Columbus, how it grew and the misunderstandings (Grove City, Green: live, suburbs)

[The Cactus Leaguer]

The fossil fuel/sprawl argument is pointless on several fronts:

1. Nobody really knows what will happen. Yes the scientific evidence indicates global warming and dwindling fossil fuel supplies in the future, but nobody knows what innovation, new scientific discoveries, and other forces of nature will bring.

2. People will not go backwards. Expecting several generations of automobile-centric Americans to just gleefully give up their cars and start walking, biking, and riding mass transit everywhere is pure fantasy (especially when the infrastructure for alternative transit is tiny by comparison). If oil disappeared tomorrow you can bet that there would be a wave of entrepreneurs building an even more efficient transportation system (perhaps based on more technology and electric powered cars from a nuclear power-dependent grid, or something even more innovative).

re: sprawl - Like I said before, I am a huge fan of transit-oriented development (TOD) and I live in such a development with a 2400 sq ft house, ample greenspace, and all of the accessible amenities that happen when you have a critical mass of people (shops, businesses, entertainment, etc.). At the same time, TOD is not for everyone, and it needs to be designed in such a way that it is a BETTER OPTION for people compared to living 5 miles from a grocery store and 20 miles from your job. It takes a generation of design and foresight to make this happen.

re: fossil fuels - in order to truly be effective, the debate needs to shift from global warming to energy security. We can disagree about whether the planet is about to melt, but we can agree that it is suicidal to plan your economy in a way that you are dependent on 3rd world crackpots for your survival.

[columbuswatcher27]

Its sad that people have to bash our city... We have some great places here... Try Park Street for instance... The combination of Sugar and Park Street... One of the best in this state...

[Pumpkin Eater]

Originally Posted by YoungKevCash

this is an aside to the current discussion, but can anyone tell me why there are a bunch of "townships" around Columbus that are these oddly placed, non-contiguous pieces? I tried looking at a map of Franklin County to try and find where i used to live in Columbus it was close to impossible.

A township is simply a smaller unit of government operating within a county. A county is typically divided into several townships; and said townships exists both inside and outside city limits. It's really just a sub-division of a county.

[columbuswatcher27]

Sugar and Park Street are the place to be this weekend... Thursday Brody Jenner at Sugar... Friday and Saturday Arnold Classic and UFC at Park Street...

[000000]

Originally Posted by columbuswatcher27

Sugar and Park Street are the place to be this weekend... Thursday Brody Jenner at Sugar... Friday and Saturday Arnold Classic and UFC at Park Street...

you are the only person who cares about brody jenner. all three of your posts are about brody jenner. you are an advertisement, and a poor one at that.

[ohioaninsc]

Originally Posted by VideoEngineerAJS

And for the most part all of those great systems of public transit are the ones that are in need of bailout money right now because nobody in those cities feels the need to take public transit. NYC and perhaps Boston (although that's a stretch because Boston's really not that difficult to maneuver around either) are really the only cities that actually benefit from a train system.

Actually, Charlotte's first light rail line has been a huge success...it's been getting ridership #s that they didn't think it would get until 2020....ous system is askig for Federal money to help fund the building of the next line much quicker. Now, the bus system here sucks....an aside about suburban sprawl here,there is no doubt it's bad, not as bad as places in FL or the Phoenix area but it is bad, and the loop will make it worse. But, when Charlotte began planning and building the Light Rail system here, and got the people to vote a sale tax increase to help fund it, the density wasn't here for it, but they knew if it would be built, the density would follow...now, along our first line, through Southend, there is a quite a lot of TOD type development that has already opened and is under construction and more is planned....so, if you ask me, they could very easily start planning a light rail system...once the plan is in place and building begins, you 'd see a TOD development come in...I know I can't wait to move into a condo that I am buying along are Lightrail line this summer....it will be so nice not to have to drive everywhere....I think it would do wonders to help slow down the sprawl in Columbus...plus, I never understood why there has never been a street car or a Rapid Busline (Like Cleveland's Euclid Ave line) connecting Campus to DT and the Brewery District.

[1watertiger]

columbus should already have a bus-rapid or streetcar link between its downtown and osu campus. almost 60 million people rode clevelands transit system in 2007 including its light and heavy rail rapid lines.( new bus-rapid health line was not open yet). although, columbus should fix its poor bus system first.

[Clevelander17]

Originally Posted by Pumpkin Eater

A township is simply a smaller unit of government operating within a county. A county is typically divided into several townships; and said townships exists both inside and outside city limits. It's really just a sub-division of a county.

I think he was asking why certain townships in Franklin County seem to be disconnected and oddly-shaped. The answer is, of course, because of the aggressive annexation that Columbus has engaged in over the past three or four decades. It's why Columbus itself looks like a spider (missing a few legs). Because of this annexation, the map of Franklin County has to be one of the strangest and most confusing of any large county in the United States. It's a complete mess and I oftentimes find myself wondering how the city provides services, especially in making sure its workers know which streets and blocks are part of the city, and which are part of another city or township.

[swithers]

I grew up in Ohio and lived in Columbus for most of my 20's. I moved to the Bay Area five years ago and I've become increasingly annoyed by the perception of Columbus as a backwards cow town. It's actually quite livable with friendly and funny people who also voted for Obama. It's a place with stable and steady economic growth and low housing costs. When I lived there I wanted to leave because I thought someplace, anyplace else would be better. It's good to move away and branch out, but in retrospect Columbus wasn't such a bad place. I don't miss the football mania, but as I'm surrounded by midwestern transplants in San Francisco who chose to think that they've somehow bettered themselves because they now pay 2k for a 2 bedroom place I have to laugh. My friends back in Ohio know about raw foods and carbon footprints... it's 2009, there's this thing called the internet. Anyone who thinks Columbus is a dying city full of simple folk is the worst kind of simpleton-- a pretentious one with an ugly hipster haircut.

[NorthPoleMarathoner]

Originally Posted by swithers

I grew up in Ohio and lived in Columbus for most of my 20's. I moved to the Bay Area five years ago and I've become increasingly annoyed by the perception of Columbus as a backwards cow town. It's actually quite livable with friendly and funny people who also voted for Obama. It's a place with stable and steady economic growth and low housing costs. When I lived there I wanted to leave because I thought someplace, anyplace else would be better. It's good to move away and branch out, but in retrospect Columbus wasn't such a bad place. I don't miss the football mania, but as I'm surrounded by midwestern transplants in San Francisco who chose to think that they've somehow bettered themselves because they now pay 2k for a 2 bedroom place I have to laugh. My friends back in Ohio know about raw foods and carbon footprints... it's 2009, there's this thing called the internet. Anyone who thinks Columbus is a dying city full of simple folk is the worst kind of simpleton-- a pretentious one with an ugly hipster haircut.

That's strange. I have lived in both Columbus and the Bay Area.

Ask me, and I would say San Francisco, and most of California, are the ones that are simpletons and are backwards. Probably the most backwards state in the country.

Although the perception of Columbus, and Ohio in general, is a little silly.