$10 million apartment complex near downtown Columbus is almost complete. What to know
One portion of developer Ken Henson’s $10 million apartment complex encompassing nearly an entire uptown city block is nearing completion.
The first building at Henson’s 1516 Uptown, a 74-unit apartment complex between 15th and 16th Streets, is expected to be completed by July, Henson told the Ledger-Enquirer Tuesday. Nine units will be ready by then, and the rest by this fall, he said.
“My office has been across the street for six years, and for six years I’ve looked at this vacant property and nobody was going to do anything with it,” Henson said. “ ... It just seemed like somebody needed to do something with this block. So we came up with a plan, and we just hope the apartments are going to rent.”
Henson has a long history with the block: His mother and grandmother grew up in a home previously located at 1516 Second Avenue — after which the complex is named — in the center of the block.
The home was demolished in the 1970s, Henson said, and the property has been vacant for over 40 years.
Henson started purchasing property on the block in February 2019, including buying the three older homes from Historic Columbus in early 2020.
“As a child, I could remember coming and playing in my grandmother’s yard,” Henson said. “My mother had grown up there. My mother had gone to the 16th Street School, and as some might say, she was a graduate of the 16th Street Elementary School. So, part of that motivated me to try and do something with this property.”
There will be no shortage of potential tenants. TSYS is nearby, along with Downtown Elementary Magnet Academy and Mercer School of Medicine’s upcoming riverfront campus near City Mills.
Henson previously said that he has plans for outdoor amenities such as a grill area and pavilion. The apartments will feature a brick exterior, and the windows will have a “historic” look about them, Henson said Tuesday.
The apartments will have a brick paver on the outside of the building, to give them a more historic look. And the project will include indoor parking, so tenants don’t have to look at a parking lot outside their windows, Henson said.
One of the historic homes could become the leasing office, he said, while the other two would be renovated into more apartment units.
Henson also is overseeing the renovation of three nearby buildings on Second Avenue, just north of the vacant Ralston Towers. He’s adding a mix of apartments and some office space.
Those interested in leasing a unit at 1516 Uptown can call 706-580-5126 or email secondavenue@ram-mgt.com.
This story was originally published March 10, 2021 at 9:56 AM.
