Renderings of Convention Center Hotel Revealed
From The Dispatch:
Planners unveil convention hotel
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
By Barbara CarmenThe planned $140 million Hilton-Columbus Downtown convention hotel will start to rise above N. High Street next August, a project team told Franklin County commissioners this morning.
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Related Tags: convention center • Development • downtown • high street • hotels • the dispatch
November 17th, 2009 at 4:31 pm
November 17th, 2009 at 4:36 pm
whoa, did that thing just eat char bar?
November 17th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
Wow I like that skywalk! *ducks*
November 17th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
Char Bar is still there, just obscured by the skywalk. In photo #2 you can still see the red awning. Nice touch by whoever did the renderings.
November 17th, 2009 at 4:43 pm
yeah, skywalk is totally lame.
November 17th, 2009 at 4:48 pm
Why the hatred for the skywalk?
November 17th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
it removes people from the street, hurts retail in the area.
BUT, given this hotels size and the fact they Hyatt is already connected to the convention center it’s understandable.
November 17th, 2009 at 4:58 pm
Those skylights up top look interesting. From an event perspective the few places we have downtown with good views fill up quickly- at least the Saturdays during wedding season.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:03 pm
do a CU search under “Brewmaster” and you will find the debate. but the gist of the debate is that it removes pedestrians from the street level, thereby decreasing street level vibrancy and the potential patronizing of local establishments. if you never leave the bubble, you’ll never take note of Char Bar, Martini, Barley’s, etc…
at the end of the day it is a convention hotel, and i can completely understand why there is a skywalk. i will be happy so long as it is actually open and transparent as the renderings show. i do not want a recreation of City Center’s dark tunnel or the peeling paint and rust of the connector between the Hyatt and Nationwide.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:09 pm
I understand what you’re saying but that seems like a leap in logic to me. Most people will be walking through the skywalk because they are staying in the hotel and attending an event in the convention center. Walking across the street to get to a meeting or trade show at the convention center and looking for a bar or restaurant seem really unrelated to me.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
Also, I never realized how large this hotel was going to be. Taking a look at the first picture really shows off the size of the structure. It’ll really fill in that part of High Street nicely :)
If you want an aerial shot of the where it’s going I suggest using Bing and selecting “birds eye” or just follow THIS LINK.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
without the skywalk you would have to hit the sidewalk and head to the intersection for a crosswalk. at the closest northern intersection you stand at the corner with Martini, Char Bar, etc… taking notice of them. When walking back with colleagues you might decide to have a drink, and low and behold there is an interesting local bar that seems to serve up Long Island Iced Teas or an Italian place with an extensive bar.
With the skywalk you and your colleagues end up at the Big Bar on 2 in the Hyatt or whatever Americana cuisine place the Hilton puts in.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:28 pm
So if I don’t see with my own eyes that there are “non-Americana” establishments, I will just sulk on down to T.G.I. Generics in the lobby? I guess I don’t agree that that’s how it works. I travel a lot for a living and when I am in other cities I seek out new places around my hotel. If I was going to just hit up Applebee’s, I’m going to do that anyways.
November 17th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
So it’s not as tall as originally planned eh. (15-18 stories) oh well, it fills that unsightly gap nicely. what about the blue and green panels on top. i hope those light up at night. our skyline needs more pizazz at night. (i.e. Cincinatti). It looks good but I was hoping for something a little more modern. i do love how the windows are uneven and crooked like. and they just had to throw in the damn brick again. seriously, what is the obsession?
ok nationwide, let’s see another tower to fill in that gap between the hotel and arena. 300,000 sq. ft. you say?
can’t wait to see some cranes in the air. it doesn’t happen too often around here.
November 17th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
There’s still plenty of room for a transit station as well. *hint hint*
November 17th, 2009 at 6:12 pm
I think if you have a skywalk, there is no reason to go outside. People will eat at the place that is most convenient. ‘Oh, I’m right here, let’s just pop into this place then I don’t have to go get my coat, blah blah blah.’
I think it is an eyesore.
November 17th, 2009 at 7:34 pm
the only way i would be ok with that silly skywalk is if it is part of a light rail stop or is part of a transit station system (convention center, hotel, etc.)
I hope there is more character at the street level in the final design…too many blank walls in these renderings. If they put that restaurant or bar up on high street that would be kinda interesting. Also, i wish some of the taller massing (glass) was set back just a touch from High Street.
November 17th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Put me in the camp that says the skywalk is aesthetically unsatisfying and that it will take a few customers a day away from area businesses that might otherwise lure in convention-goers.
That said, I think the convenience the skywalk will provide to guests at the hotel surpasses the qualms of aesthetics, and the overall boon the hotel will bring to the area in terms of more guests overcomes the impact the skywalk might otherwise have.
November 17th, 2009 at 8:27 pm
That skywalk is shit. I thought people were over those.
I hope that the ground floor of the hotel has something that opens to the street other than the hotel lobby. That stretch of High Street is dead enough on foot.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:09 pm
So is this the hotel our parking meter money is chipping in for?
Peculiar timing to say the least.
And yeah, the sky walk is a stupid move. I can tolerate the rest of the design, which is about what I would expect.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:17 pm
Not the best design but its a big plus in the right direction to add more hotel rooms to keep up with other large cities in our region..Im not sure of the exact height you could probably compare it to the Residence Inn downtown or the Ohio Courts building on Front street…also with more and more people slowly moving downtown I hope in the next few years more retailers will start to see the progress and come downtown.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:26 pm
Wow. Very large and boxy. In that that second rendering it actually looks a little bit like Ibiza when looking south with the glass stacked on top of brick like that.
I’m also not a big fan of the skywalk. We want our visitors to experience the city, and that means walking around outside. I can understand why Colin might think that argument sounds a little silly, but there is also the argument that sidewalk foot traffic = safety. The more eyeballs you have out on the street, the less likely you are to have crime. I don’t think the skywalk is a complete buzzkill for the project though, as I’m sure the added foot traffic of the 500 new hotel rooms should be putting more people on the sidewalks than there were there before. A net gain overall.
Otherwise, I’m a fan of the added density to the Downtown landscape. One less parking lot, and one more building. One more step in the right direction… and a fairly large and significant step at that. This project is going to have a very significant impact, not only on Downtown, but the entire region. Big kudos to everyone involved in making this happen.
jpizzow Says: So it’s not as tall as originally planned eh. (15-18 stories) oh well…
Where did you hear that? I don’t recall seeing a building height being mentioned before.
jpizzow Says: ok nationwide, let’s see another tower to fill in that gap between the hotel and arena. 300,000 sq. ft. you say?
Yeah, will be very cool when we can get more than just a teaser on that. Looking forward to that being announced eventually. ;)
November 17th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
Oh, I also forgot to mention… it’s hard to tell from the renderings, but it looks like some of the High Street frontage may be utilized as retail space for the restaurant(s) and bar(s) that will be built into the hotel (similar to Latitude 41 in the Renaissance Hotel). If that is the case, then that will be great addition for the retail presence along High Street. There’s a pretty large gap currently between the Char Bar and Barrio that needs to be filled in a bit better.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:32 pm
Im sure people are going to check out the surrounding areas while staying at the new Hilton…The Arena District, downtown, and the Short North are all within walking distance and people staying in Columbus are not going to be cooped up in their hotel room during there visit.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
Not overwhelming impressed with the design eventhough the atrium appears to go from floor to the roof that would bring a lot of natural light into the building.
The skywalk was off putting but that could still be easily axed in final designs.
The hotel is certainly looks massive. That site line on high street will be drastically changed.