United States Destinations

Columbus neighbourhoods bridge past and future

By Toni Dabbs

Photos by Toni Dabbs

Mention Columbus, Ohio, and the first thing that might come to mind is the city's world famous - zoo and perhaps zoo director emeritus Jack Hanna being body checked by a baby elephant or nibbled by an excited lemur on one of his numerous television appearances.
True, the zoo is among the city's top attractions. It's one of the better examples of its kind, with 600 wildlife species occupying spacious naturalistic habitats spread throughout a 400-acre park. Perhaps that's why the zoo has such success in breeding endangered species.
But Columbus has more to delight the visitor, much of which may be discovered by exploring the city's neighbourhoods, from heritage to emerging.

A good place to start is German Village, a restored community south of the downtown core, where a large contingent of German immigrants settled between 1840 and 1860. Its more than 1,600 homes and businesses, many sturdy red brick working class cottages, others elegant Queen Anne-style houses, were saved from the wrecker's ball by concerned citizens during the 1960s and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

Today, German Village is one of the most desirable areas in the city - a quiet neighbourhood of tree-lined, brick-paved streets, wrought iron fences, and limestone stoops and mounting blocks, originally used for boarding horse-drawn carriages. Near its southern boundary is pretty Schiller Park, once a community meeting ground for the German settlement and now the site of recreational facilities, gardens and an amphitheatre.

Among the commercial operations in German Village is Schmidt's Restaurant und Sausage Haus, a family business begun by J. Fred Schmidt as a meat processing plant in 1886 and still serving sausages made from his original recipes. The menu is laden with German dishes but also includes some American favourites.

In contrast to German Village is Easton, the most modern neighbourhood in Columbus, located in the northeast quadrant of the city.

"Easton will serve as a bridge to the 21st century, as a place where people can live, work, shop and be entertained within a carefully planned community," says Leslie H. Wexner, chairman and chief executive officer of The Limited Inc. retail empire, who envisioned the area as headquarters for his company and its employees.

Centrepiece of the community is Easton Town Centre, a shopping, dining and entertainment complex that is architecturally appealing rather than intimidatingly futuristic. It might best be described as an idealized village, complete with town square, fanning out from a multi-level central station.

Internationally known retailers such as Abercrombie and Fitch, Ann Taylor, J Crew, Barnes and Noble, and Williams-Sonoma, plus regional specialists such as Buckeye Corner (the Ohio State University logo shop) and Harry London Quality Chocolates attract shoppers from throughout Columbus and beyond.

Dining opportunities also abound, with a standout being the Ocean Club. Its contemporary decor maintains the modern mood of Easton, while its menu mixes coastal specialties, from hamburger-sized crab cakes to Cajun blackened catfish to ginger crusted salmon, with Midwest mainstays such as apple glazed pork chop and roasted chicken breast.

Entertainment also is varied, with one of the most popular spots being GameWorks, a combination restaurant and arcade. It offers more than 200 video/virtual reality games developed by partners Sega Enterprises, Universal Studios Inc. and Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks SKG. The fun ranges from midway style games that reward players with prizes to motion simulating machines such as Water Ski and Top Skater.

In between German Village and Easton, just north of the downtown core, is a district known as the Short North. The Columbus version of New York's SoHo, it's a trendy area of boutiques, art galleries, coffeehouses, restaurants and nightclubs.

Bordering the district, opposite the Greater Columbus Convention Centre, is a unique hotel carved from an 1882 warehouse and appropriately named The Lofts. Its high-ceilinged guestrooms have exposed brick walls, wooden beams and duct work, but they also have chic furnishings, luxurious linens and other creature comforts, resulting in a kind of rough-edged elegance.

A special feature of The Lofts is breakfast delivered a la carte to the guest's door by a neatly uniformed butler. The guest indicates a breakfast time on a card and hangs it on the door before going to bed. The butler arrives at the appointed hour pushing a cart filled with juices, fruit, freshly baked pastries, cereals, yogurt, milk, tea and Seattle's Best coffee. The guest makes a selection, and the butler prepares an in-room tray. It's a system that gives new meaning to room service.

Immediately west of the Short North district, a new neighbourhood is taking shape -- the Arena District, with its focal point being the new Nationwide Arena, home to the National Hockey League expansion team Blue Jackets.

The arena itself, designed as a mixed-use facility, is a beauty, with a glass-enclosed atrium, open lobbies and concourses that allow fans to stay in touch with the action (be it a hockey game or a concert), rather than separating them from it when they leave their seats to visit concessions. It includes spaces for full-time shops and restaurants with street-level access plus a secondary ice rink for Blue Jacket practices and public skating.
The arena's brick exterior blends with the existing circa-1900 architecture of its neighbours, which are mostly office buildings at present. However, plans for the district include upscale apartments, parkland and retail facilities.

One of the first restaurants to open in the new district secured a position beside the main entrance to the arena and already is reaping the rewards. Almost any night, Buca di Beppo is packed to the rafters with diners enjoying its comfortable clutter and its flavourful family-style Italian dishes. It might be hard to think of dessert while carving up a half-pound meatball, but many people still find room for the chocolate cannoli.

Other restaurants, cafes and clubs are expected to find places in the Arena District as it develops, especially along Nationwide Boulevard, the area's signature street, which runs along the south side of the arena and is being repaved in brick.

Information to help plan a visit to Columbus is available from the:
Greater Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau,
90 North High Street, Columbus OH 43215,
phone: 1-800-354-2657 or 1-614-221-6623,
fax: 1-614- 221-5618
web site http://www.columbuscvb.org.

If You Go

Port Columbus International Airport, about a 15-minute drive east of downtown, is served by Air Canada, America West Airlines, American Airlines, Canadian Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines, Southwest Airlines, TWA, United Airlines and US Airways.

Ohio Statehouse, home to the Ohio General Assembly, is situated in the heart of downtown Columbus. A pre-Civil War example of Greek Revival architecture listed on the National Register of historic places, it is one of the oldest capitol buildings in continuous use in the United States. Free hour-long guided tours are offered four times each day. Information phone:

1-888-644-6123 or
1-614-728-2695.

Center of Science and Industry, known as COSI, moved into a new 132,000-square-foot building in November 1999, with former astronaut Kathryn Sullivan at the helm. The facility features "Learning Worlds" Ocean, Adventure, KidSpace, Progress, I/O, Gadgets and Space providing hands-on experiences intended to make science understandable and fun. Information phone:
1-614-228-2674,
web site: http://www.cosi.org.

Wm. Graystone Winery, which produces about a dozen kinds of wine, occupies the restored 1875 Schlee Brewery in an area adjacent to German Village. The tasting room is open from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and a gourmet lunch buffet is available from 11:30 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays.

Information phone:
1-614-228-2332.