Columbus, Ohio USA
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Dis 'n' Data
By Margaret Marten, Editor
email margaret@shortnorth.com
January 2012
There are a number of developments in the neighborhood, either under consideration or under construction: Kevin Lykens is finalizing plans to turn the former Wonder Bread Bakery at 697 N. Fourth St. into apartments as an alternative to the arts project that fell through last summer. Elford Development will convert the Fireproof building at 1024 N. High into apartments and probably build a restaurant next door at 998 N. High. Elford is also proceeding with the Hubbard apartment/retail project at the failed Ibiza condo site, 830 N. High St., in partnership with Wagenbrenner Development. Meanwhile, construction at 937-951 N. High continues on the block stretching from Northstar Cafe to Paradise Garage. Wood Companies are adding three floors of apartments and offices there with a targeted completion date for early summer. A vacant medical office and parking lot at Third and Dennison avenues may evolve into apartments and townhouses if investors Jason Snyder and Brian Barker gain approval from the Victorian Village Commission after revising their plans and can come up with “numbers that work,” according to a December Business First article. Meanwhile, the hotel proposed by Pizzuti Cos. with office space, parking garage and gallery on both sides of High Street’s 600 block is moving forward in an atmosphere of cooperation and optimism between developers and commissions.
December brought news of another project. AIDS Healthcare Foundation, a Los Angeles-based AIDS organization, purchased the lot at 1230 N. High St. on the northeast corner of E. 5th Avenue and High where they will construct a building for an Out of the Closet Thrift Store, AHF Pharmacy and HIV-testing site. Out of the Closet Thrift Store, with over 20 locations in California and Florida, is the largest retail fundraising vehicle for HIV/AIDS medical care in the U.S., according to the AHF press release. Revenue from the store and pharmacy directly benefit the organization’s services. AHF pharmacists specialize in HIV/AIDS medications as well as general pharmacy services. They encourage the community to support the foundation’s advocacy and outreach by donating merchandise, using the pharmacy, or shopping at the thrift store.
This move will put apparel-related stores on every corner of that intersection. A reminder to Short North folks: Wilder’s City Pharmacy opened a little over a year ago at 1198 N. High Street across from the
Garden Theatre, and like the AHF folks welcomes the public to stop by and fill prescriptions or browse their shelves. It is a full-service pharmacy owned and operated by Dr. Kate Wilder Adams and her sister Maureen Koeppen. They provide everything the big chain drugstores do but with personalized service: counseling with every prescription and advice for newly diagnosed patients. Also, expect to save time. Prescriptions are filled in the store rather than sent out to a centralized location to refill, which means orders can be processed in minutes. Giving support to small shops like Wilder’s, or needy organizations like AHF, takes little effort but makes a big difference in our community, helping friends and neighbors on High Street, rather than Wall Street. It’s a challenge for small businesses to compete with huge, impersonal services, and it’s a challenge for each one of us to make an effort to help.Email the Editor margaret@shortnorth.com
©2012 Short North Gazette, Columbus, Ohio. All rights reserved.
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