The Downtown Commission got its first look today at the final piece of the 20-acre development known as The Reach on Goodale.
A one-and-a-half story commercial building has been proposed for a 0.8-acre site at the development’s northern edge. ArchAll’s Brad Parish told the commission that the building would be a little less than 10,000 square feet in size and would likely hold a “destination restaurant and/or retail” tenant.
Plans show a large terrace on the south side of the building that would overlook the outdoor amphitheater the commission approved for the center of the development last month.
“We got good feedback from the market about what wants to be there,” said Parish, who explained that it was market demand that led to a change in plans for the site (in early renderings, plans showed taller buildings with less surface parking).
The building was being presented for conceptual review, meaning it will need to be brought back to a future meeting for final approval. Commissioners were generally fine with the layout of the proposal, but several encouraged the architect to come back with a more dynamic design for the building, due to its visibility and position right at the main entrance to the larger development.
A press release sent out by White Castle and Elford Development announcing plans for the final phase of the project also provided an update on the progress being made on its other elements:
- Adjacent to the recently-opened White Castle headquarters will be a new event space, called The Fives, that is now scheduled to open in the spring.
- Also on track for a spring opening is a portion of the 246-unit apartment complex that occupies most of the western half of the development. Leasing has started for those first units, which are on track to open by April 15.
- Meanwhile, the office building being constructed to the west of the White Castle headquarters is scheduled to open in the fall.
Also presented to the commissioners at today’s meeting was a bike and pedestrian bridge that will span the Olentangy River, providing access to the Arena District and the new Crew stadium from the Olentangy Trail. The design of the bridge was approved, although plans for the surrounding riverfront parkland were not part of the application and will be brought back for approval at a later time.
Brad Westall of the city’s Recreation and Parks Department said that the approval means that his team can now move forward on the project, with the goal of having the new bridge in place in time for the opening of the stadium in July of 2021.
