Columbus City Council approves $500,000 for safety efforts for Short North, Downtown

Columbus City Council has approved $500,000 for additional safety measures for Downtown and the Short North, the latter of which saw more violence for the second weekend in a row when a 21-year-old man was shot and killed early Sunday.

The city Department of Public Safety will work with Columbus police and neighborhood business groups, the Short North Alliance and Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District to develop plans to spend the money to thwart crime and boost safety in the destination Columbus business districts.

The Dispatch had left a message to speak with Betsy Pandora, executive director of the Short North Alliance, a nonprofit organization which advocates for business and property owners in the arts district. Instead, the alliance issued a prepared statement.

"The safety of those who live, work, and visit the Short North remains our top priority, and we are actively committed to partnering with elected leaders, CPD, businesses, residents, and other community stakeholders to implement necessary changes that will reduce gun violence throughout Columbus," the alliance said in the email Monday afternoon.

Marc Conte, executive director of the Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District, which covers part of Downtown, said the money will go toward more special duty officers, including some during the day, plus additional training for the group's security operations and private security with an eye toward de-escalation.

Council member Emmanuel Remy, who chairs council's public safety committee, said city officials plan to meet with Short North Alliance officials and business owners on Tuesday about other steps they can take.

Questioned whether some businesses could be asked to reduce their hours, Remy replied: "Everything is on the table. I can't imagine it not coming up."

The money from City Council comes as the popular area has been hit by violence over the past two weekends.

Around 2:45 a.m. on Sunday, Columbus police responded to a fight in the 900 block of North High Street near the SeeSaw Kitchen + Bar and a United Dairy Farmers convenience store.

Officers found Arthur Pickens, 21, with a gunshot wound. Pickens was taken to OSU Wexner Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 3:07 a.m. The shooting is under investigation.

That incident follows what Columbus police Chief Elaine Bryant described as an "explosion of gunfire" in the early morning hours of May 6 during two separate incidents in the Short North that left at least 10 people wounded and resulted in the recovery of 11 guns.

Officers arrived about 2:30 a.m. May 6 after reports of gunfire. After getting to the scene, they heard more gunshots a few blocks north.

Officers there tired to break up an argument in front of the UDF store at 849 N. High St. when gunfire broke out again. According to police bodycam footage, two officers ran toward the gunfire, with officers firing.

The 10 known shooting victims range in age from 18 to 27. As is Columbus city policy, the officer-involved shooting is under investigation by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.

The City Council also approved $13.9 million for a contract with Complete General Construction of Columbus to convert North Front Street from West Broad Street north to Hickory Street and Marconi Boulevard from Spring Street south to West Broad Street from one-way to two-way.

The conversion will help slow traffic and make it safer for others, such as transit and scooter riders, said Council member Lourdes Barroso de Padilla, who leads council's public service and transportation committee.

The work is expected to begin by the end of May and be finished by fall 2024, said Rory McGuiness, deputy public service director.

McGuiness said that converting the streets to two-way also will make the street compatible with South Front Street and Civic Center Drive south of Marconi, both of which are now two-way.

The new strategic plan for Downtown envisions more two-way streets with the goal of making it more friendly to pedestrians and bicyclists, including  plans for protected bicycle lanes on 4th Street and Broad Street.

Complete General was the lowest of three bidders on the project, which includes new traffic signals, granite curbs, sidewalks, street and pedestrian lighting, improved pedestrian crossings, and landscaping.

City Council also:

∙ Approved spending $4 million for a contract with Danbert Electric to replace traffic signals along Summit Street from East 7th Avenue in Weinland Park to Warren Street in Italian Village. The work also includes new curb ramps and sidewalks, curb extensions, new storm sewers, water line and hydrant work, new signs and striping, and street resurfacing.

∙ Approved allocating $429,500 each to the Columbus Urban League and Community for New Direction for programs to reduce youth violence, particularly among teens who are more and more involved in gun violence, felony vehicle thefts that lead to police chases and more. The program includes direct intervention and other anti-violence programs. In 2022, the two groups received a total of $1.7 million for the programs. The city funded those programs and other youth efforts then mostly with money from federal COVID-19 dollars.

Before the meeting, the group Building Responsibility, Equality and Dignity (BREAD) met outside City Hall to continue pressure on city leaders to spend money from the remaining $70.5 million they have in federal American Rescue Plan funding on affordable housing.

The Rev. Charles Leister, pastor of New Beginning Christian Center and a BREAD member, said more housing needs to be built for people earning less than $30,000 a year.

mferench@dispatch.com

@MarkFerenchik

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus City Council targets money for Short North safety efforts