A new proposal calls for a six-story, 68-unit apartment building at 1778 N. High St. in the University District.
The project as initially submitted would require the demolition of two structures – a 100-year-old, three-story brick building that holds a BiBiBop restaurant on its ground floor; and a 20-year-old, single-story building that is home to Bullwinkles nightclub.
Retail space, tenant amenities and a 35-space parking garage would fill out the first floor of the building.
The design of the building may get re-worked, though, after the zoning committee of the University Area Commission requested that the developer consider an approach that would preserve the existing brick building.
Brian Williams, chair of the zoning committee, said that the applicant agreed to table the proposal and come back with changes next month, although the project is still scheduled to be heard by the University Impact District Review Board (UIDRB) on September 24.
That review will be conceptual, meaning that no vote to approve will take place.
The staff report prepared for the UIDRB meeting recommends that “the applicant explore alternative designs that would incorporate an element of preservation for the existing contributing building,” going on to say that “staff would consider support for additional density for the rear portion of the site if the preservation element were to be achieved.”
An LLC called Black Wilshire Ridgely bought the three parcels that make up the site in 2004 for $3.9 million. Zoning documents list Black Equities, a company based in Beverly Hills, California, as the applicant.
For more information, see www.columbus.gov.
