By Tracy Turner
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The newest store on N. High Street near the Short North has an entrance just off the sidewalk, big windows and retro signs befitting the neighborhood of art galleries, specialty shops and coffeehouses.
Oh, and it's a Kroger.
The store, which opens to the public Tuesday, was designed not only to sell area residents milk and bread but to serve visually and commercially as a bridge between the expanding development that is starting to link the Short North and the Ohio State University campus area.
For Kroger, it's the first time in central Ohio that the company has used such a design - one that extends the building up to the sidewalk. There's no yawning parking to interrupt the flow between buildings along High Street; instead, the main entrance and parking can be found facing 7th Avenue.
The goal of the new design, and the zoning requirements that inspired it, is to not only create business continuity down N. High Street but to ensure that the area's urban atmosphere remains intact, said Dick Makley, a planning manager for the city of Columbus.
This ensures that new businesses on N. High Street have storefronts that are real storefronts instead of brick walls, he said, "so you don't end up with a City Center mall effect, where there is no visible retail presence on the street, where you have to (physically) go inside the store to actually see anything."
"Having the buildings street-level allows for a more pleasant walking area and allows more easy access to the building on foot," Makley said.
All new commercial buildings along a stretch of N. High Street must incorporate a streetscape design because of the revised Urban Commercial Zoning Overlay the city began requiring in 2002, he said. The rules require that new commercial buildings sit right on the sidewalk and that 60 percent of the storefront of the building be windows.
Kroger joins a growing list of companies that recently have built new stores close to N. High Street, such as Taco Bell, Donatos, Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar, CVS, Turkey Hill Minit Market and Giant Eagle's GetGo fuel stations.
New urbanism is the charge leading this trend, said Dan Stanek, executive vice president of Big Red Rooster, a Columbus-based retail innovation and design firm.
While compact, street-front development is common in big cities such as New York and Boston or in Europe, it's also a trend catching on more broadly as there's more desire to have stores and neighborhoods more integrated, he said.
Even big-box retailers in some cities are shrinking their size in an attempt to fit in.
"It's a combination of more younger people who prefer to live in an urban environment and the boomer market that is finding it more appealing to live in a condo or urban setting," Stanek said. "I think you'll see more of this urban trend because stores are going where the people are moving."
Kroger's new store, 1350 N. High St., attempts to appeal to the diverse clientele: OSU students, more-affluent shoppers from the Short North and moderate-income residents in neighborhoods to the east.
The store will offer a professional chef, an in-store bistro with seating, a sushi bar and expanded prepared-food offerings.
Customers will be able to look into the store's bistro area, which has a salad bar, large produce section and floral department, from on the sidewalk, spokeswoman Beth Wilkin said.
"It's the only store in our Columbus division like that and is something we'd look at doing in the future if the situation warranted," Wilkin said.
The 60,000-square-foot store is twice the size of the store it is replacing , which was demolished last month. Wilkin said Kroger held focus groups to determine what the community wanted for the area between the Short North and OSU.
"We see ourselves as the bridge between the two neighborhoods," Wilkin said.
So does Campus Partners, developer of the South Campus Gateway project just up the road, spokeswoman Erin Prosser said. She said Kroger's efforts are a significant investment that will help spur other private investment along that stretch of N. High Street.
"High Street is such a strong spine of the city and that connection between the two neighborhoods is beneficial for everyone," Prosser said.
Michael Wilkos couldn't agree more. He is a senior grants officer at the Columbus Foundation and resident of the Weinland Park neighborhood, which is one of the neighborhoods the new store serves.
Wilkos, who also sits on the Weinland Park Collaborative, a group that is working to rebuild the neighborhood, said the store is a "tremendous improvement for the neighborhood."
"It supports the pedestrian and transit focus of the neighborhood," he said, noting that half of the people in the neighborhood don't have access to a car.
"Kroger understands the diverse people in the neighborhood," Wilkos said. "From students to families, those with high incomes, middle incomes and low incomes, the store's design understands that mix and works to meet all those needs."
Short North businesses also are happy with the new design, said Diesha Condon, senior director of the Short North Business Association.
Attention to detail - right down to the color of the brick used to build the store - is just one reason why the store is key in generating new business to the area, she said.
"They were thoughtful and careful to make sure the building kept that historic look," Condon said. "We're very thankful that Kroger invested in our neighborhood and are excited about this being a big step in bridging the gap between the business districts."
Kroger's new store at 1350 N. High St. is designed to appeal to the store's diverse clientele: Ohio State University students, more-affluent shoppers coming from the Short North and more moderate-income residents in nearby neighborhoods. Some of its features:
• Eat-in options, including a salad bar, soup bar, beverage center and sandwich station
• In-store seating and dining
area with Wi-Fi
• BuckID, OSU's identification and debit card, can be used to make purchases
• Specialty products are offered, including sushi, bulk natural foods and organic items
• Expanded selections of food, produce and baby items
Source: Kroger
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