Proposal
from The Druker Company
Ingredients for Success/Recommendations
Ingredients
for Success/Recommendations
The development of University Gateway Center promises to be an important
anchor of new commercial and residential investment at this important
gateway to The Ohio State University. For the endeavor to realize many
of the ambitions articulated in the extensive planning documents prepared
to date, as well as in the RFP, the continued and perhaps expanded participation
of the many stakeholders who are represented by Campus Partners will be
required.
Indicated below are additional steps, which we ask the sponsors of this effort to consider in order to help support the successful development of this bold effort.
Site
Assembly
Expeditious completion of site assembly efforts
which are ongoing, is important to sustain momentum. To that end, developing
a means of site assembly through the exercise of the powers of eminent
domain may be appropriate.
Extension
of Public Realm
Improvements As indicated in the Urban Design and
Architecture section, our landscape architect has proposed a prototypical
streetscape treatment consisting of new, widened sidewalks and curbs,
street trees in grates, lighting fixtures and street furniture which are
easily replicable to the north and the south of the project area on High
Street.We urge the development of a mechanism to finance such improvements
to unify and to enhance the appearance of properties on both sides of
High Street.
Parking
Development of a financing vehicle to meet the capital cost
of required off-street (structured) parking facilities. The provision
of sufficient, affordable parking facilities designed and sited to respect
the urban design principles articulated by Campus Partners will require
the collaboration of the development team, the City of Columbus and perhaps
The Ohio State University. While we feel the management of such facilities
should be the responsibility of the property manager of University Gateway
Center, the use of such techniques as tax increment financing, parking
revenue bonds, general obligation bonds, and the creation of a parking
authority should be further explored by Campus Partners, the City of Columbus
and the developer as a team.
Special
Improvement District
The creation of a Special Improvement District (SID) including properties
on both sides of High Street is recommended to underwrite the reliable
delivery of such necessary services as maintaining the streetscape (including
street and sidewalk cleanliness, snow removal, maintenance of street trees
and street furniture), street and sidewalk lighting, security, coordinated
promotions and advertising, special events and other programming. The
Druker Company is currently involved in the creation of Bostonıs first
Business Improvement District in the Downtown Crossing Retail District.
Buck*I*D
Program
To support the retailers, particularly the green grocery, in University
Gateway Center, we feel that it is important that the Buck*I*D program
be made available to commercial tenants in the development on a subsidized
basis, at least during the initial years of operation. This program would
not only provide support to retailers as they become established in this
location, but would also afford the thousands of participants in the program
an added convenience and an incentive to patronize the development. University
Student Services Center The commitment by The Ohio State University to
locate many of its student services (e.g., Admissions and Financial Aid,
Student Employment, Bursar, Human Resources, Registrar, Student Services)
to new, convenient office space in University Gateway Center will provide
a very important anchor to the development. Such a move will create a
more productive and pleasant working environment for those university
staff and administrators presently working in Lincoln Tower (and, in doing
so, free up needed dormitory space for undergraduates), but will also
provide the convenience of "one-stop shopping" for undergraduate and graduate
students needing to accomplish several tasks with one visit. Moreover,
such a center would contribute frequent foot traffic and activity to the
University Gateway Center development.
Connection
to OSU Network
As O.S.U. students are a very important market component for the planned
rental apartments and townhouses in the University Gateway Center, it
would be a convenience to those students residing in the development,
as well as an important marketing tool for the apartments, to have a direct,
hard-wired connection to Ohio State Universityıs computer network. As
appropriate, certain venues in the retail spaces (e.g., the bookstore
and its café) may also be equipped with network access to provide an amenity
for student patrons and a "hook" for retail tenants in the development.
Weinland
Park Neighborhood Planning and Code Enforcement
The City of Columbus has created an exceptional model for community planning
and renewal in its Italian Village Reinvestment Area Report and Action
Plan. That effort and related actions by the City of Columbus have borne
fruit in the property-by-property upgrading which is now evident to the
passerby. We suggest that the City of Columbus ask its Planning Division
to organize such an inclusive, community-based planning effort for the
Weinland Park neighborhood in the vicinity of the University Gateway Center
project area.
Following that planning effort, it would be important to implement multi-disciplinary neighborhood improvement strategies such as improved public safety, systematic code enforcement, coupled with the type of rehabilitation assistance offered to owner occupants in the Hudson area. Such efforts should be directed to support present homeowners in the neighborhood, as well as helping renters in the area to become homeowners.
Creation
of Affordable Housing
We have explored the possible applicability of affordable housing financing
programs through such locally available sources as the Ohio Capital Corporation
for Housing and the Columbus Partnership Office of the Federal National
Mortgage Association (FannieMae). In doing so, we found that the local
experience in underwriting the creation of affordable housing within otherwise
conventionally financed, mixed use developments is severely limited. Also,
we have learned of the uncertainties of the availability of private activity,
tax-exempt bond financing for the production of affordable housing based
on the present lottery system for allocating financing. Finally, the need
to amortize the transaction costs associated with such programs over a
comparatively small number of units can diminish the financial advantages
of these programs.
In lieu of providing affordable housing units within the newly constructed apartments and townhouses, we believe it would be more effective to leverage existing resources and programs and to contribute to the upgrading of nearly dilapidated housing stock in the vicinity of University Gateway Center. The development team proposes to explore with Campus Partners and locally experienced sponsors of ongoing affordable housing production programs (e.g., Youthbuild and Habitat for Humanity) the acquisition and rehabilitation of blighted properties on 9th Avenue and elsewhere in The University District for sale to present community residents and OSU faculty and staff.
We believe a contribution made by the University Gateway Center developer could be used to leverage other available resources, e.g., the O.S.U. Faculty and Staff Neighborhood Homeownership Incentive Program (perhaps with enhanced incentives); and to target them to these properties. In this way, blighted housing stock could be returned to productive use to the benefit of not only the neighborhood residents, but also to the benefit of the broader University District.
Development
Area Security
The development team applauds the initiative of the Undergraduate Student
Government, the City of Columbus Police Department and the University
Police in exploring the expansion of the "blue light" emergency call boxes
to off-campus locations. We support the continued exploration of ways
in which the actions of the two departments can support one another, particularly
to the benefit of such near-campus locations as the University Gateway
Center project area. We would also ask that the City of Columbus give
serious consideration to the location of a police substation in an appropriate
location in the neighborhood of University Gateway Center.
Additional
Property Acquisition by Campus Partners
We urge Campus Partners to consider the acquisition of the properties
presently occupied by the Seven Eleven convenience store and, if necessary,
the Taco Bell restaurant, on the westerly side of High Street located
on the block situated between 9th and 10th Avenues. These parcels would
be developed with newly constructed buildings built in conformity with
the adopted urban design guidelines having ground floor retail space and
university student housing or university office space above. By doing
so, it would add activity to the area proximate to University Gateway
Center and contribute to the creation of a critical mass of retail shops;
moreover, it would foster the creation of a double loaded retail environment,
eliminating the voids created by the suburban style surface parking lots.
University Gateway Centerıs success will depend in large measure on the cooperation and commitment by and among the developer, Campus Partners, The Ohio State University, the City of Columbus and the other major stakeholders of this exciting development.
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