: there might be some late-breaking vacancies toward the end of the week.

You can save yourself the effort of calling around by checking Web sites like Hotels.com - its listings include downtown joints like The Lofts, The Hyatts and The Westin.

Still inclined to flee?  At least you can take some All-American barbecue with you this year.  Stop at Cook Shack BBQ on Long Street.  The fare has earned reviewer raves for its ribs, chicken, pulled pork, brisket and a host of sides.

Like many businesses downtown, it’s locally owned and operated by an independent proprietor.  That makes it a great way to celebrate Independence Day.

PLAY BALL

Perhaps you’ve heard that they’ve got baseball in the Arena District now – at Huntington Park?  That’s old news, but the new ballpark brings more to the area than just the boys of summer…

1.  Bridal Parties
The structure actually boasts indoor banquet and meeting facilities that book year round for everything from business breakfast meetings to cocktail receptions.

2.  Kidstuff
Baseball brings out the kid in all of us, but the new park is especially child-friendly.  In fact, children under 12 can go free on Wednesdays through the Knot Hole Kids Club.  According to the organization’s Paula Knudsen, “The program has been around for years.  Last year, it was referred to as “Kids Night Out.”  Before that, it was just the “Kids Club.”

She adds that there’s also a MVP club for kids.  Although there’s a small membership fee, it hosts big events like pitching clinics and stadium tours.

3.  TweetUps
The old ballgame has arrived with some very new-fangled trends.  Still in its infancy, the new park has already hosted a TweetUp.  Fan George Black helped coordinate the event, and said, “The idea was to combine a TweetUp with an introduction to the Clippers and Huntington Park.  We kept the cost low by using sponsors and we sold out or 100 slots in less than a week.”

Another TweetUp is in the works; for more details click here.

Five miles of High Street offers one of the best walks in the United States.  On High Street or within a “stone’s throw” of High Street between German Village and the University District are 20 movie screens; more than 30 live performance venues and dance clubs; 4,000 hotel rooms; 300 restaurants; 200 retail stores and boutiques; and 40 art galleries.

The area includes four city parks, a developing riverfront park system, and an NHL arena.  There is a baseball park, a public market, and three farmers markets.  Six historic districts line this stretch of High Street, as well as the historic Ohio Statehouse, three historic theatres, and two historic parks.  The walk would take you past the country’s largest university campus and the Wexner Center.

High Street offers Gallery Hop, ComFest, the Columbus Marathon, Greek Festival, Gay Pride Parade, and a host of other events, races and parades.  You can sit at outdoor cafes, listen to street musicians, browse in bookstores, and easily hail a cab.

There are some gaps to be filled, for sure.  But if you work or live downtown, you are in the middle of a very special place.

Nothing beats sitting in a baseball park on a warm day, particularly when the backdrop is the downtown skyline and the team is part of the Cleveland Indians.  Downtown gained another huge amenity on April 18, when Huntington Park opened.

Huntington Park’s downtown location has many advantages.  It is accessible by public transit, with nine local COTA bus lines within three blocks.  The new ball park has more than a dozen restaurants within walking distance that can capture business from the park.

Those neighboring restaurants have a good chance to capture baseball traffic because the limited parking at Huntington Park requires that most people walk several blocks past eating and watering holes.  Its proximity to Nationwide Arena further bolsters dining and retail development in the area, because baseball is counter-cyclical to hockey.

Huntington Park is a smart addition to a well designed neighborhood.  I cannot imagine how it could have been better designed or sited.