After a residential renaissance over the past decade, downtown experienced its first population increase since 1950 when 30,000 people lived there, 10TV's Kurt Ludlow reported.

Dozens of new condominium and apartment complexes have been built and more are in the works, totaling 5,000 units.

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"Downtown is everybody's neighborhood," said Mayor Michael Coleman.  "It's the one place where every resident has an ownership interest in - a stake - a vested interest in its success.  It is the economic engine of the region."

Downtown Columbus is officially 968 acres of land and 100,000 people work there.

"There are people that want to live downtown," said Mike DeAscentis of Lifestyle Communities.  "They're convinced it's where they want to be."

DeAscentis developed Lifestyle's Annex at RiverSouth and it is nearly ready to open.  It is a mixed-use neighborhood, anchored by the renovated Lazarus Building to the north and the new county courthouse to the south.

"I see by 2015, more residential units taking shape, especially rental housing in downtown," said Guy Worley, who heads the development corporation and the Capitol South Community Urban Redevelopment Corp.  "I think there is a strong market for rental housing."

Worley said that more people will bring even more development, including stores and businesses.  It is already happening.  In 2002, the vacancy rate for downtown office space was 26 percent.  Now it is just under 15 percent, and that is after an additional 1 million square feet of new space was created, Ludlow reported.

By 2015, Columbus will have a new hotel near the Greater Columbus Convention Center.  New bridges will appear at Main and Rich streets and a series of amazing new parks will be built.

"Great cities have great parks," Coleman said.

According to Coleman, green space is a key to downtown economic development.

"People ask, 'Why do we do parks downtown?'" Coleman said.  "The reality is the spinoff is so dramatic and so huge, it makes a huge difference on what we're trying to accomplish."

Rising from the rubble of City Center will be Columbus Commons.  More than nine acres of green space, including trees, flowers, grass and walking paths will be built, Ludlow reported.

Scioto Mile is a winding riverfront park promenade that stretches from the Arena District to the Whittier Peninsula. 

With the parks and plans to build new parking garages, bicycle lanes and improve mass transit, the experts say downtown Columbus will be rediscovered.

"What I think we'll see is few marquis projects and much more of an organic, incremental response," said Cleve Ricksecker of Capital Crossroads Improvement District.  "In 10 years, large parts of downtown will look more like the Short North, but denser."

The city is holding a series of public meetings to hear public input on downtown.  The first is scheduled for Feb. 16 at Columbus State Community College.

Stay with 10TV News and 10TV.com for continuing Central Ohio 2015 coverage.

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