Creekside Gahanna, more formally called Gahanna-Creekside, is a

mixed-use development Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to some ...

located in downtown

Gahanna Gahanna ( ) is a city situated in northeast Franklin County, Ohio, United States. It is a suburb of Columbus. The population was 35,726 at the 2020 census. It was founded in 1849. History Gahanna was founded along the Big Walnut Creek in 184 ...

, Ohio (also known as Olde Gahanna).

About

Creekside Gahanna encompasses of property along Gahanna's

Big Walnut Creek Big Walnut Creek starts near Mount Gilead, Ohio in Morrow County. It flows south to eastern Delaware County and parallels Alum Creek. It passes to the east of Sunbury and into Hoover Reservoir, which then crosses into Franklin County. From ...

. The development features 71 luxury condominiums, of commercial space in three separate buildings, and amenities designed to incorporate the area's natural landscape. Current retail businesses include Nostalgia Brewing Company,

Cold Stone Creamery Cold Stone Creamery is an American international ice cream parlor chain. Headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, the company is owned and operated by Kahala Brands. The company's main product is premium ice cream made with approximately 12–14% bu ...

, and Local Cantina, Barrel and Boar, Creekside Conference and Event Center, Golden Nail and Salon, and others. Other significant business tenants include, Bird-Houk Collaborative, C-Suites Executive Offices, Fourth Floor Interactive, Gahanna Area Chamber of Commerce, and the Metropolitan Emergency Communications Center, a 911 dispatch center which handles fire and EMS requests for Gahanna and other portions of eastern Franklin County as well as part of Fairfield County.

History

In 2003, the city of Gahanna issued a request for proposals (RFP) for the redevelopment of a large tract of city-owned land in the center of Mill Street's north-south span. The RFP required the developer was to accommodate vehicles with ample parking without detracting from the evolving urban and pedestrian atmosphere in the area. The city’s request also emphasized its desire for a true mixed-use development, with all uses taking advantage of views of the adjacent Big Walnut Creek. The Stonehenge Company, then of New Albany, Ohio and later of Gahanna, partnered with the professional architecture and planning firm Bird-Houk Collaborative to propose a multi-story development with first-floor retail facing Mill Street and what would become Creekside Park. Upper levels would contain office space and residential condominium units. Public parking would be hidden in an underground garage with parking for the condominium residents provided inside the “wraparound” residential building. Approximately 389 new public parking spaces would be created. The city expressed its initial commitment to the broad concept, selected Stonehenge as the developer, and then entered more than 18 months of discussions with Stonehenge and the Community Improvement Corporation. The process involved the public in a series of public forums for the project and passed through several city boards and commissions. Groundbreaking occurred began in May 2005 and the development celebrated its official grand opening on May 1, 2008. The Creekside development project was forced into foreclosure in early 2011 when Huntington Bank filed a suit against Stonehenge and its project owner affiliate, claiming that they defaulted on over $30 million in loans. Approximately one year later, the Creekside development was purchased by Michigan-based Strathmore Development Company for $10.5 million.

Construction timeline

;Spring 2005 *Demolition of existing structures ;Summer 2005 *Site Excavation (Completed October 2005) *Construction of underground garage ;Fall 2005 *Construction of garage cap ;Winter 2005 *Completion of architectural & engineering plans *Construction of buildings shells ;Spring 2006 *Construction of above ground garage ;Winter 2006 *Construction of Creekside Park *Construction of public plazas ;Winter 2007 *Project completion ;Spring 2008 *Grand opening ;Spring 2011 *Property into receivership ;Summer 2012 *Project out of receivership and sold

Creekside facts

* According to city officials, the Creekside revitalization project was inspired by the

San Antonio River Walk The San Antonio River Walk is a city park and special-case pedestrian street in San Antonio, Texas, one level down from the automobile street. The River Walk winds and loops under bridges as two parallel sidewalks lined with restaurants and shop ...

project. * The development features an elaborate water wall, a lagoon supported by imported natural limestone, two waterfalls, a performance stage, and public plazas and parks. * The natural stone wall in the center of the development uses large pieces of natural limestone to create walls defining the public plazas of the project. Each stone—weighing between 15,000 and 32,000 pounds—was shaped by hand on-site in order to create an interlocking wall system holding the natural earth below the upper plazas and accentuating the elevation variations of the project site. The walls use more than one million pounds of limestone from throughout

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, and

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

. * Creekside won the 2007 National Showcase Award from the Council of Development Finance Agencies recognizing the national best

Tax increment financing Tax increment financing (TIF) is a public financing method that is used as a subsidy for redevelopment, infrastructure, and other community-improvement projects in many countries, including the United States. The original intent of a TIF program is ...

program. Finalists included the City of Gahanna, City of

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

, City of

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Gahanna TIFs rank tops among community financing tools in U.S.
Columbus Business First.Retrieved on 2008-06-11. * Creekside is currently host to the

Glenna Goodacre Glenna Maxey Goodacre (August 28, 1939 – April 13, 2020) was an American sculptor, best known for having designed the obverse of the Sacagawea dollar that entered circulation in the US in 2000, and the Vietnam Women's Memorial in Washington, ...

sculpture “Basket Dance.”

References

External links