The first opportunity for the public to look at the initial designs for the new Commons will be Thursday, March 13, at noon at City Hall. The Commons' design that will be presented is based on input from nearly 3,000 community members that was gathered last spring through surveys (telephone, The Republic's Web site, and at various public events in The Commons) and a series of six public input forums.

Fred Koetter and Bill Fitzpatrick of Koetter Kim & Associates and Steve Risting of CSO Architects will be on hand to share with the community their thoughts on the design of this important public space. An Open House from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. will follow, giving the public an opportunity to ask questions and give their reactions to the initial design.

The Commons' design is the result of a program study developed by CSO after assessing the 3,000 inputs that were gathered last spring through surveys (telephone, The Republic's Web site, and at various public events in The Commons) and a series of six public input forums. Overwhelmingly, survey respondents had an opinion about the need to preserve certain elements of The Commons. The rankings were as follows:

1) Stage and performance space
2) Playground
3) Public activity space
4) Sculpture
5) Museum/Arts Activity Space

According to Tom Vujovich, President of the Columbus Redevelopment Commission, "The committee that has been working with the architects is excited about the preliminary design plans that we have seen. We feel this plan reflects input we received from the community about what is important to them for this civic space, retains what was great about The Commons in the past, and addresses the goal of Vision 20/20 of activating the downtown by bringing more and diverse opportunities for arts, entertainment, education, dining and shopping. These design plans will enable our community to provide an excellent facility for the use of this and future generations."

Other related projects are all being developed privately and are not part of the public Commons project. These include:

1) The Sears block of the Commons Mall, including SIHO and YES Cinema has been separated from the rest of the mall.
2) Demolition has begun to prepare for the Cummins Office Building, Conference and Education Center and the Candlewood Suites Hotel, with construction expected to begin this April.