Tag Archives: Franklinton Ohio

Before and After Views from Franklinton

Posted on by
Reply




These before and after views from Franklinton show a snapshot in time of just how unattractive and people-unfriendly the riverfront once was.

Before: 1923
Before and after views from Franklinton in 1923
This view looks east from the Franklinton side of the Scioto River. At the time, Central High School was under construction, which is why the area looks like such a mess of materials. Central High School would be completed in 1924 and open on September 4th of that year. The school would remain open for 60 years before being shut down in the mid-1980s. The building sat empty for more than a decade before being renovated into the new COSI.
Beyond the river, a much shorter Downtown skyline can be seen. The image predates LeVeque Tower and most of the government buildings that now line the Scioto’s shores.

After: 2020
Before and after views from Franklinton in 2020.
The riverfront looks much different today. With the Scioto Greenways and park space added in more recent years, the view is much more pleasant, the bathroom not included.

Before: 1926
Before and after view from Franklinton in 1926.
In an image taken just 3 years after the one above, the Franklinton side of the riverfront looks much better. Additionally, LeVeque Tower is now well under construction.
After: 2021
before and after view from Franklinton in 2021
In the modern view, the parking and cars have been replaced with parklands and public space, while LeVeque has become the city’s most iconic skyline addition.

If you enjoy this series, the Historic Building Database page offers thousands of before and after photos of historic buildings and places in and around Columbus.

Random Columbus Photos 8

Posted on by
Reply

Photo Location: West Broad Street at Grubb Street, looking east.
Photo Date: 1937
Photo History: Franklinton was bustling in this pre-WWII era-photo of Broad Street. It had been 24 years since the Great Flood, and the neighborhood was reaching for its historic population high along with the rest of the urban core. Unfortunately, within 2 decades, the neighborhood would be devastated by yet another flood and would be followed by 50 years of stagnation and decline.
Random Columbus Photos #8 Columbus Ohio

The same view now.



Before and After Franklinton

Posted on by
Reply




Before and after Franklinton Columbus, Ohio

Franklinton has been known as The Bottoms for many years, mainly because the low-lying neighborhood has seen flooding more often than anywhere else in the city. With the completion of the Franklinton Floodwall nearly 20 years ago, the neighborhood has been seeing redevelopment at an ever-increasing pace. This Before and After of the neighborhood only covers some of the changes, and another similar post detailing more changes will most likely be needed.

Before: COSI Parking Lot in 2009

This large parking lot had once been part of Central High School’s campus and was originally the site of the schools track and athletic fields. After the school closed in the early 1980s, the area was converted to a large parking lot. It continued its life as parking when COSI moved from Downtown to a new facility in the converted school. When plans for the Scioto Peninsula to be redeveloped emerged, it was decided to turn the parking lot into a brand new park.
After: New Park in 2020

The parking was not actually lost, however. An underground garage was constructed beneath the park itself, which is now called Dorian Green. New development, which will include offices, retail and hundreds of new residences, can be seen under construction in the background.

Before: Veterans Memorial in 2011

The old Veterans Memorial was constructed in the mid-1950s. Over the subsequent decades, the building was renovated and expanded multiple times. By the 2000s, the building was considered outdated with a convoluted layout. Despite some objections, it was decided that the complex would be torn down and replaced with a new veterans center.
After: National Veterans Memorial and Museum in 2020

The new building had a far more modern, almost futuristic design, like something out of an X-Men movie. The new building was to remain a veterans memorial with office and event space, but also serve as a museum. It was eventually given the status of being the National Veterans Memorial, the only one of its kind in the nation.

Before: 500 West Broad Street in 2011

Back in 2011, 500 W. Broad was a collection of small businesses, most notably Wasserstrom restaurant supply. This stretch of Broad was unremarkable and a more modern remnant of urban renewal during the mid-20th Century.
After: 500 West Broad in 2020

Today, the first phase of the Gravity development occupies the entire stretch. This unique mixed-use development contains, among other things, apartments, retail space, community art and activity space for its residents. Directly across the street, the 2nd- and much larger- phase of Gravity is currently under construction.

Before: A.D. Farrow Harley Davidson in 2012

A century after the business was established, this Harley Davidson sales shop just down the street from Gravity looked out of date. Half the site was also a parking lot that fronted Broad Street.
After: A.D. Farrow Harley Davidson in 2020

In 2020, the business was engaged in a significant remodel and expansion. Local business investments such as this have been on the rise in Franklinton in recent years, especially east of 315.

Before: 524 West Broad in 2009

This site had been used as a car lot for some time. The original buildings had been demolished in the early 1960s,
replaced with surface parking.
After: 524 West Broad in 2020

Today the site is home to Franklinton Station, a lower-income residential complex for seniors.



Before: West Rich Street at the Railroad Crossing, looking west in 2009

This view of West Rich Street shows how the area had been in decline, with abandoned buildings on the right and run-down public housing on the left that had seen little investment since its construction in the early 1960s.
After: West Rich Street at the Railroad Crossing, looking west in 2020

Today, this section of Rich Street looks like a completely different place. Buildings have been renovated and old housing has been replaced with the much more dense River & Rich mixed-use development. The new complex contains retail space and residences that retain affordable housing. Another phase of the River & Rich development is in the works that may eventually include a new residential tower.

Before: 548 West State Street in 2011

The site at 548 W. State had been vacant for a number of years, with the original development having been demolished. By 2011, it was overgrown with weeds.
After: 548 West State Street in 2020

In 2020, the site had a brand new mixed-use building containing 13 apartments and retail space. The mural also contributes to Franklinton becoming more of an arts location as the previous arts destination, the Short North, becomes ever more expensive.

Before: Mount Carmel West in 2015

Mount Carmel West Hospital had been a dominant fixture in Franklinton for more than a century. It was originally known as Hawkes Hospital and constructed in 1886, becoming Mount Carmel in the 20th Century. However, by the 2010s, the location was deemed to be less optimal and so most of the services were moved to a new hospital in Grove City. The fate of the old hospital was sealed and a plan was drawn up to redevelop the entire site.
After: Mount Carmel West in 2020

By 2020, the main hospital was no more. The only structures that will remain include the nurse’s college and several parking garages. The site will be redeveloped with mixed-use projects including residential, retail and office space over the next several years.

Before: Hawkes Avenue, looking south from Chapel Street in 2009

Hawkes Avenue was a typical Franklinton street by the late 2000s, with its vacant lots, abandoned buildings and poorly-maintained infrastructure.
After: Hawkes Avenue, looking south from Chapel Street in 2019

Infill housing has been gradually becoming more common throughout Franklinton, as well as home renovations and general reinvestment in infrastructure by the City. Hawkes Avenue has been a beneficiary, and now looks better than it has in many years.

Franklinton has come a long way in just a few years, and the neighborhood is poised to only continue to change even more drastically in the near future. Many new projects are either under construction or have been recently proposed. Future phases of the Scioto Peninsula redevelopment will only spur additional development and growth westward. Whether Franklinton can revitalize without driving out too many of its existing residents remains somewhat of an open question.



Franklinton Rolling in New and Future Development

Posted on by
Reply

Franklinton has seemingly been rolling in new and future development in recent years, so I thought it was time to do a bit of a review as to what’s been built so far, as well as development that is yet to come.

Franklinton Development Timeline

March 15, 2004: Dedication of the new Franklinton Floodway occurs. Prior to its completion, the neighborhood had seen period and occasionally massive flooding since its founding in 1797. The worst floods, in 1913 and 1959, prompted the federal government to ban most types of new construction and made even renovations prohibitively expensive. This led to decades of stagnation and decline. 3/15/2004 can be called the beginning point for Franklinton’s revival.

December 19, 2005: Mount Carmel West Hospital announces that it will spend up to $80 million on landscaping, a new residence hall and inpatient tower, the first significant development announcement after the floodwall’s completion.

January 9, 2006: After virtually no development occurs in the neighborhood in the first 2 years post-floodwall construction, an article in Business First suggests that it may take another 15 years before the area sees any major projects or revitalization.

February 22, 2006: The first development proposal appears for the B & T Metals site at 425 West Town Street, which includes up to 134 condos.

August 8, 2006: Mount Carmel announces it will spend $3.3 million to build build 2 3-story residential buildings for students of its nursing college across Town Street from the college.

January 26, 2007: The Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority announces it will build a 4-story, 100-unit senior housing complex called Worley Terrace at 99 Central Avenue.

January 28, 2007: The Columbus Dispatch reports that Franklinton has had fewer building permits issued each year since the completion of the floodwall than in the years prior, baffling many who thought the neighborhood would see increased activity.

April 16, 2007: The B & T Metals site proposal is updated to include 130 residential units, a small theater, art gallery space and retail space. The $23 million project is proposed to break ground later in 2007.

May 3, 2007: The now defunct The Other Paper writes and article questioning whether Franklinton may be “the next Short North” due to its cheap housing and beginning migration of artists into the neighborhood.

March 28, 2008: The B & T Metals site proposal still hasn’t begun, and The Dispatch writes an article questioning its progress. Its Los Angeles developer insists it’s still going to happen.

January 28, 2009: The B & T Metals project still hasn’t started, but it is announced that it may receive $750,000 to help clean up the site in preparation for construction.

May 8, 2009: It is announced that the 129-unit public housing complex, the Sunshine Annex, will be demolished later in the year.

May 15, 2009: The B & T Metals project wins the $750,000 cleanup grant, and the developer promises a mid-2010 construction start.

August 7, 2009: Another senior-housing project is announced for 768 W. Rich Street. The proposal is for a $9 million, 4-story, 54 unit apartment building.

Late 2010-Early 2011: The 400 West Rich project begins by renovating space in an existing warehouse for the artists, sculptors and others.

February 25, 2011: The Dispatch reports that the A.D. Farrow warehouse site at 435 W. Town will be purchased by the Franklinton Development Association to renovate into a 42-unit condo building with the help of $900,000 from the city.
Also updated are the B & T Metals site, which still hasn’t begun, and the continuing demolition of Sunshine Terrace and Riverside Bradley public housing complexes for later redevelopment.

May 16, 2011: The B & T Metals factory building, which had already partially collapsed, is demolished. The plans for the site remain.

July 25, 2011: It is reported that Development Committee Chair Zachary Klein is sponsoring an ordinance to authorize spending $250,000 to fund the creation of the East Franklinton Creative Community District Plan. The plan is meant to guide development in East Franklinton, the area bounded by 315 and the Scioto River.

January 24, 2012: Bonds are issued to build the $7.9 million, 3-story, 100-unit Franklin Station Columbus Metropolitan Housing Association Project at 524 W. Broad Street.

April 3, 2012: Planning for the redevelopment of the Scioto Peninsula is announced to begin as plans for the Scioto Greenways riverfront project are also announced to be moving forward.

April 20, 2012: Orange Barrel Media it plans to build its new $6 million HQ at 250 N. Hartford Avenue. The project includes renovating and adapting a former concrete factory.

June 2012: Dodge Park’s renovation is largely completed, including its new pool.

July 16, 2012: The East Franklinton Plan is completed. Although just a development guide, it calls for up to 4,300 condos and apartments, 400 single-family homes and 350,000 square feet of retail, office and artist space. The plan also proposes there be no parking requirements for new projects.
Rendering from the East Franklinton Plan.

August 22, 2012: The B & T Metals site project again rises, with the developer now proposing a 4-story, 42-unit apartment building called The Franklinton Art Lofts. However, the developer states that construction won’t begin for another 1-2 years.
Rendering for Franklinton Art Lofts.

The Scioto Peninsula Reborn

Posted on by
Reply




The Scioto Peninsula looking east.

The history of the Scioto Peninsula is much the same as the Franklinton neighborhood it resides in. Since Franklinton’s founding in 1797 (Columbus’ oldest neighborhood and predates Columbus itself by 15 years), it did not take long to figure out the area’s one major flaw: Floods. Essentially built upon a river flood plain, Franklinton flooded several times during the 19th century, but the most devastating came in 1913 and 1959. The 1913 flood, Ohio’s deadliest and most widespread natural disaster, inundated Franklinton with up to 20 feet of water in places, and the neighborhood flooded all the way back to where present-day I-70 cuts through the far western border. Franklinton suffered massive damage, and over 100 people died along the Scioto in Columbus. The flood in 1959 was less severe, thanks to flood protections put into place after 1913, but one consequence of this flood was that new construction and most renovation was all but prohibited due to the flood risk. This helped to stagnate the entire neighborhood, and combined with the urban decline for the next several decades, Franklinton gradually fell into disrepair. The Scioto Peninsula, the far eastern section of the neighborhood just across from Downtown, was always the hardest hit by flooding. As such, the 56-acre peninsula gradually became a manufacturing and warehouse site, although a few thousand people did live there in low-income housing projects. Central High School also helped to maintain a residential presence.

As manufacturing declined and more people left the urban core, the warehouses and businesses closed shop. Many were bulldozed into vacant lots. Central High was closed as a school in the early 1980s. By the mid-1990s, the area was largely empty except for Veteran’s Memorial and a handful of housing developments and businesses. Plans were in the works to help bring Franklinton back, however, and construction of the Franklinton Floodwall began at this time. This construction helped encourage COSI to move into Central High, renovating and expanding the old building in exhibit and museum space. Most of the rest of the peninsula became surface parking. In 2004, with the completion of the floodwall, building restrictions were finally lifted, but for several years, little happened. The stigma of a neighborhood in decline kept development interests away.

In 2010, Columbus came out with a list of 12 projects it wanted to accomplish in the downtown area. Some of them have come to pass, such as the renovation of the riverfront with Scioto Mile and the redevelopment of City Center into Columbus Commons. Another one of these projects was the redevelopment of the Scioto Peninsula. The city saw an opportunity in so much empty land so close to Downtown, especially coinciding with the emerging back-to-the-city movement. This prime real estate was ripe. The city began planning of this project early in 2012, as East Franklinton itself began to emerge as an artist destination. The Short North has, more or less, reached the final stage of gentrification. It’s become upscale, attracting high end retail and residential, as the number of art galleries has gradually declined due to rising rents. Franklinton has proven to be an attractive alternative, with such live-work projects as 400 Rich, which grew rapidly in its first year. Residential projects are now in the works, as well as more artist space, warehouse conversions and new bars and restaurants.
The general plan for the Peninsula.

A few months back, details of the Peninsula’s redevelopment plan began to trickle out, but the official announcement finally came yesterday. Here is what we now know of the plan:

1. Veterans Memorial, built in 1955 and expanded/renovated a few times over the years, will be torn down and replaced with a new Vets. This new Vets will be of modern design, spiral in shape with glass walls and a rooftop, outdoor amphitheater. Inside will be an Ohio military museum, along with meeting and event space. Estimated costs run around $50 million.
Old Vets Memorial

New Veterans Memorial



2. Southwest of COSI, the Columbus Zoo will build a $50+ million, 50,000 square foot zoo extension. The building will include an aquarium, rainforest, outdoor zoo-themed playground and other exhibits.

3. Where the current COSI parking lots are, a large underground parking garage will be constructed to serve the 3 attractions. Once complete, the garage will be covered by a large central park.
4. While not yet designed and weren’t talked about yesterday, previous details have included elevated walkways connecting all 3 buildings across the peninsula.
5. Between Bell Street and the railroad tracts that run along the western border of the peninsula, a mix of low, mid and high-rise mixed-use buildings will go in. Ground floor retail will line streets while upper floors will be mostly residential. Between 1,000 and 1,200 residential units are planned, but private interests could easily include more given the very high demand for urban residential and the fantastic location with views of Downtown and the river. Estimated costs exceed $100 million.
6. Not included specifically in the peninsula plan, but surely also impacting it, will be the Scioto River itself. Another one of the 12 projects is the removal of low-head dams through Downtown. This will lower the river level through Downtown, creating 33 acres of new land that will be landscaped into park space. Bike paths and walkways will also be constructed on this new land. The river itself will run faster, cleaner and open up more potential recreational uses. This project is set to begin this fall and complete in 2015. Estimated costs for the project are around $25 million.
The Riverfront after construction.

The Riverfront now.

7. After the completion of the river restoration project, another one of the 12 ideas should begin. That will be the construction of a signature pedestrian bridge connecting North Bank Park in the Arena District with the Scioto Peninsula near the new Vets. There are no cost estimates at this time.

So given all this, the Scioto River and the Scioto Peninsula are looking at several hundred million in investment and development over the next several years. This will radically change the riverfront, and has the potential to jumpstart Franklinton, especially eastern parts, in ways not seen in many decades.

Much more about local development can be found here:
Development Under Construction
Proposed Development