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    Edwards Companies Contemplates Infill at Gay and High

    The Edwards Companies / Edwards Communities have long been a leader in Downtown development. They spearheaded much of the work in redeveloping the Brewery District in the 1990s, and their Neighborhood Launch project has gradually been filling in acres of surface parking along Gay Street and Long Street with some of the most desired residential units in the central city.

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    Edwards has some new plans for continued development on Gay Street, though details are being kept very secretive at the moment. Last Summer, Business First reporter Brian Ball wrote that Edwards had purchased the nine-story building at the southwest corner of Gay and High with potential plans for a residential conversion.

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    Then, in December, more details were uncovered when Dispatch reporter Jim Weiker revealed that a $3.1 million historic tax credit was issued for the project, which would not only include the conversion of the building into 65 apartment units, but also include the addition of a new building on the northwest corner of Gay and High. The new seven-story building would add another 89 apartment units, a parking garage, ground-floor retail facing High Street, and an underground tunnel under Gay Street to connect the amenities of both buildings.

    The latest addition to this story comes by way of super sleuth CU regular Stephen43215 who discovered renderings of the new development posted publicly online by Kephart, a Denver-based architectural firm. According to the project page, the new building includes 96 units in .68 acres, averaging 816 square feet per unit. The building would include mostly one bedroom and studio units with a handful of two and three bedroom units. The garage would hold 178 spaces for a 1.11:1 parking ratio. And the ground floor would include 4,300 square feet of retail space. All of these details are likely speculative at this point, and subject to change.

    While no official plans have gone in front of the Downtown Commission for review, preliminary compliance drawings have been submitted to the city. CU Urban Development Staff Writer Brent Warren reached out to representatives at Edwards for comment, but was only told that the company is still studying their intent and design, and that the compliance meeting was to get feedback for that purpose.

    If this project is eventually completed as proposed, it would help to fill in a major Downtown “parking crater” dubbed last year by Brent Warren as a “Wasted Space” in the heart of the city. The addition of infill development would close a major north-south gap on High Street, better connecting Capitol Square to the Arena District and Convention Center, while also closing an east-west gap on Gay Street, connecting the businesses on East Gay to the City Campus and Riverfront Redevelopment on West Gay.

    For ongoing discussion and updates on this project, CLICK HERE to visit our Messageboard.

    All renderings by Kephart. Photo by Walker Evans.

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    Walker Evans
    Walker Evanshttps://columbusunderground.com
    Walker Evans is the co-founder of Columbus Underground, along with his wife and business partner Anne Evans. Walker has turned local media into a full time career over the past decade and serves on multiple boards and committees throughout the community.
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