THE NEW COLUMBUS COMMONS

Come inside the great outdoors.

The Columbus Commons is 9 acres of live, green space located in the heart of Downtown.  Truly, it's more than just green space, you'll find all the colors of the rainbow with seasonal garden displays along with trees and grass and walking paths to explore it all.

Capitol South has a proud tradition of creating spaces that draw people downtown.  The Columbus Commons brings us inside the downtown... to a breathtaking outdoor park. 

The park now stands at the former site of the City Center indoor shopping mall.  Columbus Commons was born when Capitol South began the process of surgically dismantling the mall space in October 2009.  By mid 2010, construction on the park began, with one-third of the site reserved for market-driven development.  The Columbus Commons was substantially complete by the end of 2010, and celebrated its official debut Memorial Day Weekend 2011.

As a new Columbus Commons, a common area for the entire community to enjoy, the park will support the ongoing, market-driven development of a truly walkable Downtown neighborhood that will integrate living spaces with retail office and entertainment opportunities.

FEATURES OF THE NEW PARK

CAFÉ - Locally-owned Burgers Dogs & Fries is more than a pretty-darn-quick option, it’s a pretty-darn-delicious option, too. With plenty of outdoor seating under the shade trees at the south end of Columbus Commons, Burgers Dogs & Fries is the perfect spot for an impromptu al fresco lunch or picnic at the park.

Burgers Dogs & Fries serves burgers made with freshly ground beef from Michael’s Finer Meats, and its customizable hot dogs have fantastical topping options. The extensive menu even includes chicken sandwiches and salads.

Just make sure to save some room for the shakes and floats: they’re made the old-fashioned way, one hand-dipped scoop at a time.

READING ROOM - What can you do at a park? Run, skip, leap, walk, play, frolic, kick up your heels, let down your hair, read...

Read? Yes indeed. The Columbus Commons is home to a very special outdoor reading room. The friendly staff of the Columbus Commons Outdoor Reading Room invite visitors to the southern end of the park to enjoy all the pleasures of a library in the natural setting of Columbus Commons.

Sit at a shady table or chair and enjoy the hundreds of adult and children’s browsing materials -- supplied courtesy the Friends of the Columbus Metropolitan Library. For those who prefer to read online, the Columbus Metropolitan Library also provides free Wi-Fi access in the Reading Room.

And there’s room for more than reading in our reading room...

With children and youth especially in mind, watch the calendar for special events at the reading room. Each Friday, the Columbus Metropolitan Library hosts a Book Mobile visit, and will also provide special programming throughout the summer in conjunction with its summer reading club.

Commons For Kids brings OSU athletes and coaches every Friday for a celebrity story time in partnership with the 2nd & 7 Foundation. Join us for some tall tales and all the fun festivities that follow: magicians, inflatables, music and more!

You’ll go home with memories and fantastic stories of your very own to share.

CAROUSEL - Travel the downtown skyline on a one-of-a-kind ride that takes off and lands right in the heart of the Columbus Commons.

No matter what your age, there’s something deliciously irresistible about a carousel. The Columbus Commons is proud to host a breathtaking carousel at the southern end of the park near the children’s reading room. The park’s carousel is kinetic art in its finest form.

Surrounded by the gorgeous gardens, the carousel’s characters were hand-carved by Ohio artists at Mansfield’s Carousel Works. It offers classic fairytale trips atop a princess horse or frog prince. Or try out the OSU Buckeye horse and chariot... along with a host of other fantastically curious creatures.

All ages are welcome to take the carousel for a spin. Giddy-up, hop on board and play I-Spy –can you spot the Statehouse and COSI? Can you spot the zoo? Yes indeed: the carousel’s rounding boards proudly display images of the very best of Columbus -it’s a whirling city tour in one stop.

GARDENS - The Columbus Commons is home to an ever-changing display of beautiful growing works of art. The twelve spectacular gardens are designed and maintained by Columbus’ very own Franklin Park Conservatory. Just as Columbus is a four-season city, the gardens boast four-season appeal. With a dynamic mix of perennials, shrubs, ornamental grasses, evergreens and annuals, there’s something beautiful to see year-round.

This is a garden with style: boxwoods and yew shrubs tie together different design themes–ranging from symmetrical and traditional to natural and flowing. It’s also a hard-working garden. It hosts plants that feed birds in the winter, attract butterflies in the summer, and complement the park’s features day and night.

PAVILION - Columbus Commons will have a temporary stage for the 2011 Programming Season and the Columbus Bicentennial Pavilion will make its debut in May 2012.

The city of Columbus marks its bicentennial in 2012. The Columbus Bicentennial Pavilion will be the signature capital project for the city’s 200th year of existence and the crowing glory of Columbus Commons. It will bring the entire central Ohio community to the heart of the city for live concerts and entertainment.

The Columbus Bicentennial Pavilion is being designed by FTL, the same firm that designed the Capitol Concert Pavilion in Washington, D.C., the Carlos Moseley Pavilion in Manhattan and the Cirque du Soleil Theater at Disney World. The design for Columbus is exclusive: a one-of-a-kind, frame-supported structure with a 40’ x 60’ stage and state-of-the art lighting, video and sound equipment.

CDDC will begin construction on the Columbus Bicentennial Pavilion in the fall of 2011 and the Pavilion will open by May 2012, in time for the beginning of the annual event season. The project was funded by a public private partnership led by the City of Columbus, American Electric Power and Nationwide Insurance.