A new life for historic Coca-Cola bottling factory? Here is what’s proposed.

A structure in uptown with strong historical ties to Columbus could soon get a new life.

Columbus Council approved a request Tuesday to allow developers to convert a former Coca-Cola bottling factory on the southwest corner of 6th Avenue and 12th Street to include apartments, office and warehouse space.

A rezoning from the current light manufacturing and industrial designation to an Uptown zoning will allow the applicants, currently represented by local attorney Ken Henson Jr., to update two vacant buildings on the property, which sit on less than an acre across from Goldens’ Foundry and Machine Co.

The property has been owned by TSYS and used as a warehouse since the 1990s, Henson said during a Feb. 20 Planning Advisory Commission Meeting. He said the original building opened in 1905 and a warehouse was added in the 1920s.

“It’s historic and we hope to get historic tax credits on both structures,” Henson said.

The city’s staff report states that the average annual daily trips on the roadway would increase by 326 trips if approved, though the exact number of units planned has not been announced.

No one spoke for or against the proposed rezoning at the Feb. 20 meeting or at the first reading before the Columbus Council on March 26.

The application received a recommendation of approval from the planning department and a unanimous recommendation of approval from the Planning Advisory Commission.

A second reading was held at the council’s April 9 meeting.

This story was originally published March 27, 2019 at 12:27 PM.