ADVERTISEMENT

    Library Calling for Demolition and Redevelopment of Grant Oak Apartments

    The Columbus Metropolitan Library is soliciting proposals to redevelop the row of apartment buildings just north of the newly renovated Main Library downtown.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    The library has posted a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) on their website that specifies what they have in mind for the site – two mid-rise apartment buildings framing a small park, with two new roads providing access to the library parking garage from Oak Street.

    The seven 1940’s-era apartment buildings that currently sit on the site – known as the Grant Oak Apartments – would be demolished. Those buildings hold 130 studio and small, one-bedroom apartments, with rents ranging from $440 to $510 a month.

    The RFQ specifies that “over 100 residential units are possible” in the new development, along with a 2,000 to 5,000 square-foot retail space. It also asks that the project’s developer partner with the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority to ensure that 10% of the new units would be “work force housing,” defined in the document as “affordable to working persons earning 80-120% of the area median income.”

    With new apartments downtown commanding premium rents, the proposal to swap out 130 existing, relatively affordable apartments for 90 or more high-end units might raise some eyebrows.

    Ben Zenitsky, Marketing & Communications Specialist for CML, said that the library had to take many factors into consideration when deciding what to do with the site.

    “Restoring the existing buildings was certainly an option, but we no longer are able to justify retaining ownership of them and would hate to see them fall into disrepair,” he said. “Our primary two goals with this sale and development are to ensure the safety of our customers by incorporating the much-needed ingress/egress routes connecting our garage with Oak Street, and also enhancing and elevating the area around Main Library.”

    “We are working closely with the Columbus Downtown Development Corporation on this process,” added Zenitsky. “They will review each response to the RFQ and make recommendations to us.”

    After a developer for the project is chosen, any specific proposal for the site would have to go before the Downtown Commission for approval.

    For more information, visit www.columbuslibrary.org/about/doing-business.

    library-02

    library-01

    library-03

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Subscribe

    More to Explore:

    11th Annual Urban Living Tour Returns on Sunday, May 5th

    Looking for a new place to live? Want to see what living in the city could be like? The Urban Living Tour is a self-guided open house of apartments, condos, and homes in the Columbus area. You'll see an assortment of new builds, remodels, apartment communities, parks, and all the amenities that go with city living!

    CCAD Wants to Uncover Historic Building, Fill in Parking Lot

    The Columbus College of Art & Design has submitted...

    Intel Gets More Federal Funding for Ohio Production Plants

    Nearly $20 billion in federal grants and loans is on its way to Intel to support work on semiconductor fabs in Ohio and around the country. The funding is part of the CHIPS Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022. Ohio’s New Albany-area Intel facility currently under construction stands to benefit substantially.

    French Bistro Slated for Prominent Downtown Corner

    Another new restaurant is coming to the corner of...

    Updated: Madison County Solar Farm Would Be One of the Largest in U.S.

    UPDATE (3/21/24): The Ohio Power Siting Board voted seven...
    Brent Warren
    Brent Warrenhttps://columbusunderground.com/author/brent-warren
    Brent Warren is a staff reporter for Columbus Underground covering urban development, transportation, city planning, neighborhoods, and other related topics. He grew up in Grandview Heights, lives in the University District and studied City and Regional Planning at OSU.
    ADVERTISEMENT