The Walker Evans Effect wrote
The Short North Needs Abercrombie and Fitch
October 9th, 2007
Hear me out before you burn me at the stake.
You know that abandoned Shell gas station at the corner of Fifth and High? It’s quite the eyesore at the north tip of the Short North and with all of the news recently of other developments in that area (Weinland Park Kroger, Garden Church, Jackson on High, etc) something desperately needs done with that old property.
Being that it was the former home of a gas station, I’m sure there’s going to be increased development costs due to environmental cleanup. Enter local large developer with lots of money: Abercrombie and Fitch.
I’d love to see them build a mid-rise tower there. The ground and second floor could contain a new flagship store. Even if you’re not a fan of their clothes, it would be a huge draw for the OSU crowd to the north to venture outside of their comfort zone and see what else the Short North has to offer in the way of retail boutiques. The next couple floors could contain some hip loft-offices for their local design team. Pull fashion design interns from OSU and CCAD and give them a local urban place to work. And above the offices could sit many floors of residential space that A&F could either lease out to the public, or they could provide housing to their own buyers who they bring in from all over the country to live and work in Columbus.
Nationwide has done wonders for downtown Columbus with the development of the Arena District. It’s time for Columbus to court some of the other big local companies (we’ve got tons of them) and get them to make similar types of investments in the urban renewal of our city. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.
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