East Franklinton Neighborhood, Columbus, OH
Creative Community District Plan

In the spring of 2011 at his State of the City address, Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman announced a new initiative, the Creative Community District Plan, to attract the creative class to the neighborhood of East Franklinton as a means of revitalizing this neighborhood near downtown. The planning NEXT team was hired as a part of a multi-disciplinary consulting team to lead the public involvement aspect of the planning process.

Process.

The East Franklinton Creative Community District Plan involved several major components: public engagement to understand the values and interests of the community, as well as the arts community in growing a “creative district”; very detailed market studies to understand fully the residential, retail and office markets and their potential in this district; an urban design approach to ensure that reinvestment occurs in an organic fashion; and an implementation strategy that brings all parties together to jointly move forward on a common vision.

Results.

The East Franklinton Creative Community District plan was adopted in November 2012. It has since received a national award from the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) (2013) and a Planning Excellence Award from the American Planning Association (2014).

Tags

Project Type: neighborhood plan
Community Type: neighborhood, large city
Client: City of Columbus
Services: community outreach and communication, public involvement