What’s next for Midtown in 2020? Area is ready for transformative year, director says

It’s been 10 years since its inception, but a MidTown Inc. project to beautify Wynnton Road is finally complete.

The nearly $3 million public-private partnership project was a much-needed facelift for the area between Cedar Avenue and 13th Street, and included new sidewalks, street pavement, concrete curb and landscaping.

Now, MidTown Inc., a nonprofit neighborhood revitalization group, has set its sights on improving other corridors in the six square miles that encompass midtown, according to Julio Portillo, the group’s executive director.

After a rainy ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday evening that marked the completion of one private-public partnership, Portillo spoke about the other ways local entities worked together in 2019, and plans he has in 2020 to further the mission of MidTown Inc.

“One big thing that we did this year is we wanted to focus on connecting with our neighborhoods, so...we put out a neighborhood grant program where all of our neighborhood associations, churches, civic groups, could apply for to host programs like Neighborhood Night Out, or a block party, or a front porch party,” Portillo said.

Another success was the organization’s first-ever MidTown GetDown, a free concert hosted at Lakebottom Park that drew over 350 people on a Sunday afternoon, Portillo said.

“There’s a great band shelter there that is underutilized, so it was really nice to see and just a fresh dynamic of all ages, something that was family friendly and very nice,” Portillo said. “We hope to recreate it every year.”

Rebuilding MidTown

2019 was a rebuilding year for the organization, Portillo said. Of the five-member staff, four have been there less than a year and a half, and Portillo himself joined the summer of 2018.

But while the task of finding the right people to continue MidTown’s work was challenging, so far it has paid off. New Development Manager Hallie Fivecoat, who is in charge of fundraising, was crucial in making this year’s MidTown Mingle the biggest ever, Portillo said.

“We had record-breaking ticket sales, attendance and fundraising,” he said. “We had 900-plus people, we’d never had more than 700.”

Also crucial to the group’s success is the MidTown Business Association, headed by part-time coordinator Bitsy Dedwylder. This year the MBA grew to over 120 members and continues to grow, Portillo said.

Popular shopping areas in MidTown include the Cross Country Plaza and Midtown Shopping Center, which this year gained a popular new tenant when Roses Discount Store moved into a portion of the space formerly occupied by Kmart.

Portillo said Dedwylder has worked to get the St. Elmo Shopping Center off Lakebottom Park fully rented. Businesses that opened in the shopping center this year include children’s boutique LumiLane and Park Place Interiors.

“They’re the perfect businesses for Columbus’ most popular park,” Portillo said. “You can go grab a sandwich, great coffee, food from Parker’s Pantry, you can do yoga, shop at LumiLane or Frank Romeo Clothing while your dog is getting groomed, it’s a very cool, unique little place.”

Midtown also saw other openings in 2019 with a new Wingstop in the Cross Country Plaza shopping center, AutoZone in the Midtown Shopping Center and Holistic Health and Healing by 2 Brothers CBD opening on 13th Street.

Promoting art and neighborhood mobility

Something MidTown dipped its toes into this year could become a big part of the group’s outreach soon with a public art program anticipated to launch in 2020.

The success of a commissioned mural on 13th Street in partnership with Artbeat of Columbus this year has MidTown focusing on identifying spots for public art, Portillo said.

Supporting connectivity and mobility within MidTown’s 24 neighborhoods will also continue to be at the forefront of the nonprofit’s efforts in 2020.

“We will continue to look at how we provide safe access to bicyclists, pedestrians, motorists in a way that’s safe, accessible, ADA compliant, and helps redevelop,” Portillo said. “We’re looking to target 13th Street and Linwood Boulevard. Those are two key corridors in midtown that are poised for tremendous potential and growth.”