So apparently Dispatch readers have some thoughts about Columbus' identity.

The Dispatch received 48 responses to its question as to what the city's identity should be, with some saying it shouldn't' be limited to one concept.

"Welcoming, accepting, enthusiastic, cooperative and kind," wrote Sandy Woyach, 73, of the Northwest Side in an email.

"I think we should embrace the dynamic and diversified nature of the city," wrote Kelly Clark, an Akron native and a 16-year resident of German Village. "We have a wonderful community that is made up of populations from all over the state, country and globe. We have magnificent neighborhoods (Grandview, Clintonville, German Village, Short North) and vibrant and growing suburbs in Upper Arlington, Dublin, Powell, New Albany, Pickerington and Westerville."

One respondent who didn't give a name wrote: "A city’s 'identity' can never be determined by a newspaper poll, city leaders, or public relations consultant. Anyone will see through artificial branding efforts ('The Discovery City!') as laughable window dressing. A true identity must grow genuinely from that city’s history, geography, and the experience of people living there."

Another anonymous respondent wrote: "Land of 10,000 Six Story Red Brick Apartment Buildings with Vacant Ground Floor Retail."

Meanwhile, there were 311 responses to the question: "What do you think of when you think of Columbus?"

● Ohio State athletics/academics: 36.33% (113 votes)

● A welcoming Midwest city: 27.97% (87)

● Something else: 24.12% (75)

● Ohio capital/Statehouse: 7.07% (22)

● Banking/insurance hub: 2.25% (7)

● Pro sports -- Blue Jackets, Crew, Clippers: 1.29% (4)

● Columbus Zoo: 0.96% (3)

Lee Schott grew up in the Mount Vernon area in Knox County but now lives near New Albany.

He wrote, "Centering the Columbus identity around one specific entity, organization, or affinity is an impossible challenge as people come and stay in Columbus for an infinite number of reasons, often more than one, but a common theme I feel from those who love it here is that, for each person's own reasons, everyone is happy to be here."

In an interview, Schott, 36, said he remembers that while growing up he came to Columbus for Crew games and concerts. Now with his wife and two kids it's about Metro Parks and the Columbus Zoo.

"It’s a hard thing to pin down for this reason. I don’t feel it should have an external singular focus," Schott said.

"People have roots here too. The city will grow with you as you enter different phases. There's a community for you," he said.

Pat Hughes of Clintonville is worried about that feeling of community. Hughes wrote that Columbus is "the city that tears down any building(s) of historical significance/character (i.e. Union Station)!" He also wrote that the city overdevelops and gentrifies any neighborhood -- mentioning the Short North -- that might have given Columbus an identity.

"I guess it's fine to identify Columbus as 'The home of the Buckeyes,' but sadly, in a city (this) size, Columbus should have a broader pallet than Ohio State University to define its IDENTITY!" he wrote.

In an interview, Hughes, who grew up in Toronto in eastern Ohio and and has lived in Columbus for five decades, said he fears unique areas such as Clintonville, Upper Arlington and Grandview Heights will lose something because of cookie-cutter apartment buildings.

Hope Seel grew up in Mount Sterling in Pickaway County. She lives in southern Delaware County near Westerville.

Seel, now 88, said she used to work as an office manager for an architectural company.

"It’s always felt like home to me," Seel said. Home is what should be emphasized, she said.

"Home is a feeling. A feeling of safety and security and neighborliness and people helping other people," Seel said.

She said the Somali community, the nation's second-largest behind the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, has found a home here. People outside Columbus don't realize how diverse it's become. "It used to be Italians and Irish and Germans," she said.

"Now it isn’t. It’s broader, and it’s like enveloped the world."

Clark, the German Village resident, said when business associates visit from places such as New York or Seattle, they are surprised what they find here."They come here and their first comment is, 'I had no idea.' I think that's great," said Clark, 56.

Doug McIntyre, CEO of Columbus-based Cult Marketing, has been involved in tourism campaigns for the state of Ohio, and has talked to many about Columbus.

"I know I always ask people, 'What do you think of it?' 'It's better than I thought.' Not a good brand," said McIntyre, a Rhode Island native who lives in the Arena District.

He said both Columbus and Ohio residents have an inferiority complex. McIntyre wonders if the city could focus on art, suggesting more public art along the Scioto River Downtown, mentioning the 229-foot-long blue and red cloudlike fiber sculpture that will be suspended over North High and Gay streets Downtown in June.

"Give people a reason to come down, walk around," he said.

Because he's a marketing guy, McIntyre does think branding is important, citing Nashville and Austin, which hitched themselves to music.

"If you don't have one, someone's going to fill it in," he said.

Scott Woods is a local writer who recently penned a column in response to the Dispatch's identity story, writing: "As cities go, you are how you treat the least of your citizens."

He was referring specifically to the April 15 death of Kevin Smith, a 60-year-old man without a home but with a law degree who was shot while sleeping in a South Side garage.

Woods, an East Side resident who has lived in Columbus his entire life, said in an interview that there's a war between the aspirational identity of what the city wants and the identity that it earns.

"I think Columbus has the resources to fashion its identity however it wants. We simply don’t have the vision and leadership to make it different from what we're seeing right now," Woods, 52, said, with the city too beholden to commerce and development and capitalism. More resources needs to go to the homeless crisis, to education, to social services, he said.

"I think you could cut the business campaign in half and have plenty to serve that class and enough to move the needle on quality of life issues," he said.

mferench@dispatch.com

@MarkFerenchik

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: What is Columbus' identity? Dispatch readers have a say