Accomplishments in the University District

Status of priority implementation measures

Prepared by Steve Sterrett

October 30, 2007

Campus Partners published the University Neighborhoods Revitalization Plan: Concept Document in July 1996 following reviews by the University Area Commission, University Community Business Association, Columbus Development Commission and Columbus Historic Resources Commission. The document contained some 250 recommendations for action. In late 1996 and early 1997, Campus Partners convened a series of campus-community committees to prepare an initial list of priority implementation measures based on the plan. From these committees came a list of more than two dozen priority implementation measures. These were shared widely with the Campus Partners Board of Trustees, The Ohio State University Board of Trustees, the University Area Commission and others. The university’s Board of Trustees and Columbus City Council subsequently adopted the University Neighborhoods Revitalization Plan: Concept Document as a blue-print for action in mid-1997.

These priority implementation measures, which are outlined in bold on the following pages, have been the focus of much of the work of Campus Partners and other stakeholders for the past decade. After each priority point, a summary is presented of the progress to date. Although these measures include a broad range of revitalization tactics, Campus Partners also responded to new opportunities which weren’t specifically foreseen by the implementation measures. Two major opportunities were the acquisition and renovation of the government-subsidized housing now known as Community Properties of Ohio and the acquisition and potential redevelopment of the Columbus Coated Fabrics property.

Implementation initiatives for High Street commercial revitalization

A. Proceed with Eleventh and High commercial redevelopment/revitalization project.

Status: Completed.

South Campus Gateway opened in the fall of 2005.

B. Prepare a detailed High Street urban design study which will help identify special or unique development opportunities, establish design standards for public and private improvements, and serve as the major guideline for future private and public development.

Status: Completed.

Campus Partners contracted with Goody, Clancy & Associates, a Boston urban planning firm, in July 1997 to prepare a High Street master plan. A 35-member advisory steering committee guided the consultants’ work. Campus Partners subsequently published A Plan for High Street: Creating a 21^st Century Main Street and the companion volume University/High Street Development and Design Guidelines. Columbus City Council in 2002 adopted both documents and expanded the authority of the University Area Review Board to implement the guidelines on High Street.

C. Create a High Street commercial “Special Improvement District” (SID).

Status: In process.

Campus Partners in 1999 employed a national consultant, Larry Houstoun of The Atlantic Group, to work with property owners on a SIDs. A Steering Committee for the proposed University Uptown Special Improvement District held a number of public meetings and prepared a service plan. A petition to create the SID began circulating among property owners in 2000, but the petition effort stalled with signatures from about 65 percent of the area proposed for the SID. The law requires the signatures of the owners of 75 percent of the area. The leadership of the University Community Business Association remains committed to creating the SID and continues to seek support for the SID from key hold-outs.

D. Implement mandatory design review for High Street properties, after the completion of the High Street urban design study.

Status: Completed.

Columbus City Council in 2001 adopted an urban commercial zoning overlay for High Street in the University District. In 2002, council expanded the authority of the University Area Review Board to implement the development and design guidelines on High Street.

E. Establish financial incentives for façade improvements and building renovations after the completion of the High Street Urban Design Study.

Status: Program in place.

Since late 2000, the City of Columbus has offered the University Uptown Storefront Improvement Program which provides a series of incentives for façade and building improvements for High Street properties between East 11^th Avenue and Patterson Avenue. These incentives are modeled on the city’s existing Neighborhood Commercial Revitalization areas.

F. Enact “Appearance of Order” legislation to address handbill and panhandling problems.

Status: Completed.

In response to recommendations by the University Area Commission, Columbus City Council has adopted ordinances in 1997 and 1998 which clarify the prohibition to the posting of handbills in the public right-of-way and which prohibit aggressive panhandling.

G. Explore in depth the feasibility of establishing a “parking district” to better manage and fund parking facilities and implement the easily accomplished parking improvements identified within the plan.

Status: On hold.

The High Street plan reaffirmed the need for a parking entity to address the severe shortage of convenient, affordable parking. South Campus Gateway has provided a significant supply of new parking to serve the High Street corridor. At the city’s direction, Campus Partners oversaw a circulation study in 2007 that recommended the re-opening of East 13^th, East 14^th, East 16^th and East 18^th avenues at High Street. The re-opening of these streets could permit construction of a parking garage in the area of East 14^th and Pearl Street as part of a redevelopment of the former Long’s Bookstore property.

Implementation initiatives to raise the level of homeownership

A. Implement an OSU Employee Homeownership Program that would provide a range of specific financial incentives designed to encourage OSU faculty and staff to buy homes and live within the University District.

Status: Program in place.

The Ohio State University Faculty and Staff Neighborhood Homeownership Program began in 1998 and offers $3,000 in downpayment assistance to faculty and staff members to buy homes and live in the University District. So far, more than 90 university employees have purchased homes in the University District.

B. Focus the city’s Capital Improvements Programming efforts on areas specifically identified for increased levels of homeownership.

Status: In process.

In addition to Ohio State’s program, other efforts to boost homeownership in the University District included Northside Community Development Corporation’s new infill single-family homes, the city’s homeownership assistance program, and the Columbus Compact’s program offering up to $6,000 in downpayment assistance. In 2007, the city declared most of the University District east of High Street as a Neighborhood Investment District, which offers property tax abatements for construction of a new home, remodeling of an existing home or conversion of a property to a single-family home.

C. Identify problem properties and develop strategies for their rehabilitation or removal.

Status: In process.

Campus Partners, the University Area Commission and the Weinland Park Community Collaborative urged the City of Columbus to acquire tax-delinquent, abandoned and run-down properties at East Eighth Avenue and Indianola Avenue for its land bank. The city did acquire title to these properties, held them for one year to clear title problems, demolished the blighted buildings, and used capital improvement funds to construct a neighborhood recreational park on the site. Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing in 1994 demolished the apartment building at 328 E. Eighth Ave. because its layout made the building extremely difficult to manage and it was a magnet for crime. Campus Partners began negotiations in 2004 with the bankrupt owner of the Columbus Coated Fabrics property to acquire this “brownfield” site for possible redevelopment. Campus Partners also conducted an initial environmental assessment of the property. In cooperation with Campus Partners, the city acquired the property in late 2006, Campus Partners is overseeing the demolition of the existing buildings in 2007, and the city was awarded a $3 million grant from the Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund to remediate the site. The city, Campus Partners and Wagenbrenner Development Company are preparing agreements under which Wagenbrenner acquire the site with redevelopment plans to build up to 500 housing units and a community park.

D. Continue and expand programs of the Campus Collaborative and the College of Education to work with the schools serving the children and youth of the University District to establish these schools as models of urban education.

Status: In process.

One focus of the university’s P-12 Project is collaboration between Ohio State, the community and the schools which serve the children and youth of the University District. A number of programs and projects have been initiated in these schools, including a review and implementation of after-school and summer programs.

E. Assist neighborhood agencies and property owners in maintaining appropriate levels of subsidized rental housing in the University District, while decreasing its concentration in accordance with city policy by transferring rental units, where possible, into affordable homeownership.

Status: In process.

Campus Partners in 2001 prepared an innovative plan for the restructuring of the project-based Section 8 units known as the Broad Street Portfolio. With wide support from the community, Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing is implementing this plan. The housing is now known as Community Properties of Ohio and is under new, more effective management. About 550 of these housing units are in Weinland Park. Ohio Capital Corporation is investing more than $40,000 per unit in renovation of these properties.

F. Encourage the development of new, affordable units of homeownership for low and moderate income families.

Status: In process.

In 2004, Northside Community Development Corporation built five new, single-family homes in Weinland Park to be sold to low-moderate income families. That same year, Ohio State students built a two-story house on campus as a project with Habitat for Humanity. The house was moved to a site in Weinland Park. The city’s Weinland Park Neighborhood Plan, adopted in 2006, envisions the neighborhood’s evolution to a mixed-income community and identifies a number of “strategic opportunity sites” for appropriate redevelopment. The plan recommends that the Columbus Coated Fabrics property be redeveloped as market-rate housing and a community park. Campus Partners and the city worked to acquire that property in late 2006. In accordance with the neighborhood plan, the Wagenbrenner Development Company is proposing to construct up to 500 market-rate housing units and a community park on the site. Wagenbrenner is looking to build a product that will appeal to moderate-income households.

G. Establish an information clearinghouse that provides a basic level of program support for anyone wishing to purchase a home in the University District.

Status: In process.

As part of its administration of Ohio State’s homeownership program from 1998 to 2006, Northside Community Development Corporation sponsored a number of workshops for university employees interested in buying homes in the University District. Ohio State University Extension has worked with Columbus Housing Partnership to offer workshops on home-buying in the University District. CHP also administers a program for the Columbus Compact that offers up to $6,000 in downpayment assistance to buy a home in the Columbus Empowerment Zone, which includes a significant portion of the University District.

Implementation initiatives to improve student housing

A. Create new and improved student housing options within the University District neighborhoods.

Status: In process.

Campus Partners has encouraged new and improved student housing options through a variety of strategies:

· South Campus Gateway replaced about 150 apartments with 184 units of new, higher-quality product aimed at graduate students and university employees – an important segment of the housing market not currently served in the University District. The benefits of the Gateway project is spilling into the south campus neighborhood, leading to higher occupancy rates and encouraging property owners to maintain and improve their rental housing stock.

· The Campus Partners Student Advisory Board explored the interest and feasibility of establishing student cooperative housing and the Campus Collaborative supported investigations by Social Work and Architecture faculty into a co-housing model for college students who are single mothers at risk for homelessness.

· Campus Partners shared in the printing costs of Undergraduate Student Government’s first edition in 1998 of The Landlord Library, a publication that included a survey of students rating their landlords in the University District. USG annually prints and widely distributes the publication, now called The OSU Renting Guide. Campus Partners believes the publication helps students to become more informed in making housing choices and will encourage property owners to be more responsive to the student market.

The Moritz College of Law in cooperation with the Office of Student Affairs created the Student Housing Legal Clinic that provides free advice and legal representation to students in dealing with tenant-landlord issues.

B. Continue to support the efforts of the Campus Partners Public Service Committee to improve the delivery of the city services within the University District neighborhoods through the development of detailed service plans.

Status: Programs are in place.

The Campus Partners Public Service Committee meets six to eight times a year to provide advice on the delivery of municipal public services, particularly refuse collection and street sweeping. The regular refuse collection has improved greatly due to:

· stricter enforcement of the city’s requirements for adequate container size;

· creation of new dumpster zones;

· a special bulk collection program at the end of summer quarter;

· a non-rotating day of collection and twice weekly pick-up of dumpsters at peak seasons;

· distribution of information on removal of 90-gallon containers from the curb.

With support from SWACO, University District civic leaders and Ohio State students currently have explored more effective neighborhood recycling efforts. The city’s regular schedule of monthly street sweeping is in its 11^th year.

C. Establish a Code Enforcement Task Force of city and district representatives to review the various zoning, building, housing and health code enforcement issues identified within the Campus Partners’ Revitalization Plan, and to establish a prioritized implementation plan of action.

Status: Program is in place.

The University District Code Enforcement Task Force was formed in July 1997 to develop strategies to enhance code enforcement and to improve the general exterior appearance of the University District. The city’s Code Enforcement office worked with the task force to develop a program of systematic exterior code enforcement. In 1998 and 1999, the systematic approach was applied in the northern part of the University District along with an “envelope program” to assist low-income homeownership in making repairs ordered by code enforcement. The systematic approach subsequently has been applied in the predominantly student neighborhood. When funds are available again for an envelope program, the systematic approach likely will be extended to the rest of the University District. A graduate class in City and Regional Planning, led by Assistant Professor Jennifer Evans-Cowley, in early 2003 conducted an extensive study of code enforcement issues in the University District. The class shared its recommendations with the task force, University Area Commission and city officials, laying the groundwork for further improvements to city codes and enforcement. In the past year, the task force has met jointly with the Campus Partners Public Service Committee.

D. Continue and support the efforts of the Campus Partners’ Safety Committee to improve the safety of the residents of the University District neighborhoods, including having the committee develop a prioritized implementation action plan.

Status: Programs are in place.

The University District Safety Committee meets monthly to review crime and public safety issues in the University District and to promote greater cooperation among law enforcement agencies and other stakeholders. In cooperation with the committee, law enforcement agencies, the city and the university have undertaken a number of measures to improve public safety. Among those are:

· successful “burglary patrols” conducted jointly by Columbus Police, University Police and Community Crime Patrol (CCP) over holidays and spring break;

· “blue light” emergency phones installed off-campus;

· increased funding for CCP;

· joint weekend patrols in the spring and fall by Columbus and University Police;

· fire prevention awareness programs;

· ID markings using ultra-violet ink on personal property to prevent theft;

· Buckeyes Watch and related activities to promote positive student-police interaction;

· establishment of the University Area Crime Stoppers, an affiliate of Central Ohio Crime Stoppers.

E. Improve parking for residents within the University District neighborhoods.

Status: On hold.

A parking entity, created to serve the University District, could pursue a number of strategies to improve parking, including a standard permit parking area for the whole core student neighborhood. A graduate class in City and Regional Planning, led by Assistant Professor Jennifer Evans-Cowley, prepared a comprehensive parking report with recommendations during winter quarter 2004. This report sparked further discussions on parking policies by the University Area Commission, but no actions have been taken.

F. Work with neighborhood property owners to facilitate the establishment of a Property Owners Association or Special Improvement District (SID) for properties within the student neighborhoods in order to provide a more uniform, coordinated, and improved level of private property maintenance.

Status: On hold.

After extensive consultation, the property owners decided to focus initially on establishing a SID for High Street. If that SID were successful, they felt it would be easier to convince apartment owners of the value of a residential SID.

G. Improve the range and quality of university facilities in student neighborhoods which meet students’ recreational and academic needs.

Status: Programs in place.

The College of Human Ecology in the spring of 2000 opened the Human Ecology House, 1621 N. Fourth St. at East 12^th Avenue, designed to strengthen the University District through faculty and student partnerships with community members. The house is a center for activities, including hosting courses, community meetings and retreats. At the request of the university, Campus Partners in 1998 explored the purchase of the Newport Theater to maintain it as a venue for student-oriented entertainment, although the building was eventually purchased by a private entity and underwent extensive renovation. The Office of Student Affairs is purchasing selected fraternity and sorority houses as chapters close and the properties come on the market. Student Affairs manages the properties as student housing and, if there is interest, as fraternity and sorority houses.

H. Enhance OSU student activities, both on-campus and within the student neighborhoods, to offer students more entertainment and educational options.

Status: Programs in place.

The university increased the student activity fee in 2003-04. As a result, the Office of Student Affairs has vastly more resources to fund a wide variety of entertainment and recreational opportunities for students both on- and off-campus. Student Affairs also has worked closely with the Office of Academic Affairs to expand opportunities for service learning and leadership development for students in the neighborhoods. The university’s new, greatly expanded recreation center opened in 2005. South Campus Gateway also opened in 2005 with a multi-screen movie theater, major bookstore, and more than two dozen shops, restaurants and nightspots. Campus Partners, University Community Business Association, University District Organization, College of the Arts, Ohio Union, and the Wexner Center have joined forces in 2007 to promote High Street in the University District as a regional destination for education, the arts and entertainment through the first Campus Music Hop in April and three Campus Hops during the summer.

Implementation measures to ensure faculty and student engagement

A. Develop and implement a bold initiative to improve elementary and secondary schools serving the University District through an innovative partnership of Columbus City Schools, the University District neighborhoods and done in conjunction with Phase Two of the Columbus City Schools current facilities planning process.

Status: Programs in place.

One focus of the university’s P-12 Project is collaboration between Ohio State, the community and the schools which serve the children and youth of the University District. A number of programs and projects have been initiated in these schools and have involved the College of Education and Human Ecology, Honors and Scholars Program, Service-Learning Initiative, College of Social Work, Ohio State University Extension and others. The College of Education and Human Ecology in August 2007 is opening its new Early Childhood Education Center adjacent to a new Weinland Park Elementary School. A significant portion of the children served in the center will come from the neighborhood. Service-learning courses at Ohio State are providing tutoring and mentoring, classroom assistance or issue analysis services by over 350 students annually in University District schools. The courses have included “Interprofessional Practicum: Collaboration in Urban Communities,” “Reading Foundations,” “Understanding Phonics and its Role in Reading Instruction” and “First Year English Composition: Intensive Practice in Fundamentals of Expository Writing.”

B. Identify and coordinate all efforts by faculty, staff and students to engage in teaching, research and service in the university neighborhoods so that those efforts will further the recommendations of the Campus Partners plans.

Status: Programs in place.

The university’s Office of Outreach and Engagement, under the direction of Bobby Moser, vice president for university outreach, provides leadership to these efforts in alignment with the University District planning efforts. The P-12 Project, Ohio State University Extension, Outreach and Engagement Office, and Service-Learning Initiative work closely on university activities in the neighborhoods. In addition, the Center for Urban and Regional Analysis has developed and maintains a web site with extensive demographic data and a compilation of research on the University District.

C. Improve the quality of student life in the University District through additional off-campus student services and opportunities of community service.

Status: Programs in place.

· The Service-Learning Initiative, led by Associate Professor Golden Jackson of Human Ecology and Assistant Professor Susan R. Jones of Education, received grants for 2000-2003 of $389,000 and 2003-2006 of $375,000 to “lead efforts to integrate service-learning into the curriculum of the 19 colleges of Ohio State University while building the capacity of community agencies, schools and organizations to meet the needs of University District residents.” Seed grants are awarded to faculty to develop service-learning courses and teams to address community goals. Thirty-four new courses in service-learning were developed between 2001 and 2003 enrolling 1,660 students providing 43,313 hours of service. Thirteen of these courses provided service within the University District, and an additional fourteen courses focused on issues within the Columbus area.

· The offices of Student Affairs and Academic Affairs continue to support a variety of programs, such as the Mount Scholars, which promote leadership development and service.

· Students are increasing their involvement in community service through a variety of neighborhood-based projects, such as Community Commitment during Welcome Week in September and Rock the Block in the late spring.

· With support from several major property owners and the university, the Office of Off-Campus Student Services and Undergraduate Student Government in January 2003 implemented a new Community Ambassadors program. In 2006-07, the program includes 12 streets, each with at least one student living on that street who receives a stipend as a Community Ambassador. In that role, the student serves as a contact for information regarding off-campus living, including personal safety, landlord problems, and campus involvement.

· For several years, students, residents and community agency and governmental partners cooperated in Weinland Park Pride and Clean-up Days through the national Make A Difference Day and Youth Service Days twice yearly.

D. Improve economic conditions in the university neighborhoods through job readiness programs for low income, permanent residents.

Status: In process.

Campus Collaborative in the fall of 1996 received a $400,000, three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Urban Development to create a Community Outreach Partnership Center. The center, which was focused in the Weinland Park neighborhood, had four program components: job readiness and training in cooperation with existing programs; small business development; family and housing stability; and communications through a monthly community newsletter, Read All About It, written by neighborhood youth. Related initiatives in this area include:

· Ohio State University Extension employed a specialist to work on job readiness and employment issues, particularly in Weinland Park, and to develop a network of University District employers willing to hire area residents. This specialist worked with Godman Guild to teach job readiness skills and to recruit residents for employment.

· In 2007, Ohio State Extension agent Susan Colbert led a new effort to develop a pathway for job opportunities in University Hospitals for University District residents, particularly those from Weinland Park. Persons with appropriate experience can go to work immediately for University Hospitals, while persons without the necessary qualifications can be placed with a temporary agency to gain requisite experience. Ms. Colbert has secured a grant to pay for the background search, drug testing and related expenses for those living in the 43201 zip code. The temporary agency normally would charge those expenses to the employee. In addition, Ms. Colbert is working with Ohio State’s Department of Facilities Operations and Development and Office of Student Affairs to develop similar pathways to employment.

· The Ohio State President's Council on Outreach and Engagement awarded a $9,000 grant to the university's Job Issues Network in 1997-98 to strengthen “Job Success,” the employment readiness curriculum offered at Godman Guild and to work with university offices to place residents in entry-level positions. The network worked with Godman Guild on job readiness workshops tied to entry-level employment at Ohio State for area residents.

· Building on the previous job readiness programs, the Campus Collaborative, the Weinland Park Community Collaborative and Godman Guild in 1999 developed a six-week course, "Project Build." This course for unemployed and under-employed University District residents provided an introduction to construction, maintenance and rehabilitation and will prepare participants for careers in the construction trades. With Empowerment Zone funds from The Columbus Compact, Godman Guild offered additional sessions of the course.

· Fifty business and professional students enrolled in the course, “Management and Human Resources 855: Development of Human Resources,” assisted the Godman Guild in 2003 to update and add to the “Job Success” employability curriculum. Students also had the opportunity to participate in one-on-one coaching, role-playing, mock interviews and training.

In 2003, Ohio State University Extension worked with the Colofab Credit Union to widen its membership to include people who live, work or volunteer in the University District. It later became Your Neighborhood Credit Union and provided a new financial institution for many residents currently without banking accounts.

E. Improve health and well-being throughout the university neighborhoods by establishing educational partnerships between the university and community agencies which will provide health screening and family education programs for permanent residents and field service opportunities for students.

Status: Programs in place.

The Campus Collaborative’s HUD grant and Columbus Foundation grant provided family education programs in the neighborhoods. The collaborative’s annual seed grant program supported a variety of health initiatives, including health screenings and referrals, geriatric dentistry, public health and animal health. These programs have included field service opportunities for students. The Human Ecology House is a center for the College of Education and Human Ecology’s neighborhood outreach efforts. Ohio State University Extension has placed an agent, Susan Colbert, in the University District since 2002. She has pursued a number of community partnerships.

F. Promote the outstanding educational, arts and community opportunities available to residents of the university neighborhoods.

Status: Programs in place.

Many units of Ohio State have expanded opportunities for residents throughout the University District. Examples of these opportunities are:

· Campus Partners financially supported the publication of the UDO’s monthly newspaper, University Community News, in 1997 and 1998.

· The Campus Collaborative’s seed grant program supported arts and recreation projects through the schools.

· Ohio State’s College of the Arts also linked with the Glen Echo South Civic Association to create an innovative art-based, after-school program at Medary Elementary School. The program was later adopted and extended by the Boys and Girls Clubs of Columbus.

· The Ohio State University Extension relocated its Community Technology Center to Godman Guild, and Ohio State’s Office of Information Technology provided free technology support to the center.

· OSU Extension conducted a 4-H youth development and parental involvement program at Maynard Avenue United Methodist Church for several years.

· The OSU Extension agent for the University District worked with the Department of Athletics’ National Youth Sports Program to open its activities to youth from the University District.

Campus Partners, South Campus Gateway, Wexner Center for the Arts, College of the Arts, Ohio Union, University Community Business Association, University District Organization and Summit United Methodist Church joined forces in 2007 to work collaboratively to promote High Street in the University District as a destination for education, the arts and entertainment. They held the first Campus Music Hop on April 12-15 with the annual Ohio State Jazz Festival as the centerpiece. They held Campus Hops on June 21, July 19 and August 16, which were anchored by events at Gateway and a free, outdoor film on the Wexner Center plaza.

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